INSTEP Magzine




1. ' Tere Liye' – live version Vital Signs

As a song, 'Tere Liye' is one of the Vital Signs' (Junaid Jamshed, Rohail Hyatt and Shehzad 'Shahi' Hasan) most memorable pop ditties. It is an extremely powerful number. With a romantically morbid wordplay that goes, "Aayegi ek baar/Kho gayi jo bahar/mein iss hi aas mein jioonga/Phir bhi jaaney mujhe/Kyun yeh ehsaas hai/Jaisa chahat meri gum rahi ho," this song has a long lasting value. It's one of those tracks that can be heard over and over… for a long time. Perhaps the biggest difference between the live and the original version is the instrumentation. With acoustic guitars as a dominant instrument and keyboards forming the background
sound, it gives 'Tere Liye' a new twist. Vital Signs, who rose to success in the late eighties with their patriotic hit, 'Dil Dil Pakistan' showed a mature, somewhat subdued sound in their second album, Vital Signs-2 and 'Tere Liye' along with 'Ajnabi', 'Yaad Karna' showed off the moody side of the Signs. So, download it now!

2. 'Yaad Tau Aayengay Hum' Rola featuring Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan

With Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan's deep, inimitable vocals and a raw, textured sound, 'Yaad Tau Aaengay Hum' is just a very haunting number. More than anything else, it works as a song because it has a lot of character and weirdly complimenting keyboard nuances. There is no menacing guitaring here even though guitar is dominant instrument. The brain behind Rola, Uns Mufti is an eclectic musician, whose niche has always been electronica than rock. It was a dominant factor in Rushk's debut album, the magnificent Sawal and Uns repeats the same magic here. Getting Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan on for this track was a smart move. He shines
like a diamond on this song. His vocals, with a tinge of gloominess, make 'Yaad Tau Aaengay Hum' a fantastic song! And if you like this number, two great choices would be 'Mujhay Yahan Se Uthay Ke' by Rola featuring Rubya Chaudhry on vocals and 'Mahi' by Overload featuring Shafqat Amanat Ali on vocals.

3. 'Fix You' Coldplay

'Fix You' is perhaps the best ballad off X & Y, Coldplay's third studio album that won the band mixed reviews. An unabashedly sappy song, Coldplay proves that when it comes to romance, they are 'it'. With emotional outbursts that seem to be the signature of the band and a climax that gradually comes, it picks up where 'The Scientist' – Coldplay's successful ditty off their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head – left off. And the lyrics are very, very good. If the first half borders on extreme pessimism, the second half takes a turn as the song goes, "Lights will guide you home/And ignite your bones/And I will try to fix you/High up above or down below/When you're too in love to let it go/If you never try you'll never know/Just what you're worth." Featured on the background score of America's biggest medicine show, Grey's Anatomy, 'Fix You' has become a huge hit in and outside the States.

Coldplay is formulaic but what makes them work is that no one can do formulaic music as brilliantly as them. Another selling point for this British outfit is their vocalist, Chris Martin who can deliver stellar ballads, with a wrenchingly heartbreaking command without going overboard with sentiments. Check it out, now!