They say that some of the greatest art comes in the most difficult of times. With rampant piracy, an almost non-existent infrastructure that supports music and a greater socio-political (not to mention economic) upheaval in the country which makes it harder for full-time musicians to make a consistent living or perform in open, large-scale concerts – one can safely say that these are difficult times in music.

And yet, it is these same conditions that have seen the emergence of bands and artistes such as The Poor Rich Boys, Beygairat Brigade, Yasir and Jawad and Zoe Viccaji among the many others who continue to make their mark on the current music scene.

Where all of the above-mentioned artistes have been featured on local TV networks at one point on another, their real following and exposure lies online. When released, their songs and videos have spread like wildfire, creating a buzz on social networking websites and earning them followers abroad as well.

Known for their pioneering work in both music and video, Peshawar’s much-loved duo, Sajid and Zeeshan, has recently begun releasing its second album online. The boys have begun releasing two songs from their latest album, The Harvest, every week on their website www.sajidandzeeshan.com and www.reverbnation.com/sajidandzeeshan. At the time this article went into print, they had released videos of two songs, Walk on Air and Start with a Scratch along with audio files of Good Old Days, Start with a Scratch, Walk on Air, Black as White, The Clue, Brought to Life and Cause and Effect with approximately six or seven more songs pending release.

“Zeeshan (Parwez) and I discussed it and we decided we wanted our music to spread everywhere. The best way to do that would be to release it online, for free and in episodes,” said Sajid Ghafoor, the singer, songwriter, guitar and harmonica player. “We tried to go with The Musik but by then things had gotten delayed and they couldn’t give a definite release date. And this album has been ready for quite some time. The album is still in the process of being released with one new track every Wednesday and Saturday.”

Most of the songs released by the band so far sound very upbeat, a slight departure from the previous album, One Light Year at Snail Speed.

“I tried to put in more flavours and different perspectives. But it’s inherently about the same thing – the self and fighting with the self. I tried to compose some of the songs differently and I challenged myself that way – lyrically, in the composition and singing style as well because (laughs) doing Black as White wasn’t easy,” he added.

The song has the artiste rapping in the beginning.

The band has also collaborated with musician and producer Louis ‘Gumby’ Pinto on a song in the album. It is their first official collaboration with any artiste. Zeeshan had worked with Gumby in Coke Studio and back then they had discussed the possibility of a collaboration. The song is called Desperation.

“But it’s not from a negative point of view – it’s about how to fight it,” said Sajid, “This song is slightly different. It is one of my oldest songs – I wrote it during the times of Still.” Still was an underground band Sajid Ghafoor formed in 1990 with his brother, guitarist and producer Sarmad Ghafoor. Other members of the band were Ziyad Qamar and Ahmed Tamreez.

Does he think Sajid and Zeeshan, as a band that successfully broke out into the mainstream media from Peshawar, is responsible for encouraging newer music to emerge from the city? “I have no idea, maybe some, but you can’t take the credit for all of them. So far what I’ve heard shows talent and a will to do more.”

On a concluding note, Sajid added, “Although, I’m still waiting for boys and girls from Quetta to come out and make their voices heard.” Indeed.