Tunes for tears

Australian bassist Peter Flierl pays homage to Peshawar attack victims through ‘Tears For Peshawar’

ISLAMABAD: Kuch Khaas organised a musical evening in Islamabad featuring Peter Flierl, bassist from Australian band Plan B. He performed 'Tears For Peshawar' — a song that paid tribute to the Peshawar attack victims in collaboration with Kuch Khaas’ band members.

Peter Flierl or Sneaky Pete as he is commonly known, flew to Pakistan for a live performance of the song that he composed as tribute to the Peshawar massacre victims. Upon the request of radio Jockey Wes Malik, Sneaky Pete came up with the melody and composition whereas his band member Adrian Millar wrote the  lyrics.

Musicians who accompanied Pete in the live performance included multi-instrumentalist Muslim Habibi on the rubab, Yawar Bakshi on harmonium and Shairi Bakshi on tabla. Both Adrian and Pete were deeply saddened by the Peshawar incident and wanted to create something that would touch Pakistani’s hearts.



“I feel frustrated that we cannot do more for the nation but with this song, we’re conveying a message of hope and courage for the martyr’s families and for all Pakistanis who have been scarred by the devastating incident,” said Peter.

Peter moved to Islamabad, Pakistan in 2006 through the Australian High Commission. He scanned the city for fellow musicians and found several American and Canadian musicians with whom he did several collaborations.

Currently based in Dubai, Pete’s connection with musicians in Pakistan keeps bringing him back to the country. Following the devastating incident in Peshawar, Pete wanted to use music for a healing purpose, and came up with a song with a meaningful message. The song titled ‘Tears for Peshawar’ carries a rock and roll feel, which can be felt in most of Plan B’s music.

“It is not your typical song for hope and healing. It has that Plan B feel to it which you’d find in all of Plan B’s songs,” said Peter.

Initially, Pete decided to raise money for the families of the affected but he learned that the families are well to do and a better idea would be to donate money raised from the musical gig for education. He believes in the transformational role that music plays in a society.

“There have been instances where people have been really down- even on the verge of suicide - but then they listened to lyrics that instigated hope and stood up again,” explained Peter.

Other performers included Sibra Shameem, an emerging vocalist who has previously performed at Nescafe Basement. She mesmerised the crowd with covers of Nazia Hasan’s Dil ki lagi and Farhan Saeed’s Pee Jaoun to name a few.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 11^th,  2015.

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