Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Thrash Bombarding With MORTAR: At Upcoming Ritual Ascension Fest


MORTAR!! One of the newest acts to hit the Indian Metal Scene, has been receiving accolades from Metal Elites all across the country ever since they released their debut single - 'Ground Reality'. Straight-up thrash hurricane shall rise to its cacophonous peak on Ritual Ascension Fest, manifested through a bone-crushing moshpit and eargasmic riff-assault! The first Thrash Act hailing from Kolkata in its true sense, are ready to make you bang your head till the last note!!
Recently, Arka Saha had a brief conversation with the band to find out what we are going to be experiencing at RAF in flesh, Here is what the band said.   



PA: Hails from Putrid Ascendancy! Our implacable love for extreme metal unites us today. Tell us about the entity that is Mortar.

Mortar: Mortar was formed somewhere in the middle of 2011 when Nilabja came down from Bangalore, met up with Sam, who was from Kolkata, and found out that they were like minded musicians. The band actually started as a Death/Thrash outfit. But over time we realized our love for old school thrash and changed our sound to suit our poison. After a few line up changes and a long long period devoid of a drummer, Mortar finally stands tall today with a steady line-up. This includes, Sohom and Sam on guitars, Dani on bass, Arijit on drums and Nilabja on vocals. Though we all share the love for thrash metal, our personal music tastes range beyond that which enriches Mortar's sound. 

PA: What according to you are the factors impeding the growth of the local extreme metal scene in Kolkata? 

Mortar: Kolkata has had a good deal of trendy music, immature musicians, and money laundering gigs. It was about time all of this changed. Some who truly loved metal music for what it is could not deal with this falsehood and therefore longed for a change. The stagnation of the trendy sound was also a huge factor. Many bands sounded alike and nothing new or original was coming out of the city. Personally, I would call Kolkata, the Gotham of metal music!

PA: What role does the cult of Putrid Ascendancy play in the furtherance of extreme metal in India, and how has Mortar come to be associated with it? 

Mortar: Putrid Ascendancy is a much needed step considering the metal scene in Kolkata and in India. If  it wasn't for P.A. I really don't think the Kolkata scene would ever be going through a change. And recently as far as I've heard, bands outside the city have shown interests in playing in Kolkata. This could never have been possible without P.A.
As far as the band is concerned, our guitarist Sam knew Desecrator, one of the founding members of P.A., who came down to our jam session one of these days. He liked what he heard and therefore signed us for the gig.

PA: ‘Ritual Ascension’, the first ever of its kind in eastern India in which you are scheduled to play, is a massive step forward in the right direction. What are your expectations from the gig?

Mortar: First and foremost we don't expect the usual run of the mill crowd at this show, 'cause the city holds a good deal of old school fans the numbers of whom are ever increasing. And secondly we will not only be there as performers but also as fans of old school metal. So we hope to enjoy a good mosh with the other bands!

PA: Come the rapture, what can we as fans of Mortar expect from you at Ritual Ascension?

Mortar: Since for the first time Kolkata is about to witness something this raw, we promise to put up the usual known rituals of thrashing, which shall eventually lead to an ache in the neck and many other parts of the body the morning after. We are gonna have 3 originals on display and a few covers to look out for!

PA: What do you have to say for the pseudo metal trends emanating from the region, polluting and defiling what we hold sacred?

Mortar: If we must call them trends, then we come to the conclusion that like all trends they will die out. Rather what we hold sacred is not a trend. Thus we intend to deny the existance of these futile trends and focus our attention towards what shall take place in RAF, a true show of metal underground.

PA: What are a few aesthetic influences that shape your music?

Mortar: Our prime influences would be most of the 80s thrash metal bands like Slayer, Exodus, Kreator, Sodom, Destruction, Overkill, Razor, Sepultura and many more. Our sound is based around the Bay Area with a touch of teutonic thrash.

PA: Leave us with a message for the supporters of the cult of Putrid Ascendancy!

Mortar: Stay putrid! Support old school metal! Mortar incoming!!






2 comments:

  1. Kick ass!! old school trash metal ... just dont lose focus. A much more refined vox to go with this great music (just a suggestion)

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  2. Is this band really from calcutta? I got the same insane feeling the first time i heard real metal. Im gonna miss this :(

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