In mid-1985, the Western-influenced rock music began to be noticed by the public and underground concerts were held all over the country. The rock music jolted the country in a time when the ultra-conservative regime of President General Zia-ul-Haq was reigning supreme as dictator masquerading as "democratically elected". The President with a puppet parliament sanctioning his every move reeked of a Machiavellian brand of so-called "Islamisation." President Zia-ul-Haq had famously and strongly denounced "western ideas" such as jeans and rock music. Various groups had garnered and gotten the attention of the public, and the rock music naturally got appreciated as it was out of the ordinary.