CHENNAI: Going to an Albatross show is almost like going to see a horror movie. The bass guitarist is dressed up as his alter ego, Dr Hex — a serial killer who likes to wear a Friday the 13th-like mask. And the rest of the band, more or less, have a penchant for gore, as evident from blood spatters on their costumes. Mumbai-based Albatross is all set to spook a Chennai audience for the first time this weekend, in their first stop of a five-city tour. Says Riju Dasgupta aka Dr Hex, “We’re all big fans of horror fiction, from RL Stine to Stephen King and even the classics by authors like Edgar Allan Poe.” But the band doesn’t necessarily want to ‘scare’ fans away, and for the faint-hearted, they clarify, their brand of metal is “not serious horror, but entertainment horror”.According to lead guitarist Vigneshkumar Venkatraman, there is no particular story as to how the band started in 2010. He admits, “We knew that some people would ridicule the idea but we also knew that our music and the visual element would make it work.” And it has. Two years later, Albatross, which also includes Biprorshee Das (Vocals), Nishith Hegde (Guitar) and Jay Thacker (Drums) is one of the most-talked about bands in the Mumbai metal circuit. In fact, their albums work much like a full-length horror story — with each song unfolding a chapter, part by part. So if you don’t have the time to catch up on your daily dose of horror fiction, just put on their latest EP, The Kissing Flies, and you’re guaranteed to have a few midnight chills.Lyricist of the band Riju offers a gist of the tale. “It’s about a person who returns to his town after a long time, only to be told by an elderly ‘Uncle Sunny’ that everybody is either dead or decaying.” He explains, “The Kissing Flies, we actually discovered on google. In the story, they feed on flesh through the eyelids when people are fast asleep.” Niklas Stalvind, Swedish vocalist of metal outfit Wolf, makes a guest appearance as Uncle Sunny in the song, Uncle Sunny at the Tavern. And, as a split EP with doom metal masterminds, Vestal Claret from Connecticut, Black Priest tells another story entirely, a lone single standing a good 17 minutes long!Would Albatross ever be interested in staging a horror musical, metal-style? “Absolutely,” Riju responds without hesitation, “The only thing that is holding us back is the funds.” Asked about whether there is a full-length album in the pipeline, he states, “Honestly, it gets boring listening to 70 or 80 minutes of music at a time, so we would rather focus on EPs now.” The lyricist adds with a twinge of eerie enthusiasm, “Our next EP is about a murderous doll.” Can’t you hear the evil laugh in the distance?Albatross will launch their EP The Kissing Flies on Friday at Star Rock, Kodambakkam High Road, at 8 pm.
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