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album
profile
Out of exile
Ahmed Jahanzeb is back with his second solo album, Laut Aao.
This time he collaborates with Indian music producer Sachin Gupta.
The outcome, however, is not that interesting
By Anum
Opel
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There
is something innately beautiful about Ahmed Jahanzeb's voice. Perhaps
it's the years of training under Ustaad Rafees Khan. Perhaps it is
because even when AJ hits high notes, he does it with such poise that
one is amazed by it. Perhaps it is because Ahmed Jahanzeb, after Shafqat
Amanat Ali Khan, fused the fine art of classical music with contemporary
compositions and created a crafted and soulful sound.
Maybe it is simply the fact that AJ is just one hell of a singer.
Now after five years, AJ has finally returned with a new album, Laut
Aao.
Last year we did catch a glimpse of Ahmed with his Parastish partner
Shuja Haider on the beautiful soundtrack of Khuda Kay Liye.
With tracks like 'Janie Janie', 'Hamaray Hain', 'Duniya Ho', and the
soulful 'Tilak Kamod' - all on KKL OST - Ahmed Jahanzeb reaffirmed
our faith in his massive talent.
This is the man behind melancholic and gorgeous tunes like 'Aap Ki
Yaad', 'Aakhri Khayal' and the smash hit, 'Aik Baar Kaho'.
Coupled with his achievement on the KKL soundtrack, one expected stuff
of magic.
Unfortunately, his return is patchy at best.
Gone are the days of the lovelorn fellow who escalated to fame with
'Aik Baar Kaho' off the drama serial Laila Majnu.
Ahmed Jahanzeb's selling point were his ballads, his tortuous emotions
that reflected magnificently in his songs. Another huge reason for
AJ's success was the treatment - the haunted, tremulous feel - he
had given to most of his tunes on his debut album, Parastish.
And it is this treatment that is missing from his new album.
Take for instance, his comeback single, 'Chandni Raat Main'. The vocals
are definitely in top form and Ahmed even brings out a lot of joy
when he sings about his ladylove but there is nothing striking about
the song on the whole. In fact, what comes across is a rock treatment
that has fumbled. In a word, the song is cheesy.
Similar is the case with 'Main Aur Tu' but here it's the wordplay
that Ahmed should've paid attention to. As the words go, "Har
taraf chaya ishq ka jadoo/Main aur tu" (Everywhere the magic
of love has spread/Me and You). It's amateurish. But the saving grace
is Ahmed's appealing vocals.
'Teray Bina Jeena' sounds too much like the above-mentioned. It's
the same sound rehashed on a different melody and it sounds too monotonous.
Even on its own, it just doesn't grab one as a tune.
Meanwhile 'Dekha Maina Nahin' plays with a recurrent beat but ends
up sounding like Bombay Vikings' 'Aaa Raha Hoon Main'. The lyrics
don't inspire where Ahmed just goes on about a beautiful girl, memories
of her, her qualities - it's again very amateurish.
'Jab Tumhari Yaad' also suffers from the same problem. Are there no
emotions left to play with? That is the question one ends up asking
after this tune. Especially since the suffering of love was captured
so beautifully by Ahmed on his first record. It just sounds too disappointing.
And the music is predictably bland.
'Lagan Lagi' borrows the first line from Ahmed's old tune, 'Tu Jo
Nahin' with the words, 'Tu Jo Nahin/Tau Kuch Bhi Nahin' (If you are
not here, then there's nothing left) and then moves into its own.
The tune in particular is reminiscent of those Atif Aslam remixes
that have found their way in Indian clubs.
One can just picture Emraan Hashmi standing on a railway track or
the top of a mountain with his arms wide open, lip-syncing to 'Lagan
Lagi'. |
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In all probability this tune will get two-thumps
up from Indian listeners but it is just a bland concoction of beats
and sonic efforts that we've heard too many times.
The tunes that surprise one are too few and far in between. And
they are 'Jis Ko Bhi Lageya', 'Bol Mahiya Ve' and the best tune
of the album, 'Laut Aao'.
On 'Jis Ko Bhi Lageya' Ahmed gets the rock treatment right. The
tune is also a prime example of Ahmed's ability to stretch and twist
his voice and words to accommodate his melody. There is a subtle
haunted factor happening here and it makes 'Jis Ko Bhi Lageya' a
decent tune.
'Bol Mahiya Ve' kicks off with a chorus going "I
can love you baby" by a female chorus, one that keeps creeping
halfway into the song and just doesn't work. But except for the
one-liner, this is one of the nicer tunes on the album.
Even though the song definitely has a filmy feel to it, it works.
The sing-along factor mixed with some serious percussion- with tablas
paired with drums - soft acoustic guitars, and rather sweet lyrical
wordplay - that goes onto ask the beloved to speak, to reciprocate
the feelings, to smile sometimes - it's actually very sweet, in
the truest sense of the word.
'Laut Aao' remains the most haunted, tripped-out tune on this record.
It's morbid and a bluesy tune but the whole repetitive fact - "Laut
Aao" that keeps happening coupled with psychedelic effects
of keyboards and studio wizardry works like magic. Bravo!
And finally the three remixes - the less said the better. 'Chandni
Raat Main' is too dull while 'Tere Bina Jeena' sounds chaotic while
'Main Aur Tu' is average. This is no Timbaland or MIA or even Zeeshan
Parwez but just plain, dull sounds that west perfected years ago.
The problems
If there are only three songs that are noteworthy on a 12-track
album, that in itself is a huge problem.
Firstly, there is the sound. This is out and out pop/rock but the
treatment is dull. Neither is it as funky as Ali Azmat's Klashinifolk
nor is it bluesy rock that Jal nailed on their rather nice Boondh.
As far as rock goes, it doesn't even come close to the kind of experimental,
riff-rock magic that Strings managed on their album, Koi Aanay Wala
Hai.
This is just average stuff, easily forgettable. Maybe part of the
problem is the fact that Ahmed decided to team up with Sachin Gupta
(who also worked with Atif Aslam on Doorie). His old partner Shuja
Haider would've been a much more apt choice, considering the fact
that he was also involved with Strings on Koi Aanay Wala Hai and
that really was brilliant stuff.
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Second
problem are the lyrics. This has always been Ahmed's weakness. Take
'Tu Jo Nahin' from his first album as an example. 'Tu Jo Nahin/Tau
Kuch Bhi Nahin/Yeh Dil Mera Kehta Raha/Yeh Pyaar Hai" (If you
are not here, then there's nothing, and my heart keeps on saying,
this is love) or "Joray Bantay Hain/Joray Bantay Hain/Aasmanon
Main" (Matches are made in haeven) - where is the thought? But
these blunders were overlooked because here was a singer who was emoting
to the words so well that we were all singing along. Plus on his debut,
these were mistakes that were forgiven. A debut album is like learning
the ropes. You learn and move on.
But a sophomore album is always under more scrutiny and it is exactly
why what worked on Parastish cannot work on Laut Aao. |
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On 'Chandni Raat Mein', Ahmed sings, "Chandni Raat Mein/Chand
Kay Samnay/Rukh Say Prada Hatana/Ghazab Hogaya". On 'Tere Bina
Jeena', he sings, "Mujh Ko Tau Teri Justjoo/Tu Hee Mera Chain/Tu
He Mera Pyar Hai" and on 'Dekha Maine Nahin', he sings "Dekha
Maine Nahin/Tera Jaisa Haseen/Woh Teri Ada/Woh Teri Sharam".
There is nothing wrong with these words but as they keep coming
one after the other in the tracks, it sounds monotonous. These are
the corny love songs that Bollywood churns out especially when we're
looking at the lyrics.
Playing with words and the emotion of love can be done intelligently.
Vital Signs on Hum Tum and Rushk on Sawaal are two key examples.
Those were love-torn tunes that played with the mind and heart and
continue to do so after all these years.
The only thing commendable on this record is the fact that after
lost-love format of Parastish, here the love tunes are on a happier
note and that is one step in the right direction. It's about love
but the connotations aren't negative and that is a conscious change
that can be heard throughout the album.
Times are a-changin'
In 2003, when Ahmed debuted on the musical front with Parastish,
his timing couldn't have been better.
2003 was the year of rock and pure pop. One saw Strings return with
Dhaani, which was true blue Strings but was not as exciting or memorable
as Duur. Junoon were saying their goodbyes as a band with Deewar
that finally pushed Ali Azmat and Salman Ahmed in different directions.
The Battle of the Bands winner and runner-up acts of Aaroh and EP
arrived with their rock-heavy and entertaining records, Sawaal and
Irtiqa respectively.
Another rock act - which made some serious buzz via the Internet
and concerts - Noori also sprouted onto the scene with their super
successful and youthful Suno Kay Mein Hoon Jawan. And then there
was Ali Zafar with the addictive 'Channo' on his filmi music-meets-pop
debut vehicle, Huqa Pani.
Meanwhile veteran singer Najam Shiraz was finding solace in religion
with Yeh Moamla Koi Aur Hai.
A year before, one heard what classically trained singers could
do with modern sounds ala Fuzon and their monumental debut album
Saagar. But 2003 was lacking massive ballads and it was this reason
why Ahmed was welcomed so openly. There were no Zeb and Haniya back
then or Atif Aslam or Kaavish.
But 2008 is a different ballgame. Ali Azmat, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan,
Strings, Shehzad Roy and Zeb and Haniya have raised the bar with
their outstanding efforts.
In comparison, Ahmed Jahanzeb's Laut Aao just doesn't have enough
character to retain one as a listener for long.
In a recent interview, Ahmed Jahanzeb stated that his music cannot
be understood by the Pakistani listeners and is meant only for the
Indian audience. It's perhaps the same route that Atif Aslam took
ala Doorie. India is a bigger market and a better platform. But
what needs to be said is that musicians like Strings, Rahat Fateh
Ali Khan, Roxen and Azal are working in India and have developed
following without changing their sounds to the fit the Bollywood-friendly
mould.
In all probability, Ahmed's new record will work in India. But as
listeners who have learned to adapt the changing sounds of Pakistani
pop and rock, we're hugely disappointed. Nothing more to it. |
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