Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn

Anoushka Shankar released Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn in 2024. The album blends sitar with electronic and ambient sounds across six original tracks. It explores themes of transformation and

Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn is a studio album by Indian sitarist and composer Anoushka Shankar. The album was released on April 5, 2024. It serves as the second installment in a thematic series, following her earlier work Chapter I: Forever, For Always, For Now (2023). The release comprises six original compositions, blending Indian classical music with contemporary electronic and ambient influences.

Anoushka Shankar composed and performed all tracks on the album. The production incorporates sitar as the primary instrument, supplemented by electronic textures, orchestral arrangements, and percussion. The album was recorded at multiple studios, including Shankar’s personal studio in London and additional facilities in India and the United States. The mixing and mastering processes were overseen by engineers with prior collaborations in both Indian classical and experimental music genres.

The tracklist includes Pacifica, Offering, What Dreams Are Made Of, In the End, Below the Surface, and New Dawn. Pacifica opens the album with a meditative sitar motif layered over synthesized soundscapes. Offering features a call-and-response structure between the sitar and a string ensemble. What Dreams Are Made Of integrates rhythmic patterns derived from traditional Indian tala cycles with electronic beats. In the End shifts to a slower tempo, emphasizing melodic improvisation. Below the Surface incorporates field recordings and ambient sound design, while New Dawn closes the album with a resolution of earlier themes.

The album does not list a specific record label. The release format includes digital streaming platforms and physical media, though details on physical distribution remain unconfirmed. The cover art, designed by a visual artist associated with Shankar’s previous projects, reflects the album’s thematic exploration of transition and renewal.

Anoushka Shankar has described the album as a reflection on personal and collective transformation. The title How Dark It Is Before Dawn references the metaphorical journey from struggle to hope, a concept Shankar has explored in her earlier compositions. The album continues her practice of merging classical raga structures with modern production techniques.