New music Friday: Shoeb Ahmad

Posted on 29 June, 2018

Sonorus reflections on identity and honestly from a trans-femme, Muslim person of colour. 

Spacious and brooding, Shoeb Ahmad’s voice floats over the psychedelic soundscape of “quiver”. The record strips away expectations around structure, making room for the listener to absorb shifting layers of instrumentation.

There’s a thoughtful balance between tension and release; a curiosity in the dissonant harmony, and a sense of exhalation when that pressure gives way to subdued, indie-pop beats. Jacqui Douglas chatted to Shoeb ahead of tomorrow night’s album launch at Ainslie Arts Centre.

What informed the instrumentation?

I set out to make an organic-sounding album which didn’t rely on my trademark electronic production. This meant playing guitars that sound crystal clear and devoid of obvious effects, using piano and bowed strings for melodic lines, vibraphone and organ for harmonies and texture…it was a refreshing change to think about instrumentation that sounded pure rather than synthetic.

How did you piece together the album?

The album was about creating a set of songs I would want to listen to in my own downtime, with a sensitive and affecting mood…married to a lyrical narrative that reflected a very personal yet somewhat universal journey to relieve oneself from the burden of secrecy and shame.

Many were written a long time ago without words, and this was a simple process of having an idea of the type of song I wanted to write and jamming it out in the studio. Others from the album came out of happy accidents. For instance, “low contrast” was written around four chords that had been discarded from “villagers son”.

What effect does your openness about your identity have on the writing process, knowing the audience has that insight?

“quiver” was written at time where I needed therapeutic release. It made sense to [explore that] whilst revisiting music I had made for myself before anyone else.

…These words can only come from someone who’s [had] the realisation that vulnerability is not the weakness society makes it out to be. While this process of writing helped me realise that, the reason I felt compelled to put this out into the world is for the many others who might be in a similar situation…to know they are not alone.

What’s one technique you’ve been inspired to adapt or explore from the influence of another artist?

The idea of how to capture the sound of myself playing in a room is something I think about a lot. I love the sound of rooms on records, hearing the echoes of drums after they’ve been hit or the sound of feet moving near the vocal mic.

I set up the microphones for the drums with a bit of distance away from the actual kit so you could hear the space around them. The vocals were either recorded closely so you could hear the emotion in the throat or with a bit of space again so the harmonies just washed away into the air and walls.

What excites you about solo writing? What scares you?

There’s a lot that scares me about writing on my own – that’s probably why I’m an endless collaborator!

I have the fear that I don’t know where the end of the line [is] and could be flogging a dead horse. However, the freedom of being able to take whatever creative direction you would like without being accountable to a band is pretty liberating.

the essentials 

What: Shoeb Ahmad “quiver” Album Launch with a nine-piece band. Supported by Happy Axe.
When: Saturday 30 June from 7.30 pm
Where: Main Hall, Ainslie Arts Centre, Elouera Street, Braddon
Tickets: Presale tickets $22/$17 or $25 on the door

Event details and tickets via Eventbrite / Facebook. Stream “quiver” on Bandcamp / Soundcloud

Feature image: Adam J Bragg