A syzygy occurs when three planetary or celestial bodies are in alignment — when the sun, earth, and moon are in a straight-line configuration. Qais Essar and Alam Khan’s latest single, “Syzygy,” brings their traditional rabbab and sarod instruments into a new kind of alignment. They wrote and recorded the song all in quarantine, from … Read More
As a book of poetry, Megan Fernandes’ Good Boys presents a prescriptive examination of the self. But as a body with life in it, it shatters what is known by intentionally moving through its own tempers. What does it mean to be good, and who assigns this meaning? In all its messiness, Good Boys lays … Read More
I called my therapist on the third day of the coronavirus lockdown, starting with “Hey. I’m not panicked and I don’t know what to do about that.” There was a voice inside of me saying I ought to jump into the whistling fear-kettle for my virtues to be valid. But there was also a wisdom … Read More
The 9-track R&B collaboration Blue Hour, a joint venture from Atlanta producer Hazi and Houston recording artist Noel, wouldn’t be possible if a mutual friend didn’t introduce the two musicians to each other. An instant familiarity with one another and compatible approach to music allowed Hazi and Noel the gravity required to make emotionally self-aware … Read More
One Piece By… is an interview-column by Kajal arts contributor Sarah Burney. In each piece, Burney will have an in-depth discussion with a South Asian artist about one work of art they have created. Pakistani-Canadian artist Zinnia Naqvi mines her family album for inspiration and source material. In her photograph The Wanderers – Niagara’s Falls,1988, … Read More
There is something about this time that feels interminable – the repetition of state violence, the close-quartering during a mass plague, the forced abrasion of our political climate, it all seems to extend forever. There is no expiration date because, in truth, it never had a start date. One of the things I miss most … Read More
Kohinoorgasm’s newest single, “Exhausted,” dropped this month. The single is the artist’s latest exploration of themes common in her work, questioning how to navigate a world shaped by burnout-inducing capitalism. Using experimental production and her hypnotic vocals, she asks poignantly: “How can I free my mind / when I don’t own it?” The release is … Read More
Longing for closeness meant something very different in February, when Raveena’s Moonstone EP was first released. Now, Raveena’s signature sensual sound elicits something familiar during a time when everything else is incomprehensible. Attempts to make actual sense of what’s happening in the world feel misguided. Universalization feels dangerous when, despite the pandemic affecting everyone, those … Read More
Listening through Falak Fahim’s discography, it’s clear just how musical his sound has become. His new EP, Pick Your Cheesecake, Tisha, hit streaming last month via 617banks, the Dallas, Texas collective home to Fahim and his co-conspirators. Baritone singer Zuberi makes a guest appearance on all three tracks, while witty rapper Hassan contributes a verse … Read More
Curtis Waters’s sophomore album Pity Party will get you just as in your feelings, as the title suggests. On the record, Waters flips between addressing his own emotional growing pains directly and taking on a persona of cold detachment. The result is a journey through palpable and familiar angst, a story of someone vaguely hoping … Read More
