Social Circus - the review.

Artist: Ali Azmat
Album: Social Circus
Reviewed by: Insiya Syed


Ali was always the star power of Junoon no matter how hard Salman tried - everything from ripping off Hendrix, lending his tired vocals to getting into documentary making. That it was Ali who attracted countless teenage girls to their shows was no handicap either. Also, the fact that they got through for this long and stuck together during controversies of the dirtiest kind is nothing short of a miracle for close friends and foes.

Well, finally the year 2005 finds Ali Azmat trying to bail out of Junoon and seeking his fortune elsewhere. Social Circus has launched Ali Azmat who still happens to be ‘one’ of the, if not ‘the’ hottest bachelors at 35. This record is a key indicator of Ali’s future life, and an affirmation that Junoon will only last for as long as they can mange to cash in on their past glorious years till Parvaaz (2000), that is.

In what was to become a typically informal, rambling approach and a statement-of-sort – Social Circus revealed that if the concept was somewhat shaky, the music was rock solid at most places. Initial reviews were mixed though and Ali didn’t exceed all expectations and the overall sound is stating the obvious that Junoon was primarily Ali in more ways than one.

First things first – Ali Azmat and Ziyyad Gulzar (Rushk) get on like a house on fire. Another remarkable aspect of Social Circus is the transformation it prompted in Ali’s music. His songs are forcefully sung, flawlessly phrased and with a precise diction that foreshadowed his later theatrically.

The music had its force but at odd places it seems more restrained and strategic, although that may be due to a long recording process. Issues always seem to pop-up with the final product when musicians don’t have a focused recording style. Going back and forth works for some but not always and keeping an album with you for too long also means going back into studio and making unnecessary changes. Eventually albums do get leaked on the Internet, which ultimately kill the album sales and the initial hype before and after the release. Case in point: Noori’s ‘Suno Kay Main Hoon Jawan’ and ‘Social Circus’ itself.

The first single off of Social Circus, Deewana, was issued in April, it was sad to notice that it barely entered the charts. Some blamed the chic classic visuals of the video directed by Jami whereas some thought Ali isn’t over the top in this one. It’s on tracks such as ‘Main Challa’ that synthesizers have taken over to an extent that the live sound has virtually disappeared which would definitely affect the live performance because Ali Azmat is no Radiohead. Overall, where arrangement and production met was in the albums unprecedented use of dynamics, and canny deployment of the different personae of the various musicians featured on the album – including gems such as Ziyyad Gulzar, Allan Smith, Sameer Ahmed and newbie Murtaza (KV). The result is a testament to Ali’s musicianship and production skills but the sort that’ll take time to grow on people and for them to be able to appreciate it.

All concerned hit a personal best in ‘Na Re Na,’ in many ways the most admirable song Ali wrote, in which one individual’s conflicted inner world is laid bare in a manner so selfless that it becomes a universe statement of the human condition. Never has Ali Azmat’s mastery of dynamics – from guitars to the soaring harmonies – been put to better use, or Ali’s bare fisted fearlessness sounded more appropriate.

The record, though ambitious, needed every one of its 61 minutes to flesh out the amorphous storyline. It was reviled by some and adored by others, but the albums success must be measured by the quality of the 11 songs it contained. Social Circus included at least five classics. Deewana, Mungagan, Na Re Na, Mein, and Teri Perchaian can all stand alone without context. Whether it’s the best record Ali Azmat ever made is debatable.

End note: there’s one very important thing that’s got to be settled. The group as a whole has got to realize that Junoon can not be the same group as they used to be. They never ever will be. Junoon’s great sin would not be breaking up. It would be that they didn’t stop sooner and return earlier. They needed the break. We didn’t need the disappointment.

Ali’s album is everything a debut solo album or even Junoon albums should be like. And surely that’s a bargain.

First published in Fashion Avenue Quarterly (FAQ). Issue 2. Summer 2005.