THE Black Band is well known in the Pakistani communities in Jeddah, Riyadh & Al-Khober. The band, called Black for short has a unique history shaped by many talented people. Saudi Gazette asked Salman Roomi, the lead vocalist, how he got in to music. “My brother Mobeen Roomi started his musical journey in 1994-95 as he was the first Pakistani from Saudi Arabia to record and produce a song. Later on he started a band in Jeddah called Image,” which was unfortunately later disbanded,” Salman said. “In 1996,” he continued, “Mobeen formed a new band, Soch, which was the only Pakistani rock band to release an album in the Kingdom by Record label MAK Intermedia. The bulk of the songs were composed and written by my brother and me.” Although Salman has always had a great musical talent, his source of inspiration was his brother who “translated my dream into reality.” Salman started his solo music career in 2004. “I launched two music videos with my friends. The first video of a song, Soniyeh, was a bhangra/trance kind of song that aired in various Pakistani Music channels and got a good response, and the second video produced was of song Yaad,” Salman said. In 2005, The Black Band was formed by Salman with his two friends Faisal Chanda and Farhan Khan. Faisal christened the band Black and with good reasons too. The concept being that with no moon and no sun, the only thing remaining will be darkness. However, when Faisal left the country and Salman moved to Riyadh the band ceased to exist. In 2006, Salman revived The Black Band together with Yasir Abdulwahid and Omer Khalid, two of the most talented personalities in Riyadh. Their first concert was held in the Pakistan Embassy in Riyadh in April 2006 where they made a memorable impression. “When the stage is flooded with lights and powerful music, the energetic applause from the audience creates a strange kind of magic. These moments are unforgettable,” Salman said. After that the band never lost its momentum as their live performances earned them a place in the community and an honorable position in music. The band became stronger when Ali Adnan and Fazi Rasool were added. Most of Black's shows were held in Riyadh but there was also a successful live performance in Jeddah in a concert organized by We the Youth organization. The band has very exciting future plans. “We are involved with performances in other countries and producing music videos and albums. Also, the band is working in collaboration with other local bands and artists,” Salman stated. Finally, the hard work of almost 15 years and the joint effort of so many people has produced a very unique and talented musical rock band although Salman points out, “there is still a long way to go.” Salman concluded by saying, “We have a strong motive that if we got famous globally we will work for humanity by charity events. We want to help people around the world.”
