Takatak

Takatak is, for the lack of a better term, an instrumental progressive metal band, hailing from Lahore, Pakistan. Starting off as a three piece school band, playing Lamb of God and Opeth covers around the city at DIY shows, the band eventually evolved into a 6 piece outfit, with the induction of Jamil Rizvi on bass and Shahzore Bhatty on vocals, releasing their debut single, titled Breakdown, produced by Ahmed W. Khan of Odyssey.

Takatak went on to playing numerous shows while sporadically releasing a song a year, with 2011’sWalls They Collapse, which saw the entrance of Isa Najam on bass guitars. Misbah ud din, soon after the release of Walls They Collapse, left the band to form a sister band called Keeray Makoray, featuring most members of Takatak.

2012 saw the band release Depraved, a single that was produced by maverick producer Mekaal Hasan of the Mekaal Hasan Band, and Sameer Ahmed, bassist for co-ven. Whilst writing the single, the band included in their ranks Ibrahim Imdad as the new second guitarist. Shortly after the release of Depraved, Bhatty left the country to pursue his education, leaving the band. At this point, Takatak had already started work on an EP, and decided to go on without a vocalist.

Written partly in Malaysia during Zain and Yusuf’s brief visit to study sound engineering, and majorly in Yusuf and Daud Ramay’s basement, Out of Something is an honest representation of the five members, and Takatak as a while. The EP features 5 songs that have stuck with the band for the past five years; little recording know-how, money and gear led the album to be re-recorded a whopping number of 3 times, with the help, and equipment of Raavail Sattar (Drummer – Poor Rich Boy), Jamal Rahman (True Brew Records) and Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop. The album features a stripped down set up of guitars, bass and drums, sporting a guest spot by Islamabad based nu-jazz outfit Red Blood Cat’s guitarist/composer/producer Zain Ali on the song ‘MasterBeast’. The debut EP is slated for an early/mid 2016 release, and will be mixed and mastered by Ahmed W. Khan.