MusicMix
Video alert: ADP let loose and have fun!

Maheen Sabeeh
Karachi

Commercial pop music ain’t doing so well in Pakistan. 2010 has seen some pretty awful music videos and records. But amidst the mediocrity, there are some bands making all the right moves. And one of those bands is Aunty Disco Project. This year has been interesting for them. Other than some brilliant and fiery live shows, ADP were featured on Coke Studio earlier this year with their single ‘Sultanat’ and they did a solid job at that. With the new line-up, which includes  Giles Goveas on drums, Rahayl Siddiqui on bass, Ali Alam on guitars/vocals alongside Omar Bilal Akhtar, also on vocals/guitars and Yasir Qureshi on percussion/darbuka, ADP pulled all the punches and managed to stand out. It has to be said, ADP are a well-oiled machine. Their camaraderie as a band is the one element that makes their music so appealing. It’s the infectious energy that permeates the air and charms the listeners. And now the boys are back with a fabulous new music video, ‘Hum Na Rahey (Merey Masoom Dost)’.  

And it has to be said that this is perhaps their finest video to date. Shot by Bilal Khan and Shayan Agha, the video features ADP in their element, hanging out, jamming. But there is one small catch. Everywhere they go, they have a Panda Bear with them. It’s actually kind of funny as this big black and white Panda Bear hangs out with the band like he’s one of them. And the friendship which is light fun.

Since its release on December 27, the video has gone viral on Facebook. Ali Noor of Noori thinks its good, calling it, “The best video of 2010”. He shared it with his friends and so did pop wonderboy-turned-Bollywood actor Ali Zafar.

Musically, it’s got one hell of a melody, the unforgettable kind. It’s a very sing-along number. The guitar-play is swirling yet fun. And it’s unlike other heavier ADP numbers. The tune’s crunchy and so are the vocals. Interestingly, it’s the first song from ADP that features Ali Alam on vocals. And Ali Alam has ample experience as a vocalist. In his former band, Ganda Banda and the 3d Cats, Ali Alam sang some pretty fine numbers such as ‘Raat Jagi’ and ‘Tu Na Ho Meray Pass’. With this single, Ali Alam manages to ignite the same ol’ flavour.

Ali Alam, who is credited as the composer of this tune, says, “It really is open to interpretation, which is the beauty of any song I think. I actually wrote it after visiting a friend who was getting married... things like that tend to change friendships generally. not in a good or bad way...just change. That’s basically what the song’s about... me talking to a friend, explaining that change happens. And it’s not the end of the world. It’s something that everyone can relate to.”

The ingredients for ADP’s sound have not gone under any radical change over the years. But ‘Hum Na Rahey (Merey Masoom Dost)’ sounds crisper and more clear than most ADP numbers.

Speaking about the song, Omar Bilal Akhtar (OBA) told Instep Today, “I think this song really marked the beginning of the new ADP for me, up until then I had been the main songwriter and vocalist, but this song was in a completely different direction from what we’re used to doing so it was new and exciting for us. That’s why I’m glad it’s the first release from our upcoming album, it’ll really give people a chance to see us re-invent ourselves.”

“For me personally, it’s been liberating to not be the lead vocalist in the song, I’ve just sat back and enjoyed the process and I’m glad Ali gets his chance to shine because he’s been such an integral part of our recent successes.”

“A lot of people think this song is about our late ex-band member Imran Lodhi, but it was written well before he passed away, but in a way, it kinda fits as a tribute.”

Ali Alam agrees. “I do sing quite a bit more now. I think OBA and I share vocal duties almost 50/50 in concert now. When I joined the band I had a backlog of songs written over the past three to four years that I keep bringing forward for the band to play on and frankly they sound so much better when everyone puts in their parts rather than me just singing them on an acoustic guitar.”

Not surprisingly, the video has garnered good response from ADP fans everywhere. OBA says, “The video’s been doing amazingly well and we’re just thrilled with the response. I think more so than any other video of ours, this one really captures the bands’ personality and what we’re all about.”

The video marks the comeback of ADP to the limelight as far as videos go. ‘Nazar’, the band’s video for the melancholic ballad released in 2008.

“This is indeed our first music video since “Nazar” which came out in 2008 so yeah we’ve been pretty bad about putting out new videos, but it’s worth the wait, this is exactly the kind of thing we were looking for and Bilal Khan/Shayan Agha were the perfect guys for the job. They were on the same wavelength from the start and they totally got our quirky sense of humour and embraced it in their video.”

Ultimately, ‘Hum Na Rahey (Merey Masoom Dost)’ works. The video is fun and light. There’s no deeply meaningful/complicated storyline running. It’s ADP in their essence and their musical connections come out shining in full colours. The tune is also a part of Superstars for Flood Relief campaign and all proceeds from downloads go towards flood rehabilitation.

A good song for a good cause, that’s enough to warrant a listen.
 

 ForeignEditorial
And the biggest story of 2011 will be...

Leslie Gornstein
Eonline.com

What will be the year’s biggest story in 2011?

Whatever I choose to cover, little man. Still, in the interests of keeping you from wandering off and playing in traffic, I’ve compiled a list of what will surely be the biggest celebrity obsessions of the coming year:

Lindsay Lohan will ex-cape from rehab. Or just complete her term. But really, given her addiction to drama, don’t be shocked if her departure involves at least two sheets knotted together.

The Conrad Murray trial. Because Michael Jackson fans need someone to scream at, that’s why.

Breaking Dawn—Part 1. The book that should never be a movie is actually going to be two movies, with the first half being released in November. Gee, thanks Twi-hards.

The royal wedding. Will Kate Middleton opt for carriage transport to and from the venue? Will she? Will she?

Transformers 3. Well, OK, it’s actually called Transformers: Dark of the Moon, but I refuse to say that more than once. The movie will be huge news not because we’re likely to see some new appliance re-interpreted as a robot, though a talking Cuisinart certainly would have its charm. No, everyone wants to know if that lippy girl who replaced Megan Fox can actually act, or if her talents are limited to standing around looking hot in her underwear.

Brangelina will do something. Because they always do something: adopt another cranky kid, make another miserable baby, visit some fresh pack of poor third-world innocents. Heck, maybe they’ll even get married just to make Kate Middleton cry.

Justin Bieber’s voice will change. It’ll have to. And the media insanity will inevitably follow.

Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem will debut their sexy baby. Most babies are just babies. Unless they’re made by the two hottest Spaniards on the planet. And oh: I guess we’ll have to deal with Mariah Carey’s twins too.

And finally: Hobbits. Martin Freeman will don the rubber feet of a younger Bilbo Baggins to film the two-part prequel to The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The first half won’t be released until 2012, but you can bet the dweebs will be plying us with illicit set photos and leaked conceptual art for much of next year. When it comes to Tolkien, the road does, indeed, go ever on and on.

1000WordPhoto
First look: SRK turns robot for Ra One

The first look for the much-talked about film, Ra One, which sees Shah Rukh essaying the role of a robot, is out and it’s exciting. Directed by Anubhav Sinha, the film sees Shah Rukh in double roles. According to media reports, “One of Shah Rukh’s character is that of a scientist who creates two robots, G.One and Ra One.”

SRK plays the scientist as well as the robot G One while Ra One, the villainous robot is reportedly being played by SRK’s close friend, actor Arjun Rampal. Also featured in the film is Kareena Kapoor as SRK’s love interest. 

Whether this film can take on the sci-fi Robot which saw the return of Rajnikant to enormous success, remains to be seen, but from the looks of it, it surely merits a watch. 

StarBytes
Akshay Kumar’s cinematic blues

At least two forthcoming films with Akshay Kumar as the lead actor, may be delayed, or scrapped completely. After impressive opening weekend numbers (Rs 37.5 crore), his latest film Tees Maar Khan crashed to a dismal Rs 4.5 crore on Monday, and is showing a steady decline. Delivered at a budget of roughly Rs 73 crore, trade pundits say the film is likely to lose at least a few crore for producers UTV.

Tees Maar Khan is likely to be the actor’s third expensive dud in 2010, following washouts Khatta Meetha and Action Replayy. Two studios currently in pre-production on Akshay Kumar comedies have reportedly asked the star to take a significant pay cut if the films must go on the floors on schedule. They’ve also allegedly asked the directors of both films to spend a little more time polishing the scripts, as comedy has been failing the star lately.

Meanwhile, his next release Patiala House, slated for a February release, could bear the brunt of his release failures. Distributors have been asking to renegotiate prices that were agreed upon, and even the channel that volunteered a handsome sum for satellite rights wants to revise the numbers, apparently.

Ironically, the star himself has been shrugging his shoulders helplessly and insisting that despite several experiments on his part, lady luck has ditched him.

If only someone would explain to him that it’s safer to stick to good comedies (if that’s where his strength lies), than try his hand at ‘bad experiments’ like Nagesh Kukunoor’s harebrained psychological thriller 8 x 10 Tasveer, the indecipherable action comedy Tashan, the adventure flick Blue, and the uninspired animation film Jumbo.

Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johansson file for divorce

This was one couple that seemed too good to be true, and it turns out, it was! At least that’s what one magazine headline says so. According to Ahlan!, the couple has filed for divorce, but it seems that Scarlett was a true devil in disguise.

The magazine article has credited full blame to her for the marriage finally falling apart. Apparently, Scarlett was only interested in lifting her career, and she used Ryan to give herself that boost. When the couple got together, Ryan seemed to have a very promising future in Hollywood, and Scarlett grabbed this opportunity. However, when his career didn’t go off as well as she had expected, she slowly started to lose interest in him.

How people can cook up such stories, we don’t know. But the truth is this ‘story’ has been cooked up by an insider, who was a close friend of the couple, and prefers to remain anonymous.

He/she also was quoted as saying “She is completely responsible for destroying their marriage. She is very ambitious and wants to be the next Ange (Angelina Jolie)” Well, we can see Scarlett taking that route. Man snatching? Check. (She did steal Ryan from Alanis Morissette, when the couple had been together for three years) Gorgeous looks? Check. Scarlett has perhaps one of the most exquisite faces in the industry, and she is already famous for her flirtatious nature and her charm which men find irresistible.

Ability to perform action stunts? Almost there. Recently, with Iron Man 2, Scarlett is now proving that she can be in the league of tough fighter women who kick butt in tight costumes. So is Scarlett far away from being the next Ange? Apparently. The insider also believes that she is far from it. “She is too bland. She doesn’t have Ange’s personality. To be Ange, she needs a scandal.” Well, with this divorce, we can safely assume she has gotten that too.