Who says talent is dead in Pakistan? A music reality show, Uth Records is out to prove that talent among the youth in Pakistan still exists and it just needs to be brought out and projected right.
Episode one featured a band called Jumbo Jutt and episode two, a three member band called Yasir and Jawad (feat uring Wali).
The show revolves around young, budding artistes that come to record at Omran ‘Momo’ Shafique and Louis J. ‘Gumby’ Pinto’s studio in Karachi. We’re introduced to ‘characters’ (other than the two prominent producers, Gumby and Momo) such as Mohammad Agha the sound engineer, Bilal Khan and Shahrukh Khursheed who are controlling the cameras along with the director of the series, Zeeshan Parwez.
The show gives an intimate look into what goes into recording an artiste. The tedious task of recording individual instruments and the pressure that comes when one of them doesn’t get it right. We’re given an insight into Momo’s reading habits and Gumby’s playful behaviour in the studio. We see how shy (and somewhat in awe) band members of Jumbo Jutt and Yasir and Jawad appear to be when they first arrive in the studio.
When asked which artiste Jumbo Jutt would like to collaborate with, they unanimously responded: Faraz Anwar. Considered one of the greatest guitarists in the country with a very loyal fan following, Faraz’s quiet personality is shown to the world and he is seen mentoring the band and commenting on the state of the music industry.
Jumbo Jutt features Faraz Anwar on the song, Jumbo Jutt, a rock anthem that one feels one has heard on radio before. But not this version. The sound is strong and fresh, the tune is catchy and reminds one of a rocked-up version of Noori. If this is just a glimmer of what Jumbo Jutt has to offer, one can’t wait for more.
Yasir and Jawad on the other hand bring a soulful, ethnic, folk flavour to their music. Fusing the acoustic guitars with the beautifully haunting sound of the rabab, Yasir, Jawad and Wali’s offering, Reidi Gul, borrows its lyrical content from the poetry of a Pushto poet, Khan Abdul Ghani Khan, and focuses on khudi — a process of introspection. The band hails from Peshawar, but more specifically Yasir is from Mardan, Abdul Wali Khan Orakzai is from the Orakzai Agency and Yasir is from Peshawar.
The song Reidi Gul has the makings of a fusion classic. It builds up in its intensity as the song progresses. One does not understand or speak Pushto and it would help to perhaps post the translation lyrics. Watching the band record is a fun process though, especially the part where Gumby shows Wali how to record backing vocals with Wali promising to get it right in “only one take”. Another comic ‘moment’ in the episode is the dispute over the name of the band, Yasir and Jawad, when it clearly has three band members. At the end all three are sitting at a café when Wali brings up the subject and is told that now he is famous and there are girls after him. “Where are they” questions Wali motioning to a female-empty space.
The candid, almost causal way (with the added humour) in which the show has been shot reminds one of Zeeshan Parwez and his cousin, Fasih Zaka’s show, On the Fringe, which had a cult audience. Having said that, where the show has many moments in which it is entertains and educates audiences on what goes on behind-the-scenes while making music, one felt there wasn’t enough content in the first episode featuring Jumbo Jutt. The camera work tends to become somewhat fidgety here and there and doesn’t provide a complete visual storytelling experience to the viewer. But then again, this was just the first two installments, who knows what Uth Records has lines up next?