Shauharty and Pakeezah are two of the most prominent flag bearers of the Alternate Hip-Hop Subgenre in the Indian music scene. Going by the name ‘mqbool collective’ the duo have previously worked on ‘Chitrangadha’ which was released after Shauharty’s debut mixtape “Madheera” which was produced by Arslan and executively produced by Pakeezah. Their work together was also featured on ‘Prastuti’ earlier this year. Whiskey Talkies / Arab Pep Talk, a two-track single, was released on the 5th of August.

 The production on Whiskey Talkies is quite subtle, Pakeezah’s light drums and sampled vocals throughout the track, last for two minutes. With melodies in the background and occasional pauses, the beat is not something that one can easily hop on, except for Shauharty. Thanks to his work as a producer himself on SoundCloud, these off-kilter music pieces are not a challenge for the collective, instead, such sonics are what make the collective stand out. He sort of freestyles on the beat whilst making a statement of his artistry, expressing his state of mind. Farookh’s lyricism and unorthodox flow throughout, carried by his atypical rhyme schemes summarize the beauty of Whiskey Talkies.

“Opened my arm for you,
Haath failaye stood up on one foot the langa tyagi for you, you see,
I got more to show you than you see,
Matlab meri hatheli mey rakhe plenty son”

Produced by Pakeezah and Arslan, ‘Arab Pep Talk’, on the contrary, is groovy in the sense that gnarly drums and bass followed by obscure vocal samples throughout the piece are used to set up the aura of the track. With simpler rhyme schemes and a rager flow, Shauharty’s vocals act like an instrument themselves as he embraces his conceitedness and his suaveness in terms of musicality. The track ends with Pakeezahs engineered and turpitude-like vocals.

The double-track single is an example of how two soloists can be on an equal footing. The piece features both the artist’s musicality whilst painting a thematic pastel-like picture. Such incongruous pieces defy the norms of any genre when it comes to Hip-Hop. The single also serves as a prelude to the duo’s upcoming body of work, “paint it, dull”. 

You can stream the project here!