Coke Studio Season 8 Review - Part 3, The one where Mulaazim shines with some Rajasthani folk

So here's part three of my review of top picks from Coke Studio Season 8! And given that the last season was the best among the lot, in my opinion, I am not sure how many more of these to come before I am done with Season 8! But definitely enjoying writing about the songs I love and I hope readers of this blog have something new to discover, relish and share! There's definitely a difficulty in putting a multi-dimensional experience into a few words, I am giving it my best shot nevertheless. :-)

By the way, the quick update is that Coke Studio Season 9 is all set to begin and the first song is already out! Check it out here and the line-up definitely looks promising! That also puts immense pressure on me to wrap this series up quickly, as hopefully I'll have fresh stuff to write about!

This blog is mainly on Mulazim Hussain - a Rawalpindi based singer. Now he too, like Nabeel, was a Sur-Kshetra finalist. The most unique thing about Mulazim is his voice. Listen to him for once and you'll agree that there is a sense of 'mitti-di-khushboo' in his rustic, soulful voice. A husky voice that naturally goes with sufi and folk genre and Strings were bang-on with their song selections for him.

Rabba Ho

Link to the lyrics here.

Rabbo Ho is a Rajasthani folk song penned by Saeed Ali Khan and composed by Mulazim's uncle - Ustaad Aslam Parvaiz. Mulazim's Rajasthani lineage is apparent in the way he sings this song with command and elegance. The song begins with a beautiful piano piece that sets the background melody which is heard in the composition throughout. Mulazim starts with some Urdu lines with minimal music - just a repetitive bass line and light guitars. Dholak is again beautifully used and goes with the vocal melody always giving the folk element. Other traditional instruments are typically used in the interludes - Sitar, Tumba & the violins. Also quite interestingly tabla is only used during the instrumental interludes but for the last antara.

Apart from the masterly vocal rendition, the composition also has a grand arrangement, fusing both modern and traditional elements beautifully. With many distinct elements in the overall composition - like the tumba lead, sitar lead, brief flute pieces and pronounced strings section, the composers also have experimented with melodies from different raags going with the main vocal melody. I saw a great influence of Khamaaj in the main melody.  Also saw use of the unusual 'komal dha' at a couple of ending notes leaving the air with a sense of curiosity and thirst, which is later quenched by the melodious instrumental lead sections that followed! The instrumental interludes are typically in Bilawal thaat (Tumba section - the strange looking mandolin type instrument played by Tanveer bhai, is on Asa Raag as mentioned in BTS).

So all-in-all a collection of superlative performances making up this masterpiece with Mulazim standing out with his honest, soulful voice.

Ve Baneya

Link to the lyrics here.

Ve Baneya is yet another fusion of two folk tracks - one going by the title itself, a song sung typically in marriages and the other - Meri Hamjoliyan which was originally sung by the legendary Reshamji and narrates the tale of a female lover who is being teased by her friends. Unlike Umran Langiyaan, here the two songs are interspersed in the whole composition and Fizza and Mulazim take turns to sing their parts. The fusion is beautifully done and sometimes you can't even make out that they are actually two different songs. Fizza and Mulazim complement each other very well. Fizza has a beautiful throw in her voice displaying command at places while being technically sound with her harkats. On the other hand Mulazim brings out the romantic element so beautifully! He is soft and reflects the emotions of a lady so well, that even shows in his smile throughout. There are so many places I just loved the 'adakari' of Mulazim. (like the subtle extension of 'naam lekar teraa...' at 3.13, similar harkat at at beginning of antara 'Sawan aaye to' at 5.07) 

Like in the previous composition, it's Babar bhai's Dholak again that captures the folk element accompanying the main vocal melody throughout. The arrangement is not as grand as 'Rabba Ho', however the usage of eastern instruments is managed beautifully - like the flute and strings interlude in between Fizza's and Mulazim's part in the beginning. The second interlude has flute and harmonium and the melody resembles 'Vaishnav Janto' closely! Both the compositions have its origin in Khamaaj thaat, while Fizza's part - Ve Baneya is clearly in Raag Des and the 'komal Ni' is conspicuous at places.

Hopefully these two tracks and Mulazim's soulful voice will keep you hooked for a week as you drown in the depth of his voice surrounded by the symphony of beautiful instruments used in these compositions! So until next time cya! :)

- Prabhu :-)
musicdilseblog@gmail.com