At the age of 17, guitarist, vocalist and composer Arav Krishnan can claim an album released by an international label; one that includes contributions from Indian metal’s seasoned artists. His debut record, The Fallen System, which came out on July 4 via Latvian label Sliptrick Records, was produced by Nikhil ‘Wartooth’ (from thrash metal band Chaos) and features Chaos drummer Manu Krishnan as well as bassist Narayan Shrouthy (from metallers Inner Sanctum).
One of the first things Arav Krishnan, who also goes by the moniker ArK, says is that it was always about putting fun first and not really about making money. Born out of as many as 40 demo tracks that were in the thrash and death metal realm, The Fallen System was whittled down to 10 songs, including a short instrumental intro and the project’s lead single ‘To Take The Fall’. With Nikhil on board, the duo sat down with each demo and wrote new parts, while Krishnan was working on lyrics simultaneously.
Inspired by themes of dystopia, especially George Orwell’s seminal work 1984, Krishnan cites Slayer as a key influence in terms of the lyrics and ominous visual and sonic aura of his album. Each song was further bolstered by the presence of featured bassist Narayan Shrouthy and drummer Manu Krishnan. “They made it better than I possibly could have, because they’re veteran and extremely good musicians. The basslines that Narayan created were better than anything I could think of, because I’m not even a bass player. Manu had his own views as a drummer. I changed my tunes when I heard some of what he composed,” Krishnan says.
Working in the presence of seasoned artists, the guitarist says he pushed himself to look beyond anything generic or formulaic to bring his own style, especially with guitar solos on various songs. When ‘To Take The Fall’ released in 2021 with a music video, it attracted interest from labels and Krishnan received a mail from Sliptrick.
There were multiple conversations over terms and details before Krishnan finally signed on the dotted line, and with a label-assigned budget, there is already been one lyric video out for the title track, while the grisly song ‘You Won’t Live To See Tomorrow’ gets an all-out visual narrative and music video, one that was directed by New Delhi-based filmmaker and photographer Maan Boruah. “He’s a metalhead as well, which is always nice because they understand where you’re coming from,” Krishnan says. They went over themes and storyboarded a narrative which was shot on camera in New Delhi.
The visit to the capital also gave Krishnan a chance to take the album live, albeit as a one-man show with backing tracks that he played guitars and sang over. “In the live circuit, you only get better by actually experiencing what it’s all about,” says the guitarist, who began playing at the age of 12.
More recently, he took on another solo show, this time on home ground in Bengaluru on October 1. “This was the actual, real show, because in Delhi I played only a couple of songs. In Bangalore, I played five songs among a festival lineup of sorts. You have to be really energetic and make sure you interact with the crowd,” the guitarist adds.
There might be more gigs coming up, even as Krishnan preps new music for release and the music video for ‘You Won’t Live To See Tomorrow’. “We might have a physical release of the album coming soon and new merch designs too,” he adds.
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