Interviews: Warmarshal

On this new occasion, we had the opportunity to interview the Death Metal band Warmarshal from India. Check out the interview and follow this band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name? Did you plan it or came out like that?

After being a part of multiple thrash and death metal bands, it felt like a normal evolution to combine the best of both worlds. Always had the tendency to write on social injustice, the evils of organised religion, and the crimes committed against humanity, which made us think that there should be a voice of a leader (marshal) from the depths that screams a war cry against this injustice. Hence, Warmarshal.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

Death metal is considered to be the jazz of metal, breaking all rules of how a song or its structure should be. Also, the three of us come from very diverse musical tastes and backgrounds, with a common love for death metal.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

We met each other when the older lineup of Warmarshal was playing at a show, and a band called Lurid was on the bill. Akash and Hubert used to be Lurid’s drummer and bassist, respectively, and I was on the hunt for people who could justify the execution of WM songs from the first EP - …To Regain Lost Glory. We met each other through a mutual sound engineer and close friend, who mixed both the bands that day, Tarun Krishna, in 2018, and from that the lineup has been consistent.

4. Each band member's favourite band?

Soumick - Slayer

Hubert - Tool

Akash - Porcupine Tree

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

Too much shit is going around in this universe. Not only are we fucking up the planet, but also we, in general, as human beings, give in to our vices of not being considerate enough to other beings. This mass murdering of people in the name of political supremacy, wars, and the useless lives lost, the propaganda of organised religion and faith, the capitalisation and commodification of basic human needs like education, healthcare, and basic human rights, the competition of whose faith or religion is the greatest - all these phenomena trigger us to write what we write.

6. Where was your last gig?

We played last at Death over Deccan - a gig by DethFest on May 1st in Hyderabad, India. Small underground venue - EXT, passionate local crowd - nothing beats that! Our next show is on Oct 5th, right after the release of “The Diseased”, supporting Demonic Resurrection at AntiSocial, Mumbai, India.

7. Where would you like to act?

It would be lovely to play the holy grounds of Wacken and Mountains of Death - if they ever come back. Maryland DF, Obscene Extreme, Hellfest, Brutal Assault, and Resurrection would be the other fests where we would like to go. Locally, Bangalore Open Air. Also want to play East Asia - they have a budding death metal underground scene with bands we like - Humiliation, Jasad. Touring internationally is definitely on our bucket list.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Gojira, Dying Fetus, Decapitated, or any underground acts with matching energy.

9. Whom not?

Warmarshal focuses on delivering a specific death metal experience, so we usually avoid playing with bands whose style is very far from ours, like pop or mellow acoustic acts, to give our audience the show they expect.

10. Have any of you ever suffered from stage fright? Any tips for beginners on how to beat that?

Soumick has been into theatre and recitation from a very young age performing in different plays and recital/debate competitions. Similarly, Akash and Hubert have been filling in for musicians and friends in many projects from a very young age - more like full-time musicians - hence, stage fright is something which our band is not very worried about at this point. Still, we get the jitters sometimes, and a gulp of ‘here’ or a drag of ‘there’ helps! 😅 Tips for beginners - Try starting young, and only by making mistakes on stage can you figure out how to recover from that mistake, and most importantly, have fun!

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

Our local Indian bands who have made it big in the global circuit inspire us a lot. Bloodywood, Kryptos, Gutslit, Godless, Amorphia, Demonic Resurrection, Inner Sanctum, Zygnema - for carrying the metal torch from India, because getting a metal band out from a Bollywood-dominated country and cover music-oriented scene is a major challenge for we younger bands. Still, we are grateful that new festivals have come up, where still newer, heavier acts are getting called to perform.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

Autographs! We are a bunch of nobodies!

13. What do you think of your fans?

We just don't have fans, we like to call it an army! Each and every one who has the zeal to do good in their heart will always be called a Marshal. And the name of this whole movement is Warmarshal.

14. What do you think of our site?

We think the website does a great job of showcasing a lot of content for underground metal and related genres. The variety — interviews, track-by-tracks, behind the artworks, news — makes it clear that you folks are deeply involved in the scene, and the navigation is comprehensive. It also has a strong DIY vibe, which really connects with the underground community.

15. Something to add?

Thank you for having us. Keep supporting underground music, stay true to your sound, and to whoever ever reading this, help us to get in touch with your local promoter for live shows!