Episode 5 (Realisation) opens with Abida Parveen treating us to yet another of her typical renditions, this time with Soz-e-Ishq. Like her previous songs even this one is about 10 minutes long, and like her previous ones the tedium is nowhere felt. Starting from the unaccompanied ad lib segment you will be hooked to Abida’s voice. Even after the accompaniment kicks in their job is mostly nominal as the song entirely belongs to Abida. Amanat Ali follows with a patriotic song, Ae Watan Ke.. While he does a good job of the rendition part, the song lacks the energy that would generally be associated with a patriotic track, and Amanat Ali’s soft voice also sort of works against it. Good melody, but couldn’t really picture it as patriotic. Qawwali brothers Rizwan and Muazzam give another NFAK-esque powerhouse rendition in Jana Jogi Dey Naal. Though the song in itself is not very great, the exuberant singing sort of props it up.
Tina Sani‘s previous performance in Episode 3 wasn’t a totally engaging affair, but in Episode 5 she manages to make it up quite a bit with Nawai Ney. But while her singing is brilliant as usual, what really gets you hooked to the song are the initial violin sequences and the soulful flute interludes towards the end, culminating in a mindblowing crescendo! And closing off a wonderful season is Sanam Marvi‘s earthy sufi in Manzil-e-Sufi. Beautiful tune, and brilliantly executed. The choral sargam addition towards the end works totally for the song. Sanam Marvi really has been one of the best additions to Coke Studio this season!
Episode 5 is a step lower than its predecessors with just three standout songs, but Season 3 in its entirety has been better than the previous ones. Hope the upward graph continues in subsequent seasons too. And hope the next season comes soon! You can download the songs here.
Music Aloud Rating: 8/10
Recommended Tracks: Soz-e-Ishq, Manzil-e-Sufi, Nawai Ney
