Metal bands are found a dime a dozen in the Indian underground music scene. Almost every second band these days is a metal band. In spite of the numbers in place, to find good world-class Indian metal is a rarity. The pick of all these bands that have adorned the Indian auditoriums, would probably be India’s first metal band going by the name Millennium. The band formed way back in Bangalore in 1985, when today’s day rockers were still in their diapers. In their hay days, the band became one of the mightiest heavy acts in India, touring the nation from head to toe. Their self-titled album Millennium was out in 1994. Here’s a walk down memory lane at what could be called Indian metal’s glorious past, as we revisit the album.

The first impression one gets of the album would be how raw a sound the band has despite being around for almost a decade at the time. The bands balls out ability of the band to play hard hitting metal is commendable. Twist of faith, which would become of the band’s most famous numbers, is devilishly good. The track with its Judas Priest like riffs is doubled up by Vehrnon’s rough vocals. Staying on the thrash side of heavy metal are tracks Only be one and FYA. Comparisons to these tracks could be made right down from Slayer to Pantera.

To avoid the album from just running down a one way road the band has stepped out of their thrash shoes and added slow clean harmonies on several tracks. Apart from the change in instrumentation what’s interesting is how Vehrnon’s vocals also change to suit the different backdrops of the songs. While Twist of faith was all out thrash with typical down hitting riffs and punk inspired vocals, Grey changes the setting entirely. The song would fall more easily into the bracket of some of the more contemporary bands. On Feather, the band pulls the hand brake and parks the car in the territory of some down tuned guitar chugging which certainly disappoints against the fast paced setting of the rest of the album.

For those wanting to mosh or simply head bang to some Indian metal look no further than Final Sigh. The song holds together some of the most raging riffs ever written nationally or internationally. On Child of Pain, the band alters their sound yet again and this time to drastic degrees. Surprisingly in spite of the heavy alteration the band manages to pass the song through to the other side of the fence without making it sound unwanted and out of place. Less hard cornered than some of the other tracks, the song surely holds it own on the album.

Well for those wondering when Indian metal is gonna acquire the standards set by some of their international counterparts there is news. Millenium has already acquired that level with their album, that too in 1994. The bands collective and individual elements can be put on the same platform as any international band and that is saying a lot about the band. The band’s comeback is a sign of things to come. The godfathers of Indian metal they are and shall remain!

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Rishi Agarwal is a student of finance and is a multi genre guitarist. He likes playing with his dog, christened Elvis after The King. He lives off the likes of Hendrix and Clapton , and aspires to one day jam with John Mclaughlin of The Mahavishnu Orchestra.