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Old rock or new rock?
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Loud guitars, clanging drums and screaming vocals marked yet another JRO concert
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Music all the way... At Unwind Center
THE THIRD indoor concert of this year's JRO was held on Saturday night at the Unwind Center. Evergreen from Kochi, Parousia from Bangalore and Chaos Theory from Mumbai set out to get Chennai rocking. The evening, however, began on a sombre note as a moment's silence was observed for the victims of the Kumbakonam fire.
Evergreen got the crowd going with a rendition of `We will rock you.' Dressed in black, they then launched into `Vengeance,' their own composition, before a string of Deep Purple, Iron Maiden, Dream Theatre and Metallica tracks. Metallica's `Enter Sandman' proved to be particularly popular. Subtlety is not metal's strongest point; metal is about loud guitars and screaming vocals and that is what Evergreen had to offer. Their track `Hollow,' they say, was inspired by the documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" but the lyrics were so inaudible that it was impossible to know what the song was about.
The star of the show was undoubtedly guitarist Sunil Silvester. His skills were evident and he was popular with the crowd. Since we could not hear vocalist Joe Peter, he was only memorable for his long flowing locks. The rest of the band members looked like they didn't want to be there, playing expressionlessly and unenthusiastically.
Parousia provided some respite from Evergreen's tedium. A tight, confident band, they promised to take the crowd with them. They were enjoying themselves and it showed in their music. Lead vocalist Ranjit Abraham would make a great politician, with his hand gestures, Colgate-white smile, and obvious enthusiasm. He could have taken the crowd anywhere he pleased. They enthralled the crowd with covers of Journey, Novoux, and Whitesnake before dedicating their own track `What's going on' to the victims of the Kumbakonam tragedy.
Soon after that, however, a fatal blow of hubris struck Parousia. They went on for too long. Their cover of Dream Theatre's `Kindred Spirit,' an instrumental track, was self-indulgent and unpopular with the crowd. By the time the set ended, four tracks later, the crowd was bored and halfway out of the door.
Chaos Theory brought the crowds back in. Spurning the old and tried metal played by Evergreen for Korn and Slipknot-inspired modern metal, they clashed their guitars and banged the drums while roaring down the microphone. Theirs was youthful, aggressive, loud music full of attitude. Puny bass player Srinivas Sunderrajan did look slightly out of place. He tried to make up for it by wearing a Superman T-shirt but it was far from convincing. Guitarist Sandeep Suvarna suited the image much better playing topless and with a manic look in his eyes. While the crowd enjoyed the chaotic head-banging music, the instruments did not. Pretty soon, there were broken guitar strings and drum kits needing to be reassembled resulting in uncomfortable gaps in the music.
Apart from a few hardcore fans, the crowd began to drift away. Their preference still seemed to lie with the old classics played by Evergreen and Parousia rather than the modern tracks that Chaos Theory attempted.
DANIEL PATRICK RUSSELL
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