MUMBAI: The four piece Urdu-Hindi rock/psychedelia band Parvaaz recently launched their debut album 'Baran' after a successful crowdfunding campaign early this year. Their campaign raised more than Rs 2.5 lakh in a span of three months, much more than the band had expected. The funds led to the making of an album that has been receiving glowing reviews from fans and critics.

'Baran', which means rain in Urdu, is the band's latest album after releasing an EP 'Behosh' in 2012 followed by a single 'Khufiya Dastaan' in 2013. Vocalist/guitarist of the band Khalid Ahamed explained, "Many of our shows got cancelled because of rain this year. I believe that rain is the purest form of nature. It washes away all the impurities and cleanses the atmosphere. Most of the songs from our album are different from each other musically, but lyrically they all talk about the same thing."

He added, "People are losing perspective in life due to a lot of distractions and worldly things. We are all becoming materialistic and there are a lot of things that we need to think about, and purify ourselves again."

While their EP 'Behosh' tilted towards the blues genre, 'Baran' has offered a completely different sound. From a groovy, fast alternative number like 'Beparwah' to their title track 'Baran' which is slow, dark and mellow, Parvaaz has experimented wisely in the past two years and put out a diverse album. Some of their tracks have been inspired by poems by Muhammad Iqbal, widely known as Allama Iqbal and Kashmiri poet Mehjoor.

Ahamed and Kashif Iqbal (guitarist) write the lyrically profound compositions while bassist Fidel D'Souza and drummer Sachin Banandur add to the line-up with heavy bass-lines, captivating bass solos and excellent percussions. The band shows clear influences of legendary rock band Led Zeppelin. Ahamed is also a fan of Pink Floyd, Fleet Foxes and many other artistes/bands.

Hailing from Kashmir, Ahamed talks about why he writes in Hindi and Urdu, easily blending both languages to write songs. He says, "I am extremely comfortable with both Hindi and Urdu. I think that when you want to say something through your soul, you need to have a strong hold on the language to express it well and in depth, with metaphors that make listeners think."

For the album, the band has collaborated with a few big names like American saxophonist Seth Molloy, guitarist

Michael Anthony Dias for 'Beparwah', guitarist Ramanan Chandramouli for 'Abki Ye Subah' and Swarathma violinist Sanjeev Nayak.

The vocalist also confessed that if they get a chance to compose music for films, they might take it up if they are given the freedom to compose the kind of music they believe in. He said, "The scene is changing right now. People are becoming more open to various kinds of music. Indian Ocean has held its ground while getting into films, which is amazing."

After the album's launch gigs in Pune, Mumbai and Chennai, the band is scheduled to play in its hometown of Bangalore on 6 September at Counter Culture. Ahamed promised that it will be a very special and grand event for their fans. The band will take charge of the set design and will also bring guest artistes, along with a few other surprises. The band will release 'Beparwah's music video through Times Music, which will be screened at the gig. Ahamed disclosed that they will be performing at The Great Indian Octoberfest 2014, in Bengaluru later this year.