Written by: Nayha Jehangir Khan
Posted on: January 07, 2019 | 
Rap Engineers
A small city with big ideas, Islamabad has a thriving underground music scene. FACE – Foundation for Arts, Culture & Education is located behind the shops and restaurants of Sector F-8/4, an organization that annually brings us the iconic “FACE - Music Mela” and continues to be a platform all year round for musicians locally and internationally. This week they had the original line up of Rap Engineers; Muhammad Dar aka Xpolymer Dar, Yaruq Masson Malik and Ahmer Khan aka Maddy Khan. I remember the trio performing their song, “Conflict Management,” onstage back in 2011, and even now each member passionately delivers a memorable performance.
Yaruq
The Rap Engineers have an old school Hip Hop rule of thumb, they first line up a killer sample, anchor down a beat and rework the song unapologetically reclaiming it as their own. Their musical compositions are nostalgic of an old block party sound and with their amalgamative intervention of classical vocals, throaty Punjabi rap and urgency of English rap verses, the Rap Engineers create their own flow, which is unique and energetic.
The song line up included memorable tracks such as “Batain”, “Kaun Hai Tera” and some first time performed, released, and unreleased songs. The never before performed song was titled, “Hera Pheriyan.” One of my favourite tracks from the night is their song “CPEC,” released early 2018, a singing rap chorus that is laidback and carefree, this is a total 4-wheel slow cruise song! Even has a turn table scratchy ending.
CPEC by Rap Engineers
“Batain” released in 2011, has a funky-desi-hip-hop-fusion sound that is now automatically associated with Rap Engineers. This song is more playful and has a bad boy Romeo vibe! With its twisty RnB flavor along with a catchy classical Urdu hook, it is an on repeat party anthem. The sound system at FACE was creating some moments of frustration for the trio, as they weren’t being able to hear each other during the performance. Luckily, because of their decade long experience of having performed together they weren’t letting this get in their way. Another track carrying a flute melody was, “Teekhy Teekhy,” which is also called an “Item Song” and this track brought great energy to the room, as it is another one of their fun dance songs.
“Bin Shajar” and “Darbari” were released in 2014, and deal with themes of living through violence and manipulation. The rap verses are a call for coming together to fight for freedom and surviving through individual and collective struggles of the external and internal world. Rap Engineers music, much like the Ying Yang symbol has two worlds: one dimension is the action packed rhymes and explosive rap clap backs, the other dimension being serene and harmonious plays on the strings of the subconscious. The relatable rap verses, both Punjabi and English, are bound together with classical Urdu choruses. There are waves of sound in these tracks, and we can feel the rise and fall.
Maddy
One of Rap Engineers gut wrenching songs is “Kaun Hai Tera,” with themes like political empowerment, its rap verses both English and Punjabi encourage self-awareness, leading to better understanding of the current socio-economic state of affairs delivered straight to the masses. It combats and exposes the flawed political system and highlights the hopelessness caused by agenda based leadership. Maddy Khans powerful verse, “now you call us a terrorist but you can’t locate where the error is - sacrifice is a PAKI, KASHMIRIS are PAKI - PAKHTOON, BALOCH, SINDHI & PUNJABI,” stands out, along with the emotional delivery by Xpolymer Dar. This song presents a gritty reality for those who are unaware of political injustices and discriminatory distribution of power.
The Rap Engineers are light hearted about their musical experimentation but when it comes to their lyrics and choice of subject, the songs are thought provoking and layered with observations about society and life. Yaruk seamlessly blends musical influences of old Sufi Kalam to Ghazal ambience, performing in a number of diverse styles from uplifting to haunting, or Jazzy to RnB. Maddy Khan can get a crowd on its feet and captures his audiences with his stage presence. Xpolymer Dar knows how to build the tension in his verses and always brings raw power to the group dynamic. Rap Engineers, during one performance, can make their audience feel emotional, angry, in love and ready to dance. Looking forward to hearing what comes next from this powerful trio!
Dar
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