Calling out again'Laaree Chootee' has put Call in the limelight once again with an LSA nomination and the band is back with new verve after their first concert in the US of A!
Aqsa Hussain, Karachi
It was in 2002 when Call debuted on the scene with their album, Jilawatan. With massive hits like 'Nishaan' and 'Pukaar', the band heralded by Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan aka Xulfi quickly established itself as one of the best rock bands in Pakistan.
In 2007 came their trump card and it was 'Laaree Chootee' for the Indian film, Ek Chalis Ki Last Local. The film failed to make a mark but the song became a monster hit in and outside Pakistan.
This year Call have picked up a nomination in the newly-introduced category of Song of the Year at the Lux Style Awards for 'Laaree Chootee'. The band that has been AWOL from the spotlight and recently surfaced with their first overseas show in USA. Instep Today caught up with Call to find out where they are headed next and when their second album will release…
Instep Today: Tell us about your show in the United States of America?
Xulfi: It was an amazing experience. Playing rock in a place like USA, where rock has actually evolved, was quite a satisfying experience.
Plus, it was really nice to see how the audience had welcomed us. The Asian diaspora really waits for such events. Mainstream bands and artists that they see on TV channels, singing in their native language, makes the people living abroad nostalgic. It links them to their home. That's how music can actually bridge gaps between us and our people living abroad.
Sultan: And very importantly, playing alongside a fabulous foreign drummer, Albert, was quite a great moment for all of us. Wasn't it?
Xulfi: Definitely! He's one of the best drummers I've played with and the interesting thing was that his style of drumming actually went perfectly with our style of music, even though we had just two hours of jamming. From the fun we had over there, as a trip, to the concert, it was really great. The goras were very courteous towards us. In fact, we were pretty impressed with the way we were treated. Even if we went anywhere where people didn't know us, we never felt discriminated against.
Instep Today: Where did you guys perform?
Junaid: It was a one-off concert tour. The rest were interviews and photo shoots that we did for a magazine. In a nutshell, you can say that it was a concert plus a promotional tour for us. The concert happened in Fairfax, Virginia at the George Mason University. We never expected the crowd to actually sing all of our songs, but that actually happened, so we were pretty happy with everything. There wasn't any other mainstream performer, but there were a few Urdu singing bands (based in USA) who performed at the show.
Instep Today: 'Laaree Chootee' has been nominated in Song of the Year category at the LSAs. What do you think of your chances are of winning?
Xulfi: We are definitely excited. Everyone waits for the Lux Style Awards, from the fashion industry to the music and entertainment industry. I am pretty happy that a new category has been introduced to honour the song of the year for 2007. I know it's a pretty big achievement being nominated and I hope for a fair draw in the awards. There is strong competition obviously. Some of the top songs released last year have been nominated. And yes, we are hoping we will win. Being optimistic never hurts.
Instep Today: What about your upcoming album? It was supposed to be out in April...
Xulfi: We wanted it to be out in April, but that plan had to be delayed because of a few reasons. Firstly, the seldom upward and the more often downward trend of the political situation in our country did not really let the people focus on music during those days. So, if the audience wasn't geared up for listening, then neither were we as a band. Besides, it was a stressful situation for us. Besides being musicians, we're also citizens of Pakistan. We couldn't bring ourselves to really focus with so much going on in Pakistan.
Right now, the album is still in its recording phase. This time around, the album has live drums that we've recorded at Farhad Humayun's (Overload) studio in Lahore. It was fun engineering the drum sound with Farhad. I think we have come up with a drum sound that will hopefully be a benchmark for future albums coming out of our music scene.
Instep Today: Who has produced the album?
Junaid: Xulfi has produced the album, and the recordings are taking place at Xth Harmonic, Xulfi's studio. The drums, though, were recorded at Farhad's studio, and were engineered by Xulfi with help from Farhad.
Sultan: The interesting thing about the album is that a variety of drummers have played on the album. We have Farhad (Overload) playing on four of the tracks, Fahad Khan (Mekaal Hasan Band, ex-Fuzon) playing on a couple of tracks, and Kenny (Akaash) playing on three tracks. So there is diversity even in the style of drumming in the album as every drummer brings his own flavour while playing.
Xulfi: The album is lyrically and compositionally complete. The recording is more than half done. So in a month's time, we'll probably have it ready in our hands, which is good news for all our fans. Because the sooner we get it completed, the sooner it will release, hopefully!
Instep Today: Any upcoming videos?
Xulfi: The video for 'Yeh Pal' is going to release later this month or the first week of August. For those who don't know, 'Yeh Pal' is our next Bollywood venture, after 'Laaree Chootee'.
The rest of the videos, from the album, are probably going to be released near the album release. We are still deciding on which video director should direct which song's video. Whenever that's final, the video shoot, and consequent release dates would be announced.
Instep Today: Have you signed up with any record label as yet?
Xulfi: We're talking to with the major ones. We'll come to a conclusion soon enough.
Instep Today: It's turning out to be a big year for Pakistani music. Strings and Atif have already released their album. In the pipeline are albums from Ali Azmat, Mauj and Mekaal Hasan Band. Competitition is tough...
Xulfi: I won't make tall claims about our album. All I can is that this album is an honest, creative work of art, both musically and lyrically, that has evolved with time. Personalities grow, one comes up with new ideas, breaks old ones, moments happen that influence life in the most weird, and sometimes in the most beautiful of ways. Hence, one is inspired to write more intensely. Doing things to outdo other musicians isn't really the aim, because all artists are striving hard for a better music scene.
Source: Instep Today
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