Malevolent Creation. Photo: Courtesy of Bangalore Death Fest
If the Indian music fans across genres has been spoiled for choice when it comes to concerts, metalheads in the country have had it no different. This week, American death metal band Malevolent Creation make their India debut as part of their Asia tour, performing on Dec. 15 at the second edition of Bangalore Death Fest in Bengaluru.
Straight from the early Nineties, Malevolent Creation have had the speed, rawness and intensity that arguably helped shaped death metal. Often mentioned in the same breath as fellow Florida act Death, Malevolent Creation rose to fame on the back of towering, unrelenting albums like The Ten Commandments in 1991 and Retribution in 1992. While lineups and labels have changed over the last three decades or so, what hasn’t is the trio’s brutal death metal assault.
Guitarist and founder Phil Fasciana (who co-founded the band in 1986), drummer Ronnie Parmer (who joined in 2020) and bassist-vocalist Jesse Jolly (the most recent inductee in 2024) are making their way to India for the first time. Jolly says, “Honestly, we are just looking for the same level of chaos that we expect from many fans anywhere in the world. We had the pleasure of traveling far and wide and we have met amazing people, the fans have never let us down and we expect the same from India.”
Fasciana adds, “I just want to play an awesome show and as long as people want to see us again we would be happy to come back again.”
The Asia tour they’re on has so far taken Malevolent Creation to countries like Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and even Mongolia. Their last stop, after shows in China and the United Arab Emirates, comes in India. It’s intentional that they’ve sought out new territories in Asia and it’s not just about playing once, but about “establishing a strong foothold” in countries like India, Jolly says.
Parmer adds that he has a few friends in India who have been sending him metal from India and Jolly says that the band is excited to check out local acts at the gig. At Bangalore Death Fest, Malevolent Creation are supported by Darjeeling-origin tech-death band Obliterating Vortex, Chennai death metallers Moral Putrefaction and recently-formed Bengaluru-based progressive death metal band Virodh.
In terms of the setlist, Jolly promises it’s “going to be fast, chaotic and fucking brutal for India.” Parmer adds that there will of course be songs off Retribution as well as Eternal from 1995. A visit from death metal veterans like Malevolent Creation perhaps reinforces the power of the subgenre. Parmer feels the genre is “continues to get better and stronger and I’m not surprised.”
To that end, there are reissues coming up of the band’s seminal albums The Ten Commandments, Retribution and Stillborn. Then, there’s a new album expected. Fasciana adds, “After Christmas, no more shows, we’re going to just work out our new record, get that recorded and then we going to tour like it’s no one’s business. The new record is going to be fast, fucking brutal. Expect the first single that we drop to be devastating.”
Get Bangalore Death Fest 2024 tickets here.
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