The Pit has been one of the premier Metal events in Kolkata for some time now; promoting the Metal scene in the city as well as providing upcoming bands a stage to show their mettle. The seventh edition was no different. The original line-up was (in no particular order) –
- Masochist Autopsy from Kolkata
- Scarface from Kolkata
- Intoxicate from Kolkata, who released their debut EP – Dawn of Apathy
- Purgation from Kolkata
- Shock Therapy from Hyderabad
- Evil Conscience from Kolkata
- Damage Era from Sikkim
- Yonsample from Kolkata
- Severe Dementia from Bangladesh
Severe Dementia were supposed to headline the event but sadly due to visa related issues they couldn’t make it for the show.
The show kicked off with Scarface. Well honestly it was not their day. Broken guitar strings on the very first song and some sound mixing related issues, the Metalcore band performed a very dismal set of 4 songs before making their way for Masochist Autopsy. One of a kind band from the city, as far as I know. This Technical Death band knows how to be Brutal. With two independent vocalists in the line-up, they killed everyone and everything with their awesome pig squeals and in your face music. One of the highlights of the night I would say.
Next up was Purgation. Pure Death Metal served right. They performed in Undergrind Fest in Bangalore last year, started off this year with 2 gigs in two consecutive weeks and are pitched to perform in Dhaka on 22nd of February, with Bangladeshi giants Orator. The Ibanez family(the guitarist and bassist play Ibanez guitars) had the momentum and got the crowd swinging into a mosh, which was later disrupted by the security guards. They played a set of 7 songs including a cover of Suffocation’s “Infecting the Krypts” and Dying Fetus to seal off their set. They were totally exhausted after the set was done. Hope to see them live again next week before they are off to Bangladesh.
Intoxicate, they were releasing their debut EP – Dawn of Apathy. I was really impressed with their music video and had to catch them live. Their set consisted of all the four songs from the new EP and they were officially the first crowd turners of the evening. There were times when the vocals did drop on the P.A. but overall it was a very tight and enjoyable performance.
Evil Conscience were next up. This was the time when the crowd was building up and they got a very good response too. Going live after a long time, with a line-up change and a new OC for the crowd, they looked tight as hell, just like a Technical Metal band should be. There were pits and there would be many sore necks for a couple of days, thanks to these guys.
Damage Era from Gangtok, Sikkim were pitched next to show their prowess. They didn’t disappoint. They were the finalists of the Wacken Metal battle from East Zone and performed in the inaugural Bangalore Open Air, which featured German Thrash Metal giants Kreator. They got a very good response from the crowd, their sound seemed very professional and needless to say they were tight throughout their set.
Shock Therapy, from Hyderabad were next up, presenting their brand of Grind. Not many takers of the genre though and it was evident as the people were constantly going in and out of the venue throughout their set. There were people who said they had no idea what the band is doing and some even called them unnecessary. They took a long time for their sound check and played a pretty long set too. But frankly the vocals didn’t impress me, specially the squeals. The growls had the right volume, but the squeals were hardly heard on the P.A. They were more or less satisfied with their set.
Yonsample – Kolkata’s very own Djentlemen were certainly the crowd favourites. There were chants of “Yonsample” as soon as Shock Therapy finished with their set. Why wouldn’t they? Yonsample have been performing for 4 consecutive editions of The Pit. They have shaped the Djent scene in the city and are pretty famous among the youth. They were not as tight as I would have liked them to be though. According to me a pretty average performance, but if you take into account of the teenagers moshing and drunkards dancing to their set, they were good enough.
Overall The Pit v7 was a great event. I have been told the turn-out was around 500+. Though they are not the official figures, but being present there in the venue throughout the event, I can surely say it was a great show. Keeping true to their spirits, The Pit organisers made sure there were no ego problems or genre biasness from their side at least. The crowd, well they’ll always have something to say about the genres. That’s how the trend is in India currently. Kudos to the organisers for their efforts and cheers to all who turned up.
