Guitar Virtuoso Waqas Ahmed image

Waqas Ahmed

Rock guitar virtuoso Waqas Ahmed releases the video ‘Yojimbo In Cyberspace’ from his new album, Doomsday Astronaut out on A for Aleph Records, an instrumental rock and progressive metal record. I was so taken by this performance, it was an instant “yes” for me. Ahmed is such an outstanding guitar player, the song so melodic, there was no question about whether to publish it as a featured video.

Having played in a number of bands in Romania and worked as a session player for artists and bands all over the world, Doomsday Astronaut is Waqas Ahmed’s solo debut album and features nine tracks, released on A for Aleph Records. When asked about his approach to songwriting he said, “I know that an instrumental record should showcase skills and chops but I think nothing should come at the cost of perspective. A song is a story after all and it should make sense. Display of skill is secondary and needs to be done tastefully. That is what I try to do.”

With incredible technique, Ahmed has accomplished his goal. He wrote, composed and produced Doomsday Astronauthimself. He adds, “In the past couple of years, I have become a bit too particular about details. Therefore, I like to do most of the work myself. I know what my music should sound like and I like to have that control.” Doomsday Astronaut features Sarmad Ghafoor, Ovidiu Ban, Irtaza Shafaat, and Hassan Omer.

 
Order link for Doomsday Astronaut 

Originally from Pakistan, Waqas Ahmed moved to Sibiu Romania where he started playing guitar in 2001. He works as a session guitar player for artists and bands world-wide, and in 2019 began his solo career. Initially inspired by heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Metallica and Megadeth, he soon discovered the music of guitar legends like Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen and John Petrucci.

Before embarking on his solo career Ahmed was a guitar player for several successful bands, including Kain, popular in the local underground scene. He then joined Orion and released an album with them in 2007 called “Angel of Dust.” After Orion disbanded, Ahmed co-founded the progressive metal band “Odyssey” and released two albums with them entitled, “Ghosts of Yesterday” and “Crossroads to Oblivion.” Both Orion and Odyssey were acclaimed underground bands.

Orion won the best band award at the Rafi Peer Festival in 2006. Odyssey also won a local battle of the bands. Both bands still have a cult following in the Pakistani underground music scene. Orion’s “Angel of Dust” and “Odyssey’s Ghost of yesterday made it to the list of 13 best rock and metal albums to have come out of Pakistan in an article published on a popular webzine.

Waqas then went on to play as a session guitarist for the experimental pop band Overload. He also collaborated on various other projects as a session guitarist. In 2014, he moved to Europe. In 2016 he co-founded the Romanian rock band Alpha Q. Alpha Q enjoyed success in the Romanian underground scene and also won the posada rock battle of the bands in 2018.  A virtuoso guitarist with an incredible technique and a keen sense of melody,  he recently  released his debut instrumental album entitled “Doomsday Astronaut” via A for Aleph records.

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