Band name: The Northern Lights
Band members and their positions:
Jasim Haider (Lead Guitars, Rhythm Guitars, Vocals, Song-writer)
Mansoor Mujtaba (Vocals and Harmonium)
Eiman Hussain (Drums and Percussions)
Tauqeer Khattak (Bass Guitars)
One quote on you all are inspired by?
Honestly, there are too many to mention. Artists in general have the ability to absorb a lot things.
Tell us a bit about yourself?
Our band consists of four members. Each person brings in a different feel to our music. Our dominant sound is a fusion of Blues and Eastern Classical. It's more like a band of brothers. Jasim and Mansoor have been friends since their childhood, Eiman is Jasim’s younger brother. Tauqeer is Jasim and Eiman's eldest brother's childhood friend. It was Tauqeer who coined the name “The Northern Lights”.
Inspirations?
We are inspired by many artists but to name a few we would have to say Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pink Floyd, Ustad Mehdi Hassan, Vital Signs, Eric Clapton, Muddy Waters, John Mayer and Joe Bonamassa.
What are your hopes for the near future?
We look forward to making some meaningful music. Music that is fresh, beautiful and spiritual. So stay tuned!
Who are your idols and why?
Every band member in The NorthernLights has their own idol for their respective domains. Eric Clapton is Jasim's idol, he grew watching and listening to Eric Clapton's music, back in the cassettes and VCR era. Mansoor's idol is Ustad Shaukat Manzoor, in the realm of classical music, he considers him as his guru. Tauqeer's idol is Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Sahab and has been since his childhood. Lastly, our drummer, Eiman's idol is Tony Royster Jr., according to him, Tony is the grooviest drummer alive.
Do you guys have any other hobbies besides, obviously, making music?
Mansoor is a football fanatic and the jock in our band.
Jasim is a top notch photographer along with being a musician.
Eiman is one hell of a video game fanatic and a bookworm.
Tauqeer is a certified Doctor by profession, he’s the mature voice among the band.
What's your most embarrassing experience?
Not yet, but you never know about these things do you Lol.
How do you handle mistakes during a performance?
The secret not to show it. Just keep the performance rolling!
How often and for how long do you guys practice/jam?
We jam almost daily as a band mostly at Jasim’s house which we have code named “The Ulysses”. The days we don't, everyone spends time practicing and tuning their own instruments for a refined, fresh sound.
How long have you all known each other? How did you meet?
Mansoor, Jasim and Eiman are practically family. Tauqeer is a family friend for well over a decade. We've all lived in the same neighbour hood once and of course see Eiman grow up since he was a toddler.
Where have you performed? What are your favorite and least favorite venues? Do you have any upcoming shows?
Roots Battle of the Bands was a highlight since we won it in 2012.
Performed at Kuch Khaas as well.
Did a live radio show performance for Radio 1 FM 91.
Yes we do have some gigs lined up in the twin cities. There is no such thing as least favorite venue since musicians crave on live gigs the more the merrier.
Which songs do you perform most frequently? Do you ever play any covers? Do you have a set play list?
Our live performance is still evolving and our priority is original music. Depends on the audience actually we do covers of Vital Signs, Alamgir, Mehdi Hassan, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan etc. We do experimental originals in ragas as well especially since Mansoor is learning eastern classical. We do have some set songs that we perform often.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs? Do you think these topics will change over time?
“Dharti” and “Khamoshi” were composed by Jasim Haider. In “Khamoshi” Mansoor added the Punjabi folk verses later. Inspiration can occur at anytime so themes are relative to that. Thoughts and emotions change all the time.
How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?
Our music has evolved a lot over the years and this process is of constant evolution.
What advice do you have for people who want to form their own bands?
Stick to your heart, concentrate on original compositions. People have short attention span with respect to covers. Hard work and dedication is the key. Things turn around faster than we can comprehend so keep trying harder.
Thoughts on lespectra.Great initiative, The Northern Lights wishes Le-Spectra all the best for their future endeavors. We plan to keep you guys posted with our projects, which are lined up for the not so distant future.
Band members and their positions:
Jasim Haider (Lead Guitars, Rhythm Guitars, Vocals, Song-writer)
Mansoor Mujtaba (Vocals and Harmonium)
Eiman Hussain (Drums and Percussions)
Tauqeer Khattak (Bass Guitars)
One quote on you all are inspired by?
Honestly, there are too many to mention. Artists in general have the ability to absorb a lot things.
Tell us a bit about yourself?
Our band consists of four members. Each person brings in a different feel to our music. Our dominant sound is a fusion of Blues and Eastern Classical. It's more like a band of brothers. Jasim and Mansoor have been friends since their childhood, Eiman is Jasim’s younger brother. Tauqeer is Jasim and Eiman's eldest brother's childhood friend. It was Tauqeer who coined the name “The Northern Lights”.
Inspirations?
We are inspired by many artists but to name a few we would have to say Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pink Floyd, Ustad Mehdi Hassan, Vital Signs, Eric Clapton, Muddy Waters, John Mayer and Joe Bonamassa.
What are your hopes for the near future?
We look forward to making some meaningful music. Music that is fresh, beautiful and spiritual. So stay tuned!
Who are your idols and why?
Every band member in The NorthernLights has their own idol for their respective domains. Eric Clapton is Jasim's idol, he grew watching and listening to Eric Clapton's music, back in the cassettes and VCR era. Mansoor's idol is Ustad Shaukat Manzoor, in the realm of classical music, he considers him as his guru. Tauqeer's idol is Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Sahab and has been since his childhood. Lastly, our drummer, Eiman's idol is Tony Royster Jr., according to him, Tony is the grooviest drummer alive.
Do you guys have any other hobbies besides, obviously, making music?
Mansoor is a football fanatic and the jock in our band.
Jasim is a top notch photographer along with being a musician.
Eiman is one hell of a video game fanatic and a bookworm.
Tauqeer is a certified Doctor by profession, he’s the mature voice among the band.
What's your most embarrassing experience?
Not yet, but you never know about these things do you Lol.
How do you handle mistakes during a performance?
The secret not to show it. Just keep the performance rolling!
How often and for how long do you guys practice/jam?
We jam almost daily as a band mostly at Jasim’s house which we have code named “The Ulysses”. The days we don't, everyone spends time practicing and tuning their own instruments for a refined, fresh sound.
How long have you all known each other? How did you meet?
Mansoor, Jasim and Eiman are practically family. Tauqeer is a family friend for well over a decade. We've all lived in the same neighbour hood once and of course see Eiman grow up since he was a toddler.
Where have you performed? What are your favorite and least favorite venues? Do you have any upcoming shows?
Roots Battle of the Bands was a highlight since we won it in 2012.
Performed at Kuch Khaas as well.
Did a live radio show performance for Radio 1 FM 91.
Yes we do have some gigs lined up in the twin cities. There is no such thing as least favorite venue since musicians crave on live gigs the more the merrier.
Which songs do you perform most frequently? Do you ever play any covers? Do you have a set play list?
Our live performance is still evolving and our priority is original music. Depends on the audience actually we do covers of Vital Signs, Alamgir, Mehdi Hassan, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan etc. We do experimental originals in ragas as well especially since Mansoor is learning eastern classical. We do have some set songs that we perform often.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs? Do you think these topics will change over time?
“Dharti” and “Khamoshi” were composed by Jasim Haider. In “Khamoshi” Mansoor added the Punjabi folk verses later. Inspiration can occur at anytime so themes are relative to that. Thoughts and emotions change all the time.
How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?
Our music has evolved a lot over the years and this process is of constant evolution.
What advice do you have for people who want to form their own bands?
Stick to your heart, concentrate on original compositions. People have short attention span with respect to covers. Hard work and dedication is the key. Things turn around faster than we can comprehend so keep trying harder.
Thoughts on lespectra.Great initiative, The Northern Lights wishes Le-Spectra all the best for their future endeavors. We plan to keep you guys posted with our projects, which are lined up for the not so distant future.
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