efore shifting base to the United States, Zeerak Ahmed, better known under the stage name Slowspin, has been in a league of artists who were instrumental in contributing to the counterculture scene in Karachi for many years.

A singer, songwriter, performer, curator, composer – among other skills – Slowspin beguiled listeners with her 2013 release, Nightfall’s Reverie (which was released on a label called Mooshy Moo).

Her performances at events including the prestigious Women of the World Festival in Karachi had us convinced that she is a unique artist, almost an aberration within the world of music being made out of Pakistan. Her imaginative path is full of achievements including serving as the Assistant Curator for the inaugural Karachi Biennale 2017.

However, we will discuss her many, many achievements and accolades later. Right now, the thing to celebrate is the upcoming release of her full length, collaborative album called TALISMAN.

According to a press statement, the album was recorded and produced “with a stellar lineup of New-York-based musicians, including executive producer Shahzad Ismaily and co-producer Grey Mcmurray”. It offers hues of solace as it delves into the “migrant’s journey into the unknown: the abyss of love, loss and longing”.

Trained in eastern music philosophy and western ideas, the record is a blend of “North Indian classical vocal traditions, lush textures akin to shoegaze, psychedelic-rock, folk, ambient and experimental music.”

While some shy away from the term South Asia being definitory of them, Slowspin has embraced it as the press statement says: “Collectively it composes the spatial richness and complexity of the contemporary South Asian voice.”

The musical “session started with ‘Shahzad Ismaily’ (Yoko Ono, Laurie Anderson, Arooj Aftaab, Love in Exile), Grey Mcmurray (Gil Scott-Heron, Tongues in Trees trio, Beth Orthon, Ali Sethi), Aaron Roche (Kjartan Sveinsson, JFDR, Sam Amidon) and Greg Fox (Liturgy, Z’s) at Figure 8 Studio in Brooklyn”. Over the course of three days, as well as during the Covid-19 isolation, something special emerged, a soundscape that can only be understood upon hearing.

Said the artist, Slowspin, “the TALISMAN is a tightly woven amulet made from devotional expressions. Braided from the metallic threads of the ecstasy of my highest loves, the smokey whispers of my deepest, quietest losses, and the overpouring rivers of my loudest calls. The TALISMAN holds the telos: it is an amulet for the journey into the unknown, a balm for the pilgrim traversing the abyss of love, loss and longing.”

To be honest, a record like this cannot and should not be heard while any listener or critic is procrastinating with another activity at hand. Having seen Slowspin perform live and her remarkable studio recording in the form of Nightfall Reverie as well as the ability of NYC musicians we may or may not have heard of before this record only points to how we must approach this album, with the first single (‘Hamari’) dropped this month. A decade later since her EP, Nightfall Reverie, Slowspin’s LP demands equal – if not more respect, focus, total concentration, a penchant for discovery and an open mind. Only then will we know how special her creation, perhaps based on her aesthetics over a decade, truly is. Watch out for the first single called ‘Hamari’ laying the groundwork for the upcoming album. This one will be a collector’s item. Keep watching this space for more on Slowspin.

- Album Art: Photography by Alyse Nelson & Chrome Typeface by KCR Studio