The story of Malang Party, a funk-laden band that calls Islamabad home and counts one Zeeshan Mansoor as its front-man, guitarist and songwriting wizard, began several years ago when they sprouted on the scene with a dynamic and memorable song called ‘Dil Jale’
In a candid conversation with Instep, Zeeshan Mansoor talks about the band’s philosophy,
the shifting music scene and what lies ahead…
The story of Malang Party, a funk-laden band that calls Islamabad home and counts one Zeeshan Mansoor as its front-man, guitarist and songwriting wizard, began several years ago when they sprouted on the scene with a dynamic and memorable song called ‘Dil Jale’. Having gone national with Coke Studio last year when the band was invited to the biggest music show in the country, Malang Party managed to make a mark on discerning music listeners across the nation.
With a message of hope and peace that can be heard in all their tracks, even the most recent one, here is a band that is uncompromising in its vision. This means you won’t find them participating in demented morning shows hell bent on projecting marriage as the ultimate goal of every living person. This means losing out on publicity, bizarre and offensive but publicity nonetheless. This band, however, is authentic and you have to applaud them for not joining the bandwagon.
Malang Party’s new song ‘Uth Malangi’ is testament to why you want to hear more from the band but they lack consistency for obvious reasons: there are not enough opportunities for musicians in Pakistan.
None of this should keep you from looking them up online because the same unit that gave us ‘Dil Jale’ is now back with a textured, grunge-funk tune called ‘Uth Malangi’. Written by Mansoor and featuring equally talented names like Ibrahim Akram and Zain Ali, the song, like its predecessor flies high.
Retaining that quintessential Malang Party stamp, the song is as adventurous as it is haunting. Defying labels with its combination of mixing various genres, the beauty of ‘Uth Malangi’ is that it makes you want to hear more from this particular unit. But their lack of consistency in terms of regularly releasing music has a much more obvious and common answer than you think: lack of opportunities.
As front-man Zeeshan Mansoor told Instep in a disarmingly honest conversation over the phone, it is difficult to survive as an artist in this country.
“Artists have day jobs or play as session artists,” observed Mansoor. “If the amount I invest in one song can be covered from live shows - that would be great. But with lack of shows, it doesn’t pay off.”
Unlike several mainstream names who often get corporate endorsement and hence money or are evening willing to play the celebrity game, Malang Party has no inclination to follow that path.
“The goal was never to be a celebrity or be on TV,” says Zeeshan and notes that Malang Party is essentially first and foremost a live band, but one without enough opportunities to showcase their explosive verve.
“The music scene has improved in the past year or so with festivals and events. But overall, the market is such that there are not enough avenues for us to play live shows, which is the strength of this band,” explained Mansoor, echoing a sentiment that is common to the independent scene.
Noting perhaps the most significant issue that plagues independent artists, Mansoor told Instep, “Without ticketed live shows, it is difficult to make a mark.”
Couple this with the fact that music events in cities often (if not always) cater to musicians within the city. This means you just might be able to find a Sikandar Ka Mandar show in Karachi but not one with Malang Party. Not yet, anyway.
Even with all these problems, the days of Malang Party are not over just yet. Almost all members of the band play as session players. “Zain plays with Atif, Ibba plays with Mekaal Hasan and I play with Arieb Azhar,” explains Mansoor.
Though their last show together was in December 2015, Malang Party has no plans of stopping. Despite the lack of support for bands like them, Malang Party, featured on digital platforms like Patari and Taazi will continue to go on and create as often as they can. Until then, check out their new single and hope that the coming months ahead afford them an opportunity to play live.
