Heavy metal has never been music to Delhi ears. We are synonymous with bhangra and Bollywood nites. However, the winds of change have been blowing furiously over the Capital, transforming its music scene and hoisting it alongside Mumbai and Bangalore as a hotspot for metal acts. Local bands are playing it up, international acts are stopping by, and young listeners no longer associate metal with violent music for angst-ridden individuals.

At the 13th edition of the Great Indian Rock Festival — to be held at Pragati Maidan on October 24 and 25 — guests can burn their souls to the sounds of two international metal bands, Benea Reach and Intronaut. “Metal as a genre has increased in popularity over the past few years, but the definition of metal changes with every generation. Deep Purple was considered metal in the 1970 but today it’s called classic rock. Metal is a slightly harder music but it is getting its share of audience now,” says Amit Saigal, founder of the festival, which has showcased some of the best in Indian rock and metal as well as introduced international metal stalwarts such as Enslaved, Satyricon and Freak Kitchen to India. Benea Reach is a progressive metal band from Oslo, Norway, and Intronaut is a post-metal band from Los Angeles, California.

When the Eastwind Festival gets underway in January, the line-up will have its own metal feel. “Though metal existed even a few years ago, its growing popularity cannot be ignored,” says Adhiraj Mustafi, founder of Eastwind Festival, which enters its second year. Apart from foreign metal bands, the festival will include “bands from across genre and metal as a sound will have its own space.” Over the past two years, international heavyweights like Iron Maiden, Sepultura, Megadeth, Machine Head, Megadeth, Satyricon, Enslaved and Opeth have performed in Delhi , and in the coming months, we may see gigs by Guns and Roses and Textures among others.

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