The brilliant band from Lahore will release its newest track, ‘Almost Tuesday’ from their upcoming third album of the same name and star in an upcoming Janoobi Khargosh music video as well.
To be fair, Poor Rich Boy never really went anywhere but this is not another music outfit that’ll play just about any show. While corporate-sponsored music has taken over the airwaves and billboards and the interwebs, there is music beyond those productions as well, and even as industry insiders and outsiders continue to complain about the lack of quality original music, it does exist; a subject we’ll get to in another story.
Back to music group Poor Rich Boy (and the toothless winos), who have been around for nearly a decade and though their line-up has seen some changes, but as Mekaal Hasan (Mekaal Hasan Band, founder and producer) told Instep in 2017, “Poor Rich Boy is Zain Ahsan’s vision. He decides on the sounds and what the mix should sound like. I just mix for him. I don’t make that many creative suggestions with Poor Rich Boy because he’s already got it figured.”
The band presently consists of Zain Ahsan (guitarist/producer), Umer Khan (vocalist, aka Duck), Sameer Ahmed (bassist) and Ibrahim Akram aka Iba (drums). And, with two beautiful, atmospheric albums – Old Money and We Are Your Friends – to their credit, we’re big fans and cannot wait for their third record.
The great news is that it is indeed in the pipeline and is called Almost Tuesday. Two singles (‘Cereal Killer’ and ‘Preacher’) from this third record were released about a year ago and a bonus track called ‘Thistle’ was released earlier this year, backed by a music video, directed by Umer Ahmed (of Janoobi Khargosh) and produced by Waleed Ahmed and Zain Ahsan. The song, according to the band, was loosely based on the book, Jonathan Strange and Mister Norrell by author Susanna Clarke.
Taking to Facebook, Poor Rich Boy explained in their endearing, non-cosmetic, forthcoming manner: “We’ll probably release the song at some point this week, hopefully on Thursday but let’s keep it vague just in case. I think this has been the most fun we’ve had making a song and it will be followed by five more songs, eventually. Then we’ll finally be done with this album.”
Umer Khan, who is the lyricist behind PRB tracks is nothing short of a poet and rarely leaves his cards on the table, making their songs as compelling as they are full of heart. The band also revealed, on Facebook, that on their upcoming third album, Ibrahim Imdad, who plays music under the alias Gentle Robot is also featured.
PRB also unveiled its first Urdu song titled, ‘Tootay Huay Admi’, which was released in the summer of last year and in these trying times works beautifully as an elegy song.
Janoobi Khargosh collaboration
Umer Khan (vocalist/lyricist) and Zain Ahsan (guitarist/producer) from Poor Rich Boy are also starring in an upcoming music video from another music group called Janoobi Khargosh, a synth-pop-meets-retro group formed by Waleed Ahmed. Think The Stone Roses and you’ll get the drift.
Janoobi Khargosh released a ten-track record called Billi Khamba Aur Urantashtari in (2014) and another brilliant song called ‘Super Cat’ from Hum Saray Computer Hain attached with a nostalgia-inducing music video last year.
The band consists of (besides Waleed) Ibrahim Imdad, Umer Ahmed, Yusuf Ramay and Daud Ramay. They have an EP called Cpt. Space coming up that has been mastered by Adeel Tahir. While the music video for the title track of Cpt. Space has been released along with a music video (directed by Waleed Ahmed & Misbah Uddin) that had us bopping our heads, a new song/video from the group is coming up and we cannot wait. Waleed Ahmed along with Tabish Habib is presently working on the edit. Watch out.
