INSTEP Magzine




Abrar is back with 'Islamabad'

It's election year (hopefully) and Abrar ul Haq has returned with an album that takes up Islamabad and the political scenario of Pakistan as his next cause. The song 'Islamabad' is the first video from his album Naraa Sada Ishq Aye to appear on music channels and the song brings back the tongue in cheek style Abrar is so popular for. He lost a bit of his cheekiness in his last album Nachan Mein Udday Naal but is back with a bang. The video, directed by Bilal Lashari, is a fabulous interpretation of the Islamabad culture and indicates the importance of peace over war. It has depictions of The Last Supper with a Pakistani man's head, stuffed and served on the table and also has skeletons dancing in a very 'thriller' manner that totally suits Islamabad, also known as 'city of the living dead', no offence! Abrar has always been known for being a total bhangra buff and being such a popular musician, one almost forgets that he was also once a lecturer at Aitchison College. This song, with its political undertones, puts the king of bhangra pop on a higher level. The video has a total thumbs up and now watch this space for a review on his new album….

Mekaal Hasan busy in studios

Mekaal Hasan's reputation as a producer remains superlative to this day. Sampooran and Noori's Peeli Patti Aur Raja Jaani Ki Gol Dunya are ample proof of his virtuoso production abilities. 2007 is turning out to be quite a year for him as he is producing six albums. Mekaal Hasan has already started work on Ali Azmat's second solo album. According to Mekaal, the first part is finished. Speaking to Instep he said, "Ali's album is turning out quite nicely. I told Ali before recording that pick up a team who will not only be with you in the studios but will also perform live with you. It's a four-man set comprising of Ali, Gumby, Omran Shafique and Manu. There is Zeb and Haniya's album that I'm working on. It's not rock-oriented as such but more textured. It's different and I hope it does well in the market. I've just finished Ali Sheikh's album. I am producing Saahil's new album, Jal's upcoming album as well as Rubberband's album." That's not all. On the Mekaal Hasan Band front, there are a number of gigs lined up. MHB is performing tonight at Al-Hamra in Lahore and on the 31st March in Karachi. There is also an MHB video, 'Huns Dhun' in the pipeline, which is being directed by Zeeshan Parwez. The video is slated for an April release. Watch this space for more on MHB.

Salman Ahmed teaches Islamic music

If there is one musician who is really going places, it is definitely Salman Ahmed. After a recent successful gig in Delhi – a charity gig – Salman is flown off to Oxford to perform at the Skoll foundation annual awards. The biggest news, however, is that Salman Ahmed is teaching at Queens College in New York. For the spring semester, Salman Ahmed has a class of almost 50 students from US, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Korea, Russia and Albania. "I'm highlighting the richness of Muslim music and poetry, both traditional and contemporary so that my students can have a better understanding of the Muslim world," said Salman speaking to Instep. And that's not all. According to Salman, at a recent trip to Los Angeles, he was approached by Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) to record a green peace song. "I sang on it with Annie lennox and Sarah McLaughlin and also played guitar," said Salman. Watch this space for more on the many ventures of Salman Ahmed.