 Indian metal trio Midhaven’s new album, Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt, a rich concept album based on the theory of time, is available now. “Not clockwork time, but universal, cyclical time,” the band says. “We've grown up with a belief system that has repeatedly told us that things that have happened will happen yet again, and again, and again. Time is seen as a continuum, and there are more universes than just this one. These are subjects we’ve debated and discussed from time immemorial. From the ancients, right down to us, this is how time is experienced where we come from. So naturally, when we started discussing lyrical concepts, time is something that all subjects were ultimately pointing toward. We were acting from an awareness that in this grand circuit of the cosmos, the self is constantly recreated in every moment. It’s not just about time, it’s also about a very personal experience of that time, through the aeons as life itself. It ultimately boils down to how time chisels to perfection the one universal soul that finds itself echoed in every living being. For reasons not entirely known to us, it felt as though time channelled itself through us for the creation of this album. We were merely conduits in this process.” Keeping in line with the concept of time, the first video from Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt, “Primal Song,” premiered with Rolling Stone India on the Summer Solstice. Watch “Primal Song” at https://youtu.be/gfFr2TMmn6s. The three-piece Mumbai-based band fuses traditional metal with progressive and modern rock to create earth shattering, heavy music with soaring guitars, operatic vocals, guttural growls and war track ready drums, polished off by deeply fascinating lyrical concepts. The melancholic and anguished tracks “Codeman” and “Para Brahman” focus on the existential search for “the reason why,” while the screams and cries of the past echo through “Primal Song” with its rage-induced lyrics and grimy vocals, conjuring images of man’s animalistic need to maraud and destroy. “Zhitro” and “Mahakaal” are the heavyweights of the album, ushering in Indian elements of dark, experimental sounds that are at once groundbreaking and heavy. Riddled with references to the ancient past, “Mahakaal” is the running theme of the album - consuming the world we exist in.- and an homage to Shiva, the Hindu god known as the Destroyer. Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt was recorded in 2019 and readied for release by mid-2020, but Covid-19 – and particularly India’s staggering second wave of infection – caused the band to delay its release. “Covid-19 and its wreck-fest on planet Earth put a huge stop sign right in front of the music industry’s gate,” says the band. “We held off on release until things got better but a second lockdown prevented any place for release or tours in our country. We curated a 2021 release, and even though vaccinating a country as big as India is a daunting task, we just couldn’t wait on it any longer. ‘Of The Lotus & The Thunderbolt’ is a universal, yet personal experience that is being conveyed in the form of heavy metal. The world hasn’t had enough metal from this side of the planet.
Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt’s artwork, brought to life by prolific indie artist Gaurav Basu (aka Acid Toad), reflects the theme of the album, presenting a gorgeous visual representation of the album’s concept. The record was mixed and mastered by ARIA nominated and internationally renowned Australian producer Forrester Savell (Animals As Leaders, Make Them Suffer, Karnivool), who adds a touch of polish and refinement while not straying far from the raw, analogue recording process.
Formed in 2012, Midhaven grew quickly with the launch of their first release, the 2013 EP Tales From The Tide. The trio soon became one of the first major signings of an Indian metal band to a worldwide record label, Universal Music Group (UMG), which release Midhaven’s debut full-length, Spellbound, in 2014. Like Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt, Spellbound was also a concept album and featured re-recorded tracks from Tales From The Tide. Midhaven has been nominated for the VH1 Sound Nation awards in the category of Best Metal Act, performed live on VH1’s Indian Music Diaries, and was nominated for Radio City’s Best Metal Live Act in 2015. MIDHAVEN is:
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Indian Heavy Metal force Against Evil release the title track of their upcoming album "End Of The Line" as a lyric video. Shasank shares more details about the song: "This is the title song and also the heaviest song on the album! It's about a dystopian future where common people have no rights and are trapped under the control of evil governments and shadow organizations. We also got the idea for the cover artwork after writing this song, where the band also known as The Army of Four are being sentenced to death by the electric chair for rebellion against the evil government. Overall, it's a very aggressive heavy metal song with a good blend of thrash." Check out the video below The album End of the Line will be out May 14th via German-Swiss based record label Doc Gator Records in Europe and independently the rest of the world. The sound of Against Evil is best described as Heavy Metal with Power and Speed Metal influence. Against Evil is a heavy metal band from the city of Visakhapatnam (India), formed in 2014. Combining traditional heavy metal, power metal and speed metal with a modern sound, the band’s music can be described as adrenaline inducing, fist pumping, bone crushing, anthemic metal!
The band released two albums – 'Fatal Assault' in 2015 and 'All Hail the King' in 2018 which were met with great critical acclaim. After the release of their album 'All Hail the King', the band started to gain a solid fan base worldwide, especially in Europe among fans of traditional heavy metal, power metal and thrash metal which led to the collaboration with German/Swiss based record label Doc Gator Records who later released the album in Europe. With the help of Doc Gator Records and Facebook metal group “Heavy Metal Fans”, the band set off on a crowdfunded European tour in the summer of 2019, performing club and festival shows in Germany, Austria, Belgium and Switzerland and sharing stages with legendary bands such as Queensryche, Riot V, Hardline and many others. Line-up:
Indian heavy metallers Against Evil release their first single & video 'The Sound Of Violence' from their upcoming album "End Of The Line". The album will be out May 14th via Germany-Switzerland based record label Doc Gator Records in Europe and independently for the rest of the world. The sound of Against Evil is best described as heavy metal with power and speed metal influences. Shasank (Rhythm, Lead Guitar) explains about the song: “This is the first song we wrote for the new album. The song is about a gladiator’s fight for survival and freedom. Songwriting wise, we picked up where we left off with our previous release 'All Hail the King' while making slight changes to the overall sound. We think it sounds a lot heavier and in-your-face compared to our previous releases and we hope you like it as much as we do.” Against Evil is a heavy metal band from the city of Visakhapatnam (India), formed in 2014. Combining traditional heavy metal, power metal and speed metal with a modern sound, the band’s music can be described as adrenaline inducing, fist pumping, bone crushing, anthemic metal! The band released two albums – 'Fatal Assault' in 2015 and 'All Hail the King' in 2018 which were met with great critical acclaim. After the release of their album 'All Hail the King', the band started to gain a solid fan base worldwide, especially in Europe among fans of traditional heavy metal, power metal and thrash metal which led to the collaboration with German/Swiss based record label Doc Gator Records who later released the album in Europe. With the help of Doc Gator Records and Facebook metal group “Heavy Metal Fans”, the band set off on a crowdfunded European tour in the summer of 2019, performing club and festival shows in Germany, Austria, Belgium and Switzerland and sharing stages with legendary bands such as Queensryche, Riot V, Hardline and many others.
Line-up:
Worldwide: https://againstevil.bandcamp.com Europe: https://www.docgatorshop.com/cat/index/sCategory/22 India: https://www.instamojo.com/AgainstEvil/  Indian metal artist Demonstealer collaborates with jazz / fusion drummer Gino Banks and bass prodigy Mohini Dey for new single 'Sic Semper Tyrannis' After dropping a well received EP 'And This Too Shall Pass' in December 2020 Indian metal veteran, Demonstealer is back with a new single. The song titled 'Sic Semper Tyrannis' which means 'And thus always to tyrants' sees an unusual collaboration with jazz / fusion drummer Gino Banks and bass prodigy Mohini Dey. The track itself is an old school death metal song and both guest musicians given it a unique twist bringing in their own flair and style. The artwork for the song has been done by well known artist and drummer of Indian metal band Gutslit, Aaron Pinto aka The Art of Kidsquidy. While ex-Demonic Resurrection guitar player Daniel Kenneth Rego has mixed and mastered the song. An official play-through style video has been released for the song as well here: https://youtu.be/49nsECqqbOQ Demonstealer comments: 'I've known Gino for years through my old day job as artist relations manager for Furtados Music and I've always wanted to jam or work with him so when he posted a tweet saying he was accepting songs to drum to I knew I had to send him something, I asked if he was up to play on a metal song and he said yes. He really smashed it on the track and I knew I wanted Mohini to play on it because they do a lot of gigs together but I didn't know how to ask her, thankfully Gino played her the song and she agreed to play on it. I couldn't be happier with the end result it's been a blast working with these stellar musicians'. The song is out now on all digital platforms and can be purchased and streamed at:- https://demonstealer.bandcamp.com/track/sic-semper-tyrannis  Mumbai-based death metal multi-instrumentalist, Sahil Makhija aka Demonstealer, is all set to release his next solo EP titled ‘And This Too Shall Pass’ on the 11th December, 2020. The 4-song EP is being self-released with the help of a crowd-funding campaign that Makhija personally set up in July earlier this year. Three years after The Last Reptilian Warrior, it was the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdown in the country that provided Makhija with a new perspective and the inspiration to write new music. And This Too Shall Pass sees Makhija return to his absolute roots. He adds:- “I guess this is me at my most vulnerable. It’s just me, no incredible musicians to back me up, just me putting my expression and feelings and thoughts into songs for the world to listen to”. An extreme music old-timer Makhija has long been a crucial part of the Indian metal scene; be it founding the country’s biggest extreme metal band (Demonic Resurrection), or starting up an independent record label (with releases by Behemoth, Dimmu Borgir) or setting up a premium recording studio dedicated to extreme metal – Makhija has had an enormous role in shaping the country’s heavy music landscape. After a successful third album, which saw collaborations with Kévin Paradis (Benighted, Svart Crown), Romain Goulon (Necrophagist), Kerim Lechner (Septic Flesh, Decapitated) and David Diepold (Obscura) amongst others, Makhija has resurfaced with a brand new Demonstealer release. The release was mixed and mastered at the esteemed Hertz Studio (Behemoth, Decapitated, Vader), a first for Makhija who is otherwise known to mix all the Demonstealer releases. The glorious artwork for the EP was provided by Indonesian artist Adi Dechristianize (Embalmer, Disgorge). All music on And This Too Shall Pass has been written, played and recorded by Makhija — making it truly a solo effort — a feat he hasn’t performed since his debut album released in 2008. Tracklist 01. This Crumbling Earth (06:26) 02. A Festering Wound (04:06) 03. Systemic Failure (04:30) 04. From Flesh To Ashes (06:09) Total runtime – 21:11 Credits All music written, played & arranged by Demonstealer All music recorded by Demonstealer at Demonic Studios, India All music mixed & mastered by Hertz Studio, Poland Album artwork & layout by Adi Dechristianize And This Too Shall Pass releases on 11th December, 2020. Pre-orders for the digital release are now available on the band’s Bandcamp (World) and Redwolf (India). The EP will also be available on all streaming services including YouTube, Spotify and Apple Music. Listen to and share ‘And This Too Shall Pass’ EP sampler Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/demonstealer/and-this-too-shall-pass-ep-sampler YouTube: https://youtu.be/XshobyYLyeo  After building a large online fan base with multiple viral videos, New Delhi based Indian Metal Band Bloodywood decided to take to the road in the summer of 2019 with their "Raj Against The Machine Tour", not only the band's first ever tour, but the first time they played live as a band. Bloodywood had no idea what to expect on their first ever tour but the response was far greater than they ever imagined selling out 12 shows on the 3 week tour, culminating in the band's set at WACKEN OPEN AIR. Bloodywood further documented the tour through footage shot across a GoPro strapped to guitarist / flautist Karan Katiyar's chest, frenzied mobile phone footage shot by the audience and the band themselves, as well as world class footage shot at Wacken Open Air. The documentary tells the story of how the band formed and their surreal Raj against the Machine tour. After an action packed opening sequence that captures the essence of the film within the span of a minute and a half, you witness the birth of Punjabi / dhol metal, its fusion with lyrically focused rap music, the natural progression into original compositions from covers and the solidification of a musical agenda that's hell bent on creating a positive impact on the planet. After receiving an invitation to perform at the Mecca of heavy metal: The Wacken Open Air, the band sets out to answer a burning question: can an Indian folk metal band, an online sensation that's never performed live before cut it on the biggest stage of them all? You have to see it to believe it.  In preparation for the tour, the first time that two of the seven members had ever travelled abroad, Bloodywood spent around 200 hours preparing. Fans flew from Zurich, drove from Belgium, and biked from the Czech Republic to watch them perform in Germany and England; at one show, an Indian fan proposed to his German girlfriend with the help of the band in the middle of their set. In Germany, their midday set at the Wacken Open Air was packed to full capacity.; the audience was 15000 strong! Bloodywood also became only the second band in 2 years and the only non-headliner to be asked to play an encore at the Dong Open Air. The tour, however, wasn't all smooth sailing though, with 2 members of the band falling sick after the first show of the tour and playing through the illness for the next 7 shows. Bloodywood also got stuck in a hurricane on their last day of the tour, their only day off. They were drunk when it hit and carried $1000s of dollars worth of equipment on their backs to escape. The soundtrack for the documentary consists of only Indian independent music, including everything from metal to acoustic. The different kinds of footage will tell fans a lot about the documentary itself, with the GoPro footage showing the story from the band's side, the audience footage capturing the energy of the moment, and the professional footage at the end showing the evolution of the band over the course of the tour in all its cinematic glory.  Indian metal band Demonic Resurrection completes 20 years! The band was formed in 2000 by main man Demonstealer when he was just 16 and has released 6 albums and one EP over their 2 decade long career. The band first received some global recognition in 2007 after appearing on Sam Dunn's acclaimed documentary 'Global Metal' before going on to signing with Candlelight Records in 2010 and starting to make appearances at some of the biggest metal festivals in Europe like Inferno, Brutal Assault, Metaldays, Wacken and Bloodstock. The band shared this update on Facebook and also released a new lyric video for the song 'Buddha - The Teacher' from their last album 'Dashavatar' which was released independently in 2017. FB Post: https://www.facebook.com/DemonicResurrection/photos/a.1857354451201730/2676274255976408/?type=3&theater Watch the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvOxz73IZ-M Buddha artwork by: Manish Tongbram (@manish_d3mon) Bodhi Tree artwork by: Debopria Kar (@kaguya_arts) Additional artwork & designs: Abhishek Goswami (@depthbeyonddarkness) Animation and Typography by Abhishek Goswami of Sonicspawn Studios: https://www.youtube.com/sonicspawnstudios Extreme Nation, the South Asian extreme underground music documentary now available digitally4/4/2020  Extreme Nation, the award-winning feature documentary film on extreme underground music of the Indian subcontinent gets digitally released on Vimeo's Video on Demand. The film is now available to viewers worldwide on the streaming platform from as of 11 AM IST/ 05:30 AM GMT, 3rd April 2020, Friday. Abhay Singh, Executive Producer states:- “After much contemplation we, the producers of the film, decided to release the movie online for people to watch, especially during these testing times for humanity. The whole world is hooked on digital content and wants to know what's happening around them, hence we decided now is the time. Vimeo On Demand is a creator-empowering platform democratizing the dissemination of relevant media to audiences, and is our tool of choice for engaging with our audience.” Producer, Director – Roy Dipankar comments:- “I have been personally talking to a few OTT platforms and agencies regarding the film for some time. However, due to too many mandates & constraints on content towards an underground film, in spite of a great international premiere and seemingly decent interest, the release got further delayed at home. On the other hand, we've been receiving viewing requests every week from around the globe. Hence, without further ado, I am super excited to share this work with the fans, music and film enthusiasts, as they've been patiently and ardently waiting for the film!” Links to Watch Extreme Nation: The 81 minute-long film features commentaries from various musicians and people involved in the extreme music scene, including Bangladeshi black metal group Nafarmaan; Primitiv, Plague Throat, Syphilectomy from India; Konflict and Genocide Shrines from Sri Lanka; and Pakistani grind/hardcore punk duo Multinational Corporations. Comments from many obscure bands, metal enthusiasts, members of the underground and journalists as well as internationally touring bands like Impiety (Singapore) and Cult of Fire (Czech Republic) were also documented during their bone-chilling performances. For More Information: http://www.royvilleproductions.com https://www.facebook.com/ExtremeNationIndia https://www.instagram.com/extreme_nation_subculture   After one month of voting, nearly 6,000 votes cast and countless sharing across all social media platforms by us and nominees alike, the time has come to announce the winners of the GMA Awards 2019. But before that happens, there will be a change to how the nominees are cast. For 10 months of the year we will be running a series of rounds from which the 10 finalists will be recognised for the annual event. The system will work as thus: nominees elected in the month of January are voted for in February... February nominees voted in March, etc and finishes with nominees in October being voted for in November - the finalists will then be voted for across the month of December and into early January 2021; finishing 8th January 2021. Now that's put out into the open, we can finally reveal the winners of the GMA Awards 2019.  Release Of The Year
 Best Live Act
 Breakthrough African Metal Band
 Breakthrough Asian Metal Band
 Breakthrough European Metal Band
 Breakthrough UK Metal Band
 Breakthrough North & Central American Metal Band
 Breakthrough Oceanian Metal Band
 Breakthrough South American Metal Band
 Breakthrough International Metal Band
 Festival Of The Year
Music Video Of The Year
 Global Metal Ambassador 2019
* Later withdrawn by request of nominee. |
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