Bhopali four-piece death metal band Elemental will be playing in Germany after winning the prestigious Wacken Metal Battle India competition finals in Bengaluru on Saturday, 9th July. They will be visiting Wacken Open Air in Germany, one of the biggest heavy metal music festival in the world held from 4th - 6th August 2016.
Elemental was the only band from central India to travel to Bengaluru and play against finalists from different parts of the country including Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Guwahati, and more. There were no eliminations held in Bhopal, so the band had to travel to Mumbai to compete. The band landed up in the finals after the Mumbai leg of the competition got cancelled.
After playing against bands like Godless, Gaia’s Throne, Vidyut, etc., Elemental were announced winners of the final round held at Vapour in Bengaluru just one day before Bangalore Open Air. Started in India by Salman U Syed, the Wacken Metal Battle is a competition in association with the international festival Wacken Open Air in Germany, where bands from across the country compete and the winner gets a chance to play against national finalists from around 30 other countries worldwide.
“This is a huge opportunity for us! We want to make a mark and make India shine.” said the band’s vocalist Anchal Bhargava.
Big Indian metal music bands like Eccentric Pendulum, Zygnema, Plague Throat and more have played at the Wacken Metal Battle finals in the past. The Department of Arts and Culture in Meghalaya supported Shillong’s death metal band Plague Throat last year, so they could compete in the international finale.
The Wacken Metal Battle has been in India for the past five years along with the festival Bangalore Open Air that has seen many international performances in the country since the first edition. Big heavy metal music bands like Kreator, Vader, Animals as Leaders and more visited the festival in the past few years.
This is the first time a band from an unexpected city has made it so big. Salman U Syed, organizer of the Wacken Metal Battle and Bangalore Open Air said, " I never expected a band from Bhopal to win this competition. It looks like the metal music community has also reached the smaller cities! Hope the band wins this year at Wacken."
We wish Elemental all the best and I'm personally extremely proud of them. Wave that Indian flag, motherfuckers!!
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About Elemental:
Elemental is a four-piece Bhopali death metal band from India. The band was founded in September 2012 by members Anchal Bhargava on vocals, Aman 'Ricky' Sharma on guitars and Divyaraj Bhatnagar on drums. Their blend of straight-up, no nonsense death metal makes them one of India's finest exports in this genre. The band will be supporting Polish metal giants Behemoth in India this September. They have headlined college festivals, won over 40 competitions, and played at big music festivals like BIG69, Shillong metal rock, toured with death metallers IIIrd Sovereign and Indian grind pioneers Gutslit, and much more.
The band's music general revolves around fighting against corruption, racism, violence and man-made disasters, uplifting the weak and underprivileged. Disturbed by the environs of central India, Elemental's debut album 'Creation of the Damned' is the voice of those who suffered in the tragic Bhopal gas tragedy a few decades ago. Be assured to be in for a treat.
About Wacken Open Air:
Wacken Open Air (W:O:A) is a summer open-air heavy metal music festival. It takes place annually in the small village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. With 80,000 festival visitors, and including personnel a total of roughly 86,000 attendees in 2011, it attracts various kinds of metal and hard rock music fans.
The festival was first held in 1990 as a small event for local German bands. W:O:A is usually held at the beginning of August and lasts now four days. It is currently considered the biggest heavy metal festival in the world. The festival ends traditionally on the first Sunday of August and on Monday 0:00 o'clock, ticket sales open for the next year. Remarkably, all 75,000 tickets were sold out within 43 hours in 2014, within 12 hours in 2015 and 23 hours in 2016, despite the fact that the lineup (with the exception of rumors or headliners) had not been announced, which is probably unique for a music festival of any kind.
Elemental was the only band from central India to travel to Bengaluru and play against finalists from different parts of the country including Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Guwahati, and more. There were no eliminations held in Bhopal, so the band had to travel to Mumbai to compete. The band landed up in the finals after the Mumbai leg of the competition got cancelled.
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| L to R: Divyaraj Bhatnagar (drummer), Aman 'Ricky' Sharma (guitar), Anchal Bhargava (vocals) |
After playing against bands like Godless, Gaia’s Throne, Vidyut, etc., Elemental were announced winners of the final round held at Vapour in Bengaluru just one day before Bangalore Open Air. Started in India by Salman U Syed, the Wacken Metal Battle is a competition in association with the international festival Wacken Open Air in Germany, where bands from across the country compete and the winner gets a chance to play against national finalists from around 30 other countries worldwide.
“This is a huge opportunity for us! We want to make a mark and make India shine.” said the band’s vocalist Anchal Bhargava.
Big Indian metal music bands like Eccentric Pendulum, Zygnema, Plague Throat and more have played at the Wacken Metal Battle finals in the past. The Department of Arts and Culture in Meghalaya supported Shillong’s death metal band Plague Throat last year, so they could compete in the international finale.
The Wacken Metal Battle has been in India for the past five years along with the festival Bangalore Open Air that has seen many international performances in the country since the first edition. Big heavy metal music bands like Kreator, Vader, Animals as Leaders and more visited the festival in the past few years.
This is the first time a band from an unexpected city has made it so big. Salman U Syed, organizer of the Wacken Metal Battle and Bangalore Open Air said, " I never expected a band from Bhopal to win this competition. It looks like the metal music community has also reached the smaller cities! Hope the band wins this year at Wacken."
We wish Elemental all the best and I'm personally extremely proud of them. Wave that Indian flag, motherfuckers!!
________________________________________________________
About Elemental:
Elemental is a four-piece Bhopali death metal band from India. The band was founded in September 2012 by members Anchal Bhargava on vocals, Aman 'Ricky' Sharma on guitars and Divyaraj Bhatnagar on drums. Their blend of straight-up, no nonsense death metal makes them one of India's finest exports in this genre. The band will be supporting Polish metal giants Behemoth in India this September. They have headlined college festivals, won over 40 competitions, and played at big music festivals like BIG69, Shillong metal rock, toured with death metallers IIIrd Sovereign and Indian grind pioneers Gutslit, and much more.
The band's music general revolves around fighting against corruption, racism, violence and man-made disasters, uplifting the weak and underprivileged. Disturbed by the environs of central India, Elemental's debut album 'Creation of the Damned' is the voice of those who suffered in the tragic Bhopal gas tragedy a few decades ago. Be assured to be in for a treat.
About Wacken Open Air:
Wacken Open Air (W:O:A) is a summer open-air heavy metal music festival. It takes place annually in the small village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. With 80,000 festival visitors, and including personnel a total of roughly 86,000 attendees in 2011, it attracts various kinds of metal and hard rock music fans.
The festival was first held in 1990 as a small event for local German bands. W:O:A is usually held at the beginning of August and lasts now four days. It is currently considered the biggest heavy metal festival in the world. The festival ends traditionally on the first Sunday of August and on Monday 0:00 o'clock, ticket sales open for the next year. Remarkably, all 75,000 tickets were sold out within 43 hours in 2014, within 12 hours in 2015 and 23 hours in 2016, despite the fact that the lineup (with the exception of rumors or headliners) had not been announced, which is probably unique for a music festival of any kind.
