Interview with AGAINST EVIL
!!!BONE CRUSHING HEAVY METAL FROM INDIA!!!
We had a conversation with Shasank Venkat (Guitars). Enjoy!
Welcome to the FILTHY DOGS OF METAL Webzine.
The last time we talked was 3 years ago. It was when you released your album "End of the Line". Now, you are going to release your new full length studio album "Give 'Em Hell". Tell us a few things about this project.
We started working on this album right after we got back home from our 2023 European tour in May. We only had one riff written by then, but we were so pumped up with energy after the tour that the songs came together really quickly and we managed to finish writing by the end of the year, followed by the recording process.
The cover artwork has a great atmosphere! Tell us a few things about it.
We actually came up with the cover idea before the album title. All our album covers featured the band so we wanted to continue the tradition and turn the craziness up a notch! and what better way to do that than have a bunch of metalheads fight an alien invasion in the middle of a concert! Thanks to our incredibly talented artist (All Things Rotten), the end result is a page right out of a heavy metal comic book and later when we came up with the title, it was a perfect fit.
What about the lyrics of the new album?
As always, we don't really have a concept for lyrics and we write them after we finish the instrumental songs. We go with the flow and vibe of the instrumental songs which gives the us the idea about themes and lyrics and we go from there.
Recently you have released on your YouTube Channel your new official music video "Give 'Em Hell". Tell us about this experience of making a video clip.
It was very a very difficult video to make. The summer has been brutal for us with temperatures going up till almost 50 degrees in some parts of the country. Even though we recorded it during the evening, we were sweating like pigs cause we were dressed in denim and leather and with pyro machines blasting heat behind us! But it was also a lot of fun and turned out great in the end.
How did your cooperation with Doc Gator Records occur?
Some friends of the label saw our videos on YouTube and recommended us. The label then contacted us in 2018 for an exclusive European release of our album "All Hail the King" in CD and Vinyl and the rest is history. This is our third album together and we are super happy to have found such a dedicated and like-minded team to work with.
Is there any funny or weird story from the recordings or from your live shows that you would like to share with us?
We were kinda reckless and never carried a backup guitar during tour. But last year, our tour manager Oli got his guitar with him just in case we needed a backup. On the last show of the tour, our vocalist/guitarist Sravan broke a string in the middle of the set and the backup guitar saved our asses! all thanks to our tour manager who still jokes about it. Lesson learned and we will always carry a backup going forward!
The last 4 years we have faced many dark, strange & new situations with our everyday life (covid, lock-down etc.) worldwide. Did this situation affect you, positively or negatively?
It was a mix of both actually. It was a very scary situation with our family members in hospital due to the virus and depression due to cancelled tours, etc. But we didn't let it affect us too negatively. Thanks to the support of our friends in Doc Gator and our amazing fans, we bounced back with an amazing tour in 2023 and a kickass new album + tour in 2024.
What shall we expect from AGAINST EVIL in the near future?
We will continue making kick-ass music followed by tours every year. We also hope to explore and tour new counties such as the US, Canada, Australia to name a few. We don't really like to think a lot and plan ahead for the future. Best to go with the flow!
Thank you very much for your time & keep up the good work! The closure is yours.
Thanks a lot for taking the time to do this interview. I hope you and the followers of our webzine enjoy the new album as much as we do and to all those in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, we hope to see you on our upcoming tour during August and September. Please follow our socials for all the info and updates. Cheers and stay metal! - Shasank
By Steve the Filthy Dog.
PS. Many thanks to Markus (https://www.facebook.com/MetalMessage.Global) for this interview (Cheers mate!).
Photo Credits: Into the Lens
AGAINST EVIL CONTACT:
https://www.facebook.com/againstevil.india
https://www.instagram.com/againstevil.india
https://againstevil.bandcamp.com/album/give-em-hell
https://open.spotify.com/artist/7KidUKr9UKzJ7SA5RZYCy9