Metal quartet Elemental is one to look out for

Sep 17 • Indian News, News • 3486 Views • 1 Comment on Metal quartet Elemental is one to look out for

When you throw in seven bands in a lineup, you know the metal scene is desperate for attention. Every band wants to get out there and play – even if it’s just a mostly-covers set with favorites like Cannibal Corpse, Pantera and what have you. Between the blistering riffs and guttural growls, what a metalhead really wants from a gig like this is something that sticks – something that doesn’t just make you want to second-guess which international band is currently being worshipped on stage in the form of a half-hour setlist.

Elemental

What most of us want is something that’ll punch us in the gut so hard, we’d be amazed at the shot. That’s what Indore/Bhopal death metallers Elemental bought to stage at a recent gig in Mumbai. For just a quartet, Elemental took the venue by storm, not stopping for one moment – well there was a call for drinking water for the members at some point, but you get what I mean. Elemental were (excuse the pun) in their element – not copying any band, not wearing any single band’s influence on their sleeve. Their style was clearly mix and match – from the pig squeals to the explosive bass breakdowns. Anchal Bhargava, the vocalist and manager of Elemental, was sporting a Whitechapel t-shirt (a pat on the back for anyone who could what any black T-shirt read in that dank, poorly-lit performance area at the venue), which clearly showed he wasn’t a guy to have a subgenre argument with.

The bigger difference that set Elemental aside was that they were perhaps the only band to play an all-original setlist. Not to take anything away from Providence’s massively entertaining, wrecking-ball time capsule through the best of metal during their set – they covered everything from Maiden to Slipknot – but Elemental probably won themselves a lot of new fans that night. Anchal and his band members were just nailing every song, rampaging through riffs that made me wince, but shaking the floor with their breakdowns. A quick glance across the (still-dark) venue showed that most heads were nodding at varying levels of speed – from the amazed young kid to the journalists and scenesters. And surely Elemental saw that. Their second gig in Mumbai so far, their Facebook page shows they’ve got a few more venues to lay to waste – first in their hometown in Indore. Do yourself a favour, get yourself kicked in the balls – go watch Elemental. Considering their album, Creation of the Damned, won’t be out until later this year, it’s best to experience their savagery live. If you escape unscathed, let us know how.