MUMBAI: Indian Metal band Demonic Resurrection will be performing at the Wacken Open Air 2014 in northern Germany, which will take place from 31 July to 2 August. The festival, in its 25th year, is the biggest open air heavy metal festival in the world and is already sold out.

Sahil ‘Demonstealer' Makhija, vocalist and rhythm guitarist with Demonic Resurrection, spoke about how the band got in touch with the festival. "We as a band have been approaching festivals for a long time now, which is the logical step for any band of our level. Two years ago, Wacken started the Metal Battle in India, where the winning band played the battle of the bands at Wacken. The promoter of that show started the Bangalore Open Air in India, which we performed at in 2013. There, we met some of the people from WOA. I guess that probably helped us is some way, and also helped them put a face to the band that they have been receiving mails from; and then, obviously, seeing us live as well," explained Makhija.

The 14 year-old band plans on heading to Europe early and will begin with Scotland where, they will perform at the Les-Fest in Glasgow on 17 June. Following that, they will be doing a run of shows across UK and Europe, and will end their Euro-tour with Wacken.

Makhija, who has performed with his band at the Inferno Festival and Brutal Assault, believes that artistes are piggybacking on the indie scene; it has reached a point where bands are close to making a living off music, and that metal is not far behind.

Speaking about the metal scene in India, Makhija said, "It is actually quite good. It has been a long evolution in process that continues. We have a lot of metal fans; a lot of kids are into the music and slowly we are seeing that people are remaining metal heads. Earlier, college kids used to be into metal and over time they would slip away from the genre because life would catch up with them. Now it is like a lifestyle that people are following. This means there are more audiences with more disposable income, which brings artistes some sustainability."

Compared to a country like Norway, which has about 25,000 metal bands, India does not have much of an evolved scene. But Makhija feels there are enough people listening to metal. "The only thing it does need is to become a self sustaining industry. Outside India there are radio stations and TV channels for metal and that is all got to do with the fact that there is infrastructure there and the government supports the network. In India, you need 9 crores to start a radio station. So nobody is going to start something which is not catering to the masses. That is the circle of events, irrespective of the kind of the media, because they are dependent on financial requirement.

The limited metal scene can only be helpful, in the artiste's opinion. "There can never been too many metal bands. For younger/upcoming bands, it means a lot more competition, a lot more struggle to get shows and stuff. At the same time it means there will be more quality control, which means that you have to up your game as an artiste and you have to create something different."

Simplifying the aversion that people feel about the genre, Makhija said, "I guess it has a lot to do with the sound of the music itself. It is not easy listening; no catchy beats or cheesy lyrics or things that appeal to the masses, so to speak. It is an aggressive form of music and aggression is not something that everyone is able to access and enjoy in music. In India, you cannot take the dancing out of the Indian. They love to dance, which is why mainstream Bollywood music continues to remain popular. Globally, metal is not a popular form of music because it is harsh to the ears. It is not sugar coated and fed to you via conventional television or radio. It is like the underdog and the outcast, and I guess that is what works for metal."

Makhija is also manager, drummer and sound engineer with another metal band- Reptilian Death and is part of a comedy rock band called Workshop.