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Nescafe Basement Music Show Season 4 - Amazing!

kuthaman

kuthaman

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Hi everyone,

For those who don't know, Nescafe Basement is a music show started by Zulfi of EP which gathers young talent (Ages 12-30) around Pakistan to jam together and cover classic Pakistani songs and occasional originals. The songs are fusions of East and West but tend to be much more rock-tinged than Coke Studio, and a youthful energy infuses the songs. Instruments such as tabla, flutes, keyboards, guitars, drums and more are used. Check out some of the songs from Season 4 on YouTube and Soundcloud.

Kameez Teri Kali (Cover of Ataullah Khan Esakhelvi song)-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWXZ2iU94Gc

Tere Jeya Hor Disda (Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_gZTh-HrZE

Jadoo Ka Chiragh (Awaz - Haroon/Fakhir cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6stiVlVr5s

Tu Mera Nahin (Original)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hNXWywXnnU

https://soundcloud.com/nescafepakistan
 
iHammad said:
kuthaman I like your username :))
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LOL yeah I remember telling him the same ahaha

Will check this out. And what happened to Coke studio, is that a thing still or has it been discontinued? Used to enjoy that too.
 
Suleiman said:
LOL yeah I remember telling him the same ahaha

Will check this out. And what happened to Coke studio, is that a thing still or has it been discontinued? Used to enjoy that too.
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Haha thanks guys - had that name since the old Counter-Strike net cafe days. Coke studio's still running and in my opinion, better than ever. You can check out their latest stuff on Youtube here
 
Big moment for Nescafe Basement 4 - "Love me again" cover of John Newman was performed by all girls, the fusion was highlighted by Tabla, Sitar amongst other instruments and John Newman himself tweeted about the cover calling it DOPE

Needless to say all girls including Xulfi are over the moon
 
Heard terey jaya hor disda. quite liked it. Also heard Allah hoo Allah hoo which was very poorly sung.
 
They're getting quite a bit of criticism for this one on Soundcloud, but I loved it. For some reason, people consider every Nusrat cover as a sacrilege or sorts, even when they can't find any technical faults. Just because it isn't identical to the original doesn't make it any less worthwhile. The part in the middle with the bass drum in sync with the claps was catchy, and towards the end the part with the literary references to the prophets and the love tragedies was well delivered.

It looks like its Xulfi himself on bass (listed as "Xuli" in the end credits). Were they unable to find a bassist this season, or is it just for this song? I haven't seen the rest of the videos.

 
This season is turning out to be a good one for us 90's kids (okay, teens). This is a cover of the title track from Junoon's second album, Talaash, from 1993. It was a seminal album for the Pakistani rock scene: Brian O'Connell was lured to Pakistan to join Junoon for what would become their classic lineup, and this was the first album he contributed to. "Heeray," also from that album, became the first Pakistani video on MTV. There was a "rock ghazal" on the album, sort of a prototype for what Junoon would end up doing in later years, and the title track was the first socially conscious track from the local scene to gain any traction.

Most of the kids in the video probably weren't even born in 1993.

 
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Nostalgic said:
This season is turning out to be a good one for us 90's kids (okay, teens). This is a cover of the title track from Junoon's second album, Talaash, from 1993. It was a seminal album for the Pakistani rock scene: Brian O'Connell was lured to Pakistan to join Junoon for what would become their classic lineup, and this was the first album he contributed to. "Heeray," also from that album, became the first Pakistani video on MTV. There was a "rock ghazal" on the album, sort of a prototype for what Junoon would end up doing in later years, and the title track was the first socially conscious track from the local scene to gain any traction.

Most of the kids in the video probably weren't even born in 1993.

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Nice find, was easily my 2nd favorite Junoon song behind Taara Jala.
 
Suleiman said:
Nice find, was easily my 2nd favorite Junoon song behind Taara Jala.
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Really, Tara Jala, from Dewaar, their last album circa 2003? That album was easily their worst effort, bar none. There are many, many Junoon tunes better than Tara Jala. But to each their own I guess : )
 
Not impressed with Kameez Teri Kaali, can't even listen to the singer's voice clearly. Talaash is much better.
 
Nostalgic said:
This season is turning out to be a good one for us 90's kids (okay, teens). This is a cover of the title track from Junoon's second album, Talaash, from 1993. It was a seminal album for the Pakistani rock scene: Brian O'Connell was lured to Pakistan to join Junoon for what would become their classic lineup, and this was the first album he contributed to. "Heeray," also from that album, became the first Pakistani video on MTV. There was a "rock ghazal" on the album, sort of a prototype for what Junoon would end up doing in later years, and the title track was the first socially conscious track from the local scene to gain any traction.

Most of the kids in the video probably weren't even born in 1993.

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thanks for this!! loved this song since i was a teenager...junoon was so ahead of its time! iirc, they got banned for a while after this song or album
 
sshakir411 said:
thanks for this!! loved this song since i was a teenager...junoon was so ahead of its time! iirc, they got banned for a while after this song or album
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No, that song was Ehtesaab, which came out in December 1996, and wasn't a part of any album. Salman Ahmad likes to claim that BB's government banned them from TV because of it, but the truth is her government had already been dismissed in November 1996, and the Ehtesaab or Accountability demand being made by Nawaz, Imran and JI prompted the song, featured first on a BBC documentary called the Princess and the Playboy, about BB and Zardari. The line "ehteaaab, phir intikhaab, warna inquilaab" (first accountability, then elections, otherwise revolution) was actually a Jamaatia slogan plastered all over walls and buses and whatnot, before the 1997 elections. So began Salman's dalliance with the right wing.

Nawaz did ban them from TV, but because of the long hair and ripped jeans etc, channelling his Godfather Zia. I doubt he had any issue with the song, which mainly lampooned Zardari and his horses in the video. But Salman Ahmad will claim otherwise.
 
How exactly did Junoon split? [MENTION=22846]Nostalgic[/MENTION]
 
Pakz said:
How exactly did Junoon split? [MENTION=22846]Nostalgic[/MENTION]
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Have seen Ali Azmat's and Salman Ahmed's interviews and apparently Salman was more into charity and doing shows for good causes, whereas Azmat was about making money, but this was a minor argument, there had always been tension between the 2 few years before the split.

But now there is genuine (or junoon :afridi) hate between the two from what I got from Azmat's interview. Was saying all sorts of hateful things about his former band member.

However Azmat was still very successful post split, even having few of his solos in bollywood movies, he was really the engine that drove Junoon. But is an arrogant guy.
 
Clash of personalities, egos, and musical philosophy.

Ali wanted to venture past the Sufi rock stuff, Salman wanted to milk it for all its worth.

Salman had delusions of grandeur when it came to his singing. He can't sing to save his life, but towards the end was insisting on more of a vocalist's role.

Ali is actually a brilliant composer, very unique and dynamic, as his solo albums prove, but found himself frustrated with not being able to contribute more on the composition front. Let's not forget that the band was unmistakably Salman's baby.

Then there was Salman's brother Sherry's influence as band manager which Ali loathed, and the last straw was Brian's wrist injury. He was replaced with Mekaal Hasan on tour towards the end, soon after which he left Pakistan. He was the sane voice keeping the other two from ripping each other to shreds, and with him gone, it was as if the glue that held them together was gone.

I met them at the airport in 2003, on their way to their last U.S. tour. I spotted Salman, and went over to talk and get his autograph. To his credit, he spent a long time talking to me, a random fan. Towards the end, instead of handing me my notebook back, which he had just autographed, he threw it to the side. I was taken aback, but then I noticed that someone sitting around the corner had picked it up. It was Ali. They couldn't even bring themselves to look at each other.
 
Coke, Nescafe - are only mainstream beverage and soft drinks companies interested in Pakistani music ?

Personally liked Jugni by Arif Lohar and Meesha Shafi on Coke Studio a few years ago.
 
Haroon786 said:
Coke, Nescafe - are only mainstream beverage and soft drinks companies interested in Pakistani music ?.
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The perennial debate about corporate sponsorship in our music industry. It was a deleterious influence in the earlier years, when they would actually try to veto any song that was controversial, and insisting on a generic, commercially friendly sound. These days I see it as a necessary evil. They have the money, and have learnt their lesson and now give the producers free reign. Both Coke Studio and Nescafé Basement regularly attempt works that do not fit the mould of the commercial, radio friendly format of four-minute-long songs with generic music.
 
Nostalgic said:
The perennial debate about corporate sponsorship in our music industry. It was a deleterious influence in the earlier years, when they would actually try to veto any song that was controversial, and insisting on a generic, commercially friendly sound. These days I see it as a necessary evil. They have the money, and have learnt their lesson and now give the producers free reign. Both Coke Studio and Nescafé Basement regularly attempt works that do not fit the mould of the commercial, radio friendly format of four-minute-long songs with generic music.
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Do you know any good place to download S4 from? I googled and got to ebuzz.pk but the quality is just terrible.
 
Nostalgic said:
This season is turning out to be a good one for us 90's kids (okay, teens). This is a cover of the title track from Junoon's second album, Talaash, from 1993. It was a seminal album for the Pakistani rock scene: Brian O'Connell was lured to Pakistan to join Junoon for what would become their classic lineup, and this was the first album he contributed to. "Heeray," also from that album, became the first Pakistani video on MTV. There was a "rock ghazal" on the album, sort of a prototype for what Junoon would end up doing in later years, and the title track was the first socially conscious track from the local scene to gain any traction.

Most of the kids in the video probably weren't even born in 1993.

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Was Brian not part of junoon when they came out with first album that had Dheerey Dheery Aa Jaa & that one song which was also used as title song for the PTV drama that Salman acted in in which he was a young father of multiple girls and marriage goes south?
 
Bouncer said:
Was Brian not part of junoon when they came out with first album that had Dheerey Dheery Aa Jaa & that one song which was also used as title song for the PTV drama that Salman acted in in which he was a young father of multiple girls and marriage goes south?
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No, the Volume 1 lineup was Ali, Salman and Nusrat Hussain on keyboards.

Nusrat was the original Vital Signs guitarist, he is the bearded guy in the Dil Dil Pakistan video. He was replaced by Salman, and when VS broke up, both ex-VS guitarists ended up in Junoon. Nusrat had to leave both bands because he was an airline pilot and couldn't devote the time to music.

Between the first two albums, the band also had Nadeem Jafri on keyboards, and Assad Ahmad on bass. Neither survived till the second album. Also before Gumby, they had Malcolm Goveas as session drummer. He was a fine musician.
 
[MENTION=22846]Nostalgic[/MENTION] Off topic but since you seem to remember early 90's Pakistani music (which is very nostalgic to me as 90's kid....see what i did there? :p ) so I am asking you....What happened with Sequencers? I cant remember any music from them after 93/94?
 
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Nostalgic said:
No, the Volume 1 lineup was Ali, Salman and Nusrat Hussain on keyboards.

Nusrat was the original Vital Signs guitarist, he is the bearded guy in the Dil Dil Pakistan video. He was replaced by Salman, and when VS broke up, both ex-VS guitarists ended up in Junoon. Nusrat had to leave both bands because he was an airline pilot and couldn't devote the time to music.

Between the first two albums, the band also had Nadeem Jafri on keyboards, and Assad Ahmad on bass. Neither survived till the second album. Also before Gumby, they had Malcolm Goveas as session drummer. He was a fine musician.
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Gumby and Asad were never part of the Vital Signs band but toured with them as session players for the longest time.

If I'm not mistaken Asad and Gumby were part of Awaz and played for Vital Signs on tour when Amir Zaki left them.
 
Was Malcolm Goveas the same guy who was a drummer for Milestones and later on ( Summer 96) joined Ali haider's band Aaakash (?) ...in 96/97 Rumor had it that he was Ali haider's lover/partner too.
 
Bouncer said:
[MENTION=22846]Nostalgic[/MENTION] Off topic but since you seem to remember early 90's Pakistani music (which is very nostalgic to me as 90's kid....see what i did there? :p ) so I am asking you....What happened with Sequencers? I cant remember any music from them after 93/94?
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The Sequencers worked on a second album in the late 90's and early 2000's but just couldn't find a sponsor to help them release it. I guess after that it was all over for them.

Sahara was a huge hit though so it surprises me that they couldn't release their second album at a time when Pakistani music was at its peak.
 
uberkoen said:
Gumby and Asad were never part of the Vital Signs band but toured with them as session players for the longest time.

If I'm not mistaken Asad and Gumby were part of Awaz and played for Vital Signs on tour when Amir Zaki left them.
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No I meant Junoon, not VS. Jafri and Assad were more or less official members before the second album, and to this day, there's bad blood between them and Salman.

As for VS, they had Nusrat, Salman (Vol 1), Rizwan-ul-Haq (Vol 2 and Aitebaar albums) and Amir Zaki (two live songs on the Hum Tum album) as official band members at one time or the other, alongside the three constants (Junaid, Rohail, Shehzad). All of them had and still have issues with Rohail, which is why we never saw any of them in the Rohail-era Coke Studio. Assad is a Rohail loyalist, and he was session guitarist on the Hum Tum album, and present on at least four CS seasons.

You're right that Assad was a longtime member of Awaz, until he couldn't take that bubblegum pop anymore and left to create Karavan. Awaz briefly had Zaki as a replacement.

Gumby has sessioned for just about everyone. Junoon, MHB, you name it.
 
Bouncer said:
Was Malcolm Goveas the same guy who was a drummer for Milestones and later on ( Summer 96) joined Ali haider's band Aaakash (?) ...in 96/97 Rumor had it that he was Ali haider's lover/partner too.
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That was Alan Smith. I had never heard about the rumors involving him, although Ali Haider was rumored to be gay.

Alan Smith is (or was) part of Karavan. He too has sessioned for virtually everyone. The Goans are a vital part of the popular music scene, it just wouldn't be the same without them.
 
Incidentally, the Ali Haider-Milestones merger was originally called Araaf, but then the maulvis complained about it being named after a chapter from the Quran, and they had to change it.
 
Bouncer said:
Was Malcolm Goveas the same guy who was a drummer for Milestones and later on ( Summer 96) joined Ali haider's band Aaakash (?) ...in 96/97 Rumor had it that he was Ali haider's lover/partner too.
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Nostalgic said:
That was Alan Smith. I had never heard about the rumors involving him, although Ali Haider was rumored to be gay.

Alan Smith is (or was) part of Karavan. He too has sessioned for virtually everyone. The Goans are a vital part of the popular music scene, it just wouldn't be the same without them.
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It's funny how Aakash is referred to as Ali Haider's band when he was recruited to be the lead vocalist by former Milestones members instead of the other way around.
 
uberkoen said:
It's funny how Aakash is referred to as Ali Haider's band when he was recruited to be the lead vocalist by former Milestones members instead of the other way around.
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Right, the sound was more Milestones than Ali Haider.

Candy Perreira, had she not immigrated to Canada, would've gone far. There was just something about her that was very alluring. I wonder if she did any music in Canada.
 
Something from the early 2000's now. Aaroh were one of the better acts from that era. I remember them winning the Battle of the Bands in 2002, beating EP in the final, and the subsequent album highlighted the talents of Farooq, the classically-trained lead singer. Sadly, Farooq works in a supermarket in Pennsylvania these days.


So, who here knows their music theory? What exactly is an Aaroh? Hint: it is the opposite of an Avaroh.
 
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Listening to Junoon's songs, I have to say its so tragic they broke up when they did. Their music was headed in areas unexplored and they would have done something incredible if they continued down the path they were going.
 
Stewie said:
Listening to Junoon's songs, I have to say its so tragic they broke up when they did. Their music was headed in areas unexplored and they would have done something incredible if they continued down the path they were going.
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I'll have to demur. I thought 1999's Parwaaz was the zenith, the third and final in a string of groundbreaking experimental albums. After that, Salman was milking fame for all it was worth, Ali was itching to leave, and towards the end they were half-heartedly experimenting with electronic sounds and doing covers of rock classics with Salman singing.

In a way, by 2003 the venture had run its course, and we wouldn't have had much of Ali Azmat's innovative solo works if they hadn't broken up.
 
A fitting finale to a fine season. The season had more polish, even though the Nescafe marketing is still a little too aggressive. They could tone it down and make it more subtle. Anyhow, it was nice to see almost the entire team in it.

Faraz Anwar has been part of the industry since his early teens (he is 40 now). While his best work is mostly unknown to the masses, Mizraab was a bit of a commercial success, and this was the band's best-known track.

 
Ran into this song again:


Awesome melody.

I don't like to tinker with songs with this kind, but am trying to remix it or at least bootleg it, I'll probably end up butchering it but let's see how it goes.
 
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