14th May, 2011: The most anticipated and awaited rock fest of Sikkim, North Eastern Rockers (NER) was finally here. Well it was 4:00 PM already on Day 1 (scheduled time) when I reached the venue and the gate was still to open. I was really excited and was restless to get inside the stage area. But the organizers “The Alpine Attitude” were not letting anyone from the crowd to even peep in until 5:00 PM. I could hear the sound check of the performing bands and my excitement was only increasing. My curiousness led me to the venue manager of “The Alpine Attitude” and I found out that the bands were still doing their sound check. Now this was something new. The organizers were giving time for sound check to the bands who were here for competition. I have never heard any bands getting chance to check their sound in a competitive format. I was quite impressed with the organizers but at the same time was disappointed about the time management. By the time I was checked for the genuineness of my ticket then stamped, it was 5:30 already. Whoa, on entering the venue I could hardly complain for the late gate opening. The sound check was still on but to be as close as to the first row, I was damn excited and guess what I traded to write the article to which I was even given the all access card. The odd crowd of around 600 were now starting to use F-word and were yelling to get on with the show as it was already 6:15 PM.
Finally around, 6:30 PM, the host announced the name of the first performer of the evening. They were What Escapes Me from Kolkata. The crowd was still flushing their anger but when “What Escapes Me” took to the stage, oh boy, I was happy or what. I had heard their song “Pseudo Showcase” in the official website of the event but I can tell you, these guys are 200% better when they are performing live. Back to back, they played their originals and I can say these guys have a trademark of a melody line in each of their songs. Use of clean guitars with delay with a strong rhythm, bass and killer drums was innovative. I turned back to see if the crowd was still in their flushed mood but it was not surprising to see everyone headbang to every tune played by What Escapes Me. Hats off to these guys. I am not gonna miss the band if they perform again in Gangtok.
The next in the row was Circle’s End from Darjeeling. The expectations are always high when there is a band from Darjeeling as the place has always produced good musicians. But probably due to the technical glitches, the band could not match the level already set by the previous band. But I must say, the vocalist of the band was crazy and crowd hooted for him when he tore his t-shirt into pieces. His expressions were really something but not complementing to the band’s music.
Then came the band who were probably the favourites to win the title. They were Cynical Recessfrom Kolkata. The band entered the stage and they were looking confident and their performance reflected same. But it was disappointing to see the band stop midway in their very first song. In fact, they performed only two songs. They took lot of time to overcome their technical problems. In my personal view, the band should have continued to play their song even with the technical snag like every other band. It looked awful and very unprofessional. But their second song, “Better Tomorrow” complemented for everything. It is the best song I have heard in recent times. The vocalist was awesome with his melody lines and pitches. Guitars flowed with real feel of the song. The crowd was left asking for more. It would be nice to watch these guys in a concert rather than competition.
Dark Murder Scheme, a group of very young lads, who have previously performed here in Gangtok took to the stage next. Their age has nothing to do with the sound of the band. The crowd chanted DMS, DMS. These guys are the powerful pack of performers and their power travelled through to the crowd. The crowd were again on their feet head-banging along with the band. However, the band got a little sluggish midway. Probably continuous power-packed performance took its toll on the band. Anyways, the band got the spirit going. These guys will surely go a long way.
The final performer of the day called themselves “Sinister Violence”. One word can describe their performance, “flawless”. A real tight band with awesome vocalist, these guys will surely make a mark in the metal scene of India, if they stick to doing what they do. Their originals had a very good flavour of keys which added to the dark sound of the band. Everything about their performance was right. Energy level, progressions, renditions, etc. well you may call me a biased fan but I am sure everyone who were present to witness this band will agree with me. They were f**king awesome. They will add a new chapter in the metal scene of India that is for sure.
Most of the crowd left without waiting for the results probably as it was obvious and expected. Two bands were to be selected and there was no prize for guessing. They were the one who started the show, What Escapes Me from Kolkata and the one who concluded it, Sinister Violence from Darjeeling. All in all NER – 2011 Day 1 was truly bigger, better and tougher as claimed by the organizers, “The Alpine Attitude”.
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean.