ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN YOULIN MAGAZINE
Written by: Nayha Jehangir Khan Posted on: November 23, 2020 | | 中文
Misbah with his students in Misgar Valley
Misbah Uddin is the 28 year old music producer, singer-songwriter and director, who has been seen performing on music festival stages in Pakistan for several years, albeit with musical troupes. This meat stew with an array of herbs and spices, often served with crispy flatbread or naan, is a meal that is bursting with flavor. His songs are a gentle blend of speech synthesizers and sound sequencers that work as refreshing takes on cinematic ballads, merging contemporary acoustic guitar, alternative rock and pop compositions.
Youlin Magazine spoke to Misbah about his motivations, artistic processes and the community of musicians that he calls home.
NJK: Could you start by telling us about yourself?
M: I currently live in Lahore, pretty close to the Indian border. After completing my O and A levels from LACAS, I attended Lahore School of Economics to study Political Science and Media. The day I saw Zain Peerzada play EP’s ‘Aghosh’ at the age of 14, I was so inspired that I convinced my father to buy me a guitar. Zain and I became friends and we jam together often.
We formed several bands during that time, starting with ‘Borstal Escape’. Joined by drummer Yusuf Ramay, we formed ‘Takatak’ that initially had Natasha Noorani as the vocalist. Eventually, I wanted to take my music in a different direction, and I quit ‘Takatak’ to form ‘Keeray Makoray (KM)’ with Altamash Sever and Luke Azariah. Eventually, everyone from ‘Takatak’ also joined KM because we enjoyed making music together. I have also played for “Janoobi Khargosh” and “Poor Rich Boy”.
Misbah (Far Left) in Keeray Makoray
NJK: An artist plays different roles in their life, and you were also volunteer teacher in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. What took you on that journey?
M: The corporate jobs where I was working was very unfulfilling. I quit and decided to volunteer with an independent group called Innovate Educate Inspire (IEI) Pakistan. I spent my time in Misgar Valley in Hunza, teaching music and other academic subjects in the local community school. It was one of the most beautiful and fulfilling months of my life. My goal was to show children how easy it was to create music, and to write about their experiences and thoughts in a melody.
Misbah at Lahore Music Meet
NJK: Walk us through your songs. How do you write, compose, produce and sing them?
M: I wrote the first dream pop song ‘Baadal’ (Clouds), by experimenting with sounds of a synthesizer, inspired by my time with ‘Janoobi Khargosh’. I wrote ‘Baadal’ based on a discussion I had with a student from Misgar. She would frequently ask me if it was possible for people to live on clouds, and as her science teacher, I used to explain how moisture was not enough to hold people in them. During those days, I was really missing my students from Misgar, and particularly that little girl who dreamt of people living above the clouds. I reluctantly released the song in 2018, and was quite moved by the positive response I got. That motivated me to keep experimenting and making music on my own terms.
The song begins when I find certain synth sounds or chords that are beautiful enough to write a song over. The hardest part are the lyrics, especially writing lyrics in Urdu. I spent hours distilling the essence of what I’m feeling at that particular time of my life. ‘Sitaray’ (Stars) was created during a period of profound grief in my life, following the death of my grandmother. I suffered from extreme anxiety and insomnia, so I left behind city life and travelled to the mountains. I found the night skies much clearer than they were in Lahore and I would frequently stargaze. I do not consider myself a trained vocalist, and the way in which I create that dream-like texture of my voice is through layering and creating harmonies.
The Poster for Smog City Sessions
NJK: What is “Rescue The Frog Studio”, and can you talk about the music community you want to build with it?
M: Rescue the Frog Studio is my production company that can be hired by clients for music production. It is an attempt to contribute to the positive culture of art and music in Pakistan. “Smog City Sessions” is one program we do with Abdul-Rehman Malik of MOSIKI. The artwork was made by Lewanay Haris, while Abdul-Rehman manages the video production aspects of the show.
It is a series that showcases performances by singer-songwriters, by creating a live experience using minimal instruments. We decided to name the series “Smog City Sessions”, because Lahore has become one of the most polluted cities in the world in terms of air quality, and the smog was so disturbingly visible in our videos.
A Screenshot from 'Darya' (River)
NJK: You recently released Darya, that is slowly becoming an indie classic hit with its enchanting music video. What were some of the highlights of shooting that video?
M: Even though I was trying to break away from being called Indie with this single, the song certainly has those independent elements. Zara (Peerzada) and I are old friends, and after listening to the song, she started suggesting ideas for a potential music video. Usually, I direct my videos, but this time I asked Zayan Agha, who directed ‘Lighter Maachis’ by The Tamashbeens. Thankfully, he liked the song enough to want to do the video, and the work he and Taseer Ali (DOP) put in the video made it a success. The shoot was quick, thanks to Slugline Films, and we all worked very well together as a team. I have received a lot of love for the song, and I think people may return to it when I put out more music in the future.
NJK: What are you working on right now? Can we expect an album/ep/live stream?
M: I have an EP of seven songs set to release in February 2021, which is around 80% done, and it includes some interesting collaborations with some of my friends.
For more updates, please follow ‘Rescue the Frog Studios’ on Instagram and subscribe to the channel on Youtube.
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