Call to release first song since reunion

New track marks 15 years of popular rock band

KARACHI: With the passing of Junaid Jamshed and Amjad Sabri, 2016 has been a rather depressing year for the Pakistani music scene. But Call is back to make sure we end it on a happier note. The band – which reunited last year – is all set to release a brand new music video on New Year’s Eve and is looking forward to the audience’s reaction to it.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Xulfiqar Jabbar Khan – more commonly known as Xulfi – said Call has been together for 15 years. “We are releasing a music video to celebrate the band’s 15 years together.”

According to the musician, the idea for the music video came to him when he was watching the band’s footage archive. “It just occurred to me that we have a ton of footage from concerts, behind-the-scenes and other ventures. As I was going through them, I realised we could make a video out of them as a tribute to the fans.”



Xulfi went on to thank listeners for the support they have extended to the band over the years. “Call has seen a lot of ups and downs but our fans have stuck with us through it all. With this video, we want to thank them for their support.”

As far as the band’s future is concerned, there’s only one thing for sure. “The future of Call is music. It doesn’t matter whether we come up with singles or an album or just do concerts. We are here to stay and make music again. That’s the reason we got back together,” Xulfi explained. With Junaid Khan on vocals and Sultan Raja on guitar, the New Year offering will also see Farhan Humayun of Overload on drums.



Apart from his band, Xulfi has had his hands full with the upcoming season of Nescafé Basement. The producer is set to announce the audition calls in a month or so. “We will announce the dates early next year and also go to universities and colleges to recruit musicians and singers because Nescafé Basement is all about the showcasing young talent.”

The Laari Chooti hit maker added that the tone and soundscape of the upcoming season will depend on new musicians. “I don’t go in with a blueprint as that bounds you. I like to be open to ideas and explore as each artist brings in a new idea.”



The process, which will start in a month or two, will culminate with the season coming on air in the third or fourth quarter of 2017. In an earlier interview, Xulfi stated he believed in Pakistani artists and hoped to inspire them. “If you give power to a person and inspire them, he or she can do anything they want. We must believe in our artists and inspire them, to help them produce great music.”

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