Famed ghazal singer S.B. John’s son Glenn and musician Javed Allah Ditta’s lad Mohsin team up with guitarist Sayyam Rana to come up with Gurus Trilogy’s debut album Aghaaz Chapter 1 — an amalgamation of eastern and western music with the vocals, arrangement and guitars all merging well together.
It features 12 songs — two remixes and 10 original numbers — and kicks off to a splendid start with the quickie Kahoon Tum Se. Daastan is the band’s first song to be made into a music video and it steadies the pace with its rhythmic flute, soothing lyrics and stimulating composition. Saqalbun is a western song in eastern mould where Glenn shines as the true deliverer of raags and rap. Sayyam’s guitar work is at its very best in Jagi Hui Aankhoon where the music completely entertains, overshadowing the vocals and lyrics. Talat Mehmood’s Tasveer Teri Dil Mera, the evergreen 60-year-old non-filmi ghazal, is paid a glowing tribute by Glenn who also gives his vocal chords much-needed exercise and excels.
Pyar Mera is a passable number without which the world would have been the same. It falls flat despite a guest appearance by M. Nasir as lyricist which gives the song an Alamgir-esque touch. Deewaron Ko is also mentionable and is not only melancholic (the mood of the target market being the youth) but also diversified, while Intezar is amazingly brilliant as it starts slowly with Glenn in control all the way. The song moves on a standard pace with Mohsin’s arrangement paving the way for greatness.
Ishq is a Punjabi number for a certain audience hence would be liked by some and fast-forwarded by others. Glenn shows his brilliance in the classic Shaam as he supports the compositions of his fellow band members by rendering his vocals to the best of his abilities. Ustad Amanat Ali Khan’s Aae Watan is paid an awful tribute and it would have been better had they come up with an original patriotic number rather than the remix.
Aghaaz is brought to an emphatic conclusion with Jogiyan De Naal, a Punjabi funky track which is good enough to give Abrar and company a run for their money. The ‘standard and over-popular’ Pakistan Hockey team theme is bound to make one cheerfully nostalgic and makes it a crowd-puller.
All the songs have been written by the promising newcomer Ovais Sohail. As for the brand of music of Gurus Trilogy, it is just as the band members said earlier: “Neither pop nor rock but fused music.” — Omair Alavi
OralFixationVol-II
After her first English album, Laundry Service, became a certified hit, Shakira instantly stepped into the category of ‘A’ list musicians of North America. Her English fan following clearly surpassed the amount of fame she owned as a Spanish singer. Although her rendition of English numbers lacked the panache of a native singer, it was her musical genius, enchanting vocals and obsession with deeply engrossing lyrics that made her a hot property in the world of American pop.
The same is true of her latest offering Oral Fixation Vol II. The album is a heavy-duty emotional ride and after going through it several times, one can only imagine this Columbian superstar creating more of such wonders. It has also managed to garner a significant number of good reviews from reputable sources (although there has been some major criticism too, but that’s the way it is with almost every musical collection). Like the one published in the Stylus Magazine: “Above all else, Shakira shows that highly individual, original pop song writing can co-exist splendidly with commercial interests, and on both of those scales, this album is something of a triumph.”
Shakira, like always, is bursting with energy to shake things up in her first single, Don’t Bother, about recovering after betrayal. Shakira is an amazing songwriter but there is some problem with this number. Themes like transforming into a whole new self after getting dumped have been done to death. Although the single has some really high quality music, it tends to lose impact because of aggressive lyrics such as: “I’m really a cat you see/And this is not my last life at all.”
Illegal features Carlos Santana’s guitar riffs and is an amazing number. The album also has a rock song, Animal City. Shakira has once again included Spanish numbers in the album such as En Tus Pupilas and Dia Especial, recorded as Something and The Day And The Time, respectively. The rest of the tracks are pretty much effective and are neatly tied up in the album with few exceptions like Drama and Your Embrace.
All the songs, good or average, bear Shakira’s stamp and she emerges as a winner.—Azeem Haider
Famed ghazal singer S.B. John’s son Glenn and musician Javed Allah Ditta’s lad Mohsin team up with guitarist Sayyam Rana to come up with Gurus Trilogy’s debut album Aghaaz Chapter 1 — an amalgamation of eastern and western music with the vocals, arrangement and guitars all merging well together.
After her first English album, Laundry Service, became a certified hit, Shakira instantly stepped into the category of ‘A’ list musicians of North America. Her English fan following clearly surpassed the amount of fame she owned as a Spanish singer. Although her rendition of English numbers lacked the panache of a native singer, it was her musical genius, enchanting vocals and obsession with deeply engrossing lyrics that made her a hot property in the world of American pop.
