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Feb 26, 2025 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Jayme Okerblom

Brothers Salim and Faris Nourallah only released one album together while recording as the Nourallah Brothers, their 2000 self-titled debut. Arriving just before the 2000s indie boom went into full swing, the record delivered a collection of bright, jangly and sincere indie pop. However, the buzz around the band died down after the pair went their separate ways soon after release. Both brothers continued to release a series of solo albums in the subsequent years before Faris stepped away from music in 2009. Salim has continued to write, record, and produce new music in the years since, returning most recently with his 2023 solo record, A Nuclear Winter.

Ahead of their debut’s 25th anniversary, the brothers reconnected and began going over the vault of unreleased music. Salim recalls, “I was blown away by how fresh they sounded. I could see why we didn’t release them at the time - there were so many songs floating around, and these didn’t seem to ‘fit’ with the album we released.”

Later this year, the pair are planning on releasing a 25th anniversary edition of Nourallah Brothers featuring a handful of their unreleased bonus tracks. Today they’re packaging up a standalone trio of those unreleased songs into a single release, returning with “Nothing Ever Goes Right,” and a pair of B-sides, “Like Forks and Knives” and “Reading Dostoyevsky,” premiering with Under the Radar.

The trio of new tracks each feels like they’ve come from a different corner of ‘90s alt rock, revealing playful lost gems laced with timeless melodicism. “Nothing Ever Goes Right” turns teenage ennui into a guitar-laden swirl of indie charm, recalling bands like the Gin Blossoms with its jangly textures, meandering basslines, and ghostly synth tones. In contrast, “Like Forks and Knives” is more slight and loping, playing with Beatles-esque pop melodies and lilting vocal harmonies waltzing atop a pastoral guitar line. Finally, “Reading Dostoyevsky” finds the pair belting out a lo-fi folk singalong, loading on the handclaps and winking literary references.

Check out the songs below, along with a Q&A with Salim and Faris. You can also pre-order the 25th-anniversary version of Nourallah Brothers here.

What are the stories behind these three songs?

Faris: My brother is terrible at documenting paint samples, but he’s great with songs.

Salim: It all happened so long ago, who can remember?

What prompted you to decide to release these three songs together as part of one single?

Salim: We’ve been having a good time talking to each other and I started trawling our recording vaults, so to speak. I found a ton of stuff that we never released. It’s been lots of fun sharing the songs with Faris and high-fiving each other.

Faris: Well, given the high prices of bacon in the stores, “Forks and Knives” just seemed oddly appropriate.

How did the songs come together, both musically and lyrically?

Faris: Salim had his notebook, and I said come hither. He dithered a bit.

Salim: I think I must’ve used every chord I knew at the time. It sounds like Faris might’ve been cooking and exploring Russian novelists.

What was the recording process like back in the day?

Salim: We started with an 8-track minidisc recorder set up in the corner of a two-car garage we’d converted into a rehearsal space. These tracks were recorded under those circumstances - no isolation for drums, everything in the same space. Difficult conditions for recording, especially having to shut off the noisy AC wall unit during takes. The same room is still part of my recording studio all these years later, but it’s unrecognizable now.

Faris: Usually, I would crawl out of my own personal hell. Often unshowered, unshaved. Perhaps olfactory indignant, Salim would say, “Are you joking?!”

What are these songs’ messages?

Salim: I can’t speak for my brother’s two songs but my tune, “Nothing Ever Goes Right,” was one of the first songs I ever wrote. That happened way back in 1986. I suppose the message was “teen angst.” It’s kinda funny to hear it all these years later. What a grim sentiment!

What do you hope they convey?

Faris: I was late for a date but I felt bad? No. I am terribly punctual. I think I heard someone tell me they had a date show up late and so was trying to be kind. Or maybe it’s girls will forgive anything if you are paying? I’m not sure.

Salim: I like hearing my brother on drums and me on bass. We were a nifty little rhythm section.

How do you describe the Nourallah Brothers’ music to people who have not heard it before?

Salim: Lo-fi. Bits of The Beatles and The Kinks filtered through two oddball kids from El Paso. By the time we got to this, we’d ditched trying to be like our heroes.

Faris: Hmm… It’s handmade. Like kids in a sandbox.

Did you find it a good experience going back to the vault to rediscover these songs after so many years?

Salim: It’s been one of the best experiences I’ve had in ages. Definitely the music highlight of my year. I’ve been able to see the two young men that we were in a new light. More love, less contempt. We were doing the best we could with the hands we were dealt. We also made a lot of cool music along the way. I’m proud of the songs my brother wrote. He’s a fucking genius, you know.

What have the emotions been like?

Salim: Singing with my brother for the first time in over two decades was highly emotional. All thanks to A.I. stem separation technology and my refusal to throw away any soggy boxes containing music-related media.

Have you discovered other songs beyond these?

Salim: We’ve discovered tons, including unfinished songs that we’re in the process of working on. There’s at least a full album’s worth of Faris solo stuff, too.

Faris: As aforementioned, Salim is terrible with paint swatches, but he has uncovered several hits of mine that are soon to be cascading the airwaves of Europe and Indiana.

Any plans for additional Nourallah Brothers releases?

Salim: Definitely. In 2025, we’re planning to release an expanded double LP of our debut plus multiple singles rescued from the oblivion of the “vaults.”

Faris: Salim doesn’t know what’s going on! My lawyer, Alphonse Alphonso is, when he leaves the casino, gonna file a vigorous cease and desist order.