INTERVIEW with Meat Train

 

Meat Train is a four piece grindcore/death metal band based in London whose music draws influences from a slew of sub genres ranging from grind and death metal to thrash. Meat Train released their well-acclaimed debut album Flesh Made Man under Contagion Records. Our writer ‘Debarati Das’ recently did an interview with the band. Read the conversation here-

1. Greetings from Indian Metal Scene! Please introduce the band and tell us about its inception.

MT: Formed at a drunken party around mikes voice. To be heavy, but also able to be understood. We are all friends and have either been in bands together before or hang out lots and always talked about it.

2. Meat Train’s music is characterized by ‘thick’-sounding riffage, heavy basslines and well-thought elements of sound that create an absolutely rampageous feel! Please elaborate on how you conceive of a song and how you further build on it. Is it series of riffs fitted into a concept or anything else?

Chas: It’s any seed of an idea that we jam out and play off each other. Sometimes it’s a broad or series of riffs. Sometimes it’s a song title first, like ‘zombie strippers must die’ we just needed a song by that name. A goal is to write an extreme metal so g that would work in a strip club!
Sometimes a concept is first and the music follows. Sometimes lyrics first and we write to follow and sometimes it’s riffs that just go together.
The only constant is beer and curry.

3. Meat Train’s debut album “Flesh Made Man” showcases some well-written extreme metal with a deliberate incorporation of chaotic yet complementing sounds and some nicely executed leads which speak of the rich sources like grindcore and death metal from which the band draws inspiration. Tell us about your musical influences. Are the band’s influences shared among the members?

Chas: There are many shared an also different influences. For me, I love doom and thrash, but also power metal. Mikes a bit more old school thrash and Iki some weird tastes, but appreciates more groove based and big bass sounding stuff.

4. Are there any non-musical influences (literature, art, movies, etc.) which inspire your songwriting laced around dark, gory themes like murder and cannibalism?

Chas: B movies. Totally the cheesier the better. Also the real world events like Armin Meiwes and his collaborators willingness to be eaten.

Mike: For me, I tend to write about the darker side of the human soul. Bit of horror and gore too.

5. The artwork for the album is intriguing and showcases some horrific, transhuman images. Tell us about the concept upheld by the artwork and also the idea behind naming the band ‘Meat Train’. How important do you think are aesthetics in extreme metal? Can an ideology be established by extreme metal in purely musical ways, without any aesthetics?

Chas: For us the art, themes, and imagery both mental and visual are all integrated. Extreme music unlike pop is much deeper than just a tune to dance in a shit club to.

Metal is a multimedia format. So artwork, themes, songs, sound and video all work together to give the whole picture.

As for our artwork, it’s all about the theme of “Flesh Made Man“, that hell is on earth and the demons are human. So the falling angel is essentially birth, as we come into life so potential becomes real and we are ready to do our good or evil.

Meat Train on the other hand is far simpler, nothing to think about there. Just an awesome short story by Clive Barker (the hell raiser guy). Which was made into a nice gory film.

6. You have given away your album to people across the world for free. Why so? This prompts me to ask if you think commercialization (selling) of extreme metal degrades the glory of the genre by exposing the music and its ideology to the masses, many of whom might not be able to appreciate it. What do you think about the inevitability of commercialization for the survival and exposure of good music?

Chas: We did give away for a very short time. But that attracted attention of a label so we stopped and now it’s for sale in the shops and I iTunes etc.

Metal is never about the money for us. We’d be happy to give it away as a labour of love, but the scene needs to stay alive, so shops, websites, magazines and yes small independent labels can stay alive.

We still lose money in the long term, but so what? The music is out there we are part of the scene and occasionally get a beer paid for.

Mike: It’s great that the internet has reached far and wide for us. I mean back then band’s sent out demo tapes which relied on people trading. The internet has, however put it out there and people will share it. It is free I most cases.

7. Your album “Flesh Made Man” showcases good variety through incorporation of death metal as well as grind elements. Does such variety seek to produce a narrative composition where diverse elements invoke in the listener different states of mind?

Chas: I would love to think we were that intelligent. Sadly not, we just start with the ideas and let them go their own way, it’s not entirely under our control as sometimes a song writes itself. But even if it’s not totally the normal accepted extreme as long as it’s right for Meat Train we let it live.

8. How do you think is the worldwide upheld by grindcore different from the rest of heavy metal? Do you think ideologies often sought to be established by extreme metal are triggered by societal conditions? Or are they purely based on the individual perception of the artist?

Chas: I hope grind is a bit more fun. There are a lot of people trying to out evil each other and it can get dull! Tune down and thrash out, if you challenge a few ideas on the way awesome. If you upset a few twats even better. And if you put someone off their lunch, well, that’s knocking the ball for six right off!

That’s said one of the things I like about Meat Train is the balance between our different personalities. With mike hating everything and everyone and me and my weird food obsession won’t cannibalize as the logical extreme and all of us enjoying the sick shit that makes you think.

9. What according to you have been significant standouts in metal in the last ten years?

Chas: The return to honest balls out heavy riffing. Losing the baggy trouser twats and rap crap.

Our mates BtK are pretty intense and I love their new stuff.

 

10. How do you relate ‘form’ with ‘content’ of the music that you write? Do you plan on establishing a definite mood in the listener through individual as well as cohesive musical patterns in a song? Or is the thought process merely incidental?

Chas: We do try and give direction at the point of writing but we don’t want to stifle the process. That said in sober light the next day we do tend to go back and draft a bit more.

When planning sets or the album preset though we spend ages shaping the whole piece to take the pace and mood up and down.

11. What are your thoughts on the idea of ‘playing extreme metal by the books’? What do you think about the standards attributed to extreme metal? Do such distinctive standards in any way limit the artist’s ability to explore the vast possibilities of a genre?

Chas: Dull! Hate the obvious. Hate the I’m heavier than you competition too!

Mike: Writing by numbers, that sucks, push and see what comes up, That’s how Zombie Strippers was born. Different for us, but it’s a great song.

12. Tell us about the band’s musical or even extra-musical goals for the future- new material, tours, ideology etc.

Chas: Gotta be the gigs. Good ones, not the obvious places either. The path less gigged would be great for us, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Iraq that’s the stuff for Meat Train.

Totally want to hit some festivals, but not any of the piss taking money making twat ones; download can shove it, bloodstock though is carry my kit on my back to play bloodstock!

As for musically we’ve shit loads left to say so another record is definitely on the cards, especially given how well flesh has been received.

Mike: Love the East hoping to get there soon. Had some offers which we will definitely take up we just want to get a few more gigs to really make the books balance, India, if you know anyone who can book us some gigs get them to message us at our Facebook address.

13. Please share with us memorable experiences from your journey as Meat Train.

Mike: The whole getting together and hearing the songs and styles take shape. Rehearsals have been great too and we’ve shared some drunken nights over beer , pizza and curry. We have a nice mix of personalities in Meat Train. Beer often brings them out. Ha Ha

14. What is your idea about metal in India? Do you listen to any Indian bands?
Don’t know much, but a growing scene in a young metal country hopefully untainted by some of the corporate bollocks that’s what we want!

Chas: Kryptos and Scarface have made it on to our radar though. And if that’s much to go by gigs must be pretty intense.

15. Do you have any message for our readers and for those in India who appreciate Meat Train?

Chas: For the growing likes and attention we are getting from you guys, thank you. For us new people in a growing scene is awesome and exciting.

Anyone have any gigs we will be there!

IMS: Thank you very much for your time. We wish you the best!

MT: Thanks from Meat Train.

 

To get all updates from “Meat Train”, CLICK HERE!

-Interviewed by Debarati Das

 

UPCOMING GIG: Blizzard

On 14th June 2014, a storm like you’ve never seen before is about to hit Pune hard. The skies will rain metal as four bands and an army of fans come together to shake the earth. BLIZZARD brings together Sceptre, Systemhouse 33, Consecration, Cruoris, Anarchy and Existence Failed at Rastafa, Pune.

What’s in store for you?

SCEPTRE (Mumbai)
Sceptre is a four piece thrash metal band from Mumbai that has been at the forefront of the metal scene in India for the last 15 years. They are known for power packed live performances that electrify their fans into a headbanging frenzy. Sceptre released its critically acclaimed debut album in 2008, titled Now or Never. These thrash titans also released Age of Calamity in 2013. It is a concept album that sends a powerful social message about violence against women and seamlessly bridges the gap between old school and contemporary metal.

 

SYSTEMHOUSE 33 (Mumbai)
This unique experimental thrash band kicks up a storm with every performance. Since 2003, they have released an impressive discography consisting of Discernment (2006), Joint the System (2008), Thrive Live (20011) and Depths of Despair (2013). They play an amazing blend of thrash, groove and death metal with atmospheric parts that give this band a truly unique sound. With 10 years of awesomeness behind them, this powerhouse is sure to blow you away with an explosive set.

 

CONSECRATION (Pune)
Consecration is a five piece band from Pune. They have significant progressive metal influences and also incorporate blues and jazz in their music which leaves you with a sound that is bone crushing and at times, soulful. Consecration is making waves in the Indian metal scene and rapidly expanding their fan base. After winning at VH1 Reprise and SIT Reverb in 2013, It will be amazing to see them rock out in their home city. They will also be releasing their debut self titled EP at Blizzard! Consecration is definitely a band to look out for.

 

CRUORIS (Pune)
Cruoris is a five member death metal band from Pune. True to the Latin origins of their name, this brutal band plays a dynamite mix of old and new age death metal with traces of slam and black metal. Complex song structures, blast beats, powerful leads and guttural vocals define their sound. Cruoris has an independently released single titled Shit Theory, which received airplay at the Inferno Metal Festival in Norway. Brace yourselves for a wild moshpit once these guys take the stage!

 

ANARCHY (Pune)
A new band on the scene, Anarchy had their debut gig at December Demolition. They were also the runners up at V Indiafest, Pune. Their mighty impressive debut had the audience going wild moshing on every song. They recently released their single, The Dark Side which was well received. Anarchy has quickly gained a large fan base which is set to increase rapidly. They are definitely a band with huge potential and on their way to becoming a force to be reckoned with.

 

EXISTENCE FAILED (Pune)
Existence failed plays a cocktail of groovy rhythms, melodic interludes, complex polyrhythms and powerful chugging. Formed in 2010, the band has won events at Sambhav 2011 and AFMC Pune. Their songs and name reflects existential and nihilist themes, questioning our purpose as a species and mankind’s futile arrogance. Existence Failed has had the opportunity to open for two international acts in Pune- Orphaned Land and Degraded. They are expected to release their EP soon.

 

Blizzard is organized by The Stormbringer and Metalhead Spotted. This is the first edition of The Metal Allegiance between Mumbai and Pune.

You can RSVP to the event, here!

The venue is Rastafa, Sr.No-45/1/10/1 Mumbai-Banglore Highway, Baner, Between Nissan Car Showroom and Mahindra Car Showroom. See you there!

-Preview by Amogh Vaishampayan

INTERVIEW with Consecration

Formed in 2011, Consecration is a metal band from Pune, known for a good deal of diversity they draw into their music. Consecration has been  a part of a slew of prestigious events and are all set to release their debut self titled EP at Blizzard to be held in Pune on June 14. Our writer Debarati Das interviewed the band ahead of the gig. Read the conversation here-

Greetings from Indian Metal Scene!

1. Please tell us about the band’s inception. Was it planned or a result of experiments or a means to establish an ideology through your music? What are your goals in forming Consecration?

Consecration: I got a call from Adwitya our vocalist three years back about wanting to start a project. One thing led to another and we found our other members and finally we had a band. All of us unanimously loved the name Consecration which means a solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The band initially was a result of experiments, but over time as all of us grew as musicians we understood the importance of writing music in line with the lyrics, which represent different and varied ideas of society, its nuances and paradoxes. Our aim is to play all over the world so that our audiences are exposed to our sound and the ideas that we would like to convey through our music, lyrics and our performances.
2. Please tell us about Consecration’s songwriting. Do you believe in narrative compositions where a series of riffs and grooves primarily seek to establish a certain idea? Or do you prefer a purely musical composition with riffs fitted into a well-suited structure?

Consecration: We firmly believe that the riffs, grooves and musical content should be written completely keeping in mind what the song has to portray in terms of the lyrical content. The lyrics form the structure while the riffs are suited to represent the lyrics.
Once we have a basic idea about what the song is going to be about, we start the writing process with basic ideas of riffs and grooves and refine it to the lyrics once the lyrics are finalized. Basically, we try to emphasize the emotion of each song and the riffs are suited to this purpose irrespective of the technicalities of the riffs and the grooves. Another aspect of our songwriting is that we try to give space to each instrument so that each instrument has its own identity within various parts of the song.

3. Consecration’s music portrays some very melodic, technically sound and diverse guitar work despite being aggressive, which speaks of the rich influences the band draws into its sound. Please tell us more about the influences that each member brings into the band.

Consecration: Adwitya and Siddartha come up with lyrics to suit the idea of the song. Adwitya also takes a lot of care of his intonations and hitting the right notes in his vocals. Akshay comes up with the right groove, but unlike most drummers, he understands where to play what complementing the guitars and the vocals while maintaining raw power behind the drums. Avadhoot locks in with the kick like his life depends on it and his bass riffs are the bridge between the drums and the guitars. Siddhartha is a quick shredder and comes up with powerful and fast riffs. I (Ronnie) am more involved with riffs which bring out the emotion or feel in the song and also about the more technical aspects such as the guitar tones and the overall tonality of the band.
4. Does Consecration draw any inspiration from non-musical sources like literature, movies, graphic art, etc.?

Consecration: We draw inspiration from everything happening around us. Any idea that we feel strongly about we try to represent through our music. Our songs are about different and varied ideas of society, and can come from any informative source which speaks about current issues in society and the like. For example Silent Walk, one of our songs speaks out against rape, whereas Hostile Retribution portrays the journey of a soldier through war.

5. How do you perceive metal musically? Do you believe that the sound in itself is self-sufficient, or are there ideas or experiences that metal seeks to communicate which leads the artist to choose a certain sound?

Consecration: Metal is an aggressive form of music and different forms of metal have distinctive sounds, however within the scope of metal the amount of dynamics or expression varies from genre to genre. If a band needs a wide range of dynamics or expression to convey their ideas, their sound needs to be chosen accordingly. In our case we put an emphasis on melody and infusing a little bit of other genres such as blues into our sound.

6. Consecration’s lyrics lace around themes concerning societal evils. Does your music convey your dissatisfaction with society and its establishments as a whole? Or is it about your acknowledgement for a society, but an opposition to its design?

Consecration: Our lyrics in general criticizes the design of society and the injustice that we face due to its flawed design. As an example, women especially in India and around the world have been forced into silence whenever injustice is done to them. Silent Walk narrates a story of a woman who breaks her silence and speaks out against the injustice done to her. Injustice to people in general is a result of society’s design. We understand the need of a society to thrive and move forward but we would like to highlight the evils due to the narrow and orthodox mindset that has been inbuilt into the system over the centuries.

7. Speaking of ideologies that present-day bands claim to uphold through their music, how well-informed or ignorant do you think are musicians pursuing metal today? What importance to you attach to the words that you write in your music?

Consecration: Everyone is entitled to their own point of view and different bands have different ideologies that they may represent through their music, however ideologies that can cause hurt to a particular set of people, encouraging violence or upholding negative thoughts shows ignorance.
The lyrics bring out the emotion in a song and also its soul or crux. It represents the ideas that we would like to convey through our music and hence the lyrics are very very important to us.

8. Please tell us about the EP that you’re going to release at Blizzard this month. Is this EP a representation of your music in a way we haven’t seen already?

Consecration: Our EP is a culmination of all our ideas where we have got everything together to suit the central idea of the song. The songs in the EP are matured versions of our songs where we have given a lot of emphasis to the lyrics, its delivery and space for each instrument within the framework of the song. This EP is the best representation of our work over the years and we are hoping that everyone feels the same about it too.

9. The artwork on the EP is very intriguing! What it conveys is quite evident. What ideas or realizations have inspired the artwork?

Consecration: Reuben Bhattacharya from Undying Inc who designs through the banner Visual Amnesia did a brilliant job on the artwork. The artwork is based on the central idea of the band, i.e. different and varied ideas of society, its nuances and paradoxes.
The idea of the artwork can be summed up by the following lines: – She who is suffocated by the hands of this society that promised to uphold her modesty and consecrate her righteousness. She who was promised the beauty of roses and yet trapped in a web of thorns woven from lies and bigotry, under which lurk those very hands of your hypocrisy.

10. What are your views on ‘commercialization’ and the ‘underground’ in metal? Do you think that the underground more effectively preserves the artistic value of music by targeting an audience who can truly appreciate it? To what extent do you think metal needs commercialization?

Consecration: When any band starts getting a large fan following and becomes famous commercialization ensues. The underground is where most metal bands start and over time as they get bigger and bigger, as their demand keeps on rising they move on to bigger stages and commercialization of the band begins. A band can only be in demand if they’re fans truly appreciate their music and commercialization can only happen if the band has a large fan following. So commercialization is fine up to the extent that it does not interfere with the creativity of the band in terms of its sound and ideology. The moment the band succumbs to the market and changes their identity to suit people, their artistic value is lost. Metal can be commercialized up to the point that the creativity of the band should remain unchanged. If the original sound and ideology of the band is what got them to new heights that should never change.

11. What have been the most innovative standouts in the last ten years of metal in India? Since you have earlier talked about influences that you draw from jazz and blues, what do you consider as the most influential works from other genres?

Consecration: Indian metal bands representing Indian metal out of the country is very special indeed and bands such as Zygnema, Demonic Resurrection and Devoid have done exactly the same which we think really stands out in the last ten years in the Indian metal scene.
We like our music to be expressive and to have a good dynamic range. Adding parts similar to blues and other genres helps us for the same purpose. Our influences include Eric Johnson, Eric Clapton, legendary classic rock bands Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, progressive gods Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Opeth and Guthrie Govan to name a few. We are highly influenced and impressed by their ability to represent their music brilliantly with the idea of the song by using dynamics, very detailed expression and technicalities.

12. What are you views on ‘scenes’ in metal today? Do you believe that such scenes concentrate people who can appreciate a certain kind of music and relate to an ideology? Do scenes in any way drive music into narrow denominators due to artists making music to meet listeners’ expectations from a certain sub-genre of metal and therefore, not exploring enough?

Consecration: The scene today is a stepping stone for underground bands from the smaller stages to the bigger ones. You learn valuable lessons that you keep with you years down the line. The scene, for example, in Pune is ever changing and evolving as Pune being an educational hub new faces appear every year. You get a chance to play your music to a new crowd every single year and that’s really great.
Such scenes do concentrate people with common tastes in metal. Any person who has been in the scene or more than a year or two is known by everyone. At least that’s what we know to be true in Pune. The scene becomes a sort of brotherhood for people who listen to metal.
Artists who start with the idea of writing music with the whole intention of meeting listener’s expectations fizzle out in time as expectations of listeners change and people in general love something that is different. Music has to connect to the soul and to create such music the artist has to live and breathe the ideology that has to be conveyed. Adding different tastes encapsulates a wider audience and getting stuck in the web of just meeting listener’s expectations makes an artist lose out.

13. Please share with us memorable experiences from your journey as Consecration.

Consecration: In January 2012 we won the Pune zone finals for channel V Launchpad and went to Goa on an all-expense paid trip to play the finals. The trip was memorable as it was our first trip as a band out of Pune together and we were competing with some of the best across the country. Beer and good food with your band mates at a beach shack and cool breeze on your face is another experience all together. All the case taking and chilling with an awesome gig was a one off experience for all of us!

14. Consecration is a part of the brilliant line-up for Blizzard to be held in Pune on 14 June. How do you feel about it? What should fans be looking forward to?

Consecration: We are really excited about the gig and playing alongside metal veterans Sceptre, System House 33 and our brothers from Existence Failed, Anarchy and Cruoris. Apart from the mad line up the sound for this gig is gonna be awesome. Band merchandise stalls, awesome food and booze and an insane gig what could be better?

15. Thank you very much for your time! Do you have any message for fans reading this interview?

Consecration: We promise to demolish the stage on the 14th at Blizzard so get ready to mosh head bang this weekend! And do remember to check out our merchandise and please do grab a copy of our self-titled EP ‘Consecration’. Cheers!

 

Catch Consecration LIVE at Blizzard. RSVP here!

-Interviewed by Debarati Das

INTERVIEW with Eternal Rust

Eternal Rust, a one man Neo-Folk band from Mumbai with influences of Dark folk/Ambient & Doom. Our writer Debarati Das recently had a conversation with Varun Sharma AKA Rust Hammer from Eternal Rust. You can read the convo below-

1. Fanaticism for a certain form of art is essential for an artist to pursue it. Neo-folk, a genre that has remained somewhat unexplored in the country has rather amazing possibilities and space for experimenting with very little ‘standards’ attached to it. What drew you to such an unconventional genre as a listener first and how did you decide on pursuing it as a musician?

Rust: In 2011, I formed a doom band called “ AfterDoom” with Paresh Garude who is now playing bass for Stark Denial, a Mumbai based black metal band. I remember my drummer getting me introduced to Agalloch, a US based neo-folk/doom/atmospheric black metal band.
I was so intrigued by their music, that I started reading about them in order that I understand their approach and thought process behind the music they make and their selection of sound that varies across their albums. Their album “Ashes Against the Grain” out of all their released material really got me hooked up to it and that album was revolving around neo-folk tendencies. That is when I actually got introduced to neo-folk .I did my research on this genre and realized there is a whole new paradigm of bands in that genre stretch, a lot of them happened to be one man band projects. Also, another thing to note is that Neo-folk branches into subgenres like martial, industrial, dark folk, pagan and experimental/neo folk.
Seeing a lot of one man band projects like Darkwood, Death in June (now a 1 man band), Of the Moon and the Wand, Rome, Vergissmeinnicht etc. actually urged me to come up with Eternal Rust. The whole idea of something “less explored” and something that could be done all alone with no external influences from other human minds actually got me involved in founding Eternal Rust.

2. What is an Eternal Rust song? Is it a concept governing riffs written cohesively, or is it more musical with riffs fitted into the best-suited structure?

Rust: It is a concept governing riffs actually.

3. Eternal Rust’s music is characterized by a good dash of melancholy and gloom. What sentiments, experiences or fears is the impetus for pursuing such melancholic music? What motivates you to work with such forms instead of more concrete ones? Also tell us about your musical influences. 

Rust: My musical influences hover around different forms of doom, goth, dark folk, neo folk. I am pretty much into technical death metal as well.
Eternal’s Rust’s music is more around dark side of nature like the moon, the wolves, and the silence of night. As far as human emotions and sentiments are concerned, I like to keep the song writing cold and metaphoric in its core texture. For example, let’s say a notion of dismay may be expressed in form of a cold satire in a song like “Darkness Forever – A Sailor’s Dismay Song”, in that, a sailor is a person who is in dismay and sails away from the land into solitude (the ocean) telling the world that he is leaving, because the world doesn’t have anything to offer but hate and sufferings to him. So the texture is cold and satirical.
Life Lies Dying, one of the other songs is more about the dark side of nature. Tells the listener to let go a dead life of anxieties and walk into the woods underneath clear skies, cold breeze and moon where there is a gathering of wolves, focusing on the beauty of night in woods.

4. Eternal Rust as a neo-folk project has no precedent or parallel in the country as of now. Please tell us about how your music has been accepted by listeners here, very few of whom have been exposed to this genre before.

Rust: Well, haha, I think I get a few eyebrows raised, I mean it is like, “okay…woah!…this is different…well yes” All in all, the music is well embraced by listeners, even if a few in numbers.

5. Eternal Rust’s music showcases a good deal of well-thought experiments with melodic and gloomy elements of sound and with instruments like the mouth organ and the grand piano. What are your thoughts on novelties and rules attributed to music, for example, usage of musical patterns distinctive to a genre for a purely musical purpose? Do you think that the audacity to experiment and push a genre’s limits is essential for its survival?

Rust: First of all, thank you for the kind words. Well, here’s the thing, usage of musical patterns coherent and distinctive to a genre, is a good thing actually. It defines and makes the music piece in that genre particularly concrete.
So a rule attributed to a music piece definitely helps in both ways, 1 that the listener connects to the piece well enough and 2, the artist or the song writer knows exactly, in which direction the song or the music piece is going .It helps getting those riffs/music writings more oriented.
On the other hand, I do not think that experimentation with a genre is an essential, but it does definitely enhance the song writing and makes it more interesting, if done effectively and in a thoughtful manner.
On a similar note, “neo folk and its kind” is a niche genre in itself, which is why it has that whole appetite for experimentations.

6. What according to you does neo-folk as a form of art celebrate? Does it uphold or question values of the environment or is it more about celebration of the artist by expression of his/her individual thoughts? Is there an intersection between the two?

Rust: Neo-Folk includes both, i.e. it upholds values of the environment and feelings of an artist.
Now, this will entirely depend upon the song and/or the artist’s style. A few artists typically write more about nature and it’s tales like Nest, Agalloch, Rome, etc. While, a few artists like Of the Moon and the Wand and Vergggnischt, base their song writings on individual experiences /thoughts.
That is the beauty of Neo-Folk, you know, its versatility!

7. How do you perceive neo-folk in terms of story-telling? Do the themes that you base your music on express the ideas of the environment or does your music react to such ideas?

Rust: My perception of neo-folk in terms of storytelling is that it governs narration in the most unbiased manner as possible, as if the narrator were to be nonchalant while sharing a tale of happenings.
Yes, my songs like “Falling leaves”; “Hallways of the abandoned fortress” and “Life lies dying” have themes based on story-telling. This is influenced greatly by tales on nature and environment.

8. Eternal Rust’s music showcases unique elements of sound like wings flapping and whispers. What are your thoughts on imagery and aesthetics upheld by music? What realizations, emotions or real happenings do you wish to communicate through such imagery? Also tell us about non-musical influences if any, which inspire you to make such music.

Rust: Well, all those sounds for example, wing flapping, in my song “hallways of the abandoned fortress” is because I want my listener to imagine that he/she is walking through the stairways into a hall of a fortress that is long abandoned. Hearing the footsteps of the listener, the pigeons there fly away.
So all of these sounds are because, my objective is to create an ambience that helps in story narration through my songs.
Non-musical influences would be art movies, games, places!
One of the “maps”/locations in a well-known game “Bio-Shock”, where they show the Rapture city, gave me vibes that influenced me to put those vocal patterns that you hear in my song “Blinding hate”, after the intro section of the song. 😀

9. Does you music seek to evoke in the listener a pre-decided thought process, or is there no pre-thought connection between the melancholic sound and the attitudes/ideas that your music expresses, leaving it open to the perception of the listener?

Rust: Seeks to evoke in the listener a pre-decided thought process most of the time
That is the whole challenge in this you see. I see me, honing the skill of such song writing in near future I hope haha!

10. Neo-folk as a genre is characterized by an amazing scope for experimentation in terms of musicality as well as moods sought to be established by the sound. In the absence of any set ‘rules’, does neo-folk have any ideology or culture of its own? Or is it more about the artist’s individual influences and perspective?

Rust: NeoFolk hails mainly from cultures of European countries. Somehow surprisingly it spread across the world without being in the lime light or making too much noise.
Now we have artists who write their own experiences, thoughts, feelings and also tales from their regions in such manner using neo-folk music.
For e.g. we have this band Vergissmeinnicht from China! Just so you know, this genre is actually known all across the globe now! 😀

11. Please share with us memorable experiences from your journey as a one-man project. Tell us about the inception of Eternal Rust and your thoughts on a ‘singular vision’ in terms of songwriting.

Rust: Let me start with saying that, nothing succeeds and then sustains itself for long, without a “singular vision” really. It will be long forgotten otherwise.
Eternal Rust was a result of my inclinations towards a lot of doom music. I always (although I was a front man for a death metal band called Infinite Redemption and then eventually Deathforge, my current tech death band) personally loved composing songs based on doom music, whenever it came to a collection of my personal compositions. So amidst all of this, I got introduced to Agalloch’s music and one of their songs called “kneel to the cross” was actually a cover done as a tribute to “Godfather of NeoFolk “ Sol Invictus.
I started listening to Sol Invictus and another German band Darkwood, which really got me thinking on those lines.
A one man band concept really appealed to me in this case. I recorded my first song “Looking through me” and shared it with Vishal J Singh (Amogh Symphony). He offered me a hand in production eventually.
This is where things got into action. I recorded and arranged and he produced my songs.
At present, I am doing everything on my own; probably I am a “control freak” lol, just kidding…
A few memorable events, one was when I suddenly had some tunes in my mind for this song called “falling leaves” on my flight from Delhi to Mumbai. I started murmuring and singing to myself, and smiled, as if I had a win, the guy next to me actually freaked out and changed his seat.
Another one, when I was in US, I decided to look for a good soundcard for Eternal Rust, I went to a music section at Best Buy, the guy at Best Buy actually helped me set up a system, getting a cool windows 8 laptop from neighboring stall, called his friend up to understand a few technical details of the card, so that we could check out the performance of the soundcard, it took us 4 hours! Later, that day he told me, this section of Best Buy was shutting down in Fargo (my stay there) and it was their last day. LOL!

12. You have been pursuing a genre that has remained rather unexplored in India. Do you believe that ‘ideal scenes’ in terms of critics, contemporaries, exposure etc. are essential for one’s growth as a musician? Or do such ‘scenes’ degrade a genre by attributing expectations and standards to it?

Rust: No, I wouldn’t say that critics, contemporaries, exposure and such “scenes” would ever degrade a genre or an artist’s effort. A parody however is, that a few good things are best found in a dark corner, that sure does add to their value tag, if you know what I mean. Haha! “underground” stuff.
But then again, what I mean to say is that, I feel an artist should continue his/her work, untouched by external influences. Then, once when an artist has found his/her sound and a concrete theme, the artist should focus on building the right audience.

Last thing to say here is that expectations coming from the audience is not a bad thing at all; in fact it reflects the fact that your audience understands and accept your music to that extent.
So all of those scenes you mentioned are essential for any musician’s/project’s growth. It isn’t good to keep them good things in dark for too long. They die unknown then.

13. What have you planned for Eternal Rust? Is there new material that’s yet to be released? Do you plan on going Live or being signed to any record label?

Rust: I plan to complete my first album; I have a few more songs to complete. Meanwhile, I am looking for a record label that signs with doom/folk bands.
Going live however, is not my immediate focus or a priority as of now

14. Do you have any message for our readers?

Rust: Jon Haughm (Agalloch) once stated in an interview, “We wanted an album that sounded more alive and real….Our last album was a bit too mechanized, too polished, and that kind of disturbed us. So we brought back the older methods that we had utilized on our demos and first album to try and get back a more organic feeling.”
If you are a song-writer, don’t be driven by external influences, like feedbacks and critics, listen to your inner voice and be honest with your songwriting. Don’t hesitate to put forth the deepest of your feelings in your songs.
For listeners, please let not a review or fame of a band bias your choice of artists. Dig deeper, you may come across a lot of interesting art.
Thanks a lot! You guys are doing a great job. Appreciate it!

IMS : Thank you very much for your time. We wish you the best!

 

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Listen to more songs by Eternal Rust, HERE!

-Interviewed by Debarati Das