So how often do you come across bands, who dare to experiment with extreme metal by combining vedic hymns and Indian classical lines?

VARCAS is a six piece Melodic Extreme Metal band from Mumbai. ‘Varcas’, which is a sanskrit word, simply suggests Vital Power which is the key essence to life. They intend to spread this power through their music. The band features lead vocals by Atul Pandey, Nayan Kawale and Ivin Viegas making it heavier on guitars,  Ajitesh Pandey adding to the feel with his melodic synth lines, Mihir Bhende holding the entire band together with his drumming and Somesh Prakasam (sessions)forming the sonic bridge between the guitars and the drums with his bass lines.  Their 1st original, “KAAL SAMRAJYA” was released online on 6th March 2012 and was mixed & produced at DEMONIC STUDIOS by Mr. Sahil Makhija.

According to the band, humans, today, are the victims of their own traits and have further excavated this world into different sects of beliefs. The effect of this dark shadow has overpowered the human patience and has forced humans to GIVE UP.  KAAL SAMRAJYA is about the onset of the great apocalypse – the end of all negative human traits. Humanity, on the verge of suicide due to misdemeanors of selfishness, anger, jealousy and revenge, has only one way out: To call upon the Gods and get everyone out of this parlous cage of debauchery.

The song starts off with an apocalypse-like ambience set beautifully by simple and melodic keyboard lines and the spoken verses in Sanskrit. It somehow has an eerie feeling attached to it. And just as you were starting to think the song is going to continue that way in a vedic hymn-like approach, the harsh vocals kick in with a bang along with the double bass on the drums, while the keyboard lines play in the background. The insane riffs which follow are skillfully constructed, and get you to headbang like crazy, while the keyboard lines preserve the ambience and add a unique touch to the overall sound of the band.  The song also features some kickass vocals which blend perfectly with the theme of the song. The triplet patterns in the bridge go perfectly in sync with the keyboard lines, played in Indian style. It is soon accompanied by leads on the guitar, arranged skillfully to sit on the double bass patterns on the drums. The brief guitar solo near the end is beautifully crafted and adds to the flavor of the song.

The drummer deserves a special round of applause for all those kickass drum lines, executed to perfection, experimenting with different time signatures, and making those riffs sound even more hard-hitting. The lead lines are melodic and simple, and they truly capture the essence of the song beautifully and keep reminding you of the apocalyptic theme till the very end.

Armed with powerful lyrics, I wish the vocals were a tad clearer, so that one could make out the words just by listening to the song. However, I am not gonna complain about that, because that’s how extreme metal vocals are meant to be: harsh and powerful!

Overall a great song with a very promising sound, we wish Varcas all the very best for their future endeavors and hope they come up with tracks which makes waves in the scene.

Rating: 7/10