ALBUM  REVIEW

With their six track debut EP named Sultanat that takes inspiration from the Mughal era – with each song named after a Mughal Emperor as well as the poetry, arts, literature of the time – this emerging super-group has delivered an ingénue piece of music.

The names Rakae Jamil (sitar), Rufus Shehzad (keyboards/synth), Kami Paul (drums) and Farhan Ali (bass guitar) - who collectively form Mughal-e-Funk - are not exactly unknown, particularly to music industry insiders.

Between the four of them, some have appeared on, in recent years, the renewed season of Pepsi Battle of the Bands, while others as house-band members on Coke Studio, and have played with acts ranging from Meesha Shafi to Noori to a slew of others between them. In short, there lies an extensive experience, and knowledge of music in varies hues, which is why it isn’t unfair to call them a music super-group.

Though they started the band more than three years ago now, they began performing with regularity last year, made their Coke Studio debut with a track called ‘Aurangzeb’ in season 11 and followed it up by releasing their debut album.

Apart from the fact that this super-group makes instrumental music, making it a brave decision to release a proper EP, backed by stunning artwork, it is also important to note that their decision to undertake releasing an album at a time when many artists, from indie to mainstream, have switched to singles, should be applauded and encouraged.

Their name is inspired by the music they play; a musical interpretation of sorts. However, the word Mughal doesn’t make their creations obsolete; it is almost dialectical while being contemporary in sound – thanks to the combination of players within the group who also add ‘Funk’ to this incredibly interesting ethos with which they have begun.

As for their music, as Rakae Jamil, who plays sitar in this group, while speaking to Instep denotes, "We thought about doing something that is both historical and modern. As we read [up] about the evolution of music in Southasia and how in different periods, there has been a good time for music and a bad time for music, it sparked an interest. For example, Mughal Emperor Akbar and his relationship with Tan Sen (a prominent figure in Akbar’s court) and their healthy relationship and how it impacted music, according to the books and stories we read and the stories the Ustaads tell us."

The purpose, according to Rakae, for the group is to, "bring back that positive outlook of the culture and the arts and make it more pluralistic and less polarized. The attitude of ‘Akbar’ for instance was tolerant towards all religions".

The EP

Despite ‘Aurangzeb’ having appeared on Coke Studio 11 in 2018, the band has stayed true to its own cohesiveness and begun the musical journey with a track named ‘Babar’ that opens Sultanat.

As for their sound, it isn’t designed to make it about one instrument, but rather how they all come together to form what is a unique brand of music that’s clever, inventive and completely mesmerizing even as genres are redefined.  In some ways, it is a musical interpretation of the lives of six prominent Mughal figures with each song named after one.

In doing the EP, the band has not only constructed individual songs that can be heard on their own but collectively a universe that is almost like a crisp Sunday afternoon in Karachi; a smoldering fire;  a quiet and cold winter midnight in Islamabad – all the while showcasing restrain where need be.

‘Babar’ opens like a superb ambient effort that shows restrain even as it evokes a time gone by and just when you think you know where the song is going, it becomes a groovy song that just walked out of the eighties maybe before it goes back to the basics and that ambient wave returns.

‘Humayun’ has a faster opening, with ambient elements taking over before it takes on an orchestral feel and it has to be said the bass on this song is strong. The song is almost electronic but then a big yet quick drum showcase is followed by a haunting sitar. Though all songs are beautiful, each one seems to have a mood and this one ends on a happy note.

Sultanat is a genre-bending album because the sound and its trajectory are unlike anything that has emerged from the local scene.

‘Akbar’, which also features multi-instrumentalist Danish Khwaja, allows the mind to rest at ease as you follow the sound, where a celebratory sitar exists one minute and disappears the next and where the bass, the vast drums and hints of strings take over. Groovy in parts, almost electronic-sounding in others, it touches upon several genres and pieces together a fierce and original sound along the way. Rakae’s sitar is almost singing in this particular piece while Kami Paul continues to prove he can hold back when need be and add elements of some funk through his sheer drumming when required, making him one of the country’s most accomplished drummers today.

In fact, the same applies to each member as one turns to ‘Shah Jahan’ that is pristine, funk-laden and atmospheric before it becomes a weeping piece of music guided by the sitar, courtesy of Rakae Jamil who kills it in this song. And just when you think this is it, the rest of the instruments add a moment of joy. This song also features Babar Khanna and Zoe, which perhaps explains its constantly evolving moments.

‘Aurangzeb’ - the fifth track on the EP is somewhat angrier and merged in a strange kind of sadness at first. Everyone from Kami to Rakae to Farhan and Rufus seem to know exactly what to do before it emerges almost like a partial retro dream, slows down and goes back to that strange, appealing sadness. Or maybe that is just my interpretation of the sound.

The sixth and final track on the album, ‘Bahadur Shah Zafar’ opens like an electronic music producer’s dream at first. Shifting gears, it managed to invent a world that echoes a greater void; the textured elements ask questions before the sitar emerges as a sensational savior; a slow piece that is more like a mystery that unfolds in different ways each time. It’s a song that is both deliberate in design and placed at the end of the album, almost as if a goodbye that is on the edge of various emotions.

As a whole, Sultanat, the debut album from Mughal-e-Funk is rich, sensational. It is opening a door to the rich Mughal history and picking up positive notes while taking ownership of the region. As Rakae Jamil told Instep, their next could be an exploration of ‘events’ such as the Battle of Panipat before adding, "There’s a lot to explore. There is a historical context to these stories and figures."

Credits:

-Picture courtesy: Rearts.

-Album artwork by Suleman Aqeel Khilji and Aman Asif Lone.