Banned at Home, Pakistan Group Due in L.A.

Los Angeles Times,
August 7, 1998

Junoon is not a name that will register with most American music fans.  But on the other side of the world, the Pakistani band is inspiring Beatles-like reactions from hordes of Indian and Pakistani devotees who describe theme selves as Junoonis.

On Aug. 16 at the House of Blues, Los Angeles listeners will have the opportunity to make their own, in-person evaluations of Junoon, whose latest album, "Azadi" has sold more than half a million copies in India in the first three months of its release. (None of the group's five albums is yet available in the U.S., although "Azadi," which is on the AMI Asia label, can be ordered as an import).

Junoon's music is a wildly eclectic mixture of '70s rock, traditional Punjabi folk melodies and passionate, qawwali tinged vocal (from lead singer Ali Azmat) mixed with occasional quotations from the Koran. The diversity of the music reflects the makeup of the group, Guitarist Salman Ahmad spent some of his youth in New York, 'where he met American bassist Brian 0'Connell (who now lives in Karachi Pakistan). They identify Jimi Hendrix Robert Plant, Jeff Beck, Santana, Led Zeppelin and Queen as influences, and one of their tunes is Hendrix inspired version of the Pakistani national anthem.

Less obviously for American listeners Junoon's lyrics often take highly charged political points of view. Its song "Ehtesaab," for example, which talks about accountability and social corruption, was released a month before the fall of the Pakistani government of Benazir Bhutto with a video that included scenes of a horse eating in a luxury hotel, an obvious dig at the Polo ponies of Bhutto's husband, Asif Ali Zardari. The government that succeeded Bhutto banned the video from state television.

Junoon has also played a role in the tensions associated with the Pakistan-lndia nuclear confrontation. The same week in May that India tested three nuclear devices hear the Pakistani border, Junoon was performing songs calling for peace in New Delhi before 50,000 young Indians.

At the moment, despite its devoted followers, the group is banned from performing anywhere in Pakistan. But the combination of Junoon's intriguing music and its ability to captivate audiences is clearly going to lead to international popularity.

Previous Article	Next Article