Amidst the mishmash of multiple digital and/or TV music shows, the underrated Braadri Broadcast has sadly gone largely unnoticed. Now in its second edition that was launched earlier this year, the series is an initiative of MAD (Music, Art, Dance) School with the mission “to bring communities together.”

Filmed by Uns Mufti’s ROLA and created and produced by singer-songwriter, guitarist and music teacher Hamza Jafri, it combines “6 song videos paying homage to 6 resilient Karachi communities”. Among the communities within Karachi that Braadri Broadcast takes us to include Pehlwan Goth, Nawabad, Paposh Nagar, Shireen Jinnah, Saeedabad and Chakiwara Lyari Town.

Perhaps the most prolific on the roster are the Baluch Twins, who opened the season with a track called ‘Chakiwara’. The ‘Saedabad’ song is sung by vocalists such as Syed Asad Ali backed by Iqbal, Asif, Atique and Abid with poetry by Zaheer Zarf, composition by Akram Khan and music direction by Hamza Jafri. It is one of the best songs I’ve heard this year and that’s saying something given the amount of music that has released within the first four months of 2021.

Each community is represented by a song that is unique to it. Those interested in Karachi as a city and the voices that represent these communities should tune into the show now.

There has been no better ode paid to the city of Karachi with its complexities and simplicities than via Braadri Broadcast. Other than saying the collective team should take a bow, we suggest you drop everything else and take a look at this show. It’s unlike everything else available online or on TV.

Bigfoot Music makes a comeback

Going to concerts – even with the elderly population getting vaccinated first and foremost – is not a smart move. The death toll and seriously ill coronavirus infected people is at an all-time high. As a lockdown is probably being put in place, live gigs will take a backseat.

Fortunately, music isn’t.

Among one of music’s many curious platforms, Bigfoot Music is also back with a new edition this year. Starting with artist Zeeshan Ali (‘Pardah’), the season so far also includes voices from the likes of Ahsan Ali (‘Bulleya’), Nimra Rafiq (‘Aazma’) and Umair Ghouri (‘Zindagi’).

Musicians such as Jasir Abro, Sohaib Lari, Joshua Amjad, Bezlial Albert, Raheel Manzar Paul among others are featured on various tracks.

Some songs feature original lyrics while others feature poetry from the likes of Baba Bulleh Shah.

Bigfoot Music’s history is shorter in comparison to big branded series but the artists it has featured over time are both emerging and prominent.

Well-established names such as Ahsan Bari, Mooroo, Natasha Baig, Baluch Twins, Mooroo, Sounds of Kolachi, Ali Gul Pir, Chand Tara Orchestra and Abdullah Qureshi have been featured in the past, lending the platform both diversity and credibility.

With a slew of songs out in 2021, it remains to be seen if Bigfoot Music will be releasing more content but as songs go, the talent featured this year is just as sublime as previous editions.

Rearts catalogue extends to EP

The head-banging Lahore-based former music group EP’s one-album – the iconic Irtiqa has finally made its way to Rearts. The album inlay finally makes it clear that the album was produced by Zulfiqar ‘Xulfi’ Jabbar Khan, Mekaal Hasan and wait for it… Fawad Khan. Imagine if he had released his solo album that he was working on a long time ago.

Moving on, it looks like the current roster of Rearts makes them one of the most formidable labels to emerge from Pakistan’s subculture movement.

But even as Rearts is launching newer (lesser known) names, it has its eye on the prize and is also home to artists such as Kashmir, Ali Noor, Bayaan, Zoha Zuberi, Neon and Amna Riaz (whose 5-track EP No Thoughts: Empty Heads was re-released in March). Other acts include Embers in Snow, Hamza Ibrahim, Naseer and Shahab, Tabahi, Taha Jamil, Natasha Humera Ejaz, Mehdi Maloof, Dhool and others. The entire catalogue is available on Spotify. In these isolated days, exploring the emerging wave of Pakistani music as well as prominent and still memorable names like EP is a decent way to kill time.

Other labels that deserve some serious love include A for Aleph Records, which was launched by Anas Alam and Umair Dar and is home to records such as Cacan by Aziz Kazi, Doomsday Astronaut by Waqas Ahmed, Loadshedding EP by Malang Party, White Flag by Ali Suhail, Hijrat by Wajiha Naqvi and the upcoming Malang Party album among others.

With Spotify officially having arrived in Pakistan, it’ll be good to see healthy competition between labels and distributors, which will allow artists to focus on their musical art.