A Trainwreck in Bangalore

Trainwreck has long been one of the hardest hitters in the underground scene, obtaining a cult-like following with their originals and cover numbers. Having drawn inspiration from groove metal legends Lamb of God, the band recently shredded through the Wacken Metal Battle-Dhaka to earn a place in the Bangalore Open Air, the biggest metal concert in South Asia. The Daily Star talks to the musicians about their journey, success and future plans.

Line-up

Vocals - Abir Ahmed Shuvo

Guitars – A K Rahul 

Guitars - Ekram Wasi

Bass - Habibullah Farhan

Drums - Mark Don

Congratulations on your recent victory at Wacken Metal Battle-Dhaka. How are you preparing for the Bangalore Open Air?

First of all, we would like to thank Valor Events for making it all possible. We had some really tough competition going into the metal battle, but we came through in the end. Performing at the Bangalore Open Air in the competition section is a dream scenario for us, given the fact that we will have the opportunity to perform in the Mecca of metal music, the Wacken Open Air in Germany. Our only plan is to give our hundred percent in the competition, and the rest is up to fate.

Trainwreck has consistently been one of the most well-known underground metal bands. Has this opportunity given you new incentive?

Absolutely. Honestly, we are not as organised as a band as we would like to be. We started our journey almost a decade ago, and even though we have dedicated fans from all over the country, it was because of our live performances. In terms of tracks, we have not released as many as we should have. When Rahul (A K Rahul) joined, it was a further boost as he is arguably one of the best PR guys we have! (laughs) Either way, we are really looking forward to performing in Bangalore on February 9.

What are your ultimate goals as a band?

Over the years, we had taken a huge risk by making our original tracks in English, as that immediately limits our market locally. However, we always wanted our music to be international. The industry has slowly become stale, and we feel that it is the responsibility of the artistes to familiarise the audience with new music.

Do you have any advice for young people, who want to pursue a career in music?

Just go out there and do it! As artistes, we sometimes tend to limit ourselves to listening to only one kind of music, and that is not the way to go. We need to be open to all genres and respect them. We need to get our music out there, irrespective of how small the venue that we are performing in is, or how different our genre is.