IMR: Hello "CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES"! Thank you guys for doing this interview with "Team IMR". How the things at your campaign going are you really enjoying it or do you think that the band really needs to increase the pace to survive in the scene?
CATW(Sudip): Well things are going really great….and we’re enjoying every bit of it. Yes we do need to pace up as we have plans to go national with an album and various gigs and festivals in the country .We are working really hard for some more new originals .
IMR: Who came up with the idea for the formation of the band “CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES" and how did things flooded your way?
CATW(Sudip): Well, it was decided by us in the very beginning to name the band CRYSTAL, but being into thrash metal, we wanted to showcase the dark side of the genre. So we thought why not name it CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES…as the witches come out at night…basically was formed with the idea of breathing some fresh air in Kolkata's ever so monotonous music scene of covers.....and we have tried to create some fresh noise with our original compositions.
IMR: Can you name a few of the Indian/Foreign influences that are responsible for your musical upbringing and which have been the source of stimulating musical creativity for the band in general? List out some of your personal album favorites for the same?
CATW(Sudip): Well, we band members were from a metal background, so it was easy for us to get into it. MEGADETH has been the greatest foreign influence and DEMONIC RESURRECTION is also good as far as the Indian scene is concerned.
Personal favorites would be NORTHER, NIGHTWISH, CHILDREN OF BODOM, STRATOVARIUS mainly power metal and symphonic metal.
IMR: Taking a look at your OC's, which are the compositions from "CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES" that you feel they best depict the essence of the band .Also let us know, which are the elements that you try to embed in every composition needs to meet your personal criteria?
CATW(Sudip): Well, OCs is the most important for us. The lyrics are most important, and we try to get many variations in them…like progressive drumming ,twin leads, symphonic arrangements…every OC has turned out to be different, so can’t just name a particular one, but yeah if u ask for the most popular one then it has to be RESSURECTION. Basically, we are a progressive thrash metal band. We do play old school thrash but with some symphonic effects from keyboards that’s make our sound unique.
IMR:”CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES”, draws their musical influences from various genres like "Heavy Metal" and "Thrash Metal". So, I guess the name pretty much summarizes up what you guys are all about?
CATW(Sudip): Yes indeed, and we have and will always stick to our genre of progressive thrash metal.
IMR: Are the members of "CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES" involved with any side projects?
CATW(Sudip): No, not really…
IMR: Does the "Heavy Metal" scene have a forceful impact in "Kolkata" or are there other types of metal that are respected? Are there any other "Heavy Metal" (and any style of metal) bands from "Kolkata" that the readers should watch out for?
CATW(Sudip): There was hardly a metal scene in Kolkata few years back, but its great to watch many metal bands coming up and surprisingly the people are accepting original music a lot. Kolkata is always known for it’s love for classic rock, but now a day’s people are keener to hear some good original music rather than some old overplayed classic rock covers.
IMR: Describe the Asian metal scene in general. Where do you find "CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES" in the charts?
CATW(Sudip): Well, till now we only heard of it, but we shall see that for real once we release our debut album.
IMR: How would you describe the average "CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES" fans and what kind of crowds do you expect to attract with the band's gig performance on the live stage? What are your plans for the immediate future and how far do you think this band can evolve, considering the overall facts regarding the Indian Rock/Metal scene?
CATW(Sudip): Well, we have a huge fan following here, including metal heads and the average music lovers. But, wherever we played outside West Bengal, the crowd really accepted us because we are keen to make good original music that is our first preference. Yes, we do play cover from bands like Stratovarious, Norther, Children of Bodom etc. But people love us for our original sound. We do have a huge fan base in north east zone.
Our future plan is to launch our album very soon and do lots of gigs. Even, it will be nice if we get some international shows...hahaha. Indian rock and metal scene is really good now. It is really developing so we think we can make it big as people around the country love to hear metal now days. People are accepting original music more than covers so that’s our USP.
IMR: Suppose, if you were offered the chance to use an unlimited amount of money fortuitously for the band, what would be the first preference that the band would like to look forward at?
CATW(Sudip): Will go for “Rock am Ring” and “Wacken” next year...hahaha jokes apart. As a band we would look forward to a national release of our album and also the European market. Because our album is the first preference for us.
IMR: I think, that playing a festival is a great way to gain new metalheads, am I right? You guys have been winners and runners up at many of the major events, how much it added to the increasing numbers of your fan base?
CATW(Sudip): It is indeed….it has really helped us the most to get our fan base.
IMR: How would you describe your music to someone who is uneducated about the genre? You’ve been around since quite a long time. What's been your best/worst experience so far?
CATW(Sudip): Our music to an uneducated person would be simple heavy metal.
Our best experience was when we won the “Campus Rock Idols” 2006-07 regional finals and east zone finals. There was another gig at “IIM JOKA” where there was a huge mosh @ 3am when we were playing. Even the north eastern rockers gig in “Gangtok” we enjoyed there a lot. .We gain a huge fan base there from our last show there.
IMR: What kind of material should we expect to listen in the future with all your experiences? Have you decided anything on a specific set list?
CATW(Sudip): Well we would be releasing our debut album (10 tracks). It is a very diverse album, each and every track has a unique element in it, and the rest is for everyone to listen to it and comment.
IMR: Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my questions. Anything else, you would like to forward to your fans?
CATW(Sudip): Thank you so much.
Well for our fans it is all because of you guys that we are able to do what we are doing now. We do music only for you people. So keep supporting “CRYSTAL AND THE WITCHES” and keep the metal flag alive and burning \m/\m/\m/.
* Thank You "CATW" !!!
Pravin Prajapati(LordMessiah)
