LOS ANGELES — Michael Been, a singer, songwriter, guitarist and founding member of the Northern California modern rock band the Call, which broke out with the 1983 MTV hit “The Walls Came Down,” has died. He was 60.

Been (pronounced Bean) died Thursday after suffering a heart attack at the Pukkelpop festival in Hasselt, Belgium, where he had been serving as a sound engineer for his son Robert’s band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Formed in Santa Cruz as the ’80s were dawning, the Call gained a reputation for epic anthems showcasing a ringing guitar sound and socially conscious, spiritually aware lyrics written by Been and sung in his earnest, emotive style.

The band, based in the Bay Area, featured Been on lead vocals and at various times guitar and bass, Scott Musick on drums, Tom Ferrier on guitar and Greg Freeman on bass (replaced later by Jim Goodwin on keyboards). The Call’s self-titled debut album in 1982 was followed a year later by “Modern Romans,” which yielded the hit song “The Walls Came Down.”