Hitting that sweet spot

Ohh man! Watch out for the riff at 0:18 which sets the song going and the tasty bit at 0:55. Kick ass stuff man! On loop since evening! Such a sweet sweet song - Wolfmother - Keep Moving!

Evile - Five Serpent's Teeth

Evile has been regarded as potentially one of the best New Wave of Thrash Metal bands that emerged in recent times. Their debut album Enter the Grave was soo f*cking insane! It got the hair stand up on the back of my neck when I heard Thrasher and the title track - Enter the Grave about a year back. It was sooo aggressive and refreshing to hear those insane tremolo laced guitars after quite some time (at least for me). It was like a blitzkrieg on the speakers. I fell in love with the band from their very first song. I started searching more about them when I came across this new term called The New Wave of Thrash Metal and instantly I got introduced to a whole new set of bands which I dint know existed. They include Warbringer, Gamma Bomb, Municipal Waste etc etc. Anyways, from then I started following the scene pretty closely and I'm really excited about the new offerings. It got me nostalgic. I got the same feeling when I heard the old thrash metal bands for the first time.
So coming back to the post, after their debut album - Enter the Grave, came Infected Nations. It was a bit slower and more progressive with most of the songs being longer and the grooves being more melodic than their epic debut album. But, tragedy struck in 2009, when their bassist Mike Alexander died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism! After that tragic loss, they did a couple of shows as a metal requiem to Mike and they were all kickass. You can find the videos on youtube too. Joel Graham joined the band as their new bassist and the show was on the road again thankfully.

Evile released their third album Five Serpent's Teeth a month back (or two months back maybe?). I just got it in my hands yesterday and boy it sounds like a monster!! It starts off with the title track - Five Serpent's Teeth which is an awesome first song for the album! The riffs and the stop start rhythm sections would make your head go in a perpetual motion.It shifts gears towards the second half of the song just before the solo and becomes even more faster than when it began. Ohh and it has an amazing solo! 

In Dreams of Terror is a straight off thrash classic. The opening riffs gives way to this amazing drum section which gives way to this second set of riffs (at 0:34) which will blow your f*cking minds! The solo is again excellent. In fact all the songs have got incredible solos and tight drum sections.

Cult is a bit melodic and slower in tempo than the first two songs. Well, it kinda relaxes you after the initial assault. It has interesting bits but following In Dreams of Terror would always be difficult.

Eternal Empire begins with this eerie vocals and starts off slowly, before picking up the pace! It gets you right back to where you were after In Dreams of Terror. Its kinda like a roller coaster, tempo-wise. It has an awesome ending. The drums go crazy on this one!

Xaraya starts off with this chuga-chuga typical thrashy intro which is pretty cool. Its again a melodic track, bit slower as compared to the others. It has nice harmonies at various junctions through the song before the solo takes control. Its the longest song in this album at 6:04.

Origin of Oblivion and Centurion are typical Evile songs very much similar to the ones they did on Enter the Grave. Fast and aggressive.

In Memoriam is a surprise. It's a slow, gentle ballad dedicated to Mike Alexander. It uses clean guitars and Matt Drake sounds pretty comfortable singing with clean vocals.
[Update]: The opening bass riff used to be played by Mike during sound checks.

Descent into Madness and Long Live New Flesh get you back to the aggressive mood that was there when you started listening to this album. It's a full on thrash metal assault on your ears.

Five Serpent's Teeth, for me, surpasses their previous albums. It's definitely better than Infected Nations and I would say at par (or a tad bit better) with Enter the Grave. All of them sound excellent. Even Matt Drake's vocals seems improved. The drums are pounding away and the guitars are nice and crisp. They do sound similar to the old Metallica sound. That's what everyone's complaining about. But I dont really care. I loved the old school Metallica sound and I love Evile too. In Dreams of Terror, Origin of Oblivion and Eternal Empire are definitely going in my running playlist.

       

Rush - Beyond the lighted stage

I hadn't heard much of Rush before. I had only heard the mainstream hits - Working Man, Tom Sayer and YYZ. I liked them but I never seek to listen to them. When these songs came up on my Ipod, I used to take a note and that was that. I never selected these songs to play. While randomly youtubin', I saw Rush - Beyond the lighted stage in the suggestions bar. What caught my fancy was that it was directed by Sam Dunn. I was in love with his previous documentaries - Metal - A headbangers journey and Global Metal. He has a really interesting way of telling a story. Anyways, I started watching it and was captured instantly.

The movie starts off with Neil Peart drumming in the rehearsal room, followed by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson doing their thing. They reach the stage and when the announcer announces their name, Bastille Day kicks off! I had turned up the volume and the song literally burst out of the speakers. I hadn't heard the song before and it was oh-my-god soo awesome. The Robert Plant like vocals, the loud guitars and fierce drums had me gripped. Well, they are a trio, hence, they are automatically cool for me. When I heard their songs previously, I never realized they were a trio! Their songs are decently long. And YYZ is so intricately structured that at first I had thought it was a Dream Theater song. I don't think anyone who hears them for the first time will think they are a trio!

Anyways impressed immensely from the starting few seconds, I saw the entire thing without even taking a break (not even to pee!). Its an awesome story. They have captured the band's journey in a really nice manner. Plus they had this huge lineup of guests like Kirk Hammet, Mike Portnoy, Vinnie Paul, Sebastian Bach and even Jack Black! Jack Black should be there in every rock/metal documentary. He speaks soo passionately about rock and metal that you are bound to fall in love with it.

The movie is very successful in bringing out the awesomeness of the band, something which had not been done till now. No matter how talented these guys were, they never got the commercial success that many other bands (which really suck) enjoy (am looking at you LP!). But Rush weren't looking for commercial success anyways. They just wanted to have fun and do their music and really dint care about what the others thought right throughout their musical journey. Another thing worth noting about them is their humility. There was not a drop of arrogance in them at any point of time. In fact, Neil Peart, when he was at his peak, decided to change his technique with the help of Freddie Gruber and re-invented himself! The fact that someone that huge even thinking that he can improve and needs a change is a big deal. Well, that also explains why they are as good as they are. Its a nice tribute to them. I am now a fan of Neil Peart's drumming, Geddy Lee's vocals and bass and Robert Lifeson's solos. Listen to La Villa Strangiato and be mesmerized with the awesomeness of the band. Every song featured in the movie kicked a*s. I even listened to - Working Man during my run today :) . I would be spending loads of time listening to Rush for sure!

Half Step Down - Overtures in Outer space

I first saw Half Step Down (HSD) at a pub gig @ DV8, CP waay back in 2006 and was instantly a fan. They play a mix of classic rock and blues with some elements of funk. Well, they have a unique sound. They really like to mix and match. Their piano player (Shiv Lamba) adds a different flavour to their songs and really spices up their already tight rhythm sections. Some of their songs have a distinct "Indian" sound to them. Indian rock can be best exemplified by this band. Without going into too much fusion, Half Step Down best characterizes how an "Indian" band sounds like. Anyways, their setlist is usually mix of high energy OCs and covers which normally no other band performs. I have heard them churn out awesome renditions of Jet's - Are you gonna be my girl, STP's - Plush and even Lynyrd Skynrd's Sweet Home Alabama. 

Anyways, they had released their debut album - Overtures in Outer space last year I think. I bought their CD when I went for GIR this year...and I'm really impressed. I'm in love with the title. Overtures in Outer space is a sweet album. Its an awesome mixed bag of songs. 

Working Hour

It starts with a nice catchy bluesy riff before Dhaval comes in with his strong vocals. "Another 9 to 6, thank you very much I'll give that a skip. Donning suits and ties, why do these mornings exist?" Something which we can all relate too..esp on mondays! It has a nice li'l rhythm section in the middle and a catchy chorus.

Not for Sale

After a small slow melodic intro, the rhythm guitar churns out this nice li'l riff which would get your feet tapping. The drums take over and creates this happy happy atmosphere around you. Dhaval voice is amazing...and has a hint of a classical flavour to it. This song has a very "indian" feel to it. The solo and the breakdown sounds reminiscent of Indian ocean. I like it though. Very high energy and a peppy track.

Knocking at the back of my head

It starts off in a really cool manner with the bass going pummm...baaaap...taaaoon waaaon waaaon...pummm baaaap! .. :) .. well its really cool and I had no other way to describe it! I had heard this song loads of time. They play it every time during their gig. Its a nice li'l roller coaster of a song with the pace keeping on changing. Its a fun track..lively and brings a smile to your face.

Girl Not Guitar

"Coz someday I'll be a big big star. And remember baby, that your're just my Girl and not my Guitar!" \m/ .. how cant you like this song! Awesome song to put off your girlfriend when she gets too irritating to handle :)

UKJ-18

The best track on the album for me. Its like a high energy ball. It reminds me of Zero. Really catchy and I swear you cant keep yourself from swaying to the music. It has a nice melodic bluesy solo and the chorus transcends the song to awesome newer levels of...well..awesomeness \m/ 

Circles

Circles is a different track musically. Its..I dunno...it has everything in it. It has elements of electronic, the chorus is full on rock and roll and it has these nice li'l piano interludes in between which gives it a classical touch. Nice mix of everything. 

Roll over

Another peppy, groovy track. The piano kicks in with this awesome melodious fast crescendo of notes before the drums explode and the guitars kick in. Its a fast song and it'll make an awesome song while going for a drive or drinks :). Lyrics wise its a bit cliched. Its a break up song and it has all the elements of it..lies, deceit etc. etc. A nice song though.

Stories of the Sun

Dhaval is simply awesome on this one. Really melodious and has a very Indian rock feel to it. Its a mid tempo song and has an awesome piano solo in the middle before the chorus takes flight with "I'm leaving, I'm going home". Although I never heard this song live, but I think it would sound awesome..esp unplugged. Dhaval has a nice strong voice which really carries this song forward.

Overtures to Outer space

Awesome song to end an awesome album. Its again a roller coaster. Slow verses with a fast crunchy chorus. "Change the world..you got every power in your reach today. Change your way..you just got to find the right notes to play". A message to all those who feel lost in life and are at that helpless li'l phase where they want to quit everything and just leave their lives behind. It has awesome musical sections in between with the guitars and the piano fighting it out. Amazing song.  

Overall, its a nice classic rock album. Something you can sit back and enjoy. It'll make you feel good..its a mood changer. The songs are fun and catchy and I have been listening to it for a week continuously...at work..while sleeping..while driving..and I cant get enough of it. 

Monster Nominee list for Best Metal Performance

Wow..the 53rd Grammy awards nominee list for the Best Metal Performance is a monster!

El Dorado - Iron Maiden
Let the guilt go - Korn
In your words - Lamb of God
Sudden Death - Megadeth
World Painted Blood - Slayer

I'm not too sure bout the Korn song on the list..but every other track is insane. For me, the best among the list is Lamb of God - In your words. May the best band win \m/ The entire list can be found here.

Baiju leaves Motherjane

Nothing saddens me more than a band breaking up. Motherjane has been the face of Indian rock for years now. Their live shows are amazing. They are one of those bands who can really scale up to the international scene. They were awarded as the Band of the Decade in 2010 by RSJ and won the Most Popular Act of Asia in the AVIMA 2010 awards. Their lead vocalist Suraj Mani was awarded the Best Rock Vocalist too @ AVIMA 2010.

And just when I thought nothing could go wrong for them, they announced the departure of their super-awesome lead guitarist Baiju Dharmajan. He would be joining another band called WRENZ, a band he was a part of before. Its really sad..they had a good thing going. Wonder who will replace him.

Evile

Sh*t..its been a long time since I did anything useful with my time. I've stopped running..I haven't played the guitar for 2 weeks now .. I stopped reading Brave New World midway (even though its really awesome). I dont know whats goin on? I wake up late..go to work..come back late and repeat. Anyways I just needed something to get me going and I found it in the form of Evile. They are such an awesome band. They play like the old school thrash bands. If I may dare to say..I feel they're a nice mix of old Metallica and Slayer. The vocalist - Matt Drake, is capable of both singing and shouting his throat out..which is really very impressive. They are from UK and kinda new to the scene. They have released 2 albums - Enter the Grave and Infectious Nations. I got my hands on the former and its epic indeed. It's the only thing I'm listening to these days. Anyways, they are fast, ruthless and have this nice chunky, raw sound. Hopefully they would get me out of the rutt! 

The Final Frontier - Iron Maiden

I had pre-ordered the CD on Flipkart long before it got released. This was one album I was desperately waiting for. It finally arrived a few weeks ago and I've been continuously listening to it ever since. After 35 years of metal, they are still going strong. The cover art is brilliant as usual with a nice, mean alien Eddy this time . As the cover suggests, the theme is sci-fi with plenty of songs about venturing into the unknown and flying into space. 

Satellite 15 .. The Final Frontier

The first track is very different from what you expect. It starts with a fast heavy bass line which literally makes your woofers shiver like anything. Nicko McBrain comes in with his drums sounding like a fast approaching train! The guitars come in with shrieks...like a revving engine coming closer and closer..creating a nervous atmosphere. It goes on for quiet sometime before Bruce comes screaming in with "I try to call the Earth's command, desperation in my voice. I'm drifting way off course now, with very little choice..." As soon as the verse ends, everyone comes in again and I swear it'll give you goosebumps. There's this li'l solo and suddenly everything goes silent. The track then explodes with The Final Frontier. Phew! what an intro!! Its soo not expected from Maiden. Usually its just some solid fast riff which opens the album but this time around it was different...good different. The Final Frontier is a nice catchy song...it welcomes the listener and warms him up for the onslaught that is to follow.

El Dorado

This was up for a free download a month back on the maiden website. If the first track was different..the second track is classic Maiden. The galloping bass is soo freakin' awesome...sounds like 50 f*ckin horses coming straight at you! If anyone really wants to know what heavy metal is all about, this song is a perfect example. The opening riff is a nice stop-start guitar with the trademark heavy metal gallop at the background. The verses are low, almost like a sneer, the chorus is high and the solo is a twin guitar attack. This is where maiden is really good at...plain ol' old school metal. Awesome track.

Mother of Mercy

Mother of Mercy is an epic song which anyone can hum along. It sounds great during drives and drinks :). The theme is of war..a theme not new for Iron Maiden (or for that matter any metal band). The song is about soldiers not knowing why they fighting and who they are fighting with. "Why are we here? In this place..here to kill. Please god forgive us for what we've done.".. thats how the verse goes. And when Bruce ends with "I'm a soldier of war"..the chorus punches its way in, destroying everything in its path! Bruce sings with passion in this awesome song.

Coming Home

This is when you sit back and soak up the album. This a slow track..in fact its the ballad of the album. Its a nice slow track with a strong chorus bit which kinda mixes really well with the verses. Just when you think the song is slow..the powerful chorus reminds you that you are still listening to Maiden. It has a very catchy riff which sticks to the back of your mind. The solo is really soulful and melodic.

The Alchemist

This song picks up the pace after the ballad. It takes us back to the quintessential maiden tune... fast..loud..and an immensely catchy chorus. Dave Murray and Adrian Smith start the proceedings with their blissful harmonies. I'd like to compare it with The Trooper (due to the harmonies) but I rather should not. Its everything that characterizes an Iron Maiden song. Short and sweet.

Isle of Avalon

The intro is nice and slow with a crescendo brewing...indicating the track is about to explode! Bruce's voice is so passionate on this track..esp when he sings "Mother Earth you know your time is near".. you cant help but feel the sadness in his voice. The crescendo finally culminates into an explosive chorus when Bruce screams "I can hear you!!..Can you hear me?? I can feel you...Can you feel me??" After that, I swear you cant help but move your head back and forth with those metal horns right up there. Its an epic track. The chorus is excellent on this one. "I hear her crying..the tears of an angel. The voices I hear inside of my head. Blessed the fruits are the corn of the earth..Mother Earth holy blood of the dead." Its soo bad a*s!!

Starblind

The song really takes off with this nice li'l riff at the opening seconds of the song. Its a nice mid-tempo song which has an awesome solo. In fact the song structure is really progressive...with nice smooth tempo changes. Starblind is a powerful song (almost like a power ballad) with Bruce singing at the top of his voice during most parts of the song. It's brutal..esp towards the end, everything slows down and then there's this small crescendo before they all erupt to create this awesome metal experience.

The Talisman

My favorite track of the album. The intro is kinda similar to "The Legacy" from their last album - A Matter of Life and Death. It has an acoustic intro..nice and quiet..yet indicating that something's gonna happen soon. And soon enough..the song breaks into this classic fast, powerful sound that Maiden is soo familiar with. The chorus is soo incredibly catchy with a nice li'l solo which everyone can whistle along. At a li'l over 9 minutes long..this takes you at levels which one can only expect from an Iron Maiden song. Its pure magic.

The Man who would be king

The intro is so graceful with Bruce narrating the story in his most soulful voice. The song weaves in an atmosphere similar to the seventh son album...esp till the chorus. Midway, it suddenly takes a U-Turn. Its crazy..its something inexplicable. I swear..its surreal. Everyone comes along with everything they got. The guitars..the bass..the drums...they all sound incredible. The track comes back to its original pace after this li'l interlude. It ends with a nice slow outro with Bruce singing "Far..far away..the man who would be king" indicating an end to his tale.

When the Wind Blows

This is a 11 minute song..the longest in the album. Its epic..its a magnum opus. This track reminds me of The Nomad or the The Blood Brothers. Its really melodic and it would be awesome listening to it live. The crowd would definitely hum along like they do during Fear of the dark. It has this nice li'l solo which comes in the middle at 5:00..which is soo cool!! Everyone comes together during this last song. During the end at about 9 minutes or so..there's this flash of brilliance again. Its a perfect finale to a monster album.

The Final Frontier is an epic album. I like it better than their last album - A Matter of Life and Death. Although there is no song which beats the classics like The Number of the Beast, The trooper or Hallowed be they name, but collectively, I feel, this album is right up there amongst their greatest. Up the Irons \,,/.. may heavy metal live forever!

The song which saved my run

I wanted to cover 8K today. It was an ambitious target since I was just back from a really hectic journey. My body was still hurting at parts. Anyways, I started running at my usual pace (which is too embarrassing to quote) and also felt quite good. But around the 3.5K mark..I started breathing heavily and sweating more than usual. I dunno if it was the heat or just plain ol' fatigue but my strides became shorter and weaker with every step. I was about to quit since I felt kinda dehydrated. Then ... a song came up in my ipod which literally gave me the adrenaline boost that I needed. It felt like a jolt of electricity through my body. Set to fail - by Lamb of God has the meanest intro ever. At 2:21..things go insane. It helped me to focus and go on a bit longer. I continued till the end of the song and although couldn't cover 8K but I finished a decent 6K. All hail metal \,,/

The Power Song

There's this "Power Song" selection on my Nike Ipod app which allows you to set a "power song" to help you get over those moments during your run when you just cannot take another step, but still have a decent distance to cover. During my running heydays, it was the 7km mark. After being out of touch with running for almost 6 months and consequently gaining 3kgs consistently every month, it now comes at the 3 km mark. Thats when I switch to the Power song for that last surge of adrenaline to take me towards the end of the run. Although the choice of the songs have changed over the period, but all of these songs have some inherent similarities which got me wondering about 'em.
The perfect running song for me is a mid-tempo song overall, but kinda changes gears mid-way and keeps the momentum going till the end. It should have a crunchy chorus which keeps that adrenaline going. The mid-section should have nice monster breakdowns and the song structure should be kinda intricate with lots of tempo changes. Basically, it should not be like the usual verse-chorus-verse structure. I dont mind the ultra fast songs while I run...for example I would love to listen to a Lamb of God or Kreator while I run but they burn me out very quickly. The adrenaline rush is too much too soon and hence choosing them as a power song turns out to be a big mistake (most of the times). Right now, my Power song is Endless Sacrifice by Dream Theater. Its a nice song which starts off slow and has a really dirty chorus riff. The mid-section is awesome with the entire band going berserk and literally playing out of their skins to match each other. Its a long song stretching to 11 minutes but it really pumps me up esp during the chorus. From 2:00 onwards, its mayhem and things get darker at 4:30 but just when you think things couldn't get better, the monstrosity is unleashed at 7:35 till the end of the song. Its an epic song which is gonna stay in my running play list for the times to come. Check it out!





I couldn't find a studio version..its too long to be a single video on youtube I guess. Even this live version is split into 2 parts.

Sonic Boom

I was just browsing around the net for some new music, when I stumbled upon Sonic Boom by KISS! After 11 long years, they released a new studio album and damn its awesome \m/. I am soo hooked to it! Kinda brings me back to the good ol' days of loud music, catchy riffs and easy lyrics :) Too lazy to write a review. In case anyone's interested look here.

Cosmic Egg

After mesmerizing the whole world with their "old school" sound, Wolfmother are days away from releasing their next album Cosmic Egg. They have already posted a music video of their single "New Moon Rising" on their site and they sound awesome. They were disbanded soon after their first self-titled album, which left loads of ppl shocked (including me) and I guess that explains the long 3 year wait. However, the brains behind the band Andrew Stockdale, still wanted to venture forward and hence formed his new lineup which is even better than the old one. He mentions in one of his "episodes" as part of the "Transmissions from the Cosmic Egg" videos; that instead of auditioning for new members, he sought after old friends to form his new band. Anyways am just glad they still maintained the old school hard rock/heavy metal sound. I must say the music industry is getting really good at publicizing their stuff. From a Facebook page, which is very active to online streaming serving as sneak previews of their album tracks, they kinda build up the excitement for music lovers all over. Metallica too did the same for Death Magnetic and were pretty successful with their "Fly on the wall" series similar to "Transmissions from the Cosmic Egg" series. But the bands better be able to pull off their stuff after raising the expectations. Anyways looking forward for their release on the 23rd of October. Too bad the pre-order is not for people in India. Still wondering how will I get my hands on it after the release. Below is the first single from their album "New Moon Rising" - kinda speaks about the rise of Wolfmother after they disbanded.

Junkyard Groove: Its OK

Nice simple video of a nice simple song by a nice simple band! \m/

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Metallica got inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last weekend or so. I got a mail from the mailing list today, that its available on Fuse. I just watched it and it was soo damn awesome. Catch the induction ceremony here . It was cool of them to include Jason Newstead for the ceremony. It includes a touching speech by every member plus a finale jam which includes Master of Puppets \m/ and Enter Sandman. They later performed the cover of "Train Kept A-Rollin" with an awesome lineup which included Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Ronnie Wood, Flea..and i dunno there were sooo many...phew..what a f*cking awesome show.\m/

Black Clouds and Silver Linings

Dream Theater is set to release their 10th studio album sometime in June, titled - Black Clouds and Silver Linings. Their last one - Systematic Chaos was awesome. I hope this one turns out to be a hit as well. The title speaks of optimism .. something we really need these days with chaos all around. Eagerly waiting for them. I hope pray they tour India!

I-Rock

Good friends..good music and plenty of chicks to look around..what more can one ask for. It was exactly all of the above for me yesterday. Me, Sam, Adya and Jain went for the I-rock Delhi finals at Hamsadhwani. Its my favourite venue. I have been going there since I was in school..and I never miss a chance to catch a gig there. The atmosphere is simply awesome. Anyways so, we reached the venue pretty early. We were all comfy on the concrete seats ..waiting for the action to begin..when this Airtel guy comes up trying very hard to get the crowd going. He screams in his mic "Who are the real fans of rock here"....3 hands promptly went up ( :D ). So he goes to one of them..I guess his name was Ankit or something. So he goes up and asks him to sing a song!!!. I couldn't actually believe he would actually ask that!!! Anyways the guy who is wearing this Evanescence T-Shirt starts shaking really badly (I dont blame him tho..everyone gets nervous). So mustering all the courage he grabs the mic and in the gayest voice ever..sings.." I am gooiiiinnnng under" .. damn I couldn't help laughing my ass off!!!. Ok..I cant really make much fun of him..cuz it takes guts to stand in front of a crowd and sing!..especially "Going Under"... and I admit I dont have the balls to do that..but it never stopped me from making fun of others...so haha. Back to the topic..some more guys are asked to sing and one more noob..sings "I want it that way" by the Backstreet Boys!!!!!! But I think it was intentional...that was fun!! Anyways the show began with

Rampazze
I couldnt get the name at first..but then I got it..its "Rampage". They are a really cool band!!..its just that they were the first ones to perform..and no one was warmed up. I found them to be excellent. They play Classic Rock. They are heavily influenced by AC/DC, Kiss , Aerosmith and the likes. I just loved them..they started with a really catchy song Son of a gun. Their setlist was an all OC one..and I had a really nice time listening to them.

AVR
AVR (short for Another Vertigo Rush) has a very unique sound. Its sounds like Metal..but they have loads of things going on. I was amazed with the sounds they produced with their guitars. The songs were nice and powerful. I could use a heavier vocal..but they did gel up very well. I liked them mostly cuz of their unique sound. Some of their comps are awesome..like Anger Management...I just love the drums on that one.

Frequency
I dint like them much when I saw them at Launchpad..and it was the same yesterday too. Its not that they dont play that well and stuff..ppl go crazy when they listen to them. Its just that its not my kind of music. Plus I hate them even more cuz they really butchered "Highway to Hell". Thats like one of my favourite song..and they messed it up real bad.

Tearcube
They are a metalcore band. 2 years back I would have dismissed the genre and any band which were a part of that genre. But then....I met Bhayanak Maut..who literally spun my head around. Thy are just awesome..anyways its not about them ..so I'd better move on. I had heard Tearcube on TV during the Launchpad prelimnaries. They are fun to listen to..heavy as hell. But I think the sound system yesterday didn't help them much. I wished the speakers were a lot cooler...they would have rocked much harder then. Anyways they were nice enough to make me head bang the entire time they were on stage.

Superfuzz
Superfuzz were up next. They were the headlining acts..and were as usual..right on the money. They were awesome..they played some of their new stuff which is absolutely great. They also had a new guitarist..I dunno if he's a permanent member or not..he's from Joint Family. anyways an extra guitar did make them louder..and allowed Sanchal to perform his solos better in a sense. Anyways they played their hits Four Times and Once After, Queen of my Heart, What I really think, School and an awesome cover of Communication Breakdown by Led Zepp. They really got the crowd grooving. I enjoyed the most..right then!

After superfuzz..it was time for the results. First up was "God of the Strings". It was decided by an SMS poll and was awarded to AVR's guitarist. I wanted the Rampazze guys to win..I felt they were much better..guitar wise. Anyways the best band also went to AVR..cuz of their unique sound and how well they use it and stuff. I couldn't agree more..but deep down I really wanted Rampazze to win...maybe cuz its the old school..and its the old school my friends..where all the action began in the first place!