LUX TERMINUS’s VIKRAM SHANKAR – “The Keyboard Has An Absolutely Incredible Ability To Tell Stories And Be Evocative”

What truly is progressive music? Each month BraveWords will aim to dissect that answer with a thorough overview of the current musical climate that is the prog world. Old and new, borrowed and blue. A musical community without borders. So watch for a steady and spaced-out array of features, current news and a buyer’s guide checklist to enhance the forward-thinking musical mind. So, welcome to BraveWords’ monthly column appropriately titled, Between A Rock In A Prog Place.

In this month’s column, Lux Terminus keyboardist Vikram Shankar discusses the group’s new LP, Cinder, as well as songwriting and the role of keys and synths in prog music.

How does Cinder compare to the debut album?

Much has changed since the debut album – largely a result of the fact that The Courage to Be was written so long ago, at a time when we were still finding ourselves as artists. Cinder develops our sound in many directions, in particular being more cinematic, electronic, and heavier. In a sense it is also a more focused record, with a particular emphasis on linear storytelling and musical narrative. The emotional core of the music is of paramount importance and while the sonic palette of the band has expanded, that has remained a crucial defining characteristic of what we strive for.

Why was there seven years between albums?

The band was quiet for many years, but I was not – I released three records with Silent Skies, toured with Pain of Salvation, and worked on a lot of other projects, including the scores for several video games (most notably Warhammer 40K: Space Marine II and the upcoming Jurassic Park: Survival). So I promise I wasn’t simply being lazy! The truth of the matter is that I have extremely high standards for myself and for the band, and we were constantly pushing ourselves to make the new songs as strong as possible. The process of writing, recording, and arranging was a lengthy iterative (and exhaustive) process. To be honest, the album is stronger for the delay – there are many sonic elements that are the result of so many years spent refining and learning about our craft.

Which songs are your favorite on Cinder?

I feel extremely close to a lot of the music on the album, as writing music for me is extremely personal and introspective, and even the most technical songs are intended to be honest portrayals of a core facet of my artistic personality. If I was to single out a favorite, the ‘Jupiter’ suite that opens the record is one of my favorite pieces of music I have ever written. Conceptually, it explores the unpredictable twists and turns of life’s journey – how, much like gravitational forces shifting the paths of objects in space, our own trajectories are often shaped by the subtle yet profound influences of the people we encounter and the experiences we go through. The presence of Espera (best known for touring with Sleep Token) is a highlight for me, as I feel their vocal contributions are utterly sublime and special.

Which songs of Lux Terminus are the most challenging to play?

The challenge of playing Lux Terminus music has evolved over the years. Earlier music relied more on stamina and technical bravado, and had a lot more solo sections (some of which were more improvisatory), which of course provides some element of challenge. Cinder’s challenges are different – the album is more deliberately and intricately constructed, so the challenge comes more in terms of executing the densely layered and detailed music live. I would say that on the technical side, ‘The Devil’s Eyes’ from the new album and ‘Electrocommunion’ and ‘Effusion’ from the first album are some of our most difficult pieces to execute!

Memories of composing the song “Catalyst”?

“Catalyst” is a special song in many ways for us, not least of which due to the presence of our three guests, Ross Jennings (Haken), Jørgen Munkeby (Shining), and Jon Pyres (Threads of Fate, Crimson Glory). All three are artists whose work we love, and whom we are honored to consider friends. Writing a song with vocals on an instrumental record presents a unique challenge, actually. I am comfortable writing music with vocals, as I do it a lot with other projects, but with Lux Terminus it’s very important to me that the identity of the band stays strong and not be compromised, even when guests are added. The danger tends to become a situation where the presence of vocals amplifies the absence of vocals on other tracks! So the process of writing both music and vocals for such a song has to be done quite deliberately. The key to the song ended up being the lyrical narrative – it justifies radical twists and turns in aesthetic and stylistic content, as well as the presence of two singers. The song deals with the complexities of mental health, highlighting the struggle with inner demons and the fight to overcome darkness, and the two vocalists play ‘internal characters,’ the proverbial angel and devil on the shoulders. The song reflects the challenge of holding onto hope during the toughest times, and so musical darkness gives way to light as the emotional thrust of the lyrics shifts as well. Putting this one together was a tremendous yet rewarding challenge!

How does the songwriting work in the band?

The songwriting has shifted from a more collaborative to a more personal workflow, with the songs originating as exhaustively formed demos on my end before they are ever sent to the rest of the guys. In this process, I tend to view songwriting, recording, and producing as part of the same process, and so reflections on song structure and melodies live alongside tracking parts as polished as possible, and working on sound design and texture. The rhythm section is recorded to mostly final keyboards, which allows the guys to be reactive to the keyboards in a way that would not happen if we worked the traditional way, recording the rhythm section as “bed tracks” before doing final keyboards and orchestrations. While I’m the primary songwriter in the band, I encourage and welcome creativity and interpretation from the band, and it’s become something I really value – in my view, it elevates the music and gives it a personality beyond a mere vanity project.

Would you ever consider adding vocals permanently to the band?

While I generally tend to never say never when it comes to rules and restrictions, I can comfortably say that we would not add permanent full-time vocals to Lux Terminus. The reason is that the nucleus of our music, as an instrumental trio driven by keyboards, feels very much like the core of our identity, one that we find extremely fulfilling. Creatively speaking, it is a lot of fun to work within these particular parameters and find unconventional solutions to songwriting challenges. That being said, I absolutely adore vocalists, and the human voice is very special to me, so having more guest vocalists feels inevitable for the future…

Who are some of your all-time favorite prog keyboardists?

I have a tremendous amount of influences, and to be honest a lot of them come from outside the world of progressive keyboardists. However there are of course certain players who have had a significant impact on me within the scene. As a younger listener, Emerson Lake & Palmer captivated me early – it was Keith Emerson’s playing that emboldened me to many years later consider making progressive music with keyboards at center stage instead of guitars. Jordan Rudess has been an inspiration of mine for many years, not just because of his formidable technical prowess but more importantly because of his genuine love for music – his relationship with the joy of playing is a very special one. Richard Barbieri’s approach to sound design and texture has been quite influential to me over the years as well. Lastly, I can cite Jan Hammer as perhaps the only synth player who has actually meaningfully inspired me in terms of lead synth work, as I tend to generally be more inspired by guitar players and saxophonists when it comes to soloing! But Jan’s bends and memorable phrasing has always stuck with me since I first discovered his work as a teenager.

How crucial is keyboards to prog rock?

I wouldn’t necessarily say anything is crucial to prog rock, aside from perhaps the fact that some form of drums or percussion is fairly important to any rock music being considered rock music! I certainly have heard a lot of fantastic progressive music that has either had no keyboards or keyboards that are not very meaningful to the overall arrangements. That being said, I think the keyboard has an absolutely incredible ability to tell stories and be evocative. After all, the umbrella category of keyboards includes such a vast world of sound design, from orchestral elements to unorthodox sonic textures, from the (already beautifully expressive) grand piano to synthesizers, which alone can tap into virtually any sound you can imagine and so many that are beyond your imagination as well. Within all of that is a tremendous amount of potential for unique and vivid storytelling.

Between A Rock And A Prog Place News Blast

Speaking of prog keyboardists, probably the #1 chap of all-time, Rick Wakeman, will be launching the Strictly Wakeman tour of the US this summer, for which tickets can be purchased here. An unreleased made-for-TV concert movie by Frank Zappa filmed in 1974 will finally be released this month, Cheaper Than Cheap, of which a trailer can be enjoyed below.

Nad Sylvian, who is best known as the singer for Steve Hackett, is issuing a solo album next month, Monumentata, which can be pre-ordered. And another prog vet, Jakko M. Jakszyk, best known as recent lead singer and second guitarist in King Crimson, will be issuing the solo album Son of Glen next month, which is also available for pre-order.

The Flower Kings return this month with a new LP, LOVE, and a video for the track “We Claim The Moon,” which can be viewed below. Also this month, Haken returns with the concert recording Liveforms: An Evening With Haken (Live in London 2024), which can be obtained here.

Big Big Train will be issuing a big big live album, the 2-CD/3-LP Are We Nearly There Yet? in September, and you can click here to preorder. And lastly, Norwegian progressive rock group AVKRVST return next month with their sophomore album, Waving At The Sky, which can be obtained here.

May 2025 New Albums

May 2
The Flower Kings- LOVE
Gentle Giant- Playing the Fool: The Complete Live Experience (2CD, 2CD/Blu-ray, 3LP)
Maestrick- Espresso Della Vita: Lunare
Pink Floyd- At Pompeii: MCMLXXII

May 9
Haken- Liveforms: An Evening with Haken
Frank Zappa- Cheaper Than Cheep
Roxy Music- Avalon (Blu-ray reissue with new Dolby Atmos 5.1 and stereo mixes)

May 23
Sparks- MAD!
Mike Oldfield- Tubular Bells 2003 (CD and blue vinyl reissue)
Van Der Graaf Generator- World Record (remastered vinyl or 2CD/Blu-ray reissues)

May 30
Renaissance- Running Hard: The Albums 1974-1976 (4CD box)

Classic Clip

Since Lux Terminus’ Vikram Shankar said earlier, “I can cite Jan Hammer as perhaps the only synth player who has actually meaningfully inspired me in terms of lead synth work,” how about a video bit from 1987, in which ol’ Jan jams and chats?