It's good to be Aunty Disco Project

Last weekend Aunty Disco Project performed for two back to back nights as Omar Bilal Akhtar, Yasir Qureshi, Ali Alam, Rahayl Sidikey and Giles Goveas took to the stage at the PACC in Karachi. And if that wasn’t enough, the following night they were featured on Coke Studio 3 (CS3). It’s safe to say things are definitely looking up for them.
The concert made for a very intimate show. It’s something that ADP has always excelled at — the band members always talk, cajole and have fun with their audience. It hardly matters to them if people show up or not because ADP fans are always there near the stage to cheer them on.

Being sponsored by a popular audio equipment company has its perks — the band had at its disposal a state-of-the-art sound system and they were their own sound engineers. Instead of having to rely on somebody else, they could tweak their own sound on the go.

The sound itself was quite remarkable, though at times Yasir’s darbuka seemed to drown amongst the rest of the music. However, the bass, which often tends to drown out, was quite prominent. Overall, the sound was very good considering it was a small stage.

The 15-song playlist that the band performed that night included Dastaan-i-Dil, Raat Jaagi, Jaane Wale, Hum Na Rahe, Mujhe Sahara Do and Kisi Aur Kay Intezar that showcased its new sound. Even established tunes like Sultanat and Nazar were performed. Joining them on these performances was all-round musician Miqdaad Mohammad on the saxophone. His subtle influence was something that really infused life into the concert.

Ali Alam also performed a special song that he wrote some 10-odd years ago. Citing that Kitnay Vaday still reflects present times, he said it only made sense to play it today.

They performed a bunch of covers that were very interesting: Madonna’s Like A Prayer (a rocked-up version), a funky cover of Chromeo’s Night by Night, and a very special cover featuring DJ Talal Qureshi (Yasir’s brother) of Aerosmith’s and Run DMC’s Walk Like This. They closed the set with a medley of great hits which drew cheers from the crowd.

These past few years, ADP has taken a visible 180-degree turn on its vision by shirking away from record companies, relying heavily on radio plays, bringing out their own album, etc. The band had a much more rebellious attitude then than it has now. They’ve worked hard to come this far, getting gigs such as CS.

But all has not been well on this journey. After an amicable split with Imran Lodhi who then left for Canada for further studies, the remaining band members could not imagine that they would never see him ever again — the singer-songwriter passed away in Canada earlier this year. Drummer Omar Khalid also parted ways with the band to settle abroad. Rather than fall with the hits, the band mustered on, drawing in not two but three replacements —Ali Alam (singer-songwriter), Rahayl Sidikey (bass) and Giles Goveas (drums). This drastic change would ultimately have an effect on ADP. The beats are now stronger, the songs more melodic and the band actually sounds more rock than it has ever before. Especially more towards the ’90s rock.

Ali Alam brings in his own songwriting aspect to the band which only compliments Omar Bilal Akhtar’s skills.

Rahayl on the bass sets the pace of every song. Being an established bass player, he was the much-needed missing piece that the band now finally has. Also, we’re getting to hear more of Yasir on percussions and the darbuka. He’s a unique element to the band and it’s his input that sets the band apart from the rest. Not to tread over Omar Khalid’s drumming for the band, but Giles approach is much more intense. His beats are packed with layers that help bring about the rock in each of the songs they perform.

ADP’s CS3 performance was far better than some of the established bands we’ve seen. Rather than playing a cover — which others have crashed and burned on — it played its own anthem, Sultanat, which has matured along with the band over the years. The changes reflected in it ultimately reflects upon the band itself. Gone is the melancholy-esque rock track; instead the tempo is slightly upbeat and the rock turned up all the way to 11. They’ve extended the song, given it a middle, thrown in a great solo and given each band member the power to flex his music muscles.

After a rather bleak second episode of CS, all it took was a bunch of Aunties to bring the music back! After all, it’s a band like ADP that really brings out the essence of Coke Studio. Young band, wide audience, established producer; you just can’t go wrong with that mix.

So all in all, quite a good week for the band. And to top it all off, they are all hard at work on a new album. It’s not over for the Aunties just yet.

JoSH, ADP & 90 Degrees... in Concert. In Karachi.

Concerts these days are often either hits or misses.

Given the nature of the current socio-political climate venues, musicians and organizers are wary of what to expect at a concert. Likewise, the people themselves also share a sense of cautiousness when going out and about. Thankfully, that wasn’t the mood when JoSH, Aunty Disco Project and 90 Degrees performed recently at a popular social club in DHA.

The concert kicked off with 90 Degrees. Though a relatively unknown band, the members of the group should be commended for performing whilst the organizers were still trying to work out the sound check. This didn’t bode well for 90 Degree’s performance as the sound was all over the place during their performance. However, the band deserved an A for Effort as not that many bands can pull off a decent cover of Sajjad Ali songs (including Sajjad Ali’s own cover of Didi by Khaled, Babiya). Also, it wasn’t just the sound check that wasn’t in favor of 90 Degrees, crowds gathered slowly at their own time at the same time being completely oblivious to the band’s performance. As for the performance itself, keeping the sound check snafu aside, 90 Degrees do show potential and promise. All they need is persistence and better opportunities to perform.

Aunty Disco Project were up next. To say that the band have had an eventful year is an understatement. After the departure of Imran Lodhi in 2008, the band parted ways with drummer Omar Khalid (amicably) recently, but at the same time, the band gained three new members and a drastic new approach to music. Rahayl Sidikey, Ali Alam and most recently their new drummer Giles Goveas are all part of the band and their contributions/sound does leave a distinct departure from the ADP people knew. The once hardcore underground band with its own unique purist sound was now easing up to sound of commercialism—albeit on their own terms.

ADP kicked off the show with their magnum opus, “Sultanat.” A song that has evolved as the band has, however it remains their signature tune and a distinct crowd favourite. “Likhta nahin mein” and “Raat Jaga” were next, both songs in a rather quick succession. The sound reflected a much hungrier ADP who were eager to have the crowd’s attention no matter what. Finally, just when the pace was set high, ADP pulled back a notch for the slow and melancholy song that is “Nazar.” Things picked up again with “Janay Waley” and “Hum Na Rahein” by now the crowd was really getting into the performance. A particular note to “Janay Waley”, a song from their upcoming album, showcases a much more up beat approach to music if compared to the likes of “Sultanat” and “Nazar” even though most of their songs were already quite upbeat from before. Coalescing around the stage, ADP certainly had their attention. The band closed their set with “Mujhay Sahara Do” another oldie that had been revamped. The ADP that performed that night was most certainly a brand new ADP and if this gig is an example, or taste if you will, of things to be expected from the new ADP album, then it is definitely an album to watch out for.

Finally, we come to the headliners, JoSH. Roop and Q have graced the shores of this coastal city quite often. They were part of the recent Coke Studio and have always had memorable gigs here. This show appeared no less, the moment JoSH took stage, there was a surge in the crowd. Everybody who hadn’t joined in whilst 90 Degrees or ADP performed, came rushing forward to greet the band onstage. It wasn’t just their musical performances that had the crowd going, their interaction with the crowd was on another level entirely. Roop and Q both took turns speaking/interacting with the crowd, so much so to have a playful competition between the two of them, just to see who would get the crowd worked up better. JoSH performed “Kabhi kabhi”, “Mausam”, “Sauda”, “Mahi Ve”, “Khaike Pan Banaras Wala” and a host of other songs. However, a particularly touching moment occurred in the concert when Q took a moment to reflect that he was in fact performing in a very special city; his birthplace. He also dedicated the concert to his mother, who was also present backstage.

Finally, the night was complete. The organizers of the show, Studio Maxx Presentations and a popular watch manufacturer, had managed the show reasonably. The security was excessive but not overbearing. The concert wasn’t on time, but it wasn’t drastically late either.

A pleasant gig with some great performances, a couple more of these and the Karachi concert scene will be right back on track.

The Aunty Disco Project Tea Party

Underground band Aunty Disco Project's have surfaced with a new video, titled "Nazar". True to ADP style, it is quirky, surreal and – wait for it – commercial!

Omar Bilal Akhtar, the band's singer and songwriter, admits with a laugh, "Yeah, this is our first commercial video." The video itself may be commercial, but it sticks with the spirit of the band, "All we told the director, Umer Adil, was that we wanted it to be funny, which was very important to us," says the singer/songwriter. Although the video is funny, in a surreal way there is more to it than just that.

The track itself is very unlike ADP, a slow graceful number that reflects the band's true essence. "It was a different pace from what we do: hardrock covers, headbanging, but this was a very introspective track, and everybody on the band loves it. And it's quite personal to me."

Omar, or Oba as he is known, sounds much relaxed and calm about the fact that they are now veering into territory they thought they'd never venture into. "This is definitely one of the most easy listening tracks that we have, it's quite commercial." This is from the band that totally scoffed at the idea of anything commercial when they broke out with their self-released album, almost a year ago.

They did name drop a few directors back then, but it was pretty clear that they were steering clear from anything too commercial. Not anymore as Oba states: "Ali Alam's been a great influence on us, not just on our music, but as musicians. He was the one who introduced us to Umer Adil." And what about Alam's involvement in ADP? "We're negotiating at the moment," laughs Oba, "although we're writing songs and helping each other out, we're still touring together as a live act."

Before I can ask him, Oba gets one thing clear, "Imran is not a part of the band anymore." At first, one can assume that the separation was tumultuous, but Oba makes it absolutely clear: "He has his own career now and we have ours, but even with that we're helping each other out all the way through. We remain good friends." Even though they are one less Aunty, the band is adamant they are still ready to Disco it out.

From one Omar to another, Umer Adil, the director, has established himself with niche TV shows, from gardening, cooking to children's programs. Along with his wife, Beenish Waiz, the two of them came up with the concept of the video and presented it to the band. "When I first heard the song," says Umer, "I immediately had the image of the jester figurine [one of the first frames in the video] in my mind." He ran with the entire story of the video and it was pretty clear that they were meticulous with their storytelling. "We then expanded upon the fact that the jester is the storyteller and other nuances, so much that people will actually enjoy watching it over and over again."

The video opens on each band member, individually, from Oba's serenading on the guitar, to Omar Khalid's slumber on the hammock, to Yasir's chess playing. Seemingly each character is not connected, that is until we are introduced to the Tea Lady. Played by a friend of Oba, Natasha portrays a mysterious character, living in the middle of the forest, in what clearly appears to be an allegory to the Hut of Baba Yaga. And upon watching the video for the second time, I was picking up things I had not seen before. "That's the thing," states Umer, "it's open ended enough so that everyone understands it, but at the same time, it is open to interpretation and is multi-layered."

Shot on a farm outside Karachi, the video is one part costume drama and one part tea party satire. In it, the boys appear dressed in costume and get called upon by model Natasha, for tea. But nothing is what it appears to be, subtle hints dropped along the way, blink and you'll miss them moments and especially the twist ending, is what makes this video one to look out for.

The video is now airing on all channels. And now that the work is done both Umer and Oba are quickly getting on to other things. "I'm doing and will do a few documentaries at the moment," says Umer and I ask him about doing more music videos. "If the song is good enough," he replies.

Meanwhile, Oba and the group are busy writing new songs. "We've written quite a few now, they're interesting and different, but we don't want to do the same old songs over again. I think this is going to be a totally fresh start."