Arts
They just wanted to write music and have fun
Constantly evolving and embracing a new generation of fans: Stigmata today. Pic by Prasanna Welangoda
Back when they first got up on stage 19 years ago at S. Thomas’ College, heavy metal band Stigmata could never have imagined they’d be where they are today. Playing to a school audience, things could not have been stranger, especially because the genre was almost unheard of at the time.
As the band’s frontman Suresh De Silva puts it, this was not one of their proudest moments. The boys were still finding their sound and he recalls the small audience, of which quite a few decided to leave.
In fact a lot of their early shows weren’t the greatest. They had no idea how to prepare a song list, let alone connect with a crowd properly. They just wanted to write their own music and have fun.
But if he were to go back he’d not change a thing, Suresh says, because those early concerts “with their lack of maturity and experience” taught them that you can’t become a champion overnight. “To become a champion and deliver many knockouts, you have to first know what it’s like to be knocked out yourself.” And Stigmata had a lot of those which made them better performers and artists.
Today, they are a completely different beast. What has remained a constant is that attitude to conquer. They’ve changed but still look to give people just what they want, which is one “hell of a show.” Come April 6, as they celebrate their 19th anniversary at the ‘Atelier- House of Performing Arts, Ratmalana, fans can expect nothing less.
It will be a monumental gig in Suresh’s words. For the first time, they will be doing a full show broken into two slots – a fully acoustic, unplugged set in the first half and their heavier tunes in the second.
When Suresh first walked into the studio and the guys told him they were trying out an acoustic version of ‘Swine Maker’ one of the band’s heavier songs, “I said ‘sure whatever guys,’ not entirely convinced.” But he was soon to change his mind when they played it for him.
Based on the response they received at their last performance at TNL’s ‘Simplicity’ on March 3, and how much fun they had, the band decided to try out more acoustic set lists. But we’re also looking to cover songs which are crowd favourites as well as some of the tunes which we haven’t performed in a while, Suresh tells us.
Getting used to a particular formula of knowing what works is a scary process, because you don’t want to mess with it. You don’t want to let down your fans but at the same time, you want to give them something more and maybe attract a different audience in the process without compromising your artistic integrity, he says.
And this is just what the band is trying out with their new line-up: Hafzel Preena on drums, Thisara Dhananjaya on bass, Shafeek Shuail and Tennyson Napoleon on guitar. This was the combo that won the Asian Music Video Awards in 2018 with ‘Heavy is the head that wears the crown’.
Nineteen years on the band feel it’s a wonderful thing to have inspired younger generations. But they didn’t form as a band with this in mind. At the time they just wanted to get the next single out as fast as possible.
Once people understand what has gone into the music and why it is the way it is, their appreciation for it grows. “Then it wouldn’t matter if you’re tall, dark, rich or poor. You’re still welcome and that’s the beauty of it.”
As Suresh puts it, once you create art and release it to the world, it’s no longer yours. How people embrace new music, and what they do with it is out of your reach. “The reality of it is what we’re creating is art that affects people. And if it impacts them and if it touches them I think you can’t ask for anything more.”
Tickets for the show on April 6 are priced at Rs. 700 (early bird) and Rs. 1000 at the gate.
For more info log onto their event page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/251453295762691/
On our cover: Stigmata performing at TNL’s Simplicty at The Stables, Park Street Mews