Method behind the madness of ‘Dissbelief’

Lead vocalist of the alternative English rock band talks about creating a niche and making an impact internationally.

LAHORE:

“People believe that all we do is bang on drums, scream and screech on guitars and call ourselves ‘metal’ but ironically there is a method to our madness” says Shahmir Quidwai, lead vocalist of Dissbelief, a new-age band from Islamabad. “We believe in precision, melody and structure. Believe it or not, that is how we manage to sound musical.”

The band comprising of Fahad Humayun Chohan, Hammad Khalid, Najeed Aftab, Saad Qureshi and Shahmir has been making waves in the capital’s music scene since 2005 and also got nominated in the Best Emerging Talent category at the Lux Style Awards last year. Claiming to be Pakistan’s “first English alternative rock band”, the members realise that there is a niche audience for their music.

One may come across rap, heavy metal, rock bands but English alternative rock bands are almost non-existent and that is the gap that Dissbelief wants to fill. “There might be a couple of bands playing music of that nature but they are far away from the public eye,” he says. All the lyrics for their songs have been written in English and regardless of how small the market is for English music, the band has still turned heads.

The first time I came across the ‘double s’ in Dissbelief, I cringed a little inside but apparently it is not a typo. It signifies the band’s rebellion against current beliefs and their desire to go against the tide.

“We have to understand that our name may be Dissbelief but it has nothing to do with religious beliefs. Fanaticism is not just bound to religion, it’s a grey area but you should never judge this book by its cover.”

The band has a vision beyond the accepted norms of the music industry and by releasing their EP titled Table for Five, they aim to set an example for musicians all over the country to “fight linguistic barriers and narrow the gap between the audiences and an ailing industry.”

Their EP consists of five tracks, all of which have been penned by Shahmir and Najeeb, produced by Fahad. Shahmir has also been a part of Pakistan Idol and learnt a lot from the platform.  “It was a great experience to compete with mostly classically trained singers and take guidance from experienced artists and mentors. I learnt a lot. Including how to fall, stand up and fight again.”

On whether people recognise him from the stint at Pakistan Idol or as being a part of Dissbelief, he shares that it’s a bit of both.

Credit goes to Islamabad’s enigmatic music scene that has given Dissbelief a tough audience.“Whatever support we have is from Islamabad,” shares Shahmir, adding that they have received positive reviews from industry stalwarts such as Ali Azmat, Hadiqa Kiyani and Hasil Qureshi to name a few. “They all unanimously agree that we are not bad as a band”.

He adds that their international reviewers have called them the Alterbridge of Pakistan.

That is perhaps why the band is now also targeting an international audience, apart from doing live shows in Pakistan. “We are getting airtime on major rock networks of UK, USA, Australia and even Germany so that might develop into something. We have signed with HTT records UK and they are managing us internationally for now,” concludes Shahmir. The band’s new music video is set to come in the first week of September.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20^th, 2015.

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