I had the pleasure of interviewing Abhimanyu Singh Negi, lead guitarist and band manager of AbraXas - a Pune based groove/melodic death metal band who are currently on a high after winning Mood Indigo - Livewire which was headlined by Doom metal legends Katatonia.
XD: Congratulations on winning Mood Indigo. AbraXas has now joined the likes of Zero, Parikrama and Sceptre who have won this prestigious event in the past. How does it feel to be in the company of these legendary bands and where does AbraXas go from here?
ASN: Thanks a lot man! Winning Mood I was a personal high I craved since long. It definitely means a lot to the band as well. You've mentioned some Big names here and I'd like to say that we're getting there and we still have a long way to go - we've only just begun!
XD: What is the history behind AbraXas?
ASN: Kenneth was the one who actually founded the old band 'Rigor Mortis' - a 5 piece Metalcore stint. I joined later making it a 4 piece instead of 6 and the covers remained Metalcore but originals became Melodic Death!
AbraXas was born one fine eve in Sep 2008 at ABC Farms, Pune when I joined Mr. Karan Pote and Vinay Joseph for a drink at Opus when we had to finally decide upon a name for the band after several lineup changes and a renewed interest in what we were doing. I remember sending them messages with 20 band name suggestions until we finally settled on Santana's 2nd album! It made sense in a lot of ways.
Vinay had joined a few weeks earlier. That's another story altogether! Ken and I had gone to meet him and decided that if he's a N00b we'll excuse ourselves and won't come back! We met him though and it was love at first sight! (Laughs) He could play then too man! We were mightily impressed!
As always, someone had a problem and this time it was our good friend Saurav Chopra, our ex-drummer who became an ex- soon after and Naman Sachdev
As always, someone had a problem and this time it was our good friend Saurav Chopra, our ex-drummer who became an ex- soon after and Naman Sachdev
joined us on drums. I'd heard about him from a friend in college and I auditioned him. Two observations. 1. He was 18. 2. He floored us.
We played our first proper gig as AbraXas at Zaha's, Pune supporting Bhayanak Maut in December 2008. That was our first gig with the current lineup and Naman's first gig EVER from either side of the stage! He delivered that night and we were never the same.
Campus Rock Idols and Rock in India is another story altogether .
XD: You guys have won fans around the country. In which city did you enjoy playing the most?
ASN: Manipal. It kicked ass! We headlined Ground Zero, MIT Karnataka's annual fest with Parikrama and played for 65 minutes nonstop for 3000 screaming maniacs! It was a high man. The reaction during and after the show alone made the trip worthy of my time. Cherrapunjee was a a ballsy trip we made and one totally worth the effort. Loved the people over there.
We love Pune the most, though. No doubts about it.
XD: As a guitarist, who are your greatest influences?
ASN: Jimmy Page got me into playing rock guitar. Also - Nuno Bettencourt, John Petrucci, Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, Allan Holdsworth, Chuck Schuldiner, Matthias Eklundh, Per Nilsson, Guthrie Govan, Jeff Loomis, Chris Broderick, Michael Keene, Jason Becker, Michael and Chris Amott, Ritchie Blackmore, Eric Clapton, Misha Mansoor, Acle Kahney & Wayne Hu ... I won't shut up dude!
XD: Any comments on the general Metal scene in India?
ASN: It has improved greatly in the last few years but we all need to focus on our personal responsibilities. Very simply - Musicians should focus on the music and organizers should aim at making their show the best that they can and so forth.
I'm constantly amazed at the way some bands in
India manage to dedicate themselves to the Indian Metal scene - cases in example - DR, SCRIBE, BM, Undying Inc and many more. The number of International Metal bands playing in India in the last couple of years alone have also put India on the charts as a Global Metal Destination. Now it needs to be the other way round as well with Indian Metal bands making a mark globally, which I'm glad to say, is happening.
For younger bands, here's my message -
Practice, Jam, Create, Record, Play, Mix, Master, Promote, Advertise, Play, Repeat and present yourself internationally. The
quality of talent in India is in abundance. It needs to be nurtured properly. Go METCHUL!
XD: Which are your favourite Indian bands?
ASN: Scribe, Slain and Silver Tears.
ASN: Scribe, Slain and Silver Tears.
DR, BM and Undying Inc and Goddess Gagged are mad as well!
XD: What gear are you currently using?
ASN: I'm using an Ibanez Prestige RG2027x VV 7 String Guitar with Dimarzio D Activator 7 Bridge and a Dimarzio Liquifire 7 in the Neck. It has a Mahogany Body, Rosewood Fingerboard, Lo-Pro Edge 7 Bridge and Piezo Acoustic Pickups so I have 2 guitar inputs.
Also, a LINE 6 POD X3 Processor and an Ibanez 10 watt Practice amp at home!
XD: Thanks for taking the time for this interview. Here's wishing you and AbraXas a great 2011 and a kickass debut album!
ASN: Thanks a lot.
January 10, 2011 at 5:37 AM
Still can't forget their awesome hard pounding performance at the cherrapunjee fest Meghalaya