A frenzy of releases!

Indeed in the present era, music is experiencing a renaissance. But music is in the throes of a radical change. Though limitations of space would not allow us to discuss each and every album that has or will be heralding this new era, we have briefly compiled a list of forthcoming releases of 2002 that the discerning record buyer should keep his/her ears open for.

Hadiqa Kiani - "Rung"

The only female pop sensation of Pakistan is back with a new offering. This album is pretty similar to her previous ones but it has a better sound to it. "It has different shades of music" is how Hadiqa puts it. For instance it consists of eastern, western, folk, jazz, ballads and even country music! She has worked with the guitar maestro Aamir Zaki, the well known composer Arshad Mehmood and others. There is a lot of live instrumentation in this album with of course a lot of flute like most of Hadiqa's previous songs. Most of the poetry has been written by her mother. The new album is now available.

Aaroh - "Sawaal"

The band who is supposed to be the next best thing as they won the "Pepsi Battle of the Bands", a competition between the underground bands, held recently. They plan to release their album around Eid an appropriate timing. The album has been sponsored by a soda pop company! The band members are Farooq Ahmed, Nabeel Nihal Chisty, Kamran Khan and Khalid Khan. Kamran Khan has earlier produced Junaid Jamshed's "Us Rah Par" and "Dil Ki Baat". He also worked as an assistant director along side Shoaib Mansoor in Gulls and Guys.

Junoon - "English album"

The band members don't need an intro but we'll still go ahead with their names. They are Ali Azmat, Brian O' Connell and Salman Ahmed. Well won't we all just love something as crisp as an English album? But then good things don't come that easily. According to a very authentic source, (Ali Azmat!) they've only recorded a couple of songs as demos for some international record companies. The rest of the songs will be recorded in the States in September. And once the album is completed it's going to be released in USA and UK first. And after the international release it will come to Pakistan. An Urdu album will be in the pipeline after November, 2002.

Dusk - "Off white" and "All Hearts of Darkness"

The band members are Babar Sheikh, Faraz Anwar and Irfan Ahmed. Similar to Kamran Khan of Aaroh, Babar too is imaginative and inventive. He has directed some spanking and cool videos like Faakhir's "Deewana" and Ali Haider's "Jadu". Their first effort was released by a Portuguese record company. Their upcoming album is being released by an Irish record label. The band had been making some metal music and then moved onto more progressive old school metal. In this record they have more atmospheric keyboard and have ventured into experimental sounds. The album is due in November 2002. Dusk is also planning to release a compilation of some old and new songs by the title of "All Hearts of Darkness", this month especially for the Karachiites!

Mizraab - "Maazi Haal Mustaqbil"

The band members are (again) Faraz Anwar, Jamal Mustafa, Khalid Khan and Irfan Ahmed. Baber Sheikh is doing the backing vocals in the record. "Mazi Haal Mustaqbil" is set to be released simultaneously in Pakistan and the UK. The sound is of new metal and melodic modern rock. The album is in Urdu and because this kind of music is not very common with the masses striking a deal with a record label is still on the table. If all goes well it'll be released by the end of 2002.

Haroon Rashid - "Lagan"

Haroon is coming out with his second album which has a lot of experimentation with sounds in it. He is very happy with his work and thinks it's his best! The first video of this album has been directed by Ahsan and Amna in Cairo, Egypt. The album has a lot of personal experiences and songs that talk about what Haroon has gone through in real life. The album is due sometime this month.

Collective - Pepsi Battle of the Bands album

The Pepsi Battle of the Bands was perhaps the biggest musical event that happened in quite some time. This album is going to be a 10 track collection featuring one original track from each band from the Pepsi Battle of the Bands final. The sponsor is still in the negotiating process with some record labels and is not sure of the date it's going to be out. But by the end of the year we might see it on the shelves.

E.P. - "Irtiqa"

E.P stands for Entity Paradigm and it was declared the second best band in "Pepsi Battle of the Bands". The band members are Ahmed, Fawad, Waqar, Abid, Salman, Hasan, Xulfi, and Sajjad. Fawad and Ahmed are familiar faces as they perform in a comedy serial on TV. The album is basically going to be alternative rock. It has a lot of experimental and electronic sounds and will not have any commercial bits and pieces in it. Ahmed, one of the two vocalists, believes that even though it will be ready in two months, it will be around early next year that the album will hit the market!

AKS

The band members are Aiman, Hammad Farooq and Ali Tim (ex-Milestones, ex-Aakash) and they are surely making waves. The entire feel of the album is pretty different from what we usually get to hear these days. That's partially because there hasn't been a band with a female and male vocalist singing together since Nazia and Zoheb. It's basically a pop-rock band with classical influences. According to Ali, Aiman is a real rock singer who is very versatile and has done some duets with Hammad, who is professionally trained in eastern classical music. Their first video "Neela Aasman" was shot by Nasir Tehrani, which got them on the scene. The album is due in September and will be released with a remake of the video "Neela Aasman", but this time by Haseeb from Indus Music. The band is off to Africa, for their first ever performance there.

Rushk - "Sawaal"

This band is the combined effort of Ziyyad Gulzar and Uns Mufti. Ziyyad was with Live Sketches, Milestones and Aakash previously. The post production of the album has been done by Shahzad Hasan, bassist of Vital Signs. Having heard the songs, the best thing about the album is that once you start it, you will not be able to break off for the next 58 minutes! The time format of the songs is not standard, which will make it a little different from the rest. The songs have a medium pace and are mesmerizing. The singing has been done by Nazia Zuberi, who previously used to be with Sheema Kirmani, whereas the duets have been sung alongwith Ali Haider. By and large the sound of the album is electronic and it's due in the second week of September. Saqib Malik's stunning and bold video of the group's "Mein Kaun Hoon" has created waves.

Karavan - "Gardish"

Tanseer Daar, Assad Ahmed, Sameer Ahmed and Alan Smith have put together one of the most decent bands. And one hopes that they won't break up in the future, like some of the other bands have. The best thing about their forthcoming release is that the album includes the remaking of the Barbarians cult classic "Yeh Zindagi Hai". It's a much better version of the original that was recorded some 13 years ago when the performers were just 17 years old! Karavan's new single and video "Aagay Hee Aagay" is on air at the moment and is receiving an extraordinary reaction from many due to its guitar work. Assad Ahmed believes that it's a pure rock album, and not something that Abrar calls as rock! The album has been recorded live in a studio that was specially set up for the purpose. What separates it from the rest of the albums is that the band has performed, recorded and mixed the entire record with absolutely no synthesizers and gadgets. There is also a treat for the fans with the band planning to put three unplugged bonus tracks on the record. The album will be out in the first week of October.

Noori - "Suno Key Main Hoon Jawan"

The band members are Ali Noor, Gumby and Mohammed Ali Jafri. The remarkable thing about this band is that even though they haven't released their album as yet, they are making it big! Almost the entire album has been released on the net. The released singles include "Manwa Re", "Mujhay Roko", "Ooncha Hoon Main", "Khalla", "1947" and "Jhoomay". It's a very powerful sounding album with strong lyrics and mind-blowing musical sensations. According to Gumby its technicalities and style are very versatile. For instance "Manwa Re" is as ethnic as it could get, whereas "1947" contains a very strong message. Overall, the album is popish and pop rock combined with some commercial sounds that the masses will like. "It's fresh for me!" Gumby stressed. The part that sets this album totally apart is that the microphones used are the world's very best. The making of the video, posters, website, and all the other work has been done entirely by the band. The album is all set to be released before Ramadan. The band will also be performing for the very first time in Karachi in the next few weeks.

Falam - "Ab tak"

Fakhr-e-Alam is planning a couple of bangs this year with his two releases. His first offering is "Ab Tak" which is a compilation of some old tracks with a remixed sound. It includes the re-working of "Husn Walon" from "Falam Connection". He also plans to release a mega video that has eight models! (including Nadia Hussain and Natasha!) The song has been dedicated to the fashion industry of Pakistan which we'll get to listen and watch by the end of October. The second record is not yet titled but it's supposed to change trends and bring a difference in the pop culture of Pakistan says Fakhr. The album includes a 'gangster rap' song that talks of racism against the Asians. It's going to be a bilingual record produced by Shahzad Hasan. A high energy album might offer a unique listening pleasure to fans worldwide. This international release is all set to be released by Eid.

One truly believes that Pakistan is on the brink of a creative music explosion that will prove to the world that we are not too far behind. The effect will be, to say the least, thrilling. It's going to be one heck of a war game with all the big names of the industry along with some newborn talents like Aaroh, Noori and E.P, scheduled to release their albums before Ramadan. The battle for the top spot will unquestionably be fiery and sizzling! It was about time that there was some vigorous competition because we've hardly seen any decent releases since the last couple of years.

There are rumours too, that popular band, Vital Signs, is finally thinking of a comeback after seven years. The private channels have played an important role in finally bringing some underground talented bands on top of the ground, - surely a breath of fresh air for them as well as the viewers.

One can only hope that with the release of all the big names by the end of this year, will also bring an end to pirated music. Music, like all sound, is subject to the limitations of the ear as an organ of perception. It's finally satisfying to see creativity diffusing all over the country.

Review by: Insiya Syed

First published: Dawn Images, Sunday 08 September 2002, Dawn Group of Newspapers, Karachi, Pakistan.