Review: The third coming of Jal

‘Tere Bajoun’ proves to be band’s most subtle release since ‘Morey Piya’

KARACHI: Ever since the emergence of Jal 2.0 (post Atif Aslam-split), many of its songs have focused on a guitar-oriented sound most evident in ‘Dil Haaray’ and ‘Panchi’. Almost 10 years later and following another reformation of the band; Gohar Mumtaz seems to have taken to that sound once again with his latest release ‘Tere Bajoun’.

Despite having served as the vocalist on some of Jal’s most iconic songs, such as  ‘Dil Haaray’ and ‘Lamhe’, Gohar has never really come to the fore as the group’s lead vocalist. ‘Teray Bajoun’ is a welcome relief for fans and listeners as it properly projects the singing side of the terrific songwriter that Gohar is.

Although he is not a trained vocalist as such but often your weakness becomes your biggest strength and that is exactly why ‘Tere Bajaoun’ works.  Much like Bilal Maqsood’s flat yet fresh touch to ‘Mera Bichra Yaar’, Gohar manages to arrange a catchy melody that would have otherwise been ruined by a trained voice like that of Farhan Saeed. Gohar’s monotone and raw vocals add the passion and self assurance that oozed from every Jal track back in the Indus Music days.  It can be easily said that for the first time since ‘Panchi’, you feel cherished listening to a Jal song in Gohar’s voice.

‘Tere Bajoun’ proves to be the band’s most subtle release since their song, ‘Morey Piya’. Although similar to that song in musicality it differs in the sense that ‘Tere Bajoun’s’ grows on to your ears with time and timely fades away into the drums and auto-tuned vocals of the singer. Yes, the auto-tune works in this situation.

Although not destined to be a smash hit, the song will gradually grow upon listeners due to the signature Punjabi ballad lyrics and musical richness if given enough airplay.

As far as the music video is concerned, it is not as impressive for a change. Directed by Azaan Sami Khan, the video despite, having some stylish shots, falls short of a clear narrative and fails to prove anything more than a compilation of shots from Karachi’s most photogenic locations.

As is the case with most Pakistani musicians, Gohar’s acting seems to be ideally-suited to the medium where they are not required to deliver many dialogues; a weakness which his previous stints in television seem to have highlighted.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23^rd, 2015.

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.