Track by Track is our recurring series where artists guide readers through each song on a release. Today, Arooj Aftab reviews his second album, night reign.
Across nine songs, Arooj Aftab brings the night to life on his new album. Everything that happens after dark is the focus of night reign, out today via Verve Records; the complete monitoring of your 2021 project, viper princesees the Pakistani alternative jazz artist delivering another world of riches.
“It takes time to tell a story with elements that go beyond words,” says Aftab. the songs in night reign They often last longer than five or six minutes, with his voice floating in and out of the rich instruments. She understands the power of taking her time and the effect is transporting.
Listen to night reign below, and read on for the breakdown of Arooj Aftab's LP with information on each track.
“Aey Nehin”:
I was in my hotel room on tour, scrolling through Instagram, when I came across a video of my friend, Pakistani actress and self-proclaimed non-serious poet Yasra Rizvi, reciting the lyrics to “Aey Nehin” in her charming, dramatic style. This was the last thing she had written. I instantly fell in love with the joy and sincerity of the words: wondering where your lover is, why she hasn't arrived yet, speculating different scenarios about what could have happened to them. Musically, I think it's the most adventurous track on the album.
I layered Gyan Riley on a nylon string guitar, a couple of layers of Kaki King on steel strings, did Maeve loops and cuts on the harp, and some more (almost 75 percussion stems) and then of course , the contagious and forceful vertical. bass part by Petros Klampanis. I also doubled my own voice, made some really crazy harmonies, and there's deafening thunder to add more importance to everything. It's my favorite song on the album. It seems that her lover got caught in some nighttime storms on her way, or that he will encounter a big one from her when he finally gets to her.
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