Indiecision: Music Blog: Independent Music in India and Elsewhere

RECESSION VICTIM v1: THE NEW SKIN METAL FEST

The New Skin Metal Fest, a gig intended to be an annual event, has been cancelled. In a message on Facebook the gig organiser Sudeip Nair explained that the concert, which would have seen performances from, among others, Split, Aftertaste and Scribe, had to be cancelled due to insufficient support from sponsors.

All you rock n metal fans, it is with great regret that i inform all of you that the new skin metal festival is canceled. It is unfair to all of you that were looking forward to this since we first put it and have supported the festival. Our sponsors unfortunately dont seem to understand why we need more events like this.

We however will continue to pursue this and are confident of a festival, bigger,better and louder in the near future.

All the bands due to play, all the bands that i had spoken to, the bands from chennai, hyderabad and assam that wanted to play….im sorry and will endeavor to provide you all with a bigger and better platform

All the fans that were looking forward to this. We will not let you down.

Corporate support for Indian independent music has always been pretty poor. And given the current state of the Indian economy (you know there’s something wrong with India when the stock market is down and the cricket team is winning matches) indies will only find it harder to find funding for gigs.

REVIEW: CONFECT - SCRIBE

When Scribe announced that their new album Confect would be released as a free download, the news came as a surprise. For one, Scribe is at the forefront of the much maligned Indian metal scene. Their live act is frenetic and belies a tightness that’s meant for bigger things. So for the album to be released free of cost puts a lot of pressure on the band.

Indian bands are used to putting pressure on themselves. The result, quite often, is music that is ‘forced’ and impersonal; the opportunity to connect with the audience coming only through heavy choruses and generic references to issues that we’re not really facing. ‘Big’ acts like Pentagram and Shaa’ir + Func have fallen prey to this and very few acts manage to jump the shark to deeper ground. And then there’s the other train of thought that believes Indian rock/metal needs to represent Indian culture via regional language or regional instrument. Eventually, though there is much Indian independent music on offer, very little of it is in any way unique. One listens to Indian music in this form with a different ear than one listens to an international release.

Which is why Confect is more important than just the full length studio debut of a top Indian metal act.

Read the complete review + Indiecision after the break.

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SCRIBE ANNOUNCE CONFECT WITH TEASER AND ARTWORK

Metalcore act Scribe are getting ready to release their debut full-length album Confect. The album comes on the back of a slew of EPs and compilations + their win at last year’s I-Rock.

Their music is a far more accessible brand of metal, and it’s good to see that the new album has only new material from. Also good to see is that the entire album will be available as a free download via their MySpace. Sahil Makhija (better known as the Demonstealer) also had his album up as a free download. The more bands experiment with the distribution of their music, the better.

CDs of Confect will also be available, but later. Scribe play on Day 2 of I-Rock, this Sunday.

Head downstairs for the album cover and a promo video that looks like a slomo-ad campaign for a government owned steel company.

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