‘Coke Studio 4’ concludes

Published: July 18, 2011

Featured artists share their inspirations, perspectives and experiences.DESIGN: ESSA MALIK

KARACHI:  The fourth season of  “Coke Studio” ended with its fifth episode featuring breathtaking performances by Asif Hussain Samraat and Fareed Ayaz, and Abu Mohammad. The voice of Asif Hussain accompanied by the house band on a fast-paced track was a treat for listeners, whereas the qawaali duo made magic once again. This time “Coke Studio” comprised only 22 tracks, but it is said that there will be more releases after Ramazan.

Akhtar Chanal Zahri
Where I come from, the only two things a child knows right from his birth are how to sing and cry. Music is a part of us from the very beginning.
Komal Rizvi
The germs [for music] were there from the very beginning and my relationship with music has always been personally rewarding.
Bilal Khan
I don’t see failure the way I used to. Now, if I fail, my response will be to write a song about it.
Jal
We got a positive response with the new line-up with Farhan on our very first performance and the rest is history.
Faraz Anwar, Mizraab
I would listen to bands like America, Rush and Kansas from a very early age and people would be amazed at  how a child could understand music like that.
Fareed Ayaz and Abu Mohammad Qawaal
A good musician learns and unlearns throughout his life.
Asif Hussain, Samraat
I am in love with these tunes. They are like my beloved.
Ustaad Naseeruddin Saami
We all feel the effects of music. But in going a step further, in understanding the effect that music has, is the key to a greater truth – one that can enable us to bring about tranquillity in our heart, body, mind and soul.
Sketches
What we eventually created was a little different. Our individuality is the developed taste of Sufi and pop, a merger of East and West.
Mole
We are influenced by friends, family, children and childhood to the comfortably introspective feelings, peace, love, God, the universe and seamlessly on to art, anime, video games, space travel, fantasy and supernatural existences. And, of course, lots of music.
Quratulain Baloch
I’d quote Frederick Peris: ‘I do my thing and you do yours. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations and you are not in this world to live up to mine.’
Attaullah Khan Eesakhelvi
I tried to describe to my parents what happens inside of me when I sing… I begged them. Maybe they would have brought themselves to bear it. After all, they were my parents. But the system, the rules and traditions of where I come from would never have allowed it.
Sanam Marvi
It was at the dargahs of Sachal Sarmast, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai and Shahbaz Qalandar, amidst hordes of people and fakirs that I learned how to sing. I still go there and sing for them, and give my haazri, because, of course, the Lord has given me more than I deserve.
Rohail Hyatt, producer ‘Coke Studio’
At the start of every season, I am as unsure as anyone else when it comes to predicting what lies ahead. The process of recognising a potential discovery is so instinctive that it is only once the “Coke Studio” experience has been lived, discoveries shared with the world and a response shared in return that we are able to evaluate what has passed. We do know that the love that we send out to our audiences and the love that each passing season elicits in response are closely balanced, and there can be no greater reward. For this we are grateful.
Kaavish
Jaffer Zaidi and Maaz Kaavish emerged on the Pakistani music scene in 2004 with a remarkably mature and articulate band called Kaavish. The blend of sweet nostalgic melodies, richly mellow musical arrangements and subtly perceptive lyrics, has since become the band’s trademark sound.
Sajjad Ali
Sajjad Ali started singing when he was seven and released his first album Master Sajjad Sings Memorable Classics in 1979 when he was just thirteen years old. Propelled by the momentum of his success, Ali wasted no time in recording and releasing an album. Titled Babia ‘93, the album contained three hit singles – “Babia”, “Bolo Bolo” and “Kuch Larkiyaan” – and made Ali into a household name.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 19^th, 2011.

‘Coke Studio @ MTV’ moves away from Bollywood music

By Rafay Mahmood

Published: July 12, 2011

Popon enjoys his performance. PHOTO: MTV INDIA

KARACHI:  Despite mounting allegations that “Coke Studio @ MTV” is heavily influenced by Bollywood music, producer Leslie Lewis and his band of musicians managed to produce some tracks with a distinct Indian sound in the latest episodes.
Since most Indians have accepted and developed a taste for Bollywood music, the slightly different arrangements and unique performances in the recent episodes were not widely appreciated in the country. So far, the response from the Indian audience has not been positive and the show’s Pakistani counterpart is still followed more. However, having said that, it will take a couple of seasons to make the Indian audience accustomed to more sophisticated forms of Indian music.

Keeping in mind the way “Coke Studio @ MTV” has evolved in terms of quality instrumentation, it would not be an overstatement to say that in couple of seasons, the show will become the centre of world music fusion. If the team remains unaffected, despite the lack of support from the Indian public, this platform has the potential of bringing a revolution into the long stagnant state of Indian pop and film music.
Chinna Ponnu and Sanjeev Thomas: “Indian Jadoo”
Originally composed as a lively song by Sanjeev Thomas — the lead guitarist for AR Rahman in his studio recordings and live concerts — with the Rainbow Bridge band, “Indian Jadoo” uses lyrics from the classical Bollywood song “Ankhiyan Milaon Kabhi Ankhiyan Churaaon”. Popular folk singer Chinna Ponnu laces the song with Tamilan street folk, giving it a new flavour. This was a smart choice in which Lewis, along with his house band and featured performers repackaged a well known Bollywood dance number in a unique way. The video of the original song comprises Madhuri Dixit dancing around Sanjay Kapoor in a garage, “Coke Studio @ MTV” on the other hand, has dissected the whole song to make it more sophisticated and soothing to listen to.
Kailasa: “Dilruba”
Originally from Kailash Kher’s debut album Kailasa, the song talks about the madness one experiences when he or she falls in love. It reflects the amount of influence legendary singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan has on Kher’s music. The use of harmonium and tabla, supported by a catchy bass guitar playing, makes the song unique and powerful. The song, due to its similarity with classical-pop arrangements used in Pakistan, is especially appealing to listeners here.
Papon: “Bihu Naam (Pak Pak)”
A medley of romantic Bihu songs sung usually during the onset of the Assamese New Year and the beginning of a new season, “Bihu Naam (Pak Pak)” takes one on a voyage into seasonal celebrations. Such an elaborately traditional song — famous in the northern parts of Assam — can only come from a place as culturally and musically rich as India. Due to brilliant work on the bass guitar, drums and percussions, the song came out as a successful ensemble piece. Various traditional instruments were used to create the sounds of birds chirping with all the members of the band chanting in order to give it celebratory feel. More of these sort of songs can give “Coke Studio @MTV” the identity that the team is looking for.
Sunidhi Chauhan, Mousam Gogoi and Divya Lewis: “Jhakki Dil”
An original composition by Lewis, “Jhakki Dil” was revisited in “Coke Studio @ MTV” by musicians and featured artists. Although the average Pakistani audience might classify it as a typical Bollywood number, the song is still a commendable effort due to its musical arrangement.
The melody of the song is foot-tapping with a funky groove and the way Lewis has utilised the instruments, especially the percussions, gives the song a very upbeat and contemporary feel — a rarity in Indian music. Although, the melody failed to offer anything new, the use of live instruments strengthened the song.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 13^th, 2011.

How I ended up on Coke Studio

Bilal Khan in Coke Studio. PHOTO: RIZWANUL HAQ

4:00am: Sheraton Hotel, Karachi.
I walked out of the hotel lobby with my guitar case and suitcase in hand. I was thinking about the past and an image (comic above) came to mind.
In 2008, I was a moody, disillusioned LUMS student who was spending an unhealthy amount of time indoors mostly penning comics and writing song lyrics just as moody and disillusioned as me.
Now I was in a hotel bus going towards the airport where I’d catch a flight back to Lahore. I stare out at the dark, empty Karachi roads barely registering the sounds emanating from my headphones.
I have a secret that only my mother and best friend know – I’m going to be on Coke Studio this season and I spent the last night jamming for six hours with arguably the best band in Pakistan on songs I penned – in my bedroom. I cannot tell this to anyone. At least not for now.
Unexpectedly, my eyes teared up. How uncanny it is that only a few years ago I had penned, in the form of the above comic, an innate desire to break free from the typical, cookie cutter mould of academia and live out a childish fantasy of the musician cum rockstar.
When I drew the comic, the musician in me was like a fly in the room: alive but insignificant. Something I was barely aware of.
The day I got the call from Coke Studio’s people I sat down and thought. And then I thought, and thought and thought even harder.
How was I going to approach this?
It’s a scary thing to know that you’ve been given this terrific opportunity to start shaping your dream, your destiny. And now the onus is on you to take this thing you’ve been given and do something great with it… or totally screw it up.
But I figured – to go wrong in one’s own way is better than to go right in someone else’s. And so, just like when Alice discovered labels on those cakes and bottles in Wonderland, my brain said to me in the imperative to just “do this.”
So, I began planning.
Would I add an extra bridge section?
Should I ask for a sitar piece to be added in?
What about a sufi kalaam? Those seem to be uber-famous.
Do I want a mega-hit or am I going to do this for the sake of art?
And then, there were the mixed opinions! Some thought that only collaborations on Coke Studio fared the best. Others thought the reverse to be true. I would have lost myself in the din of all the sounds and suggestions had I not quickly checked myself mentally and made a commitment to move beyond questions and simply play my songs the way I know them.
With great YouTube hits come great responsibility. And my responsibility was (and is) to keep writing stuff people not only dig musically but can also relate to. I was going off the proverbial precipice from saying ‘listen’ to ‘Listen to me’… And I straight up planned on having a great time.
When books on Pakistan’s history are drafted a hundred years from now, it is quite possible that Coke Studio will go down as a cultural milestone – a game changer that culturally, socially and maybe even politically redefined our nation.
How would this tentative section in this tentative history book read?
It might say something like:

“A country, while travelling through one of its darkest periods, had a show that emerged to give hope in the most uncertain of times.”

Coke Studio’s mini-experiment tests whether we are worthy and able of adhering to Jinnah’s philosophy of unity, faith and discipline.
Pakistani musicians in unity, with a faith in the institution of music, all under the discipline of Pakistan’s greatest house band and maestro, Rohail Hyatt, equals a mighty successful endeavour.
I have had a lot of people tell me that the music I performed for Coke Studio was too sad. I don’t see a problem in that. But my lyrics, they are a reflection of what I see around me.
There is a sadness and hopelessness that can sometimes permeate our individual existences and our country. Everyone is fighting a personal battle with their own circumstances. But we are all operating on hope, for better things and better days. And really, that’s what I’m trying to get across to you, my listeners.

Keep an eye out for Bilal Khan’s debut album “Umeed” this summer.