Forsaken', popular metal band in Kandy celebrates its third year of success this month. Four years ago the country's rock brotherhood bid farewell to a dynamo in the industry, with the split of the heavy metal band Dark Trench. A year later, the dark passion rekindled, when the band's lead guitarist and vocalist Delaine crossed paths with bass guitarist Dineth and together formed the first ever thrash metal band to emerge from the rock-infested hill capital Kandy.

Drummer Vishan and rhythm guitarist Chamil joined the band in 2005 and Forsaken was officially formed to strum up an out-of-the-ordinary fusion of melodic thrash and speed metal with a pinch of punk thrown in.

The speed and pacing of the songs is what defines thrash metal. If the words fast tempo and aggression define your feelings, then thrash is for you Influenced by bands such as Megadeth, Metallica, Anthrax, Testament, Slayer and Iron Maiden, reality is never too far away from these guys' music. Articulating raw emotion and a populace's pain, the band's lyrics mostly give way to personal struggles, politics, war, hate and history.

In 2006 bass guitarist Dineth had to leave the band for personal reasons and after a three month search close friend and bass guitarist Niwantha picked his way into the band, which was a fantastic move for the forsaken. A band needs more than just glory to keep it together; it needs friendship and respect for one another.

Since then the band has performed in many gigs in Kandy as well as in Colombo such as Dark Summer Fest, Halloween Fest, Metal Realm, and Paranoid Spirit & Rock Christmas in every December since its inception. The band has continuously extended their fan base from Kandy to Colombo through the years playing in gigs frequently. They also have developed a quite a large fan base via internet with the sites like Facebook and Myspace.

Forsaken thus far claims ovation for five originals: 'Blackened', 'Destiny', 'Stalking reality', 'Screaming with vengeance' and latest original 'Dammed!', composed and riffed up by the band members themselves. These, originals still have to be recorded and will be included in the album. 'Destiny' to be released soon.

The metal industry in Sri Lanka has throughout the recent years undergone a dramatic scale in producing both musicians and fans, proving that contrary to general thinking. Metal is a growing industry with a good following, and no one can argue with the fact that the country has produced quite a number of very talented bands.

A one-on-one with the guys from Kandy, set loose an impassioned discussion on what Forsaken is all about and how metal is perceived in Sri Lanka today. Forsaken is a member of the Kandy Rock Merger and has been playing at KRM concerts and other gigs in both Kandy and Colombo since 2005.