Rock music is still alive and Karakoram is thriving on it

Rage, rumble and riot – that’s what Karakoram is all about, proper? Or… is it?

The choice rock band hailing from Lahore is setting the benchmark for all upcoming rock artists with its dedication to the style and drive to wrap it in its personal soundscape. Rock isn’t only a part and the band proves that by refusing to resort to digital templates as a cool substitute for its sound. Nothing like the nice ol’ kick and snare blasting in our ears, eh? Since releasing Toofan in 2018, Karakoram has dropped quite a few singles, an album (Ailan-e-Jang), been on the highway and again, featured in branded reveals, whereas its lead man, Shehreyar Khattak (Sherry), has labored as a music whiz for Coke Studio.

Sherry has performed apprentice to Xulfi for the reason that Nescafe Basement days. He has advanced as an artist underneath and past his tutelage, together with his power contact being felt in quite a few Coke Studio songs. Alongside his bandmates – Bilawal Lahooti, Omair Farooq, Zain Peerzada and Annan Noukhez – Karakoram has caught collectively via thick and skinny and most lately, dropped one other single, Gol Chakkar, that includes guitar legend Faraz Anwar. Their primary man, Sherry, in dialog with The Categorical Tribune, particulars the tune, their collaboration and extra.

Origin story

Gol Chakkar presents an early 2000s Nu, different steel vibe. The synth layering on the monitor is paying homage to bands like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. Sherry’s fry screams pierce via your soul whereas the band’s taking part in stays intact.

“Karachi is my birthplace, I moved to Lahore 4 years in the past, so it’s by no means a brand new feeling coming again. Nevertheless it’s all the time thrilling,” Sherry tells me from throughout the self-importance room forward of a soundcheck for his acoustic present in Karachi. Wearing all-white, similar to within the music video for Gol Chakkar, he sits comfortably in his armchair, making himself at house. “We’ve been in contact with Faraz bhai for some time now. After I lived in Karachi, we’d meet him usually. He lived in Gulshan, our studio was in Gulshan, and a few of my band members additionally performed for him. Since there was all the time that connection, once we determined that this yr, we’ll collaborate with as many artists as doable, Faraz bhai needed to are available someplace.”

The singer recalled how, when Gol Chakkar was in its nascent stage, he and his bandmates weren’t certain who or what it wanted. However “as soon as that riff got here in, we knew just one particular person may nail it, so we referred to as him [Faraz] up and he was good sufficient to say sure. He even agreed to be within the video.”

Gol Chakkar presents an early 2000s Nu, different steel vibe. The synth layering on the monitor is paying homage to bands like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. Sherry’s fry screams pierce via your soul whereas the band’s taking part in stays intact. Bilawal’s timing on drums, Zain P’s ferocity on guitars and Faraz’s solo-cum-cameo take issues up a notch as he switches the important thing and tempo. There’s no match for his corrosive taking part in.

Snakes and scepters

Lyrically, Gol Chakkar shuns all hypocrites and gossipmongers. It declares struggle towards the detractors writing you off and hits again in any respect pretend associates. “We now have so many individuals in our lives who’re solely good to our faces. To them, the tune says, ‘Saanp thay wohi sath jo rahay’.” The music video additionally sees a bunch of snakes on the free because the band members, wearing all-white, proceed to play towards a white backdrop, consultant of a new-age rock outfit. Faraz, nonetheless, seems in black, and whereas that appears to be a inventive selection, Sherry informs that it wasn’t.

“We simply didn’t wish to be that rock band that solely wears black and appears edgy on a regular basis,” he asserts. “However Faraz determined towards it, and that was his selection. Clearly, he’s a legend. And it’s essential to maintain everybody’s sensitivities in thoughts,” Sherry holds whereas reflecting on his expertise of working with the maestro. “He [Faraz] is a radical skilled. And whenever you’re working with somebody who’s on that degree… It could be unfair to name anyone the most effective however skill-wise, Faraz is without doubt one of the greatest. And he doesn’t get celebrated sufficient. He is aware of that,” provides the singer.

New age rockers

About Karakoram taking inspiration from newer rock and prog rock outfits like Deliver Me the Horizon and Polyphia, with the color palette for Gol Chakkar’s being eerily paying homage to Ego Dying, Sherry provides, “We love Polyphia. We now have been following them for a very long time. They’re the modern-age instrumentalists who’re in a fantastic place when it comes to their movies and sound. And as a band, we’re all the time trying to find new sounds and visuals.” Sherry maintains that Karakoram doesn’t want to seem “dated”. “Supposedly, rock is a style which isn’t within the mainstream proper now. However we strongly really feel that if we hold at it, if we do it sufficient, and if we’re true to ourselves, a degree will come when our viewers will discover us. We simply desire a loyal listenership. And even when a single particular person is moved by what we do, I’ll say we’ve made.”

On that notice, when requested how troublesome is it to maintain a band collectively in at present’s day and age, Sherry admits, “It will get powerful. However in my expertise, if the particular person calling the photographs can be placing within the effort, then everybody ought to respect their resolution. That retains issues balanced. When there are clashes of egos, then issues turn into problematic. In my band, I’m the eldest so I’ve to be extra mature about issues. My bandmates should play reveals with different artists, I don’t argue. That’s their means of incomes, why ought to I cease them? Who am I to say they need to solely play with Karakoram? It’s nearly compromise.”

The place’s the cash at?

Though we’re in a pre-shoot part, this [Coke Studio], with its songs and visuals, could be very a lot centered on the narratives. — Sherry Khattak

Whereas scouting for a loyal listenership is nice, the considered moneymaking doesn’t appear to hang-out Sherry. Why? “After all, that battle is all the time there. As artists, till your views are within the hundreds of thousands, you don’t make something off of your music. You barely break even. However manufacturing has helped me loads.”

About his enterprise into manufacturing with Xulfi and ultimately Coke Studio, Sherry recollects, “I all the time wished to be taught from the alternatives offered to me so I’m able to produce my very own songs. And dealing underneath Xulfi bhai, working for Coke Studio, has made me extra succesful. It’s been an eye-opener for all of us, truly. The nice factor is, that since we’re the identical workforce that used to do Basement, so it doesn’t really feel any completely different. The usual is greater, the dimensions is larger, however we’re nonetheless on the identical capability. It wasn’t the form of transition the place we had been clueless about how issues will go. And it’s been an enormous studying curve, to be a part of Coke Studio in any capability. And I’ve been a really integral a part of its music making.”

Concerning the upcoming Coke Studio, particularly after the raging success of CS14, Sherry delves, “Though we’re in a pre-shoot part, this one, with its songs and visuals, could be very a lot centered on the narratives. Final yr, if I’m being trustworthy, narrative-wise, we may have translated the tales higher. So this time, there’s going to be very sturdy story-telling.”

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