Our readers would like to know a brief history and playing style of the band?
Well the original DR was born in 2000 with a different lineup. The bands style then was roughly a mix between gothic/doom and thrash/death metal. Since we were all very young the music was pretty simple and amateurish even. We had a female singer/keyboardist(Nikita) at that time which I feel did give us a unique sound and therefore made us stand out. Also we came at a time where metal bands didn’t really play any original material. From there the bands lineup was unstable for the 1st year and a half almost with 12 members going in and out. Finally we stuck to the lineup of Yash(Drums), Aditya aka Count Varathora(Bass), Nikita(Keys,Vox) and myself (Demonstealer) on Vox and guitars. In 2002 the band went thru major changes. Aditya was the 1st to leave the band and he was replaced by Husain from Reptilian Death on bass. Later in the year Yash and Nikita also left the band and DR was left as a 2piece with just Husain(Bass) and myself. The bands bleak future changed in Jan 2003 when Mephisto(Keys) and JP(Drums) joined Demonic Resurrection. From here the band took a decision to discard old DR material and start fresh. Finally after 6months of working on songs we played our debut gig a the new and improved DR on July 24th 2003.
How active you guys been with the gigs? What, shows and festivals have you played recently?
Well we have been pretty active with gigs. Most of them in Mumbai and a couple of them in Pune, Bangalore, Delhi etc. Roughly we have played 20 odd gigs in the 2years or so that we have been around. The most recent gigs we have done have been “Resurrection 3 (Mumbai) and Great Indian Rock (Delhi)”. Following that we did 2 band competitions (NSIT Delhi & RAIT Mumbai). We won best band at both.
Do you feel your recent performance at Great Indian rock festival 2005 has been a significant achievement for you in terms of show casing extreme metal to a larger audience? And do you think other extreme bands in the country can now think of it as an upcoming platform? What other bands do you expect can make it to such events?
Well GIR was a great experience and it was definitely one of the biggest shows we played in terms of organization as well as audience. This is definitely a big deal for the band as we got to showcase our music in front of such a large audience in a totally different city. I personally think there should be space for all genres on GIR and considering this has been the 1st year for extreme metal there will be space every year. I personally would like to see bands like Kryptos, Myndsnare, Exhumation and IIIrd Sovereign make it to GIR in the future.
Do you feel is there enough scope for Indian extreme metal reaching out to newer audience? Have you guys made any attempts on your own to popularize the Indian extreme metal?
Well there definitely scope for Indian extreme metal to grow. Thanks to the internet most bands have already reached audiences abroad. The hope now is that people take notice and promoters call these bands abroad for tours and hopefully labels will offer distribution deals if not record deals. When I released ‘Demonstealer’ with the old lineup of DR we sent out our promo packs to a whole lot of places and we got loads of reviews and write-ups. With new DR we are waiting to record a full length album before we start sending out copies to zines, websites etc
Tell us something about your company barcode entertainment that deals with promotions and event management if I am not mistaken, what’s it all about? As of now, what’s the top priority of the company?
Well 1st Barcode Entertainment isn’t my company. It was Husain’s brainchild and he’s the man who formed and started it. I work with Husain as Events Executive and Creative Director. Our other staff includes Deepti Unni who is Events Executive and Zine Editor and Hardik who is partner in the company. Right now the company is focused on the next Resurrection and managing and promoting DR’s upcoming full-length album. Besides this we are currently still promoting our compilation album called “Resurrection – The New Breed Of Indian Extreme Metal”.
Can you elaborate about the resurrection festival (managed by your company)? How fests have you had of these? What bands have played at it?
Well when we started when extreme metal gigs and bands were hard to come by in Mumbai. Deathfest the yearly extreme metal fest had died out and there was nothing happen. So we decided to bring together 5 of the best extreme bands and we came up with a name and Resurrection was born. The 1st Resurrection featured Disembodied Corpse, Bhayanak Maut, Demonic Resurrection, Acrid Semblance and Myndsnare. The show was huge. We did Resurrection 2 a few months later where we got Myndsnare and Demonic back from the old lineup of bands and added Exhumation, Kryptos and IIIrd Sovereign from Mizoram. The show was a success even though the turnout was slightly less than the 1st one. The last Resurrection we did in Feb was sort of the odd one out since we changed the day from Sunday to Thursday and we got 3 totally new bands which were Infernal Wrath, Auschwitz and Scribe. DR was the only known band on the bill. Next Resurrection will be to launch DR’s album.
After the completion of the resurrection the resurrection compilation Cd was released on which Demonic resurrection was itself present; give us a brief description of that?
Well basically we just put together 16 songs from 12 of the best bands in the country and released Resurrection the compilation. Its available for a measly price of Rs.100 and can be ordered from our distributors listed on www.resurrectiononline.tk . Once again the basic aim was to promote extreme bands and I think this did the job.
Coming back to your music, tell us what bands influence you, what themes do you write about? Who writes and composes music? How often the band practices?
I am personally influenced by a wide range of metal bands. Stuff like Blind Guardian, Kamelot, Strapping Young Lad, Old Mans Child, Dimmu Borgir, Emperor, Children Of Bodom etc etc. Mephisto and JP listen to a lot of black and death metal bands like Nile, Hate Eternal, Deicide, Behemoth, Immortal, Emperor, Dimmu, Mayhem etc. Husain besides listening to obscure death and black bands listens to a lot of Pink Floyd. Lyrically the theme’s I write about are fantasy and stories of demons and warriors etc. Lots of fantasy basically. The music is composed by the entire band. Most of the songs start with riffs or parts that either Mephisto or myself have written. From there JP and Husain add their bit to it and we arrange the song. The band normally jams once a week and around shows we jam almost every alternative day.
Where do you see yourself as a band two-three years from now? Any projects in the pipeline? Things to be established?
Well our dream is to be signed to a major label and touring and releasing albums. But in reality we don’t know where it goes because eventually everyone has to worry about their future and careers. For me personally I think Barcode will keep working towards promoting extreme metal. Releasing compilations and doing shows. I will be releasing my own solo album in the future.
Any plans of recording an album? If so, will it be a self release or Have you thought of approaching any labels abroad? And when can it see the light of the day?
We have already begun work on the DR album which will be out in 2months. It is going to be self released (thru barcode) and we expect that this might get us a record deal and we will try and get ourselves distribution deals abroad for this record.
Do you keep a close eye on an overall underground scene? Are there any Asian/Indian underground bands you listen to and support?
I don’t follow the Asian scene much other than what goes on in India. I support most Indian extreme bands. I personally love Kryptos, Exhumation, Myndsnare, Bhoomi, Shrapnel, Acrid Semblance and IIIrd Sovereign. From S.E. Asia I only know and listen to a bit of Rudra.
What would you like to say to all the bands and people working for the scene in India?
Basically put your heart into what you do. And just follow your own ideas and goals. Eventually extreme metal will get where it deserves to be.
Thank you Demonic resurrection for your time, all the best from Metalindia webzine, now the space is all yours!
Thanks for the interview and support. Cheers and Stay Demonic!!!
Interviewed By : Atul Sharma (aryaputraatul@yahoo.co.in)