Press:

“Qayaas people's choice Best Band Jeet Awards 2013”
Qayaas Best Band Award

“Working on Qayaas double album and some interesting collaborations with some great great and Sufi musicians of our country. Lot else is also in the pipeline in terms of live performances. Do follow us on our Facebook page for the updates. On the insistence of our amazing publicist Eva Dowd, I also have my own official Fan Page on Facebook. I plan on uploading video tutorials of all the Uss Paar songs for all the young guitar players.”
Khurram Waqar – Interview with Mnewz

“Qayaas- literally translated as “deliberation”. A band that hails from Islamabad, Pakistan. It is not difficult to see that this band is truly gifted and has great potential to be a great band in the history of the Pakistan music industry. It is liberating to finally witness a band so talented making themsleves heard and appreciated in this day and age where Rock & Roll is not popular.”
Pakistan Music Mind

“A few days back, Qayaas frontman, Umair Jaswal commented on his Facebook page, “Watching Pakistani music channels with my band is the most hilarious experience of my life…true story.” Being a vocalist for a band that is really quite popular with younger Pakistanis, and older ones who like Qayaas' genre and style (progressive rock, as the band describes it), it was surprising that Jaswal would be blatantly dismissive on a public forum about a forum built to promote music. On the other hand, it's not exactly a shocker, as even if you're a diehard Pakistani music fan who regularly watches all channels to keep up with the local scene, you've probably given up, turned off your TV and turned to YouTube instead.”
Instep Magazine

“Qayaas is the name of a musical act that is smartly taking cause based music and commercial music side by side. The band has given Pakistani audience with true progressive rock music and at the same time has developed tunes like Pal and Monsoon that soothes the senses of music lovers that prefer soft music.”
Qayaas Release Cut MY Wings

“Qayaas, the progressive-rock band from Islamabad, are bucking the trend for Pakistani rock bands by proving that their music can work in overseas markets. Founded in 2008 by lead guitarist Khurram Waqar, and currently consisting of Waqar, vocalist Umair Jaswal, bassist Shaheryar Ghayas, and drummer Kamran Farooque, Qayaas (which translates as ‘Deliberation’) first came to international attention when they beat off competition from 25 other acts to win the Best Rock Band (From Pakistan) award at the 2010 Jack Daniel’s Annual Rock Awards in India (held in partnership with Rolling Stone).”
Sonya Rehman - Rolling Stone features Qayaas

“There can be many ways to describe Qayaas. A rock band that aspires to stay true to the essence of Rock & Roll spearheaded by two renegade rockers Khurram Waqar and Umair Jaswal. Qayaas is an embodiment of the vision, passion and dreams of these two individuals. Its own brand of rebellion and at a certain level a battle; that of art against profit, the few against the many, creativity against conformity.”
Qayaas - Qayaas Press Release on Line-Up Changes

“The highlight of the season, and perhaps the most bad a ** CS number in its history Charkha Naulakha by Atif Aslam and Umair Jaswal. Thorough an adrenaline rush, the song starts humbly before unleashing a storm of singing to you, to the barrage of chords Kashmir – perfect stuff to imagine that you hurtling down a highway in the world with all tanks, hummers and helicopters the tail trying to stop it. If you scream in the song below the knee, you find yourself one step closer to nirvana”
Live Interview Audio with Frontman Umair Jaswal

“There is only one message behind our music and that is to speak up what you feel. We are proud of our music. Our music explores specific sensitive moments, events, relationships that happen around us and leave an impact on our hearts. Each of our melody encompasses a different journey and a different sensation. All of our compositions reflect true spirit and energy of our band. Our philosophy is that music can be used as a motivation for the backing of a common cause. Our songs like “Umeed” (Hope), “Tanha” (Alone) and “Inqilab” (Revolution) are true examples and reflections of our music philosophy. We believe that music isn’t limited but it can go a very long way to heal a nation.”
Sadaf Fayyaz - Stay honest and believe in your dreams, says Umair Jaswal

"Atif Aslam and Qayaas' rendition of 'Charkha Nolakha' is by far the biggest hit to come out of the first episode. Last night, a little over 50,000 people had watched it, within less than a day and by this morning, the number had shot up to well over 100,000 hits on YouTube. Now that's what we call a phenomenon!"
Rock the kalam: Atif and Qayaas spin magic with ‘Charkha Nolakha’

““The only idea behind Qayaas is to make honest music,” said Umair Jaswal, the lead singer of the band and one of three brothers who have broken into the Pakistani music scene. “All our lives we’ve been in different bands. This time around we took it one step ahead and we said this is what we like and this is what we’re going to do. We’re not going to think about what people think.””
Coke Studio Qayaas Artist Intro Season 5

“According to the lead singer of Qayaas, Umair Jaswal, “Working with Atif Aslam was a fantastic experience, there is more to his voice than one can imagine. He is a master of improvisation and has the ability to reproduce musical pieces that sound pleasing to the ears.” ”
Music, Magic, Madness

"Of course, we did experiment making sure that whatever we are adding to our sound enhances it and does not take anything away from it. We are a rock band and our sound will always remain as such but addition of backing vocals, keyboards and dholak added a new flavor to our sound. Moreover, we did unplugged versions of our songs and they sound great." Qayaas
www.koolmusic.zone - Qayaas Interview after Success of Coke Studio Premiere

“Woah! guys u totally blowed karachi away... What a performance loved Khurram Waqar and Sarmad's solos, their faceoff, fifu's tabahi drumming and Umair Jaswal amazing vocals and the epic "F**K U". Most importantly the sound and lights were the xceptional!!! HATS OF Qayaas !!!! U ROCK!!! \m/.... \m/”
The Qayaas Fans Speak ....

“Recently Islamabad-based rockers, the award-winning musical unit that calls itself Qayaas flew out to Karachi for their album launch show and created some serious rock ‘n’ roll magic. And Qayaas managed all this without the backing of a corporate sponsorship.”
The International News Reviews Karachi Show

“Qayaas, the just awarded best rock band of South Asia at IndieGo Awards, stole the hearts of all head-bangers present at Karachi Arts Council on Sunday night. It was a full power packed performance by the band, appreciated and supported by music maestros like Rohail Hayat-the name behind Coke Studio success, Louis J. Pinto aka Gumby, Atif Aslam’s guitarist Asad Ul Hafeez and Viccaji sisters. Fashion designer Muneeb Nawaz, with some of his well known male models, was also spotted at the event. ”
Arsalan - PakiUm.Com

“KARACHI: The open air auditorium at the Karachi Arts Council was considered the best venue for bands during the heyday of live rock music in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Almost a decade later, when the prospects of the Pakistani music industry go from gloomy to gloomier, the sight of hordes of eager fans cheering outside the same venue was pleasantly surprising. It was in anticipation of Islamabad-based rock band Qayaas that made the fans’ voice go up by several decibels. ”
The Express Tribune

“Qayaas Winning Best Rock Band, Vocalist and Song in South Asia at IndieGo in Breaking News Pakistan Daily News .”
Paksitan Daily News

"Qayaas led the way with a clean sweep of all the rock awards, bagging Best Rock Vocalist, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Group in South Asia at IndieGo"
IndieGo Awards

“The alliance of these different yet positive mindsets has given us the band, Qayaas, which I have to say, is a rock band in the truest sense of the word. The vocals, use of instruments, lyrics – all contribute equally in forming a perfect rock fusion! Each song of the album has something new to offer, in terms of music, lyrical delivery, imagery and even the emotions that it arouses within the listener.”
Samia Fatima Naqvi - Daily Times

“In times when record labels are acting as the biggest hindrance in the progress of music, the availability of a fresh Pakistani rock album comes as a welcome change. Qayaas is an Islamabad-based Pakistani rock band which recently released its first album Uss Paar under the banner of BIY (Believe in Yourself) records and has developed a cult following in a short time.”
Rafay Mahmood - The Express Tribune

“By the time I hit the sixth track on this album, Qayaas has won me over. Their debut album, Uss Paar, may just have been released in Pakistan and online recently, but the band has been taking measured, well-thought out steps for a couple years now. While it is clear that the Qayaas guys have great conviction in themselves as artists, theirs is a methodical madness - something thatshines through their musical career thus far, and indeed, their album.”
Amina Baig - Instep Magazine, The News

“Take the example of Qayaas, an amazing new band from Islamabad who produced their own album, made their own videos, and personally distributed their own printed albums to stores across Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.”
Shahshams Zaheer - The Express Tribune

“After the downfall of many rock bands in Pakistan, Qayaas comes out with a promising launch, testifying that these boys are here to stay. Musicians by passion, this group has brought a new flavour to Pakistani rock music. After winning the Band of the Year Award at the Jack Daniels Awards for Rock Music in India, the band has not stopped to make their mark on the music industry. The launch of their debut album, “Uss Paar”, at Islamabad’s Rock Musicarium, on April 23, saw an emancipated turnout of fans who were ready to head bang. “Uss Paar” has been in the making for quite a while and with Ali Noor of Noorie endorsing the band, the music industry got a heads up that Qayaas is serious about what they are doing and what they want to achieve.”
Momina Sibtain - The Express Tribune

“The soundtrack of the film has been done by Qayaas, a Pakistani band. According to Khurram Waqar, the lead guitarist of Qayaas, “Inquilaab”, “Khayaal” and “Pal” are all part of the soundtrack. The presence of Qayaas in the film makes the project sound even more interesting.”
Biya Shadab - The Express Tribune

“Jack Daniel’s Rock Awards 2010 in India opened up a new avenue for Pakistani rock bands to get acclaim. Qayaas, the rock band from Islamabad that recently won Jack Daniel’s Best Pakistani Rock Band award, held a press conference at Kuch Khaas. Qayaas won the award out of 25 nominations from Pakistan and had the privilege of playing at the Hard Rock Café’ in Delhi. Performing alongside EKA and Half Step Down, the band came back home with high hopes.”
Momina Sibtain - The Express Tribune

“All set to mark their debut with album Shehrezade, Qayaas band has just spilled the beans about another album which the artists plan to record in English. The band has kick started their second project while still waiting for the right time to release their first venture Shehrezade, sent to post production earlier last month. “It has been a long time coming and the album is finally ready with all production work completed,” lead guitarist Khurram Waqar announced in November. The group plans to launch three of its English tracks before leaving the country for an international tour in Austin, Texas around March next year.”
Farwa Zahra - The Express Tribune