The fuel behind Stigmata’s fire

Think of a band with catchy melodies and riffs, pumping bass lines, brutal yet technical drum lines and super powerful vocals. Enter Stigmata.

Stigmata officially began in 1999 when Suresh de Silva, Andrew Obeysekara and Tennyson Napolean decided to start something different. Since then Stigmata has become the biggest metal act in Sri Lanka with two albums to their credit.

Their latest record which was titled ‘Silent Chaos Serpentine’ has currently sold over 20,000 copies in Sri Lanka and they are steadily gaining popularity in countries like Maldives and Japan.

The band is currently working on new material to their still untitled album and they promise it will be unlike anything they've done before. The Mirror Magazine recently met up with the stigs and this is what followed.

We all know the story behind the name Stigmata. But just how much trouble did you have with Stigmata as a band name and how many names did you have before that?

Suresh : The name Stigmata was inspired by the Arch Enemy album titled 'Stigmata' and although we didn't latch on to that album, their 'Burning Bridges' album was a huge influence on us, because at the time they were a band that had a very unique sound because they combined a lot of different elements. Although there are lots of bands doing that now, no one did it back then where they mixed the whole guitar driven thing of Maiden and Priest with the death metal and extreme thrash scene. We called ourselves Stigmata around 2000. Before that, although the line up would differ, we called ourselves "Bleeding cross" and "Cold embrace."

What inspired your music when you first began and do you think it still inspires you?

Andrew: We were inspired by everything that was original and we wanted to do something that was ours. We didn't want to be like just any other band that just played covers and just played normal clubs and pubs every night. In short we just wanted to create something new.

Suresh, give us a brief description of your band mates roles in the band.

Suresh: Jackson who is on skins and Vije who is on bass, would more or less create the backbone or the foundation of the band and make sure that it’s an impenetrable, solid and close to immaculate foundation. Tenny and Andrew on guitars would add more colour to the landscape. And then I come and make noises over it.

Are there musicians in outside genres of music that condemn your music and are there musicians who support your music?

Suresh: The issue is that people class rock and metal as something taboo simply because they don't understand it and they're not given a chance or an opportunity to not just listen but to absorb and understand the different layers of sound within a song. Heavy metal is more complex than most standard mainstream music out there. Although that's not the driving force behind heavy metal, as a listener you have to put some effort to get it, or you simply won't. It's not some kind of music that you listen to when you want to clear out your room or something. Either you're really passionate about it or you're not. You meet people all the time who will say that they like only "soft rock" but I think that's rubbish. Either you are a rock and roll fan or you're not. And that's something that our critics don't realise.

There are people who've helped us from within our genre and there are people outside our genre who also have helped us a lot. Most notably we have to mention Shobi of The Experiments and Shafi of section eight. And also people like Chitral Somapala from within our own genre who carry the beacon for Sri Lankan originality abroad, who have also encouraged us immensely. At the same time there are people who don't like us, don't like heavy metal, and that's absolutely fine with us.

Andrew, can you explain what goes through your head when you rip out a guitar solo?

Andrew: I always try to figure that out but I really can't. There's just some force that I can't explain. I don't know exactly where the inspiration comes from, but I think it has do with the energy that we create when we play together and I actually draw inspiration from each member of the band. And also visualisations of bizarre things also help.

I just try my best to blend into what Tenny, Vije, Jackson and Suresh do in a song. I think that that is how you can create something that will be remembered after the first listen and will be effective when it comes to recording a solid song.

Who is the ladies' man of Stigmata?

Andrew: Suresh.
Suresh (looking stunned): That's rather shocking.
Tenny (in fits of laughter): Vije.
Vije(with a perplexed look):

Suresh: I feel that everyone in the band is a specialist in their respective industries and fields.

Jackson, as a drummer, what do you personally feel about the musical direction Stigmata is taking now? Do you feel that you have enough freedom to express yourself?

Jackson: Without a doubt. Taking into consideration the last two albums, the new stuff we're composing for the next album is really melodic plus more brutal. I have a lot of freedom to do whatever I want. I have played in two or three bands before and I was kind of restricted as a drummer. But there are no limitations with this band and I'm really happy with that.

Vije, you have been through many trials and tragedies in the past with medical treatment and so on. What do you have to say about the support your band gave you during this time?

Vije: These guys have been really supportive and it's amazing because I was away for more than half a year. It was very hard on me to not be able to play and it must have been equally hard on them. They even put the composing on hold till I came back and I think that was really amazing.

Tenny, you are known by many to be the crazy, experimental member of the band. What drives you to come up with those crazy, unusual riffs?

Tenny: Well I don't think it's crazy or unusual. Basically it's everyone around me. I meet my friends everyday and they just inspire me to create new things.

Andrew (with a smile): I think that's normal for Tenny. And I personally believe that he's an alien.

Who are the musicians and the bands that inspire you the most?

Andrew: keeping it short, I like classical baroque music. Stuff like Vivaldi, Paganini, Bach and so on. And also loads of great guitarists. Obviously Yngwie Malmsteen, Joe Satriani who is a big influence, Jason Becker, the late Dimebag Darrel Abbot of Pantera and Damage Plan and the list goes on.

Tenny (with a mischievous grin): Five, Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears, because they create music for the masses. When it comes to real music, it would have to be Chuck Schuldiner of Death, and right now a lot of Van Halen, Dimebag Darrel Abbot, Willie Adler and so on.

Vije: Steve DiGiorgio, Billy sheehan and I listen to a lot of melodic death metal and thrash metal. Stuff like Arch Enemy and Testament and I also listen to stuff like Dream Theatre.

Jackson: Vinnie Paul of Pantera, Dave Grohl of Nirvana, Richard Christy of Death. I also like blind Guardian a lot. Also the Sri Lankan solo drummer Tyronne Silva, who I'm learning from at the moment. I have seen him play and he's awesome.

Suresh: As a singer, I would have to say Bruce Dickinson, Mathew Barlow, Ronnie James Dio, Ian gillan, Chuck Schuldiner, Randy Blythe and so on. Talking about bands it would be everyone from Rush to Nevermore to Iron Maiden, early Sepeltura, Metallica, Opeth. And of course Led Zepplin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath who is divine for us. I also enjoy music of Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice.

Is there anything you would like to say to all the Stigmata fans out there?

Andrew: It's because of our fans that we have been able to achieve what we have and we have been confident enough to do what we have done because of them. The people that have stuck with us, have stuck with us through whatever anyone else said. They have always been very supportive and they always come and said good things to us and I thank them a lot for that.
Tenny: Well, we have fans but we want more fans. Basically even if we have fans or not, we will still create music. However it is always very encouraging to know that there are people who dig what we do and I thank them all because they made the band possible and for us to get to where we are. The point however is, is that we will create music no matter what and it’s always good to know that there are people who like us. And we love them.

Vije: It's good to see fans come for show after show. It shows that we're doing something right with our music and that we're going in the right direction.

They just motivate us so much. Every time we see them at a show, the energy of them enjoying a show just bounces back on us and that gives us that extra 100 percent and brings out the best in us.

Jackson: They rule. Whenever I play on stage, what I want to do and what I have always wanted to do was to do something really impressive for the fans. When I play what I do is provoke the fans, but in return they provoke me.