MUMBAI: Mumbai-based Metal trio Midhaven blends traditional Indian strains with traditional & progressive Metal with 7-track concept album ‘Of The Lotus & The Thunderbolt’.  

The Band Members include Karan Kaul (KK) for Vocals/ Guitar, Aditya Mohanan (AM) for Guitars/ Vocals and Aviraj Kumar (AK) for Drums. Midhaven brings an Indic touch and witnesses the musicians diving head on into the layered concept of time itself, as they pay homage to Shiva as Mahakaal - the ‘ruler of time’. The album consists of Para Bhahman, Primal, Codeman, The Immanent Effervescence of Sorrow, Zhitro, Mahakaal and Bhairav. To know more about the album Radioandmusic got in touch with Midhaven for more details.  

Tell us the story behind “Of The Lotus & The Thunderbolt”?

The album, in essence, is about time. Not clockwork time. Universal, cyclical time. We've grown up with a belief system that has repeatedly told us that things that have happened will happen yet again, and again, and again.

Time is seen as a continuum, and there are more universes than just this one. These are subjects we’ve debated and discussed from time immemorial. From the ancients, right down to us, this is how time is experienced where we come from. So naturally, when we started discussing lyrical concepts, time is something that all subjects were ultimately pointing toward. We were acting from an awareness that in this grand circuit of the cosmos, the self is constantly recreated in every moment. It’s not just about time, it’s also about a very personal experience of that time, through the aeons as life itself. It ultimately boils down to how time chisels to perfection to one universal soul that finds itself echoed in every living being.

For reasons not entirely known to us, it felt as though time channelled itself through us for the creation of this album. We were merely conduits in this process.

What made you blend traditional Indian strains with traditional & progressive Metal?

As a band, we have always naturally blended in our Indian roots with heavy metal music and it started from the very first album we wrote. As musicians, we're all open to and promote experimental elements during our creative process. Having said that, we haven't used 'Indian' instruments in the recording process for this album.

Tell us more about your band’s journey so far? As also your thoughts on the Metal scene

Midhaven was formed around 2012-13 between 4 guys who were in college and wanted to play heavy metal. The band has gone through a number of line-up changes that hindered our growth and resulted in long gaps between albums and music releases. The release of this album is a statement of our intent in making a mark in the global metal community.

The metal scene lacks enthusiasm at the moment due to the unfortunate effects of covid-19. Live music is a huge part of the culture and music experience for fans and the band. We hope things get better soon, but till then we urge people to stay safe, at home and keep spirits high.

Future projects?

We're focusing on creating a lot more content that people can easily consume at home like a live studio session for the latest album.

In terms of a new album, we've already started writing tunes for our next album. The band has reunited after a long long time due to covid restrictions and it's been an absolute blast hitting the jam room again.