HARD TALK with ‘THE DEMONSTEALER’.

Let’s begin with a very nOObish question , Who is ‘the Demonstealer’ ?
Demonstealer is my stage persona with Demonic Resurrection & now Workshop as well. However each band shows a different side of The Demonstealer. Being a Gemini having a split personality seems to come naturally. I’d also like to clarify why I call myself ‘Demonstealer’ and it’s a question I’m sick of answering but hopefully I can link everyone to this interview when they ask it. Basically when I got into metal and decided I wanted to form Demonic Resurrection I was listening to a lot of Norwegian black metal bands like Old Mans Child, Emperor, Dimmu Borigr, Ancient, And Oceans etc and everyone in these bands had some fancy stage name. On the other hand I wasn’t too well read up on European mythology and I was a LOTR virgin so the best name I could come up with was Demonstealer since I wanted a stage name like all my favorite musicians and since then I stuck with it despite all the jokes and puns’ on the name.

 After Global Metal, You are ‘the best known metal head’ from India , How tough was the journey ?

I don’t know how true that is but whatever recognition has come my way has come just because I’ve poked my nose into everything related to metal in India right from organizing gigs to having a label etc. The journey has been really hard and its taken control of my life, I live sleep eat and breathe metal and I’m always doing something to sort of give the scene and of course my bands a boost. I’m not going to be a martyr and I will say I want not just Indian metal I want Demonic Resurrection to go places and that is my ultimate dream. So it’s been a hard journey to get where we are now and this is just the tip of the iceberg. There is many more years of hard work left.

What’s ahead?
I’m one person who is always dreaming about the future at any given point of time but what I plan and excute is not too far down the line. For this year I have about 4 albums to release with DSR. I have to make sure DR plays every single show that is possible and to play as many new places as possible. I have to make sure Resurrection IX takes place as well as album launch gigs for all the CDs I release. Also I do want to try and release another solo album but considering I have a Workshop album, DR album and even a Reptilian Death EP I might not be able to.

There is a common misunderstanding of relating ‘Demonic Resurrection’ to Nordic black metal ( i was one of them  ) How would you categorize ‘Demonic Resurrection’?  
There are lots of misunderstandings about not just ‘Demonic Resurrection’ but also myself and people are quick to pass judgment without even knowing facts etc. But I guess that’s the way the world is. Demonic Resurrection is essentially a metal band that plays a mix of death, black and power metal. Lyrical themes have always varied from the very personal Demonstealer album days to the more fantasy based ‘A Darkness Descends’ to the celestial ‘Beyond The Darkness’ and it will keep changing. I’d obviously not like to slot DR anywhere apart from being called Demonic Metal which basically adapts to whatever style DR plays.

Day job, Managing two successful bands, Managing a Record Lable, Solo Career, relentless internet Publicity, does it ever get to a crunch level ?
It is difficult to manage but I really could not have done it without the people in my life, most importantly my parents, brother and girlfriend who have been instrumental in giving me support as well as helping me and without them I would not have come this far. Also Furtados Music my employers who have given me the flexibility in my job to be able to do all these things on the side. So really its all about the people in my life who help me along the way. There are times when it gets to you but then you just got to take a small break and get back to doing what you need to do.
 

 You have a clean image , tell us about Smoke, Drugs, Booze, and Metal.. What advice would you give to your young fans?

I hate smoking, I hate being around people who smoke and it is the most vile disgusting wretched thing on the planet and I’d rather have one of those milkshakes they serve on Fear Factor. I’ve since a young age hated smoking and my parents used to smoke at one point and I would always tell them to quit. I’ve seen a lot of people suffer because of smoking including my mom so I really detest it with a vengeance. About drugs again its less repulsive but those who thing its less harmful than smoking are kidding themselves. Booze in moderated quantities is alright for me. The main thing is I don’t find the need to do these things. The amount of money I’ve probably saved on cigarettes over the years I can buy myself a new tube amp. So smokers stop smoking and start saving you’ll have good gear then
As for advice its not really my place but whatever you do should not be because its cool or because everyone else is doing it. Do what you feel is right for you.

Tell us about the man behind ‘ The Demonstealer’ . What ‘Sahil Makhija says about , Love , Life, Marriage, Kids and growing older?
Well I hate growing older because it essentially means I need to be more responsible but I prefer to think of myself as a kid still. I don’t know what else to say apart from the fact that at this point in my life I don’t want to have kids at all, marriage it all really depends on timing. When these bridges come I’ll cross them. As for love I already have a great girl in my life so that’s great.

You are a full time Musician ,even with the day Job you do  is music related . Any regrets? Was there a time you wanted to ‘turn back the clock’?
I still don’t consider myself a full time musician because my day job doesn’t involve me making music so it can’t be considered as that. However it’s a great job, its very flexible and the amount of support I receive towards everything I do is tremendous so I really love the job. I have no regrets in life because there is no point dwelling on the past its better to move on. I mean maybe I could wish that ‘Demonic Resurrection’ had started out better, that I had recorded our 1st album better, or had more video footage etc etc but there is no point in that, we are where we are and we are going to go forward on what is hopefully the right path, whatever happened in the past has got us here today and its been worth it.

Would you pull a ‘Dadlani’?  If there was shit load of money and you had to direct music for a Bollywood flick ( in a la Workshop style may be )  Would you do it ?
To begin with I just think he wanted to do it. I mean he never claimed to be the savior of rock or metal in India so I don’t understand the fuss to begin with. I like making music and if I can make something that is honest and good and it can fit into a movie then why not. For me its simple. Demonic Resurrection is metal and as far as I care if DR doesn’t compromise on its music it really should not matter if I make music for Bollywood flick. Having said that, I don’t see myself making music for Bollywood because I cannot compose songs like that.
You have tons of friends, hundreds of fans on Orkut and Facebook , myspace etc, tell us about the few enemies in the music industry, Is animosity between bands for real ? 
I’m sure there are tons of people who hate me and bitch about me etc etc but as far as I know I really don’t have any enemies or ill will towards anyone at all. I might dislike certain bands music, I might get pissed a bit if a certain band gets paid more than us at a show or gets a show instead of us but I never hold it to them its part and parcel of the scene. So I don’t have enemies that I know off and for the people who hate me I can’t bother because I’d much rather focus on things that I need to do.

 What are the 09  releases from Demonstealer records ? And how big Demonic resurrection / Workshop gonna get this year ? And the solo career ofcourse.
How big DR and Workshop get this year is not in my hands, we will play everywhere and anywhere, we will put up our best shows possible and we will release our best music to date. After that it all depends on people. For DemonstealerRecords there is a Workshop album, Demonic Resurrection album, Defaced and Split Volume 2 mostly and finally an International Bands album which I cannot disclose at the moment. If this works out its going to be a huge step for DSR. The solo career is sort of not planned at the moment and if I find time I’ll release something.

 Any Last words?
Cheers & Stay Demonic! (I am predictable)

The Demonstealer.