Wisdom Salad sets the table for avant-garde debut

The band’s latest song ‘Begin’ depicts existential dread like never before

KARACHI:

In Pakistan, keeping up with the times is something even the most experimental of artists struggle with. Given that there is already a dearth of contemporary artists undertaking a genre other than the ones that have a stamp of approval from our beverage industry, it shouldn’t be surprising those who take an alternative route are primarily focused on revisiting Western concepts that long ago served as inspiration.

Perhaps ‘struggle’ is the wrong choice of word since for a majority of these artists, being up to date with the latest trends in progressive music is not a priority to begin with. Nonetheless, every once in a while, especially since the internet, a handful of acts falling on the avant-garde side of the spectrum do dabble in prog genres prevalent in the now.

The latest outfit that some might even argue is ahead of the curve is Islamabad-based collective Wisdom Salad. Much like its name, the band’s sound is something many would find hard to make sense out of but still groove to. “We would characterise our music as an amalgam of all our different tastes condensed down to a Frankenstein genre of sorts. It bodes well for us that we have decently diverse pallets,” the band told The Express Tribune. “Equal parts electronic, progressive rock, math rock, djent… just a dash of lo-fi and mix until you get a strange concoction we like to call Wisdom Salad.”

Comprising of composer/guitarist Mustafa Tauseef, guitarist Shamsher Rana, vocalist Asjad Ilahi Junaid, one half of Pakistan’s most powerful drummer duo Daud Ramay and Mustafa Khan and Asfandyar Ali, whose roles in the band’s own words “are a bit abstract but extremely necessary,” Wisdom Salad just released its latest single Begin.

A unique blend of unorthodox time signatures with soft and at times, pop-esque melodies, Begin  could remind the prog aficionado of contemporary math rock outfits, namely Chon and Elephant Gym but doesn't give off the feel of being derivative.

According to the band, “Begin is based on the concept of cycles. One of the major influences for its concept was the ancient mythological story of Ouroboros, or how a snake bites its own tail. It’s about infinity and constantly and unconsciously going in cycles that lead us into ‘wholeness’.”

 

The idea holds true to an extent since one couldn’t help but get a feeling of systematic chaos, even if the song is divorced from visual and lyrical cues. Speaking of, the video has been directed by renowned musician Ali Ashraf and portrays existential dread but in a very colourful and comforting manner.

“It is similar to the concept of the song. It is about the ending or ‘dying’ of youth. Again, like many personal journeys of life, these happen over and over again, from childhood to adolescence, adolescence to young adulthood and finally, to full on proper adulthood, which in its ideal form leads to a timeless ‘wisdom.’....Ha! (See what we did there?),” the band noted.
Not only does Begin warrant a listen to the self-styled music buffs for obvious reasons, the regular listener should also give it a chance. It is bound to spark the latter’s curiosity, if not to make them a fan outright.

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