Big Green Music

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#CelebratePakistaniChristians

The horror unfolding in Lahore has left me scrambling to make sense of my feelings. Anger, confusion, fear, and more anger. This isn't just an attack on Lahore, it is a targeted massacre of one of the most vulnerable groups in our country: Christian women and children. These attacks are a regular occurrence. Pakistani Christians live their lives in fear until they are attacked or until they leave the country. Living in Canada, I am blessed with knowing many members of the community that live here. Most of the Pakistani Christians I know still celebrate their Pakistani heritage. They still speak Urdu, Punjabi, and all the other languages and dialects of the region. They still cheer for the Pakistani cricket team. They still identify as Pakistanis, after everything they've gone through. We must not only stand by them during their pain, but we MUST celebrate them as cherished members of our family if we really care. We need to #PrayForLahore, but that can't be the end of our response. We need to #ACTForLahore. We need to #ACTForPakistaniChristians. And to truly fight these terrorists and the poisonous mindset that allows terrorists to breed their hate, we need to #CELEBRATEPakistaniChristians. We are already too late for many, but we must start today to protect the survivors. There is literally no point in being a proud Pakistani if we can't protect our own. Being a fan of Pakistani music, I am well aware of the contributions that Christians have made to this important aspect of Pakistani identity. I pledge to share and hopefully shine a spotlight on these musicians and other minority musicians in the month of April who have worked in a hostile environment to share their art with all of us. I encourage all of you to submit artists that belong to a minority group in Pakistan and I will put it up on this page. It doesn't even have to be music, all forms of art and personal expression will be greatly appreciated. First up is "Jeena Mera" by Saraab (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxqQR8gizEw) I remember this as my introduction to the Christian contribution in Pakistan's music scene. I was visiting Pakistan at the time and the video was on TV. The music was beautiful but what struck me was the Christian imagery. It was fascinating to see since I didn't even realize at the time there were any openly Christian people in Pakistan. Saraab opened my eyes and I began to notice all the other contributions made by musicians like Shallum Xavier, Louis John Pinto (Gumby), and the list went on from that day. Thank you Saraab, for having the courage to contribute to the landscape of Pakistani music, for making a statement that is remembered by us to this day. - Rafey Ansari | Big Green Music

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Album Review: Noori - Begum Gul Bakaoli Sarfarosh

This past weekend saw the release of arguably the most anticipated Pakistani music album of the decade. Veteran rockers Noori dropped their third studio album, ‘Begum Gul Bakaoli Sarfarosh’ and marked the release with three small launch parties in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. 

The album comprises of 9 songs with a total run-time of 44:17, 3 of which we’ve already heard (’1947′ six years ago, ‘Kedaar’ six years ago and ‘Mujhay Roko’ from, god I don’t even know, before the first album). Including the national anthem cover, this adds up to 20:19. So what we really get from this album is about 24 minutes of new music spread over 5 tracks. How dare you, Ali Noor and Ali Hamza.

You made us wait ten years between studio albums. For what amounts to an EP masquerading as an LP. You even included a cover of the national anthem to close it off. Wow. I have never experienced this level of bullshit from a musical act in my entire life. Either you’re both idiots and actually think this release is something to be proud of, or you think your fans are idiots that will want to celebrate this. 

Neither scenario is looking good for you at this point.

What really gets to me is how you’ve always made a point to tell everyone about your 100 songs in the ‘safety vault’. You even advertise the ‘fact’ in your Twitter description for gods sake. Over ten years you manage to release 9 of them. Really, you’re still going to stick with that claim? Then prove it to the fans, you owe them that much.

The grandest irony of this debacle is the patriotic theme of the album. Parading as some sort of social commentary on how we have to get back what we’ve lost as a nation, what Noori has actually managed to accomplish is illustrating exactly what’s wrong with our nation. Over-promising and under-delivering, leading the people on for years and years only to sell us a donkey disguised as a stallion. Is anyone out there actually buying this?

What sucks the most is that out of the new material there are some promising tracks like Pinjra, Hey Ya, and Aik Tha Badshah. But I can’t even talk about the actual music because of the unforgivably low amount of new material on this release. Tragic, really.

AND you misspelled SARFAROSH on your own album cover, see top of page. Really, I don’t know what else to say. Oh, right:

I rate this album a bullshit/10. Come back with a proper album or don’t come back at all. I should’ve taken Gumby and Muhammad Ali Jafri’s second departure as a hint.

- Rafey Ansari

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Finally Friday. Been a fun week getting reconnected with the Pakistani music scene. Heard some tracks I've never heard before, and revisited some tracks and artists that I intended to write about last year but didn't get around to. One such artist, who I have written about in the past, is Sara Haider.

I was introduced to her music via the awesome Uth Records and have considered myself a fan ever since. Was considering posting a song she did with writer Zohaib Kazi and funk guitarist Omran Shafique for a project called "Ismail ka Urdu Sheher". I'll post the video next week, but felt like highlighting what I think is her main project: Teeen! Featuring that awesome guitarist from her Uth Records performance, Imam Hamdani. Seriously love this guy's feel and tone, looking forward to hearing more releases from them!

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Alright, I am a little late jumping on this track but just heard it for the first time yesterday. "Melody" by Poor Rich Boy dropped in the summer and has amassed over 375k listens on SoundCloud already. That's pretty bizarre. I don't remember seeing any Pakistani track take of like that since, I dunno, "Bachana" by Bilal Khan. But the thing about Bilal Khan was that he really took off in the mainstream after that song. Is Poor Rich Boy destined for fame after "Melody"? Recorded, mixed and mastered by the master himself, Mekaal Hasan at Digital Fidelity Studios, the track has a easy swing to it. Dreamy, care free, tinges of nostalgia. At the same time, the rhythm section keeps the track alert and driving forward. The vocals start to pick up as the song progresses and the ultimate climax is definitely rewarding. Listen, drift away, and navigate over the soundscape constructed by Poor Rich Boy. That reminds me, did they drop the "And The Toothless Winos" from their name? When they first hit the scene a couple of years ago (also to some unexpected success) I didn't really know what to make of them. Seemed a bit too sleep-inducing for my tastes. I like where they've taken their sound and it has made me go back and listen to the other tracks I dismissed of theirs. Will definitely post others that I come across, as their success is a true breath of fresh air for Pakistani music. The sound is definitely maturing! Follow 'em: http://www.facebook.com/thepoortherichthewelloff http://www.twitter.com/toothlesswinos http://www.youtube.com/poorrichboyattw http://www.thepoortherichthewelloff.com/

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Alright, so Islamabad's Only Trap Star Talal Qureshi (source) recently posted the following tweet: 

We need better journalists.

— Talal Qureshi (@talalqureshi) December 2, 2014

  which opens up a pretty interesting line of discussion. I've tried to do my part in searching for and highlighting music coming out of Pakistan that I feel deserves a spotlight. Topics as mainstream as Atif Aslam's Coke Studio performances and as niche as Sikandar Ka Mandir releases. I took a trip to the motherland a couple of years back and checked out hotspots like T2F and Mad School, managing to check out an actual gig with the likes of Jumbo Jutt, //orangenoise and Usman Riaz. Now, I'm not a journalist by profession. Heck, I'm barely a hobbyist. I am entirely capable of composing my thoughts into concise, eloquent passages, but sometimes I get tired of putting the effort into finding new music as it's becoming harder to come across. Sure, there might still be some awesome tracks steadily trickling from SoundCloud accounts here and there, but is the quality of journalism related to the quality of music around these days? I don't know. Can we expect insight into the underground/unsigned/indie movement from mainstream publications? Are the fans just going to have to start rolling up their sleeves and putting time and effort into promoting them amongst their circles of influence?  That last thought is kind of what I've been trying to do with BigGreenMusic on and off for the past few years. I'm just a fan of music who also enjoys writing down his opinions and thoughts. Sometimes it's random, sometimes it's ranting (case in point), sometimes it's raving. What I hope to continue doing is framing my posts in an intelligent manner. Question everything and write purposefully. I'll accept Talal's challenge and renew my efforts into finding artists that deserve the time of day and see where that takes us. There's something to be said about music being an integral human experience, and I intend to say it. - Rafey Ansari https://twitter.com/rafeyansari

P.S. Check out the attached track, Talal Qureshi's latest. 1:17 is off the chainnn!!

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True Brew Records + Sikandar Ka Mandar = The Freshest Gosh-Darned Two Minutes and Thirty Five Seconds You Can Allow Your Eardrums To Experience. Major kudos to everyone involved. Definitely a foot-tapper. Heck, GET UP AND DANCE WITH ME! This started off as a review, but forget the review, just enjoy this moment :) Oh and the ending is absolutely awesome. Awesome. Hit play again and SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND ENEMIES!

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This song needs to be heard to be believed. I can't understand how it's been on the internet for, what, like 6 months? And it only has a thousand views? Tragic. Put down the Gangnam Style and the Harlem Shake and RECONNECT WITH THE REAL! Essential listening for any fan of indie music. And for it to come out of Pakistan? I'm lovin' it man! YES WE CAN! An absolute joy for me to introduce you (if you haven't already heard 'em) to Abeer Sheikh and The Wonderband! Now, go and share the living daylights out of it so we can show the world more of our awesome side.

Seriously, declaring it a civic duty.

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Check out this blazing new hard rock track from Faraz Haider, of "Andher" fame! I've always liked this guy's take on music and where it needs to go in order to improve the Pakistani local rock scene. Great tracks so far, and it looks like he's far from done. Support and share!

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New Release by AAG, "The Breakup Song / (Phir Se)"

Alright, I'm going to try to attempt posting regularly once again. Wish me luck :P Straight to business, just came across a brand-spanking new Urdu track by the up and coming AAG! In all honesty, I think these guys are putting out more quality on a regular basis than anyone else in the biz at the moment. I'll post their previous track in another post, but let's absorb this one while we're in the moment :) This song was released online yesterday, to what so far looks like a purely positive reception. They have once again proven that they're definitely not a one-trick pony, and have various styles in their musical arsenal. This track gave me vibes similar to My Chemical Romance, with its soaring chorus and epic guitar-work. I love that a Pakistani band is experimenting with this style of rock, and they've still managed to keep it approachable. Great melody, great lyrics, crisp guitars, awesome vocals. Bottom line, get behind these boys and show your support by spreading their work! They've been giving all their hard work away for free so far, and we've definitely been the beneficiary of this relationship so far, so let's show some reciprocation, shall we? SHARE AT WILL!!!

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Noori, "Taaron Se Aagay" Official Video and Live CD Released Today!

HOT OFF THE PRESS! Noori just released their official music video for their newest song, "Taaron Se Aagay" a couple of hours ago. The song itself was released on February 12, 2012 to a relatively luke-warm reception by social media standards (~14k YouTube views, ~11k on SoundCloud) but that doesn't seem to have affected the band at all, as they added heavyweights Faraz Anwar and Zeeshan Parwez to their live lineup and went on to organize their own concert. This alone would've been enough to satisfy their legion of fans, but staying true to their new song's title, they decided to go above and beyond by recording Pakistan's first live concert cd, releasing Today, May 19! They have already released one other track off the cd, crowd favourite "Kuttay (Te Tho Uttay)" about a month ago. I should've posted it back then, but better late than never!

By the material released thus far, it really sounds like Noori outdid themselves this time. Sounds strong, energetic, and as ambitious as ever. Stay tuned to this space for a full album review as soon as I can get my hands on it!

One question remains however: Where did Mohammad Ali Jafri go? 

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OK, so is EP's manager M. Night Shyamalan? Cuz I haven't seen twists like this since The Sixth Sense. Entity Paradigm, the band that at one point had two drummers and three vocalists is now a trio. Fawad Khan and Waqar Khan have left the band just a few days after announcing the release of a video fittingly titled "Ajab Tamasha". If my memory serves me correctly, I believe this is the second time Waqar has left. To be honest, they can survive without Waqar as Salman Albert (still in the band) is a very competent drummer. But can they survive Life After Fawad? A lot of people doubted they could even go on without Xulfi, and it's a fact that they've only released one song since that happened. Losing Fawad is pretty much a headshot; I'm not sure why they don't just retire the band instead of ripping it apart in public. Continue under a different name if you want to continue performing together. Ahmad Ali Butt can't pull off vocal duties alone on EP songs. If they're really serious about continuing under the EP banner, what they need to do is find a kid out there who deserves a shot. Get some young blood into the mix and use that to propel EP's renaissance. There are plenty of guys out there who can fill in. What Fawad did on Irtiqa will be forever remembered, and this suggestion is not meant to discredit him in any way, but there has got to be someone (besides Ahmad Ali Butt) that can take the reigns. The dynamic between two vocalists is what made EP stand out, and in my eyes is the key to their success. Heck, they can even take this opportunity and turn it into a TV show or something. Open tryouts for EP's vocalist job, like INXS did with Rockstar: INXS! It would be a fitting gesture as well since EP was created out of the bands Entity and Paradigm in an attempt to get on the Pepsi Battle of the Bands show all those years ago. Get some true excitement going, because they'll need all the momentum they can muster if they want to really come back with a bang after being delivered such a crippling blow.  Kuch Shor Machaa. Awaaz Uthaa. 

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Entity Paradigm (EP) just released the new teaser poster for their upcoming music video, apparently titled "Ajab Tamasha"! Their last video was pretty decent in my opinion; looking forward to how they take this next step in their journey. I've always been a huge fan of the band's work, and Irtiqa still stands as one of the most complete rock albums Pakistan has ever seen. Stay tuned for more EP news as it unravels... Source: https://www.facebook.com/eptheband 

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Bohemia's "Paisay Da Nasha".. woh kehtay hain na, 'big tings'.

Thanks Coke Studio for bringing something fresh each new season. Was really looking forward to this one, and it definitely delivered. First episode featured a great mix of artists and should have something for everyone. To be honest, I don't listen to Bohemia at all. I may have heard a song or two years ago but definitely not an artist I follow. Here's hoping that will change for me, and for many others. I'm not really a fan of the few recent rap acts to come out of Pakistan, so rediscovering Bohemia at this point in time feels reassuring. Love his delivery, hard and gritty, and his message as well. My only qualm is the rest of the arrangement. Perhaps one of Rachel or Zoe should have had a more prominent role, and really owned the hook. The music also seems like it could've used a bit more grit to match Bohemia. Couldn't really pick out the bass drum (bass guitar was great though), which is kind of an important element in hip hop. Perhaps they should've thrown an electric guitar into the mix and really made it special.  Oh well, everyone's a critic I suppose. Still happy with what we got :) Thanks Rohail! 

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Review: Uth Records 2.0, Sara Haider feat. Ali Haider & Imam Hamdani - Tera Saath

First review in quite a long time! Let's get on with it, shall we? First off, mixed feelings about Ali Haider not being THE Ali Haider. Relieved and let down at the same time, go figure :P Having said that, I don't mind this Ali Haider at all, held down rhythm guitars pretty well, so good for you :) Anyways, enough about Ali Haider. Ali Haider. Ok, it's out of my system. I loved this latest episode of Uth Records' sophomore season, which is really turning out to be a true delight to watch and listen to. This episode really appealed to me on a couple of different levels. The instrumental was an absolute joy to listen to, everything came together perfectly in my opinion. The serene horn, the progressive guitaring, the acoustic rhythm. All came together to create the lounge, smooth jazz atmosphere. Hats off to Imam for the wonderful performance on this track, really led the way in my opinion. And that solo at 4:50! Aala, as they say. Apart from skill, I really gained respect for this guy after hearing him speak about himself and Sara, noting that they both have a lot of room for improvement before they can call themselves true musicians (paraphrased off the top of my head). The humility is always nice to see in the newcomers :) 

Speaking of improvement! Before I go further, I want to stress that I really am a fan of Sara Haider's vocals. Having said that, I feel like something was..off? Singing this style of music is incredibly difficult, and I always feel that more is expected of a female vocalist, fair or unfair. Is it "too soft"? Is it lacking "dimension"? Does it go "too high"? Am I a complete idiot? All of these are questions that come to mind. I feel like we have stumbled upon a work in progress, and this being a showcase of youth talent, we should take it as it is and not be dismissive in our criticism. I can't wait to hear where Sara goes from here, and look forward to watching her rise to stardom :) All in all, great to see these young artists who are coming from all sorts of eclectic musical backgrounds and bringing something fresh to the fans of Pakistani music. I love the John Mayer-ish guitaring with that delicious tone. Which reminds me, perhaps that solo would've gotten a stronger push if they weaved Sara's vocals around it. I felt she just kind of disappeared in that final climactic minute of the song. Anyways, enough blabbering. Time for some sweet, sweet tunes:  

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Coming soon to Uth Records, LISTEN NOW!

Well, Uth Records recently announced their third act for Season 2: XXI! Now, I know I have yet to post anything about Jarar and Affaq, hope to get to that soon, but I had to post about XXI ASAP due to the fact that I'm actually already a fan of their work :D The song they will be recording is called "Taare", which you can check out above. Please note this is more of a demo version, and not the version we will see on Uth Records this weekend. It's a solid track, fun, energetic, and it'll be fun to see if and how they change the track with Gumby producing it. Having said that, it's actually not my favourite song of theirs. I'll post my favourite XXI song in another post, and try to offer some of my amateur perspective in the form of a structured video review. Yeah, fun :P enjoy Taare for now, and I'll catch ya on the flipside!

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Welp, here's another instant classic by True Brew Records, same label as Jamal Rahman from my previous post. TBR definitely looks like it's going to be providing us with some more unique works in the near future, which is absolutely great news for a Pakistani music scene that has started to feel stale to me. There are a bunch of great artists that are not being promoted at the level they deserve to be, and the very least we can do is spread the word within our spheres of influence. Heck, it's probably the BEST thing we can do at this point.

Oh, and the SONG! DIL JALAY! Been listening to this track for the past month, loving the simple music and simple lyrics. Really keeps it roots-y and honest. And are those actual dreadlocks?? I first heard of Malang Party through a promo by Hamza Jafri's The Guitar School. There was a gig, and some vids surfaced out of it. I loved the band's groove on "12 Meel Duur", dripping with funk. How can you not be drawn towards it? These men wield their instruments with skill, and looks like they're on the hunt. Looking very forward to more material :)

YouTube their other videos, and join them on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/malangpartygroup 

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Alright. Don't ask me where I've been, but I'm back. I tried easing myself in through Twitter a month or so back, but it's time to just start posting. Just finished touching up the FB page, so please join me there as well if you already haven't.  So I just came across this 1 year old track, "Naina Moray", by Jamal Rahman, featuring Haider Rahman and Naeem Mehdi. I have never heard of any of these guys, but I hope to find some more info on them in the coming days and weeks. The track itself, is UNBELIEVABLE. I have no idea how I hadn't heard it before. Sophisticated funk, clean, fresh, a delicious fusion track all around! Do yourself a favour and hit play, and then share it with your loved ones.