The number of progressive metal bands seems to be increasing in the homegrown music scene. And, Midhaven can be counted as one of those outfits that has managed to fuse traditional notes with metal. The three-member group comprising Aditya Mohanan (guitars/vocals), Aviraj Kumar (drums), and Karan Kaul (vocals and guitars) released their second album, Of The Lotus And The Thunderbolt, based on the theme of birth and rebirth.
Speaking about the album, they tell us that this is their humble attempt at presenting a new variation of Indian metal.“It is not a new genre of music. We introduced ragas and talas in our tracks while holding onto the essence of metal. It is the content and lyrics that add a traditional touch,” shares Aditya. And one can also notice that the mix of progressive metal with ragas becomes clearer as the tracks progress. Karan also tells us about the local metal scene and how the bands are taking baby steps to add Indian touch to the progressive metal beats. “There are Indian metal bands that have broken out of the Indian industry like Skyharbor. We are still in the process of growing in numbers and while we do that, there are a few musicians who tried to include Indian elements in their work. We haven’t tried enough to make such a statement either,” reveals Karan.
The music group informs us that while there are several layers to the concept, the album is a homage to Shiva, also known as Mahakal — the ruler of time. This is how they describe their work, “The theme of the album is about our understanding of time, but we do not speak of the one that is passing by or controlled by a clock. We wanted to address cyclical time, which is constantly repeating rather than something that gets over,” says Aditya. Karan also chips in and tells us that the idea of Mahakal is prevalent in all the tracks. He further elaborates, "The album takes you through the journey of a man — the cycle of birth and rebirth. By the end of the album we see the man taking the shape of Mahakal himself.”
The outfit hits the right spot with this Shiva-themed album. Para Brahman and Primal built up as powerful anthems. Then, the middle track The Immanent Effervescence Of Sorrow is a melancholic melody which offers a change of tone to the series. Moving to Zhitro, this is where the Indian elements lose their subtlety and become the centre of the song. The closing track, Bhairav, is the only song which is fully instrumental and yet has the most Indian influences. While one might assume that traditional instruments like sitar have been used, we have been informed that it is performed on guitar.
After the success of their latest piece they are already writing tunes for their next album.
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— bsuchitra@newindianexpress.com