Sceptre Launch Second Album

Sceptre plays two album launch gigs this weekend

It’s been five years since the release of Mumbai thrash metal band Sceptre’s debut album Now or Never. The debut was out nearly 10 years after the formation of the band, who are now releasing their second album Age Of Calamity.

The usual culprits ”” lineup changes and day jobs ”“ slowed the band down after the release of Now or Never. Sceptre was founded by drummer Aniket Waghmode, bassist Janus Sanyal and now former vocalist and guitarist Teemeer Chimulkar [who left the band in 2010]. The band’s current lineup includes guitarist Gilroy Fernandes and vocalist Samron Jude. “We started recording in mid-2011 hoping for a November/December 2012 launch and now it’s February, but we’re still happy that it’s finally releasing,” says Waghmode.

Age Of Calamity features lyrics lamenting politicians and the weak judicial system. However, this album marks a change in the band’s classic thrash metal sound. “We grew up always listening to the Big Four, and we’ll love those bands till death, but we got influenced by modern, core metal for this album,” says Waghmode, adding that the band recently came across deathcore bands such as Suicide Silence and Whitechapel who were “hard to ignore.”

Thrash metal and core metal, however, hardly go hand in hand [especially the fans of the two]. “We might lose fans but we didn’t want to be categorized as a thrash metal band,” says Waghmode, adding that Sceptre no longer play covers of any of their favorite artists. Recently, when organizers at a festival asked Fernandes to cover Metallica, the guitarist immediately refused, adding, “You will not miss Metallica once we’re on.”

Sceptre will play Age Of Calamity in its entirety at two of their upcoming launch gigs ”“ one as headliners of Vasai’s band competition Octaves at Vartak College on February 15th, and the other at Ramrao Adik Institute of Technology’s [RAIT] Unchained metal event on February 17th. The last time Sceptre played at Unchained was in 2000, and Waghmode is raring to return: “There was this cafeteria where I bumped into a lot of new bands, so I want to go in there and check it out now.”

 Sceptre headline Octaves 2013 at Vidhyavardhini’s Annasaheb Vartak Arts Commerce Science College on February 15th. Entry: Free. Event details here.

Inner Sanctum, Artillerie, Providence, Sceptre and Orcus play as part of RAIT Unchained 2013 at DYPSA Convocation Ground, Navi Mumbai on February 17th. Entry Rs 200. Event details here.