Storming the scene with Shiva

Like their name suggests, they stand for the oppressed and the downtrodden. While most bands sing about love and its many facets, The Downtroddence (TDT) sing, or rather, growl about the ills in society and tries to give it a glimpse of reality.Their latest album, Shiva, reflects the ideals of the band, is steeped in Hindu mythology and is a kind of conversation between Lord Shiva and Sankaracharya. Shiva appears in the guise of a low caste, depicted by the traditional ‘Pottan Theyyam.’ The former takes on his real avatar at the end but only after enlightening the latter that caste is only skin-deep; the fact that one of them wears a ‘poonool’ (sacred thread) doesn’t really make a difference. The lyrics, which are in Sanskrit, cannot be easily deciphered. The confused can look up the description which accompanies the video uploaded on youtube.Shot in a dense forest in the dark, ‘Shiva’ has certain gruesome scenes such as that of Ravana playing a veena made out his bloody intestines as part of his penance. “But then, metal is not meant to be soothing,” says Munz, vocalist. The story of Ravana is woven into the main thread of the video, which has been directed by Saju K Salam, while Jayesh Mohan and Clint Soman wield the camera. Shiva is the debut video of the Kannur-based band comprising Munz on the vocals, Ganesh on the drums, Sushin on the keys, Varun on the lead guitar, Rinoy on the rhythm guitar and Nezer on the bass. The metal scene in Kannur is not that bright, they agree. Most of them are still in college and finding it difficult to find sponsors for their albums.“Thankfully our families have been very supportive, which has helped us reach this far,” they say. They made their entry with their single, ‘Death Vanity,’ which was well-received. ‘Shiva’ has also found its way to the metal chart in Reverbnation. It will soon be aired on TV channels so watch out or check out the site www.youtube.com/TheDownTroddence.