Listen: Delhi’s Latest Metal Group Hyperion’s debut single “Flawless”

Hyperion: Shashank Bhatnagar, Moses Koul, Yuvraj Sengupta, Shakti Singh (from left). Photo: Aryaman Dixit

In late 2012, Delhi tech/groove metal band Undying Inc.’s vocalist Shashank Bhatnagar announced that he would leave the band, and he later began looking at other projects, including a Sufi rock band. Nearly two years on, Bhatnagar says out of all the bands he tried to set up, his metal project Hyperion was the only one he wanted to work on. Says Bhatnagar, “Knowing me, my priority was metal.”

Even though Bhatnagar reunited with Undying Inc in August last year, he continued working on material with the other founding members from Hyperion, including former Undying Inc. drummer Yuvraj Sengupta, bassist Shakti Singh, from black metal band 1833 AD and previously a part of death metallers Third Sovereign, and guitarist Moses Koul, from experimental metal band Kraken. Says Bhatnagar, “We auditioned guitarists for six months and found Moses, who fits our ideologies & musical sensibilities perfectly. After that, the fight has been to find that sound we want.” Bhatnagar, who is exploring new territories with his vocals by not just throwing in his trademark growl, says the band’s sound is metal, with “old school sensibilities with a blend of melody and aggression.”

Being a side project, Hyperion went on a break between August and November last year, while members concentrated on their own bands. By February this year, the band wrote three songs, one of which is their new single, “Flawless.” Says Bhatnagar, “It’s better to put out singles and EPs. Albums don’t make sense, especially for newer bands. Our next release will be a three or four-track EP.” The yet-to-be-titled EP is slated to release in January next year.

Owing to the busy schedule of each member, Hyperion will take their time to make their live debut. Says Bhatnagar, “Vicky [Shakti Singh] & I are busy with our business venture, Moses just graduated, and Yuvraj is an architect, so we all will be a little engaged for another two or three months, to streamline everything, so we’re looking forward to start playing live between November-December 2014.”

Stream and download  “Flawless” by Hyperion here