“Chhaka, Nika, Swoka, Pyaka” (Newari for one, two, three, four) – Ashish Maharjan screams into the microphone, followed by an instant boom of fast beats and riffs. The boys of Lakhey band are at practice in the basement of Metal Institute, Ghatte Kulo and their sound is unique.

Lakhey, the instrumental band, are Anil Dhital on guitar, Ashish Maharjan on flute and vocal effects, Yuson Maharjan on dhimeh, Rabindra Maharjan on bhusyah, Naresh Prajapati on khin, Gokul Atreya on bass, Sudan Raj Bajracharya on dhyangro, and Ashish Dangol performing as Lakhey, the dancing demon, and Guidoo Wyss of Commando Noise Terror as their guest drummer.

Incorporating sounds of more than 15 Nepali/Newar musical instruments ranging from the dhyangro that jhankris (faith healers) play to drive out spirits to kaa and pongraa played during funerals with seven-string guitar riffs and bass, most of the band members take on multiple instruments, creating what they call ethnic metal music.

As the band members seat themselves in the room adjacent to their rehearsal room for The Week interview, they cram the small space where Anil teaches his students the ABCs of music. On one wall hangs Goddess Saraswoti’s poster alongside the Ibanez poster that depicts Gods of Guitar from Joe Satriani to Steve Vai. The opposite wall is a white board scribbled with guitar chords and tuition timings.

The current ensemble of eight members in the room is a mix of musicians from different bands. Five of them come from Vairabi, a traditional folk music outfit who were lost in the shadows of Kutumba, the band that popularized folk music in recent years. And it was during one of the many concerts of Kutumba that Vairabi discovered their missing element in versatile guitarist Anil Dhital, then on stage with Kutumba.

“I first saw Anil dai when he was playing a set with Kutumba at the tattoo convention,” the always eager Rabindra says, “As soon as I saw him perform, I realized that his metal guitar riffs would sync with the aggressive traditional beats we played during Jatras in our hometown Kirtipur.”

The youngster then Facebooked Anil to get together and jam up. And because “No” is a rare species when it comes to the world of musicians jamming together, Anil agreed.

“I always had this idea of mixing folk with metal,” says Anil in his characteristic casual drawl, “So we got together one free evening. I had some of my own tunes ready, we then played along, and by the end of the session, we knew we had something khatraa (awesome).”

Soon they were looking for a name for their joint project and “Lakhey” stood out as they could associate their ethno metal music with furious sounds played during the Jatras with the vibrant dancing demon.

A year later, the band members share amicable relationship, always laughing and joking with each other. As they share how they had a full photo shoot with their costumes and masks even before they had a concrete composition, each one has a playful smile curved up his lips.

“It did push us to complete what we’d started, though,” says a smiling Anil. For the boys from Vairabi too it was an opportunity to do something new, something innovative and something different.

As most of the initial band members came from the Newar town of Kirtipur, Ashish shares, they were passed on the musical traditions by their forefathers and their Guthi where many youngsters were even obliged to take on the responsibility of playing the traditional instruments for the cultural occasions they endorsed for their sheer love of music.

“We’ve been playing (traditional instruments) since we were kids,” he says, “We never actually learnt to play these instruments but picked it up as we played along for fun during the several festive occasions and Jatras in our community.”

Even while playing traditional beats, the band says, the metallic sounds of the bhusyah and fast drum beats of dhimeh and khin sounded “brutal” to them, they say. The gennext couldn’t help but associate it with the metal music many of their friends and themselves were listening to.

“Many traditional music compositions, especially the ones played during Lakhey dance, with the aggressive tunes evoking a sense of fear and fright are very similar to the musical patterns of metal music,” says Rabindra, “As we delved deeper, it was like we already had metal pioneers playing the fast paced musical patterns way before Metallica.”

That’s where Lakhey stemmed from – the roots of traditional music that was already there and infused it with contemporary metal essence.

For skeptics who believe that metal is a recent phenomena in Nepali music, Lakhey brings to light the existence of metal in Nepali music roots. And it’s only Newar music the band has mostly explored which still leaves the potential of many different tribal music of Nepal untapped.

Gokul, the newest band member, adds, “It was tiring to see every other young band doing covers of the same old international metal bands. There wasn’t any originality. With Lakhey, I think we’re definitely setting a different track.”

With their single titled “Lakhey” that they released on the Internet just past New Year, they’ve already created a fan base for themselves. In the very first listening, from the eerie guitar intro to the crashing sounds of dhimeh, khin and ghungroo with piercingly sharp flute parts scattered throughout the track, the music leaves you with a haunting feeling that reverberates in the mind.

A year since the first jam session, Lakhey boasts seven completed compositions, most still untitled. Their plan now is to release an EP within a few months and follow up with an album.

Very selective about their gigs, the band hasn’t yet played at major rock concerts. “Because we have many band members, we need more sound gears, and moreover, the costumes and some masks we use are original Lakhey items of Kirtipur. So there’s a lot of logistics involved,” says Rabindra.

However, fully prepared and practicing daily, the band is all excited about their debut at Ides of March [Readers, the gig is tomorrow].

In the practice room, the excitement and the readiness is even more apparent not just in their furious sounds but also in their ecstatic faces, wild heads banging, body jerks, jumps, screeches and screams. Playing in a circle, all the while the boys pick up on each other’s cue, keeping pace with each other. And their Anil dai has all sorts of facial expressions, from creased brows to wide open eyes and crooked smiles to signal them exactly where they need to work on to sound perfect for their debut gig and an awaiting future in global metal.

Lakhey awakens tomorrow, Saturday, March 31 to the Nepali metal scene with their debut performance at Ides of March in Bhrikuti Mandap.

UJJWALA MAHARJAN

Published on The Week, Republica on 2012-03-30

Well, I could listen to so much of amazing death metal in 2011, thanks to tons of recommendations and the internet discussion forum I use. The year had been awesome for the genre – so much of great shits coming out. I have thus come up with this list of some of them. It’s not based in any order, but obviously, the first listed would be more recommended. It’s all up according to my tastes and I may have missed some remarkable ones as well, pardon me for that.

Mitochondrion > Parasignosis

Mitochondrion play a strange type of death metal. If you’ve listened to bands like Demilich and Portal, you know it well that it’s tough to describe the music these kind of bands play. Bizarre? Alien? Strange? Mitochondrion’s style combines those extra-terrestrial elements and crafts the oddity. It even leans till black metallic melodies, superficially, and with subtle ambience, the whole sound shaped is so eerie yet beautiful. “Parasignosis” offers more amount of experimentation than in their debut album “Archaeaeon” maintaining the unorthodox complexity in music and song-structures. This is an epitome of what experimentation and technicality merge to procreate. This is other-worldly! This is atmospheric death metal at its pinnacle!

Check out: “Plague Evockation”

Disma > Towards the Megalith

Disma is the brainchild of former Incantation throat Bill Venner and comprises of members from massive underground legions as Funebrarum and Goreaphobia as well. This record however sets the music differently than these bands, in a way it is more doom/sludge ridden and tries out some diverse riffing techniques altogether. The rhythm is thick and heavy, and the tempo is mostly kept in a glacial speed, while the atmosphere is truly lethal. And beside the predictable similarity in style with those of the aforementioned bands, there are clues of Immolation and Autopsy as well. On the whole, “Towards the Megalith” is presented in a primitive and unadulterated way, and this could probably be the heaviest in death metal this year.

Check out: “Lost in the Burial Fog”

Cannabis Corpse > Beneath Grow Lights Thou Shalt Rise

I have always loved this band for their cunning play on Cannibal Corpse song-titles and this time, they’ve turned their weedy improvisation over Deicide and Morbid Angel, and well, that’s great. Especially the catchy-as-fuck guitar work is truly genius here, which is the highlight throughout the whole album, the riffing being real crunchy and enjoyable. The band has obviously discovered their own signature sound by now, leaving behind the Cannibal Corpse traces in the beginning years. The sick humour and tongue-in-cheek words behind such serious music is definitely a plus point. Overall, a sick, twisted death metal fun, the best Cannabis Corpse work till date if you ask me.

Check out: “Lunatic of Pot’s Creation”

Ulcerate > The Destroyer of All

This is one peculiar album! And it won’t be wrong to declare by now that “The Destroyer of All” is one of the most original in death metal in recent years. And while Ulcerate‘s last release “Everything is Fire” had all those sparks of experimentation, this one takes it a step further. With bazarre guitar work and atmosphere, the overall sound is made subtly unique, inheriting the mix of Gorguts, Mitochondrion and Portal. This is what it would sound if Deathspell Omega had gone death metal. Relying on the stylistic backbone presented in their previous album, Ulcerate have worked out well to make their sound even more absurd and abstract!

Check out: “Burning Skies”

Antediluvian > Through the Cervix of Hawwah…

Another album that picks up the traditional death metal influences and produces something refined and non-generic. Antediluvian sound dirty, heavy and wicked, and full of ideas. Bringing in the dirtiness of Portal and Mitochondrion in the sound, the band, similarly as Incantation, utilizes the unrelenting atmosphere as a vicious weapon. The song-structures are quite complex and progressive, which vary from slow but monstrous doom/sludge segments to fast paced chug-drives, and while not much technicality is showcased, simplicity is what has proceeded the brutality.

Check out: “Luminous Harvest”

Vader > Welcome to the Morbid Reich

Vader has been one of the most consistent bands in death metal – nearly three decades in the run and this is the ninth full-length in their name, and which is still competent to be their best work. Although their style has relatively been unchanged since a long time now, they’ve been ceaselessly offering their music in top-notch quality and that’s commendable. “Welcome to the Morbid Reich” is intense, fast, full of climax and a collection and presentation of splendid and persevered songwriting. While their previous work “Necropolis” was still a solid release for me, this album comes out as yet another testament for the greatness that Vader is. Seeing them live in October was a dream come true!

Check out: “Come and See My Sacrifice”

Sonne Adam > Transformation

The duo, Sonne Adam hail from Israel and these guys play murky doom-laden death metal conjuring up a strong, disgusting and ritualistic atmospheric backbone, sometimes recalling the sludgy Morbid Angel meets Incantation. The songwriter of the band, Davidov (who plays everything except singing) has reportedly stated that MA’s “God of Emptiness” is a huge influence on his writing, and you could predict what has come your way. This isn’t a new formula at all, but “Transformation” has been crafted and executed solidly. Full of brilliant riffs, the songs are constructed with real finesse and drama, and I just love the guitar tone.

Check out: “We Who Worship the Black”

Autopsy > Macabre Eternal

After a rather good comeback EP last year, Autopsy have followed it up with an impressive full-length this time. After all these years, beside some renewed elements in their sound, it still maintains its affiliance to the classic “Severed Survival” or “Mental Funeral” era sound, only recorded with modern tools and technologies now. For that matter, the production is excellent here, and musically it’s a solid deal of death, doom, sludge, grind and melody mixed up in a morbid fashion. They’ve even been able to add versatility in these slower manifestatations, and one could even notice the elongation of their songs, like the eleven minutes epic “Sadistic Gratification”.

Check out: “Dirty Gore Whore”

Blaspherian > Infernal Warriors of Death

After several demos, splits and EP, “Infernal Warriors of Death” comes out as the first full-length by Blaspherian. These guys play old-school death metal much in style of atmospheric Incantation, but refined with noticeable original elements. The sound is adorned by the dirty distortions, ultra-low gutturals, dreary ambiance and easy but chaotic riffing presented in complex song-structures that transform from full-paced chugs to slow, evil, doom segments, portraying evil and death in the most morbid way, musically. And while they’ve been able to ‘stay true’ to their roots, they have still worked out to create something new out of it. Great album on the whole.

Check out: “Infernal Warriors of Death”

Azarath > Blasphemers’ Maledictions

Another blower from Poland, Azarath have demonstrated their fast, evil and raw as fuck death metal similar in style with the fellow countrymen Behemoth, Vader or Hate. Among past releases of theirs, I’m only familiar with “Diabolic Impious Evil”, which was a monster in itself, and this is another stronger one. The album is driven with unbridled hatred and fury throughout, and brutality caressed with the primitive, barbarian approach. For those who didn’t know, the drumming is done by Inferno (of Behemoth fame) who’s the only remaining original member of the group. All in all, albums like this and Vader’s new are what make it up after Decapitated‘s weak return, to put forward what Polish death metal really stands for… and these are the fastest two in my list as well.

Check out: “Supreme Reign of Tiamat”

NOTABLE MENTIONS

Morbus Chron – “Sleepers in the Rift”: Swedish death metal refined with elements coming from early Autopsy and “Leprosy”-era Death. A sheer balance of speed, brutality, melody and technicality. Awesome pick for the OSDM fans.

Exhumed – “All Guts, No Glory”: Sick, putrid deathgrind with spark of old-school death metal.

Immolation – “Providence” (EP): Nothing new on the table with this EP, but Immolation’s use of unique sounds to enhance the depth of their music is commendable in itself. Heavy, complex and executed excellently, these guys never fail to impress.

Nader Sadek – “In the Flesh”: The supergroup consists of Blasphemer, Flo Mounier, Steve Tucker and Marcin Nowak “Novy” in the line-up. Interesting enough, eh? And they’ve done it in style. This is what the new Morbid Angel should have sounded like.

Goreaphobia – “Apocalyptic Necromancy”: Thrashy, primitive death metal with a new-school vibe also present – fast, sinister and demonic, and with careful songwriting, offering lots of moments.

Obscura – “Omnivium”: Technical death metal that isn’t exhausting! Chock-full of hypnotic riffs, marvelous arpeggios and neo-classical lead solos in here. Forget about Necrofagist not releasing anything new, for this destroyer has come out. Best in technical death metal this year? I assume so!

Necros Christos – “Doom of the Occult”: Doom-laden occult death metal, conjuring a rich ritualistic atmosphere and riding a simplistic approach, enhancing the depth and heaviness of music. Certainly, here is more than death metal, and half of the tracks are exotic instrumentals, ambients and interludes, acquiring influence from Mesopotamian/Persian/Indian grounds. Some riffs are quite bleak which make a slight hitch.

Abysmal Dawn – “Leveling the Plane of Existence”: Fast, furious and technical, with decent songwriting depicting Hate Eternal or the likes.

Macabre – “Grim Scary Tales”: I adore Macabre for their wicked attempt at humour and amusement, and fun-filled play – thrashy death metal with lots of out-of-the-box, exceptional elements put in. I wouldn’t consider this their best work, but it’s good for an open ear… like any of their previous.

Benighted – “Asylum Cave”: Modern deathgrind with intelligent and varied riffing.

[Text By : Samyam Shrestha for ktmROCKS.Also Check his blog.]

ARTICLE: DIGITAL CANCER
Written by: Mahendra Rai

There was a time when I found the activity of searching for music was a fun-filled adventure. I considered it as a fun-filled adventure merely due to the trouble that I personally had to go through to get hold of that particular music. It was exciting and much worthy of wasting your precious time on rather than trying to get laid. Not that sex is unimportant but you have all your life to get overdosed with sexual gratification until you don’t want it anymore. But the phase or time like this rarely comes in your life that will manage to imprint a memorable scar which you will want to fondly look back and feel nostalgic about all those stupid things that you did to get hold of that particular piece of music.
My musical journey started out similar to that of any normal kid. At first I discovered bland Nepali pop and rock bands along with equally bland and boring Western pop music. It wasn’t until I scanned through my cousin brother’s record collection that I got introduced to a much more exciting world of heavy metal and rock music. Bands like Iron Maiden, Guns n’ Roses, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin and Pearl Jam were familiar to the youths of my age. Venturing further into this unknown territory I got introduced to some of the most intense and extreme musical forms like Death Metal and Black Metal.

Death Metal and Black Metal was a new term for me and sounded interesting at the same time. Unfortunately, there was virtually little or no resource at all in Kathmandu to get hold of these materials despite the fact ‘KatShop’ played a major role in merchandising underground metal records. Still the records were not enough and getting hold of all the obscure and hard to find records soon became an obsession. What started out as a curiosity soon became a desire and I set out to find every essential underground metal record that I could. I searched different record shops around Kathmandu in despair but in one or two occasions, fortunately, it was not in vain.

I soon learned that if I was to find the stuff that I was looking for I had to resort to the Internet. Thus, I was introduced to the wonderful world of ‘P2P’ file sharing applications like ‘Napster’, ‘AudioGalaxy’, ‘WinMX’ and ‘BearShare’. Well honestly, these software were pain in the ass but nonetheless worthwhile. Imagine downloading an album at the speed of 2Kbps to 8Kbps (at maximum) when downloading a single song would take around half an hour. Furthermore, imagine the downloaded song file either having a poor sound quality, corrupted or simply not complete. The frustration was overwhelming when a downloading process halted at 90% for the rest of the week. I hated it but it was the only viable solution to get what I needed. This was all back in the early 2000s. Back in those days even the Internet was much less of a musical inventory. Finding death metal or black metal records were equally hard as it was to find such materials in a normal record shop in the streets of Ktm.

As we now move into the age of online shopping where everything is one step away from a click, we seem to be spoiled with different choices. These days all we have to do to find an album is to type in the name of an item and click. With one click you can find almost every music records, even the obscure ones. It has caused an obstruction in our behavior. With vast choices of countless musical records we have forgotten to listen to the music and explore it at the same time. We don’t listen to music anymore we scan through it as it is pointless because we didn’t go through any struggle to find it. Looking back now I wish I was once again that 15 year old kid with a huge obsession.

ARTICLE: TOP 5 LIVE ALBUMS
Written by: Bikash Rajkarnikar

PEARL JAM: LIVE AT BENAROYA HALL

PEARL JAM – although an outstanding band inside the four walls- shine the brightest when they perform live. Throughout the years, they have increasingly packed up their live performances with such amazing songs, talent, energy and love, that they are on the verge of being defined solely by their live shows, and Live at Benaroya Hall is the perfect exclamation mark, if it ever comes to that. Boasting a very versatile set list (as is the case with every PJ show), this supposedly ‘acoustic’ album (you cannot seriously keep McCready and his electric apart for long) is packed up with amazing versions of Low Light, Immortality (with a brilliant Mike solo), Crazy Mary and Masters of War. But the real gems of this album are Black (possibly the best live version ever with an amazing crowd singing the whole last verse), Man of the Hour (an amazing first ever ‘tearjerker’ performance), Can’t Keep (a solo Vedder performance that is moving, to say the least), and a stripped down version of Lukin. PEARL JAM at their best, when they’re sitting.

LED ZEPPELIN: BBC SESSIONS

This much awaited 2 disc live album covers the BBC studio sessions and live concerts by ZEPPELIN over a course of 2 years from 1969 to 1971. What it also does is shows how the best band in the world evolved over these two years and why they were/are considered the best band in the world. The first disc is basically the band morphing all their creative genius into these songs that would be turned into masterpieces. You can hear the ‘in-process-to-greatness’ vibe throughout the disc. Every single version of the three (!) repetitions of Communication Breakdown has its own unique presence to it. There is not a single song that is not spectacular here, with my favorite being How Many More Times, with an awesome ‘squeeze my lemon’ hookup towards the end. The second disc is mostly stuff from 1971, where you witness the band fully morphed into giants and belting out worked-up versions of Dazed and Confused and Whole Lotta Love with relentless force and an effortless ease at the same time. When in comes to Zeppelin (and to rock, obviously), this might be the ‘be all end all’ live album to have. (‘How the West was Won’ is nowhere near this album, contrary to whatever anyone else might say).

JOHN MAYALL: THE TURNING POINT

This live album recorded just after the BLUESBREAKERS had broken up shows MAYALL exploring other avenues of music, and coming up with something wildly extraordinary. With a hint of blues, a lot of jazzy progressions and even flutes and all, this live album is a far cry from the guitar/organ driven sound of the early BLUESBREAKERS records. It will probably take you a while to realize that there are no drums at all in this ‘live’ album! (Rumor is that this was a one-off gig and they didn’t have enough time to look for a drummer so they just said ‘what the hell…’ and played without one). The lack of drums gives this album an ‘organic’ feel and a lot of improvisational space for these four guys. There are some really ambitious jamming going on in the middle of the album, especially in California and Thoughts about Roxanne. The climax of the album comes in the form of Room to Move, a vibrant, up-tempo harmonica-heavy number that WILL get you rolling and shaking.

BAND OF GYPSYS

If nothing else, this album qualifies as a top 5 alone on the strength of Machine Gun. Twelve+ minutes of sonic assault blended perfectly with moments of melodic clarity. The end of this song probably gave birth to a hundred Morellos and defined ‘noise rock’. Formed after Hendrix parted way with the Experience, BAND OF GYPSYS was an awesome trio of supergifted musicians melting their experiences into the few live shows that they managed to pull off. Who knows is another killer song, along with Changes (with Buddy Miles doing the vocals) and Message of Love. What this album lacks in track number (only six songs) it makes up in content as you find Hendrix and the Gypsys venturing into uncharted sonic territories. A peek into what could have been. Also recommended is the much longer “Live at the Fillmore East” album, which has most of the songs from this album and then some.

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE: LIVE AT THE GRAND OLYMPIC AUDITORIUM

What do you do when you see Zach De La Rocha starting straight at you pointing his fingers with that supercrazy look in his eyes? You fucking TESTIFY!!! And testify they did, at the Grand Olympic Auditorium in LA in September 2000, where RATM played their last two shows before breaking up. If Rage songs are monsters, then Rage live is that same monster on steroids, speed and supersized at the same time. It is an overdose of adrenaline, and a hard one to listen without moving any body parts. From the starting lines of ‘what’s up Los Angeles’ fading into the intro to Bulls on Parade to the frantic frenzy of Freedom, it is one big rush of a live album. De la Rocha sounds ferocious as always, and you can almost see him doing what I said in the first line to you through your speakers/earphones. That is a scary sound/sight. But it sounds just right. RAGE! RAGE!! RAGE!!!

ARTICLE: BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO FAITH NO MORE
Written by: Umes Shrestha

FAITH NO MORE is a crazy band (well.. was a crazy band) to define and tag into a particular genre, simply because there’s no band like FNM and nor does FNM’s music sounds like any other music. FNM’s music is a fusion of everything that we know from metal to rock to rap to funk to balled to pop and from straight forward to weird to eclectic to confusing to hyper imaginative to totally captivating. So many artists have tried doing this, many bands have done that however in the world of Alternative Rock/Metal, FNM were one of the pioneers, and the best there ever will be. Check any present day Alternative acts, and you would almost easy notice FNM-ness in each one of them.
I wish I did not have to use such hyperbolic adjectives but its FNM’s legacy and music that demand adjectives which are rare yet simplistically general. I am a FNM-holic and for me FNM is the supreme band in this world.. period. So this text will obviously be filled with subjectivity and a whole lot of puffery.

I would like to write this guide just the way I got to listen to FNM. So if you guys are interested, you guys would want to check the albums in the following order, and please do so with the lyrics in front of you, without which your conviction on the band will be blury and incomplete.

First listen to:
ANGEL DUST (Year: 1992)

“You’re perfect, yes, it’s true
But without me you’re only you
Your menstruating heart
It ain’t bleedin’ enough for two”

THE Best FNM line up and THE Best FNM album. Angel Dust has to be the most heaviest of all the FNM albums. Not only that, this album reaches the height of eccentricity and supreme weirdness.

I was religiously into METALLICA, IRON MAIDEN, LED ZEPPELIN, AC/DC and such standard and predictable bands but FNM simply knocked me off my perceived notion on metal, heaviness and overall music.

One of the key elements in the album is Mike Patton’s vocal style. Lord Patton demonstrates how almost ridiculously talented he is in using his awesome range to perfectly execute the essence of the songs. Lord Patton does not sing, he is not a singer at all. He is an instrument on his own that shapes and transforms the normal composed songs into divinity.

Angel Dust consists of songs like “Land of Sunshine”, “Smaller and Smaller”, “Caffeine”, “Mal Practice” etc which are the heaviest songs in the album and in songs like “Midlife Crisis” and “Kinder Garden” FNM reveals how adept they were fusing a little bit of rap and a whole lot of funk with keyboard laden heaviness. The last song “Midnight Cowboy” is a perfect closure for the album, which is so anti-everything the album till this song was all about.

Almost all of the songs are so different and diverse and instantly recognizable – which is in fact the strongest of FNM’s aspect. Lyrics are equally unusual, written totally differently than a normal song format.

Then listen to the “Nascent” masterpiece:
THE REAL THING (Year: 1989)

“Surprise! you’re dead!
Ha ha! open your eyes
See the world as it used to be when you used to be in it
When you were alive and when you were in love
And when I took it from you!”

“The Real Thing” might be the most accessible album for anyone who wants to experience the ultimate FNM-ness. Fresh and mildly heavy with a lot of “cheerful” energy abound the album. This is FNM’s third album but the first one with Lord Patton who brought a lot of new ideas in vocal patterns and lyrics writing.

“To touch the roots of experience
The most basic ingredients
To see the unseen glitter of life
And feel the dirt, grief, anger and strife”

Another thing that’s starkly evident through out the album is Lord Patton’s vocals which are usually an octave higher than in the later albums. Patton sounds a bit pitchy and deliberately sings out with his now legendary “nasal” tone.

And to another classic:
ALBUM OF THE YEAR (Year: 1997)

“This is getting old and so are you.
Everything you know and never knew.
Will run through your fingers just like sand.
Enjoy it while you can.”

The first thing that’s so amazing is the ultimate arrogance of the album title. Who else would have devised the title! Well, it did not win any Grammy Awards but was it the album of the year – it was one of them, I would say.

This “last” album by FNM was no different from the Patten-era stuffs however they had a new guitarist in the line up and that added a lot of dark brooding melodies which were rarely present in the earlier stuffs. Quirkiness of “Angel Dust” and funkiness of “Introduce Yourself” were totally gone and replaced by the eminent darkness that was surrounding the band in their last days. Despite that, they still had some moments of early FMN-ness in the songs like “Mouth to Mouth” and “Got that Feeling”. This album also consists of an absolute master piece in any anti-love theme ballad “She Loves Me Not”.

“It won’t begin until you make it end.
Until you know the how the where and the when.
With a new face you might surprise yourself.”

FNM broke after this album. It was one of the saddest news I had to read, however what they left behind was so enough for my whole life to ponder up and enjoy.

With a little caution:
INTRODUCE YOURSELF (Year: 1987)

This album is also a very intimate part of the FNM journey, so it’s a must listen as well. Young, energetic and quite interestingly FNM had a black singer, Chuck Mosley. I hated Chuck Mosley’s vocals at the first listen however after some listens I realized that his style was definitely different – had a slobbering, nerdish yet powerful vocals, almost childlike, goofy and playful.

They even sang “We Care A Lot” mocking the Live Aid, which was the nicest thing any “intelligent” band could do that time.

Lastly listen to:
KING FOR A DAY, FOOL FOR A LIFETIME (Year: 1994)

This album, to me, still remains one of the hardest to understand and adjust to because of constant mood changes, which again reflects the turmoil the band was facing. It is guitar dominated (great work by Trey Spruance of Mr. Bungle) and keyboard parts are few and rarely stand out. However, when one becomes addicted to FNM, this album will naturally creep inside until you are forced to love it.

“Don’t look so surprised
Happy birthday…Fucker
Blow that candle out,
We’re gonna kick you”

Like I said, no single FNM song is alike. And with songs like “Evidence”, “Star AD”, “Caralho voador”, “Ugly in the Morning”, etc FNM show their ever quirkiness in innovation. And another absolute masterpiece – “Take this Bottle” – one of the most “beautiful” depressing FNM moments you will ever experience.

Not for a casual listener.

Other stuff you might wanna check out as well:

FAITH NO MORE (1990) Live at the Brixton Academy
MR. BUNGLE (1991) Mr. Bungle
TOMAHAWK (2001) Tomahawk

ARTICLE: BASIC HOME RECORDING

By: Praveen Chettri

MINIMUM RESOURCES USED

I’ve had a lot of people ask me about home recording especially after they listen to some of my old recordings. They then find out that it isn’t as hard as they initially thought it would be. Ok let’s get to the main subject of interest.

Here is a list of the minimum requirements-

- A computer with a working normal sound card

- Enough hard disk space. (One track in wav format takes up to around 40mb)

- A recording software like Cakewalk Sonar, Cubase, etc. (I use Cakewalk Sonar)

- An instrument/microphone – Lets say a guitar for now

- A working Guitar cable(mic cable for mic of course)

- A jack converter. One that converts a 1/4” guitar jack to 1/8” so that it can fit into the 1/8” mic/line in input on your sound card

That’s basically it. Now it’s just up to you and your ears to be able to make your recording sound good.

Here’s how you can begin

- Connect your guitar to the soundcard using a guitar cable with the jack converter

- Try learning how to use your software from the “help” section. It really “helps”. hehe.

- In Cakewalk Sonar which I use, the only thing I need to do is specify my sound card driver to the software. Then I take a track on the software, arm the track for recording, click the record button and walla!!

ENHANCEMENTS TO ADD COLOR TO YOUR RECORDING:

Software plays a very important role in enhancing your sound especially when you are not using hardware devices. The following are effects that you can apply to your recording from your software or software plug-ins. Modern computer technology offers a wide range software plug-ins which are even favored over hardware devices. I won’t go on explaining what each effect does in detail. That’s a whole new topic.

EQUALIZATION (EQ)
You can use a Graphic Equalizer or a parametric Equalizer. An equalizer basically alters 3 parts of your sound- Bass, Mid and treble. You can use the EQ to adjust Bass, Mid or Treble levels to shape your tone. The Bass is the Low end (Bassy-low pitched sound) while the Treble is the High end (high pitched sharp sound). Mid is just what it suggest – the middle.

Example- Say you recorded your guitar but it sounds too bassy and has no sharpness to it. Just apply the EQ to it. Reduce the bass levels till it sounds ok for you. If necessary increase the Mid and Treble levels.

Sound mixing, leveling, etc are all outcomes of experimentation. There isn’t a fixed amount of level alteration I can state here for you. You’ll have to mess around with the levels till you find something that suits your taste and style.

COMPRESSION
Compression is what can actually make your home recording sound professional. It’s usually the lack of proper compression that makes something sound low quality. Compression simply reduces the volume of really loud signals and increases the volume levels of softer signals.

REVERB
Reverb is the effect you get when you sing in the bathroom. The amount of reverb you want to add to a recording depends upon instrument, style, taste and atmosphere. Here’s a simple example- You would want to add a decent amount of reverb to a guitar solo if it is one of sustain and flow. For something punchy like heavy “in your face” riffing, less amount or no reverb is used.

Just the use of these three for vocal tracks is enough. However, you can always experiment and add effects like CHORUS, PHASER, FLANGER, VOCAL DISTORTION, DELAY etc. You can find all these effects and more in recording programs and software plug-ins.

As for guitar, since according to the minimum requirement, there are no physical effect-pedals mentioned, you can use software guitar effects. The one I like to use is called “Native Instrument Guitar Rig 2”.

If offers AMP and CABINET SELECTION, DISTORTION/OVERDRIVE, Modulation effects (like CHORUS, FLANGER), COMPRESSION, EQ and other nifty features. It is possible to use this software as a plug-in with your recording software.

Just remember one thing – If you are not mic-ing an amp while recording, please use a virtual amp like that of Guitar Rig. Trust me!

BLACK METAL SECTION: DECRYSTALLIZING REASON

By: Dipesh Gautam

What once was is now away
All the blood…
All the longing and pain that ruled are away…
Forever…
We are not dead…
We have never lived
-Det Som Engang Var (Burzum)

I am questioned, often by others and at times by myself: “So, what happened?” I have no answer to what “actually” happened. I am just like the others, those who have not witnessed anything, the ones whose acquaintance with the fact is limited to the electronic media where truth and hypes have similar face. You and me, we are just like blindfolded sheeps sitting in front of our computer sets and accepting what they tell us to be the fact as truth. Dead shot himself and Euronymous was murdered by the Count. What brought about this is beyond my subject here. What I can say is people knew nothing about Black Metal until all the wrongs happened. Until churches were set ablaze and until people were being murdered, no one gave a shit. Black Metal hit Scandinavia like a sudden wave. In about 7 years, Black Metal witnessed both its beginning and end. That is what I can affirm for sure.

Still, some may disagree with my statement that Black Metal is dead. But, come to think of it. If you carefully listen to Black Metal bands after 1995, each new band seems to be following what was once created by the tr00 artists. There is nothing remarkably new. There has not been a single significant Black Metal release since the mid 90s, and even if there were any, they lay under the shades of the mainstream Black Metallish bands. After the 90s, there were just bands that copied the progenitors and produced mechanical music. Then, there were more bands who copied them. While some bands had no creativity at all, others compromised their creativity for popularity and wealth. Among others, I’d not fail to mention Dimmu Borgir here. Dimmu’s second release, Stormblast, if not the best, certainly is one of the best Black Metal albums of all times. It is the emancipation of novelty in Black Metal, one of the forefathers of the genre ‘Symphonic Black Metal’ as we know it today. Look at the present Dimmu Borgir. With the new release In Sorte Diaboli, they have proven that their music is just as formulaic as their three word album titles. They have not produced a single worthwhile album since Stormblast. Talking about our metalhead newbie’s favorite vampiric-gothic band Cradle of Filth is not even worth it. The ones who created Black Metal are now too old (and not cold enough). Fenriz, from Darkthrone said that he had stopped playing music since 1995. The quality of Darkthrone’s later releases confirms his statement. Bands like Gorgoroth and Dark Funeral haven’t still grown up from their childish satanic gimmick which will help attract more thoughtless kids into Black Metal. After masterpieces such as ‘Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk’ and ‘In the Nightside Eclipse’, Emperor was not able to create anything worthy and finally broke up for good. While Ulver and Behemoth changed their direction, Satyricon wandered directionless and started producing techno Metallish albums. Mayhem, after De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, is as worthless as any other gothic EMOcore band.

People say Black Metal buried itself in its own grave. They say Black Metal failed because of the arsons, murders and imprisonments. I dissent with those people, their justification and reasoning. As for me, it was not Euronymous’ murder or Dead’s suicide that led to the downfall of Black Metal. I can’t completely disagree with the fact that the events that happened in Norway partly contributed in the collapse of the Black Metal scene then. Had Dead or Euronymous been alive or had the Count not been in prison today, we could have seen more of THE Black Metal era. But, art had to continue anyway, irrespective of the artist. This art sadly, died with the artists.

So, what stabbed Black Metal? Why has Black Metal been dormant and meaningless for all these years? My answer is acute. Black Metal died because of poseurs, it failed because of the hordes of imitators trying to emulate what once was art. Black Metal was a war. This war didn’t end because the warriors died; it ended because the new warriors didn’t understand the meaning of war itself. Art and creativity have no bounds. Ideas flow in all of us like a perpetual stream. It is just how much of our creativity we can employ into our art. The ones who started Black Metal knew what Black Metal actually stood for. It was not just music; it was a revolution, it was a war. It was a wave that swept everything in an instant. This genre was far from how we associate it with Rock or Metal today. It was rightly alienated music with its values and ideals far more extreme than the music itself. It opposed the ethics of Rock and Roll and even Metal itself. Associated with European Romanticist movement, it was a group of people with “will stronger than death”. There were people who embodied the spirit of nationalism and heroism. There were people who lived with the sprit of Nihilism over their lives and died for it. It was once a scene where popularity was a synonym for failure. Getting popular by playing music was totally against what Black Metal stood for back then.

“Companions, the creator seeketh, not corpses–and not herds or believers either. Fellow-creators the creator seeketh–those who grave new values on new tables.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (Thus Spake Zarathustra)

Emulating art is the representation of artlessness. Being a follower is closing your mind, your outlet of thoughts and ideas. Black Metal failed because of these artless followers. While there were only a few progenitors of Black Metal, millions of imitators started trying to be the next Burzum or the next Darkthrone. Kids who had no idea about the art and ideology behind Black Metal started claiming that they were playing Black Metal just because they followed similar musical footprints. There were bands that started playing Black Metallish music to get rich, to get laid and to get popular, to find another hobby in their desolate and worthless lives. They created music entrenched in mediocrity and added theatrics to it for the sole purpose of making themselves popular. They failed to understand what Black Metal stood for; they forged all the blood and sweat that had been poured in to construct this genre. When every lowlife fan had a band or a side project, the genre was definitely going down the drains.

These were the people who destroyed the meaning of Black Metal and turned it into Mall Metal just to fulfill their hobbies. The relapsing scene has also seen many Black Metal musicians who do not care about the philosophical side of Black Metal and claim to just play the music. These are just immature fuck heads who have no idea of what Black Metal stands for. The music created by these musicians, for me, is meaningless. Another trend developing today is producing polished Black Metal albums with high production quality which is another futile approach to make Black Metal popular among the normal mass. Though I would rate most of the Black Metal bands coming out these days as boring and monotonous, there are still a few decent Black Metal bands left. Graveland, Xasthur, Blut Aus Nord, Astrofaes, Drudkh and 1349 are among some of the new and relatively better Black Metal bands in existence. Graveland and Averse Sefira are among some bands that don’t just play the music but have some brains and some meaning to accompany their music. Whenever I hear about any notable 90’s black metal band’s new release, I can’t help speculating whether they would create something remarkable this time. Strangely, the release always turns out to be mediocre or even worse. In this scene filled with the flock of imitators, instead of listening to the new wave of so-called Black Metal, I now choose to embrace what once was: Epic releases such as ‘De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas’, ‘In the Nightside Eclipse’, ‘Hvis Lyset Tar Oss’ and ‘Under the Sign of the Black Mark’.

I’m not finding an excuse for the deeds of the BM musicians. I’m simply implying that these deeds were just a part of history. What really led to the downfall of Black Metal was the failure of the newer generation to understand the art and ideology associated with Black Metal. Black Metal is a world of Nihilism, a sphere of reconstruction through deconstruction. Black Metal, for me, is something more than life and I think I speak that for every conscious Metal aesthetic. This is neither the music for moshers and headbangers, nor for those who are seeking to get high and have a great time. It is against you: the ones whose morals and ethics mean nothing except failure. It is against your values that are taking you down through a spiral of a futile and meaningless existence. Mediocrity has no place in Black Metal. Black Metal is blasphemous music totally against what you think and do. Stay away from the mediocre Black Metal; else stay away from Black Metal altogether.

Reject mediocrity in the tr00 Black Metal scene.

CEMETERY GATE: SYD BARRETT
By: Gagan Atreya

Strange, bizarre and atrociously original.

Unpredictable yet immensely talented, Roger Keith “Syd” Barrett is one of Rock music’s most mysterious and respected figures. The creative force behind the original Pink Floyd and the man who is often referred to as the ‘Godfather of psychedelic rock’, he became a victim of the psychedelic drug LSD and succumbed to insanity before Pink Floyd actually reached its peak.

It was Syd who brought together the original Pink Floyd. He was the singer, lead guitarist and songwriter and by all means, the ‘main man’ of Pink Floyd. However, he was not able to stay with the band for long and recorded only one album with the band. ‘The piper at the Gates of Dawn’ is the only album he did with Pink Floyd and it is quite possibly the first psychedelic ‘masterpiece’ ever. From weird noises never heard before to seemingly ridiculous yet immensely deep lyrics such as “I’ve got a bike, You can ride it if you like, It’s got a basket, A bell that rings, And things to make it look good, I’d give it to you if I could But I borrowed it” (Bike), this album took the rock world by storm and introduced one of Rock’s most powerful forces – Pink Floyd. The album was released in May of 1967 and by then LSD was already taking toll on Syd Barrett.

After releasing only one album with Pink Floyd, Syd succumbed to excessive use of LSD and eventually had to be replaced by his school friend, David Gilmour. Some might argue that Pink Floyd wouldn’t be the Pink Floyd we know today if it wasn’t for David Gilmour’s guitar works and Roger Water’s lyrics, but for me, Pink Floyd wouldn’t be the Pink Floyd we know today if it wasn’t for Syd Barrett’s disintegration. Although Syd could not contribute to the band musically anymore, he made his haunting presence felt throughout the Pink Floyd catalogue. His descent into craziness inspired the band to create some of Rock’s most heart-wrenching anthems such as ‘Shine on you crazy diamond’ and ‘wish you were here’. The entire ‘Wish you were here’ album was inspired by and dedicated to Syd Barrett.

Apart from TPAGOD, Syd Barrett has three solo albums, ‘The Madcap Laughs’ and ‘Barrett’ which he recorded in 1970 and ‘Opel’, which is an outtake of compilations released on 1988. Collectively, they are now known as the Crazy Diamond box set. Although these records do not exactly display the true genius of Syd Barrett (He had already lost part of his mind by the time these albums were recorded and almost every song was recorded after numerous ‘takes’), they are quite a treat for any psychedelic rock fan.

After living a recluse for more than three decades in Cambridge, Syd Barrett passed away on 7th of July, 2006 due to pancreatic cancer. Although it is sad to see the tragic end of such a great talent, it is also quite relieving that the madcap finally got the peace he deserved.

“Remember when you were young? You shone like the sun.
Shine on you crazy diamond!”

CORPSEPAINT IN BLACK METAL
By: Dipesh Gautam

————-

I remember the times I used to sit before the TV at the exact time and as if glued to the TV screen for an hour, watch ‘Mahabharata’ and ‘Om Nama: Shivaya’ in Nepal Television. Many of you must remember the two factions, “Dev Gaand”, the collage of gods who were portrayed as strikingly handsome characters with lovely makeups and auroral face lines and the “AaSur Gaand” consisting of demons or ‘rakchyaasa’ portrayed as ugly creatures with deformed faces painted in evil colors. Mahabharata has little to do with this article but the portrayal of evil finds some analogy in the culture of metal too, probably because it is evil music against the so-called good society.
The role of theatrics in Metal has been a long tradition. Form the early days of metal, both musicians and metal heads kept long uncombed hairs, wore dark clothing, leathers, boots, spikes and such accessories, thus evoking a dark and evil imagery in themselves and their music. Corpsepaint was a part of these theatrical elements and found its use widely during the 80s and 90s. Corpsepaint is a black-and-white facial makeup usually done by black metal bands with the white paint dominant on the central regions of the face and black paint on the remaining regions. This style of paint exhibits a decomposing corpse and helps to portray the dead in the living. The colors and tones of corpsepaint too are varied, though the black-and-white style is the most popular. Atilla (MAYHEM) uses neon color corpsepaint while GORGOROTH use blood colored paint. IMMORTAL term their style as War paint. With a part of their forehead, the nose and the lips in white and the remaining parts of the face in black, IMMORTAL have been using warpaint as an important component of their music from their early days. Warpaint is made from the red juice obtained from the root of a plant called Blood root, Literally, corpsepaint signifies a living corpse while war paint portrays a warrior which simply is the major difference between these two facial paint styles.

It is exactly unknown when and how the culture of corpse paint started in Metal. The early classical musician Nicolo Paganini, during his performances, arrived at stage dressed in black robes riding a chariot. His evil imagery that suited his sinister music was the cause for many rumors of him being possessed by the devil. Early rock bands like ARTHUR BROWN started the use of paint in 1960′s. KISS and ALICE COOPER made it popular, though I would term their paint here as simply face-paint because it was used for no purpose more than the shock value associated with it. MISFITS and King Diamond (MERCYFUL FATE) used corpsepaint, thus inspiring SLAYER, CELTIC FROST and SARCOFAGO. It was after this that the Norwegian Black Metal bands who were hugely inspired by CELTIC FROST, HELLHAMMER, SARCOFAGO and the likes started using corpse paint. Like the music itself, the trend of Corpsepaint hit Norway like a sudden wave. The credit must be attributed to Dead and Euronymous(from MAYHEM) for bringing about this wave of corpsepaint practice among the Norwegian Black Metal musicians. Not long after Dead and Euronymous started using corpsepaint, all the notable Norwegian Black Metal bands back then: DARKTHRONE, SATYRICON, EMPEROR, BURZUM, IMMORTAL and others were using this totally eccentric and blasphemous makeup style in their live shows and photo shoots.

Akin to its origin, the purpose behind such use of corpsepaint in Blackmetal too is a somewhat debatable. A straight forward reason would be the theatrics associated with corpsepaint. The evil music rightly demands an evil imagery: corpsepaint provides this outlook. Further, the role of creating an environment for the listener is an important aspect in creating this type of music. Corpsepaint helped to create that frostbitten, grim and sinister environment to lay the background for the music. It was music shrouded in darkness, stranger and more evil than anything that existed in that era. Corpsepaint somehow suited both the lyrical and musical theme of Black Metal. The musicians looked like dead corpses screaming from the depths of hell on themes ranging from Satanism and Nationalism to Nihilism. Corpsepaint was a symbol that stood for being “different” from what the society expects us to be, a symbol of freedom and a singular existence.

Some Black metal musicians and aesthetics claim that the use of corpsepaint in the scene back then was derived from their own old Nordic Mythology. I will try to simply explain how the legend goes. Odin/Wotan is the supreme god of Norse Mythology and Asgardsrei/Oskorei are his warriors who sacrifice their life for him on battlefields. Einheriar is the name of a ritual where Odin comes to reclaim his dead warriors by hanging them on a tree and bringing them back to life. These warriors of Odin used to wear either wolf-hides or bear-hides, painted their faces with corpse paint, thus looking like the corpse of a living but dead animal. Further, it was believed that wearing an animal hide gave the warrior the power of the animal. With this army of the living dead(undead), Odin rode over the sky in the journey of “The Wild Hunt” which was a terrible sight for all those who would witness it.

This mythology of “The Wild Hunt” was associated with many tribes that existed later. One notable tribe was found using corpsepaint and animal hides where it was believed that by using corpsepaint, the living warriors took shape of dead warriors. They fought with the belief that their destiny was death and their life meant nothing now. Becoming dead is like wearing a mask, a natural mask that can not be taken off. Corpsepaint signifies that natural mask. Futher, Odin is also referred to as the masked Devil in the Middle Ages. Since most of the Black Metal musicians were nationalists in an errand to remove every trace of Christianity from their land, they immediately got inspired from this part of their mythology and started using corpsepaint.

A subject common to all the myths and history is that corpsepaint represents the warrior spirit, brave humans who give life for a cause higher than themselves. This was exactly a part of what Black Metal stood for back then. Black Metal has always been associated with extremist ideologies. Black Metal has always been an alienated music with its values and ideals unacceptable to the modern degenerating society. Being a part of the black metal subculture is about abhorring the logic less social norms and values. To say in a few simple words, Black Metal is a war against the current corrupt and insignificant society and the musicians are valiant warriors, fighting against the society with their extreme music and radical values.

Many tribes around the world still use corpse/face paint even in their casual life which holds special value for these tribes. While some of the 90′s Black Metal bands still maintain the practice of corpsepaint use which they started at that period, other have started avoiding it. With their newfound chocolate-sunglasses look, EMPEROR have totally stopped using corpse-paint. Our own failed metal band X-MANTRA tried to use corpsepaint once in their video, “Hamee Dherai Saana Chaaun”, but sadly they just looked like chalk-powder-laden clowns who had neither any talent left nor any idea of what they were trying to do. Today, Corpsepaint is being used for fashion more than for the values associated with it. Every new Black Metal band is seen using corpsepaint just because everyone else does so. CRADLE OF FILTH and such sellout bands’ blatant (mis)use of facepaint has been quite an upset to the reverends of the tr00 Black Metal scene. What once was used to scare and shock people has now become a part of the popular fashion that is serving to attract people instead.

Reject the commercialization of the tr00 Black Metal scene.

DEATH METAL SPECIAL
(appeared on ktmROCKS Magazine Issue 14, 2006)

By: Mahendra Rai, Sunil Dev Pant, Umes Shrestha (with references from some Internet websites)

PART 4: METALEVOLUTION IN NEPAL

Metal and it’s emergence in the Nepali music scene has never been properly documented in the past. Hence, through this article, an effort will be made to present a general overview of bands, musicians and the “underground” scene as a whole which was responsible for infusing the first seeds of “metal” here in Nepal, especially in the Kathmandu Valley.

A Brief Rock History in Nepal (before 2000)

Back in 1970s and 1980s, bands such as – The Prism, Brotherhood, Revival, Kathmandu Katz, Raduim, etc and much later in the late 1980s bands like Newaz, Wrathchild, Criss Cross, The Paduwas, Maneater, etc were rocking the streets of Kathmandu Valley. Wrathchild was among the few bands that did heavy metal covers exclusively in the concerts. Newaz even had an album out which was predominantly rock and actually did quite well in the early days of commercial music in Nepal.

During the early 1990s, Vegetarian Vampires and Dead Soul were two of the prominent bands playing “thrash metal” in various concerts. Vegetarian Vampires were one of the first bands to cover Slayer, and Sodom, while Dead Soul frequently covered Iron Maiden, Overkill and Metallica. Dead Soul is also remembered as one of the best cover bands in the metal scene then, doing many ‘tribute’ gigs.

There were of course already lots of other regular as well as “one gig” bands that were doing metal covers live. During the early and mid 90s Iron Maiden’s Losfer Words and Metallica’s Am I Evil were concert staples. Almost every hard rock show would have those two songs played by at least one band. It’s too bad that many such bands have never been documented properly.

That was also a time when several ‘beat contests’ were held all around the valley where bands competed for a prize. Although a lot of songs played in those competitions were of the Heavy Metal/Hard Rock genre, original songs were a crowd turn-off and were rarely performed.

Bands were sprouting in the Pokhara valley at the same time as well. Anamesis, and later Vivax, came with some thrash metal stuff while Grease and Numskull started a grunge/punk movement.

Cobweb has to be the most prominent and consistent rock band of Nepal. In 1993, this band from Patan released their first album “Anjaan” which showcased their heavy metal and classic rock influences. Their live shows have always been full of energy and true showmanship. Around late 90’s, a few songs from the band Drishty (formed by Iman B. Shah while he was studying in Nebraska, Omaha) hit the FM airwaves in a few rock shows. It was probably the first ‘metal’ based original song by a Nepali band to get recorded and played on air. While in USA, Drishty recorded two albums in the bedroom studio setup by Iman B. Shah himself, but sadly, none of the albums were formally released. Mukti and Revival, which consisted one of the most “senior” rock/blues musicians, also released “Kalanki Ko Jam” in 2000, the album became an instant hit in the Nepali music market. In the same period, Robin n Looza: also made it big in the rock scene.

THE UNDERGROUND UPROAR:

2000 – 2006:
Without a shred of doubt, Ugrakarma’s release of demo “Himalayan Metal of Death” can be termed as the monumental epoch of the starting of metal scene in Nepal. Of course there were already some bands playing metal in the concerts, but metal remained within the confines of concert hall walls.

Aayush Maskey (Guitarist, Ugrakarma) reminiscences: “Back then the scene was just starting. Most of the bands were focused on playing popular music. Almost in every concert you went to, bands were playing the same songs Paranoid, Smoke on the water, Roadhouse Blues. There used to be a lot of street festivals and rock concerts but metal in concerts were virtually non-existent. Hearing Metallica in a show would get people talking – Metallica bajayo yaar… kyaa hyabby. “

While the scene was slowing picking up pace, many of the so-called “bands” sadly never had any originals. Few bands which had originals never managed to get it recorded. The same story of lack of resources, and lack of better recording studios haltered the progress of many potential good Metal bands. By 2000, there were already several professional recording studios in Kathmandu, but none equipped well enough to record any heavy stuff and none having any qualified recording engineers with sound knowledge of what “metal” music actually is.

The emergence of BMI Studios (otherwise known as Sacred Soundz) was an important event in the history of Metal in Nepal. The owner/engineer Iman B. Shah (Guitarist – Drishty and formerly of Vegetarian Vampires) was a himself a ‘metalhead’ and was familiar with capturing the essence of Metal – heavy riffs, thundering drums, thumping bass and deafening vocals – in the recording studio. Out of the few albums/songs that were ever recorded by local bands at that time, most of them like Ugrakarma’s Himalayan Metal of Death, Blood Metal Initiation and Albatross’ Hi: Fly were done at BMI/Sacred Soundz. The existence of a ‘metal’ recording studio opened up a lot of avenues for future bands trying to cut a record or a demo.

By the time Ugrakarma finally released their full length album “Blood Metal Initiation“ around 2001, there were already a horde of bands in the valley playing quite a range of metal music. Several band contests, where an original was mandatory to compete, also fueled the new bands to seek the creativity within them and come up with something imperative. While such contests more than often yielded 9 pop bands for every metal band, it still was a very significant step forward. More gigs were being organized, and more bands emerged. But the difference between these gigs and the gigs 5 years ago was monumental – these new bands were playing their own songs.

One of those bands was Refused 13. The band had played their first gig opening for Dead Soul (on Metallica Anthology Concert, 2001)The band started creating a formidable reputation in the valley as a very “tight” metal band with a “in your face” attitude, conceived by many as the band to pick metal where Dead Soul had left and then elevate the scene into another level. During the band’s active years, the band organized another memorable gig “Keep Suffering” at Nakkhipot, Lalitpur city.

Anuraag Sharma, former vocalist of Albatross on the band: “Refused 13 was definitely a force – the band and the persona of the band. I still remember that when they would walk into a concert, I would try to look at them without getting caught, because they were “Refused13″ and they looked like hardcore badasses that would kill you if you looked at them wrong”.

STRENGTH BEYOND STRENGTH:

Albatross, which started as an alternative rock band, changed their initial line up and importantly, the direction towards performing metal songs. The release of “Hi: Fly” in 2003 is also another benchmark in the metal history of Nepal. About the album, Mahendra M. Rai, former member of Cruentus states – “All the ten songs cover the aspect of all that is rock n roll. It’s heavy, it’s groovy and it’s trippy. Almost all of the songs are memorable and after you’ve gone through the record couple of times the songs will be imprinted within your head for quite a long time. Such is the power of ‘Hi:Fly’ and I envy Diwas and Sunny for coming up with such great riffs. I would like to classify this record as a ‘Stoner Rock/Metal’ as it quite fits the style. The first of its kind in our whole local underground scene!”

Another noteworthy band that pushed the underground scene upward from obscurity was Nastik. Formed in the late 2001, Nastik became the new leader among the “metal” bands, solely because of the use of growling vocals (aided by the fact that even though Ugrakarma is the first DM band, they really never performed live). Nastik released a self titled demo album on 2002, which featured “Maukil” – a fan favorite song in concerts. Nastik then released “Judge Death” – an all out death metal album on 2003. However, as in many other cases, the album was never released officially but fans had their own ways to get their hands on the album.

Third World Chaos’s four song EP “Infero” was released in 2003 which is significant in the terms that it introduced “hardcore” influenced metal into Kathmandu’s scene. During the active days, TWC performed regularly in concerts with Nastik and X-mantra and helped the scene to become stronger.

The release of X-mantra’s debut album “Crying For Peace” in 2003 hit the underground metal scene like a tsunami and created an astonishing aftermath. Their “No Cover Songs in Gigs” code created an astounding impact among other active bands in the scene. Several bands started performing originals who gradually realized that performing “decent originals” was more important than doing any “babbal cover songs”. “Shalik” and “Chidiya Ghar” became new anthems in the metal concerts. In simple words, X-mantra did it. What Cobweb stood for the mainstream rock scene in Nepal, X-mantra proudly stood for the metal and underground scene in Nepal. Anuraag Sharma (ex-Albatross): “Even though the album ‘Crying for Peace’ is 50% crap and the band eventually lost it, the other half of the album that does work is too well-done and too innovative to ignore. I think ‘Crying for Peace’ paved the way for a more noise-receptive audience than there would have been otherwise.”

Until their philosophical demise and in an attempt to garner commercial limelight by changing the direction, X-mantra’s first two albums (the second one being “Kurshi”, 2004) set a standard in the Nepali Metal history – proving that it was possible to fuse aggression in the almost poetic styled Nepali lyrics with riff based groovy metal.

The year 2003 saw the recording of a song titled “Itihaas” by Maya. With a strong Black Metal style riffing and probably the strongest lyrics ever in the whole Nepali music scene, Maya had an admirable influence on the next generation of Black Metal bands like Beyond, Antim Grahan and Cruentus.

The same year, members of Nastik and Albatross also joined forces as Abattoir and recorded a self titled album before disbanding.

THE UNDERGROUND REVOLT:

At the end of 2004, the bands like Ugrakarma, Nastik, TWC, Albatross, Refused 13 and X-mantra were either permanently inactive or disbanded or have moved away from the underground scene. By 2005, a group of more powerful bands such as Antim Grahan, Cruentus, Muga:, Brutal, Holocaust, and Breeding Pestilence started to bring “new” and “innovative” stuff into the scene. And later, bands like Epitaph, Morgoth and Vhumi forged new styles into the scene.

With an almost apocalyptic name for a band, Antim Grahan then quickly grabbed the attention of the scene. Individually, the band members were just a bunch of average musicians, however as a band, their live performance lacked no bullshit – it was tight, powerful and inspiring. With the release of EP “Forever Winter” in the early 2005 was a bold testimony of their brand of symphonic black metal. Without wasting much time just after three months, Antim Grahan released their full length album “Tales of the Darkened Woods”. Recorded and mixed in the Sacred Soundz, this album was one of the best produced metal albums – able to capture the atmosphere and aggression of black metal.

Cruentus started as a metal cover band playing generally Sepultura on concerts. Their choice of music gradually shifted towards Black Metal and eventually Cruentus started covering Immortal, Amon Amarth, Graveworm and so on. Just like Antim Grahan, the band took the underground scene into the next level as the band started performing originals in the concerts. The band gained a huge sense of respect in the underground community as one of the most tightest live bands in Ktm – majorly because of the talented band members, twin vocals and most importantly because of originality in the scene. And, Cruentus had Allan Shrestha on drums, THE Best Drummer ever in the underground scene!

Cruentus recorded their EP “Massacre of the Holy Ones” in 2004 and later in 2005, recorded a full length album, “Ashantusta Aatma” – another milestone in the history of Nepali Metal History. Ashantusta Aatma, the album featured rawness and aggression of black metal with a touch of death metal and the title song became a new anthem in the metal concerts.

Holocaust was a pure death metal outfit while Breeding Pestilence is credited for introducing technical death metal to the scene. At the same time, Blood Blisters were creating a strong following with in Patan, Lalitpur area. Blood Blisters started out as a cover band playing Iron Maiden exclusively. The band also took parts in several band competitions – increasing their popularity – and inspiring some new bands in Patan like Morceous, Metalbox and Bequeath.

The year of 2006 has been a great year in the history of Nepali metal scene. There have been many metal concerts and many new metal bands have joined the scene. Metal bands have been winning several inter-college band competitions which also cements the fact that “metal” is on the rise.

The year also saw the formation of one of the super group projects – the progressive metal band Atomic Bush. Formed by the members of Breeding Pestilence, Ozzobozo and Elysium – Atomic Bush propelled the scene into a new and interesting frontier of progressive, virtuoso and eclectic metal.

Vhumi, on the other hand, is regarded as the significant band that started playing melodic death metal style. The band has become one of the most consistent and active bands in the underground scene. Similarly, Epitaph has pummeled the scene with a new breed of metal – thrash-death. Bitter Euphemism has stepped up a notch into the realm of technicality and groove while bands like Arachnids, Morgoth, Prakanda Bimba, Cryptic Violence, Fallen, Obscured, Pralay, The Time, Ushma Weg and Night have contributed in their own way to the scene. What these bands bring out on stage is interesting and more importantly unique in the Nepali metal scene, probably even in the whole South East Asia.

A very few level of involvement can be seen from the so called senior musicians and bands (of 1980s or 1990s) on the current scene. However few inspirations, motivations and guidance remain. (Respect!) Fronted by two inspiring “senior” guitarists Iman B. Shah and Deep S. Rana, HMG-Ministry of Rock, even though a strictly heavy metal cover band till now, helped motivate a new generation of young guys into playing music.

Besides the bands and musicians and ktmROCKS and most importantly the metalheads – the Internet has been a great contributing factor in the development and evolution of Nepal’s metal scene. The ktmROCKS forum is vibrantly alive from compositions of the forum members (mostly musicians and band members). With styles ranging from extreme death metal to virtuoso shredding to ambient to psychedelic acid techno to grunge to ‘you name it’, the forum users have taken the scene to heed and started recording their own songs and expressing themselves with the aid of modern tools. The year 2007 seems to be a promising start for “our” metal scene as beckoned by the releases of “Barbaric Regulation” (Epitaph) and “The Last Verse of Madness” (Morgoth/Lost Oblivion).

Metal has come a long way in Nepal and despite the fact that it has never been embraced by the mainstream (and probably because of it) it will always exist in the hearts and minds of the fans and the few dedicated musicians who are in it not for the fame or fortune but for their love of the music. Metal is not tied to the changing trends in any given society so it is free from the web of ever-changing public opinion and “trendiness”. No matter how culture evolves, there will always be a few metalheads on the fringes of society embracing a culture all of their own because nothing else can match the sheer brutality, controlled chaos and dynamic intensity of Metal.

METAL lives forever. All hails to the NEPALI METAL SCENE!

All the Significant Releases:

Ugrakarma – Blood Metal Initiation 2001
Ugrakarma – Himalayan Metal Of Death 2002
Nemesis – Nemesis Demo 2002
Nastik – Nastik 2002
X-mantra – Crying for Peace 2002
Albatross – Hi Fly 2003
Nastik – Judge Death 2003
X-mantra – Kurshi 2003
Third World Chaos – Inferno 2003
Abattoir – Abattoir 2004
Cruentus – Massacre of the Holy Ones EP 2004
Antim Grahan – Forever Winter EP 2005
Antim Grahan – Tales from the Darkened Woods 2005
Cruentus – Aashantusta Aatma 2005
Epitaph – Barbaric Regulation 2007
Morgoth/Lost Oblivion – The Last Verse of Madness 2007

This series/article should prove to be an introductory metal history of “our” scene. Indebted to my personal inspirations: Sunil Pant (Ugrakarma), Aayush Maskey (Ugrakarma), Iman B. Shah, Deep S. Rana and Puru Lama (ex X-mantra) for all their support and information. Thanks to Bikash Rajkarnikar, Dipesh Gautam and Mahendra Rai for ideas, infos and corrections. For the world history, I had to click on some internet website. My own observations have been limited to Kathmandu and to the concerts organized by ktmROCKS (and few others), thus the possibilities of missing some band names exist. Any correction/change required, please inform.

- Umes Shrestha