{"id":764,"date":"2012-05-30T02:46:55","date_gmt":"2012-05-29T21:16:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/?p=764"},"modified":"2012-05-30T15:55:37","modified_gmt":"2012-05-30T10:25:37","slug":"eccentric-pendulum-bassist-discusses-bangalore-open-air-influences-new-school-metal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/2012\/05\/30\/eccentric-pendulum-bassist-discusses-bangalore-open-air-influences-new-school-metal\/","title":{"rendered":"Eccentric Pendulum Bassist Discusses Bangalore Open Air, Influences & New-School Metal"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Aniruddh “Andrew” Bansal<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Bangalore-based progressive metal band Eccentric Pendulum will be a part of the inaugural Bangalore Open Air festival, set to take place on June 16th. The band’s eclectic music will certainly add a lot to the already diverse lineup, with the likes of Kreator, Suidakra, Kryptos, Dying Embrace, Bevar Sea, 1833 A.D. and Albatross also on the bill. The band will present material from their debut album “Winding The Optics”, and attendees can expect a solid performance from these guys. In a series of interviews I\u2019m doing to promote this amazing festival, I caught up with Eccentric Pendulum bassist Arun to talk about what to expect from them at this show, the debut album, influences, and his thoughts on the whole old-school vs new-school thing. He has some very interesting things to say, so enjoy the conversation below, and make sure to check them out at Bangalore Open Air next month.<\/p>\n

First of all, how does it feel to be part of the Bangalore Open Air<\/strong>\u00a0lineup, and what can we expect from you guys at the gig?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It feels good to know that there is activity of this scale happening –\u00a0not one headliner but two have been confirmed. Matters seem\u00a0definitely grand as of now and you can expect nothing short of the\u00a0violent dose of varied metal that we usually extend to our audience.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re probably the most \u2018modern sounding\u2019 band on this lineup.<\/strong>\u00a0Does that mean you\u2019ll have to put in extra effort to impress fans of<\/strong>\u00a0bands such as Kreator and Iced Earth?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I guess we really do not have to be concerned about who we are\u00a0catering to and how we have to alter ourselves for a different batch\u00a0of audience. I do not think any bands bother themselves with this at\u00a0all, as all the audience want at the end of the day is a good show or
\nsomething appealing to view or listen to, the band being an extract of\u00a0old or new school is secondary. We will play our best just like we’ve\u00a0always tried to.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Your debut full-length album \u201cWinding The Optics\u201d came out last<\/strong>\u00a0year. From what I know, it was written over a period of 2 years.<\/strong>\u00a0Having devoted so much time and effort into it, are you satisfied with<\/strong>\u00a0how it sounds as a final product?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Getting this one done was quite a mammoth effort and it involved many\u00a0people. The whole album was in fact done twice [except drums], as it\u00a0did not turn out as well as expected the first time over. The guitars\u00a0were quad tracked and vocals re-recorded.<\/p>\n

As young musicians, there is a first time for everything and I think\u00a0this was our first attempt in making an LP. It was our\u00a0first attempt at putting together 7 tracks from scratch. Undeniably,\u00a0there have been spells of time where one wished there was someone who
\nknew more that would look after us, tell us what to do, how to do it\u00a0etc. I think we are much more aware of how things are done and a tad\u00a0better too, as musicians than what we were 2 years ago. Hence making\u00a0the next album should be definitely more interesting and more than\u00a0engaging to look forward to. Winding the Optics is our debut effort\u00a0and I guess we are happy with the final product, the clarity and the\u00a0vision on this album. All of us have given our best for this one and I\u00a0guess we have raised the bar for ourselves and for the album to\u00a0follow.<\/p>\n

Do you feel that the progressiveness of your music gives you the<\/strong>\u00a0freedom to fuse various genres into your compositions?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, I believe not having a particular genre in mind, thinking freely\u00a0with no particular favorites, no particular bias regrading bands,\u00a0schools, sounds etc helps one in crafting something that is novel and refreshing, if not totally original, since as of this\u00a0minute it is possible for mankind to believe and say that no art nor\u00a0building nor a piece of furniture is 100 percent pure, original. Music\u00a0is no exception.<\/p>\n

Because of the eclectic nature of the music and the mixture of\u00a0these multiple genres, do you sometimes feel like it\u2019s a challenge to\u00a0maintain a steady fan base?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not really, the music we make is to cater to our vision and address\u00a0solely that, hence it is both exclusively and personal, I guess we\u00a0will aim at making steady consistent tracks which is by far more\u00a0challenging than to maintain a steady fan base.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve listed Meshuggah, Cynic, Death and Tool as your major<\/strong>
\n influences. But other than those, what are some of the not-so-obvious<\/strong>
\n bands or musicians that you draw inspiration from?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We draw our influences from newer bands like Hacride, Soilwork,\u00a0Leprous, Isis, Concealment, and many more. I\u00a0think Nevermore has been one of our favourite band, so I\u00a0guess it\u00a0qualifies as a major influence too.\u00a0Understanding one’s instrument is so important.\u00a0Quality and attention to detail is also very important,\u00a0one can always check out and get inspired by some of these jazz\/fusion\u00a0artists. Musicianship is easily at its peak among such bands.<\/p>\n

Have you had a chance to write any more new material after the\u00a0album was released?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We have had not many opportunities to sit down,to discuss, to try out\u00a0things anew but I think we do have one new song approximately 4 minutes in length.\u00a0We are waiting to be regrouped as of now, then things might start to cook.<\/p>\n

What are your plans for the rest of the year, in terms of gigs?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since things are getting tougher – our agenda is very clear, either\u00a0show us the peak-money or show us the peak-slot\/stage time, we will\u00a0keep our eyes open for substantial gigs and varied organizers that\u00a0come our way. Other than this we might look for opportunities
\nregarding a good record deal in the future with a label that we think\u00a0might suit us.<\/p>\n

In India, I\u2019ve noticed that different parts of the country have\u00a0different tastes in music. There\u2019s a strong old-school metal thing\u00a0going on in Bangalore, I think. Do you agree with that?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have been waiting for someone to ask me about this. I think you ve\u00a0noticed it wrong or there have been way too many people\u00a0vouching\/quarrelling\/praising for things that are old school. I think, I\u00a0feel there is a strong blind sense of superiority that old school\u00a0metal fans come with against newly produced music\/newschool\/metalcore.\u00a0Personally, I would have to say it is too much of the rebel without a\u00a0cause. The vitality of old-school might be preserved, fought\u00a0for, definitely there are people who remember their roots. But at the same\u00a0time one cannot wink a blind-eye to the advancements the new school
\nhas yielded in the field of “production”, “song-writing” and most\u00a0importantly “dynamics”. It is quite significant [sometimes even\u00a0unmatched in my opinion] and must be kept in mind. There is enough excitement in\u00a0both schools. I think one must realize that it is pointless being\u00a0separated as new\/old school. I do not see how it is an advantage in\u00a0today\u2019s context. All that people [musicians\/listeners] should care\u00a0about is good music, i.e. a bunch of real solid, tasty riffs played\u00a0tight. So I have to infer by saying that there are people who like
\nboth schools in Bangalore, there is no such strong old school metal\u00a0thing going on, no eternal force that is carrying any torch in here\u00a0that I can feel but sure as fuck there is a lot of unwanted \u2018talk\u2019 on\u00a0this topic which could get real annoying.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve already performed with some well-known international acts\u00a0on various stages. But which is the one band you still dream about\u00a0performing with?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think we would have really liked to be on the same gig\/tour with Nevermore and\u00a0Death. Unfortunately for us, we are a few decades behind\u00a0schedule (laughs).<\/p>\n

[Buy Bangalore Open Air tickets at this location<\/a><\/strong>]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Aniruddh “Andrew” Bansal Bangalore-based progressive metal band Eccentric Pendulum will be a part of the inaugural Bangalore Open Air festival, set to take place on June 16th. The band’s eclectic music will certainly add a lot to the already diverse lineup, with the likes of Kreator, Suidakra, Kryptos, Dying Embrace, Bevar Sea, 1833 A.D. … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Eccentric Pendulum Bassist Discusses Bangalore Open Air, Influences & New-School Metal”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=764"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions\/777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/metalassault.com\/Interviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}