An Evening With Millennium

The following interview appeared in the Times Of India, Bangalore and has been reproduced here with the permission of the newspaper.

CARRYING ROCK THROUGH THE MILLENNIUM

"Rock n' roll is not something you can buy at a record shop.It is an attitude of life."
-Bono of U2
No other Indian rock band justifies these words more than Millennium.The oldest metal band on the Indian rock scene,Millennium was formed by Rio,who came from Tehran to India,to pursue higher studies.The young medico played in the MSRMC band,while Vehrnon and Roberto,played in the Christ College band.The three decided to come together to get the best of Bangalore-in their own words.Cecil joined in,to handle the rythm,while Stanley came in with the bass.And so was born Millenium-undoubtedly the best metal band India has seen.
In 1987,the young band played at the Spirit of Iron Maiden concert in Bangalore,as they had become very famous by this time for their energetic Maiden covers.In 1992,they realeased the Born To Reign EP,which sold out in a week flat!Their video,Peace Just In Heaven,joined the MTV playlist-the first Asian metal band to do so.The song was also conferred with a Skull Krusher of the week on Headbanger's Ball,on the same channel.By this time,the lineup had changed to accomadate Nader on the drums,Malcolm on the bass,and Blake on the rythm,as Roberto,Cecil and Stanley had left.In 1993,the band played with the likes of Konark Reddy and Human Bondage,in an effort to save the trees of Bangalore at the Evergreen Concert.In 1994,they released their self titled album,which had such classics as Peace Just In Heaven,Final Sign,Forest Dreams and Only Be One.It was during these recordings that Roberto joined back,and has been the drummer since.
Their soul searching single,Only Be One was the kick off song for the Deep Purple concerts in 1995.They opened for the international band,both at Delhi and Bombay.They released their second album,1 Concept 2 Live in 1997,on their own label,Firehorse.
Millennium,now in the 12th year of their career,are still going strong,despite all the obnoxious rumours of a breakup.A Millennium concert still attracts anywhere between 12-20 thousand hard rockers,or metal army supporters-as Millenium loves to call them.And all this, when rock critics have long ago declared metal dead!
In 1997,for the fourth time in a row,Millennium was voted the best Indian rock band,by a people's vote conducted by the Rock Street Journal.
The lineup for the last few years has been-Vehrnon on the vocals,Rio on lead guitar,Sharmon on rythm guitar,Robeto on drums,and Praful on bass.What is that keeps this 5 strong band going on and on,Navneet Singh Anand finds out.

Navneet - What does Millennium stand for?
Roberto - Millennium stands for no bullshit.We stand for a certain set of values and we never compromise on these.We've always done our thing,on our terms.We've always stuck by what we've believed in.We don't go about showing what we aren't.We are just a bunch of guys having a good time,and being honest with ourselves and our fans.

Navneet - Do you feel a responsibility when you are out there,virtually controlling the frenzied crowds?
Vehrnon - It is a very thin line between having a good time and starting a riot.If we are going to talk about whatever we feel strongly about,say AIDS,or drug abuse,we have to find the right way to get the message across.We cannot act juvenile about it and cram our views doen their throats.We have to get our message into those young minds in a very responsible way.It is not cool to molest girls,it is not cool to litter the place,or hurt the environment or animals.It is also not cool to ignore dowry deaths.If Millennium can make one person,out if the ten thousand that come to a concert,change his viewpoint about these issues,it's worth more than all the money we've earned.

Navneet - Is heavy metal the only music you guys listen to?
Vehrnon - Quite the contrary,we believe in deploying different techniques in motivating ourselves as musicians.Millennium,being a hard rock band,it would be very destructive for us to listen to only Iron Maiden and Queensryche.On the other,it's very progressive,specifically not to listen to this sort of music,and listen to other terms like classical or hindustani.

Navneet - If you guys have such a varied taste in music,how come you play only heavy metal?
Rio - It's very simple.Say if you're a romance author,then you work on love stories.But if you're a crime author then you stick only to crime,and you don't mix them up.Millennium has always been a heavy metal project.And we enjoy playing heavy metal inside Millennium.

Navneet - You guys used to play a lot of heavy metal covers.Now you hardly do any covers.Hasn't this affected the crowd response?
Rio - There is no problem with playing covers,but there comes a point when your creativity drives you to write original stuff.The concept of covers for a rock band is not accepted worldwide.The fun is when you get this idea for a song,and two days later you're playing it live,infront of fifteen thousand people,and they're all headbanging to their song.Now that is fun.
Vehrnon - See,it would be very easy to put a song list,of say fifteen songs from Megadeth,Pantera and Obituary,and Millennium could play it.We could call it the ultimate rock show,and we'll be very big overnight.But that unfortunately would be our last show,because we would not enjoy it.

Navneet - How did it feel opening for a band as big as Deep Purple?Was there a lot of pressure to perform?
Roberto - It was a great feeling.It was the first we played 100 percent originals.Actually,it gave us a lot more to hold onto.It actually made the whole trip worth it.

Navneet - Whatever happened to all those brilliant fireworks and the special effects we used to see at a Millennium concert?
Sharmon - Everybody else started doing,so we stopped.Also I was managing them,so when I joined the band,there was no one else to do it.But it sure was a lot of fun,I think we'll do it again in the future.

Navneet - Do you have ever been embarresed on stage because of goofups?
Rio - Oh,it happens all the time!The most common thing is when Praful forgets that he has a chord attached to his guitar,and he goes all around the place tripping everybody else!We even had to stop a show once,unplug all our guitars,and start all over again.

Navneet - How come you don't do any publicity?
Vehrnon - Because we're not pop...we're not commercial.The thing is if you're in the business to make money,then you'll push for videos,interviews and tv coverage.We have never been about that,so it's never been a priority to sell more albums,or be well known.If the music is good,nothing else matters.

Navneet - How did you get the name?
Roberto - In a dream..in urdu.(laughs)
Rio - No,actually I was going through some brochures given to me by a christian missionary and I came upon the word.Millennium sounded quite a mouthful,had a nice meaning,so we took it.
Roberto - If you're looking for hidden satanic meanings,forget it.We do not waste time on that shit.

Navneet - What are your favourite Millennium songs?
Rio - We don't have any one favourite Millennium song,but we like playing Rainmaker,Bleat and Jabbing At The Bone.Only Be One is also very nice.

Navneet - What about Peace Just In Heaven - the song which won you the Skull Krusher on MTV?You never play that.
Vehrnon - Nobody understood the song,so we stopped playing it.(Laughs)
Alright,frankly it's like there are songs which are fun to do on an album,and then there are songs which are fun to do live.Peace..is a song that doesn't work out very well live.It's also very difficult for me to sing live!

Navneet - Do you identify with the 'sex,drugs & booze' image associated with rock n' roll?
Roberto - NO,we do not approve of that image at all.It's stupid.Rock is not about flipping the finger at society or about being angry with everyone around you.Rock n' roll is about having a good time.The fact that we are hard rockers doesn't mean we have to wear leather,and hate everyone or kill chicken for breakfast!You don't need to be drunk or drugged to enjoy music.

Navneet - What is the reason Millennium has outlived so many other Indian rock bands?
Roberto - It's very hard to pinpoint any one reason for our success.We've always done our thing,and at our terms.We've never compromised on our identity.A lot of bands switched to the grunge scene when grunge made big,many bands ran to alternative when alternative was in.We've never tried to reinvent ourselves,to please the audience.We've seen cases bands lost theie identity trying to please each and everyone.

Navneet - What about the rumours of you guys splitting?
Sharmon - As a band,we're always on the verge of splitting.We've split once every year,for the last eight years.We get involved in different projects,and then come back together again.Deep Purple split half a dozen times and always came back together.So there is no big deal about splitting.We'll keep playing till people book us for shows.But don't expect a third album,there isn't going to be one.
Roberto - We're doing this because we enjoy doing it.There is no obligation to play.The day we feel we're not enjoying playing anymore,we'll stop.

Navneet - This may sound pretty cliche,but do you have a word for the young upcoming bands in India?
Vehrnon - The advice to a new band is the same as that to anybody else trying anythning new,be it a job or higher studies.Be straightforward and honest to yourself and the people around you.Don't bullshit yourself,or an audience,or colleagues at work,or even your life partner.Be honest,sought it out,and see it for what it is.Never get caught in the hype.It all goes back to the one thing,we all believe as a band-only be one.Most of our songs relate to the same theme-be only one person,whatever it may be.If you want to be a bastard,go ahead and be a complete bastard,but don't fool yourself for one moment and never justify your shit!Because once you've done that,you become a negative person,an unperson.Stick to what you believe in,and not what you think you should be believing in,and then you'll never have any regrets in life.