When I first heard of the track One Life, I thought it was a western outfit for the music, beat and vocal accent certainly seemed so. However, it turned out that it is from a band called The Anams featuring the brother act of Komail Khaled (vocals) and Ammar Khaled (guitars, production). The teens have since been active on social media and being featured regularly on TV shows in a bid to promote their track.

The Anams and One Life

The boys claim to be on cloud nine since their song started doing the rounds on the music circuit. One Life is a funky piece of electronic dance mix with a foot-tapping beat fused perfectly with Komail’s innocent yet catchy vocals. With a tendency to become a hit with the club/dance-circuit crowd, the catchiest aspect of the track is its bilingual character. “Music has no boundaries and we plan to hit the international market, that’s why we’re keeping it bilingual,” says Ammar.

I recalled Daft Pank’s music as the track got to my head. But more than the track, it’s the enthusiasm of the boys that gets one moving. The lyrical content is your usual ‘lovey dovey’ fare but still pleasant. “Komail wanted me to produce a track which was more of a dance number in tune with today’s musical trends. So I developed this EDM (electronic dance music) track,” shares Ammar, adding, “Komail heard the track and it immediately clicked with him. He started humming along and jotted down the lines of the song.”

Catchy music is what happens when two lads with music in their blood get their act together

So, where does all this creative energy come from? Well, it’s literally in their blood as the versatile Khaled Anam is whom the boys call dad. With profound guidance and support, the boys feel confident in their music journey ahead. “Dad has been so supportive and provides us with the much-needed inspiration and support,” says Ammar.

Komail pitches in, “Our parents support music but the only condition our mum (Tehmina Khaled) has put is that we should have a Masters degree first so we are able to pursue a decent career alongside music.” According to the duo, their genre is pop rock with a tinge of punk. They define their music as ‘spontaneous’.

Coming back to One Life by The Anams, it is a bright, happening and cheerful performance video directed by Sohail Javed. The boys jump about, move freely and pretty much demonstrate the lively side of their music.

The USP, inspirations and collaborations

An important question here: how are The Anams different from the plethora of bands already existing? “We believe in producing original sounds. Our music comes from the heart and hopefully goes to the heart,” says Komail. On the rapid break up of bands, he adds, ”It’s natural for band members to fall out but we are confident that the clash of egos won't affect us.”

The Anams also draw inspiration from other musicians which include rock bands like Metallica, Black Sabbath, Nirvana, Abida Parveen, Bilal Khan, Adam Lambert, Justin Bieber, etc. The Beatles are a common inspiration as well. On collaborations, Ammar englightens, “We are open to the idea and we don’t mind collaborating with like-minded musicians, but at the moment we want to concentrate on our own music.”

How are The Anams different from the plethora of bands already existing? “We believe in producing original sounds. Our music comes from the heart and hopefully goes to the heart,” says Komail.

Music scene and piracy

As new musicians what do the Anam boys feel about the present Pakistani music scene? “It is crawling on all fours at the moment. Unless and until private channels and promoters take a serious step towards the revival of pop music in the country, it will remain as bad. We’ve heard that at one time there use to be shows which produced marvelous pop artists in our country. We can only wish that the revival happens sometime soon,” says the band in unison.

The Anams are strong advocates of original music. According to them, one major reason behind the downfall of the music industry in Pakistan is piracy, “It should be tackled with an iron hand. We are all for the fight against piracy.”

Future plans

The Anams are now working on another single called Ab To Aaja which will be out shortly after Ramazan. “The song will be totally different from One Life,” say the brothers who are concentrating on singles for now, but plan to launch an album in the very near future.

While The Anams would definitely require time to make their mark as they groom more, they are certainly here to stay.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, July 20th, 2014