Underground music exchange

LAHORE: Rock stars and their fans from different corners of Lahore gathered at the World Fashion Cafe on Friday night, to set the stage for a Karachi-based rock band Mirage.

The basement venue did not go along with the nature of the event but active participation by the audiences and energy by the rock stars filled the space.

Three Lahore-based rock bands also performed before Mirage took the floor. What came as a surprise of the night was an underground band Aag, whose performance was received extremely well by the audience. The quartet, comprising of frontman Haroon Sheikh, Usman Sheikh, Nabeel Hussain and Amir Ali, was the first to perform and set the stage for the following bands. They started off with their title song “Aag” and later sung covers including “Pehla Nasha” which turned out to be one of the highlights of the night. Though the band often missed the high notes, the surge of energy filled the lack of rhythm.

Following Aag was Medical Rejects, another young band. What set the members apart was their appearance in lab coats, usually worn by medical experts. “Our parents wanted us to be doctors but we became singers,” the lead singer explained before starting off. The band sung  “You are Right” and “My Favourite Song”.

Lithium, another band, was the only one to sing Sufi Punjabi songs. Though the artists did not take much care about the notes, they were appreciated for doing indigenous numbers.

The main band of the night Mirage received a very positive response by the audience. Kami Paul, the man on drums, said that the Lahori crowd was different from that in Karachi. “Here people don’t really shout or taunt singers. In Karachi, they do. I find this crowd a lot more encouraging and sober,” he said.

The lead singer Rehan Nazim told The Express Tribune that this was his first performance  in Lahore and he had enjoyed it. He said that their album would be launched before Ramazan, adding that it comprises of 10 tracks having most dealing with soft rock.

Ahmad Hasnain, one of the audience members and a drummer himself, said that such events were very important to provide relief to the people, especially the youth. He said, “It’s good that a young band from Karachi has come to perform here. I think this should continue and the bands from Lahore should go to Karachi and from there bands should come to perform here”.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 3^rd, 2010.