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| Sunday, 23 November 2003 |
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Singing from the soul On the dark side by Farah Macan Markar Curly haired, goateed, eye brow pierced, is Suresh Earl de Silva, lead vocalist/lyrics writer of that metal rock band, "Stigmata". Born on
25th March 1983, referred to by most women of his acquaintance, as The Vampire, he's been in the music scene from the age of 15. From "Leading Cross" to "Cold Embrace", to finally "Stigmata", his main object has always been to produce original music which will entertain, stimulate and intoxicate. Being in a heavy metal band, which has elements of thrash, speed, progressive, death, majestic, black metal and dark wave meshed together with a bit of blues and classical music, Suresh's job as lead singer, is to project this mixture of emotions through his voice. Control, projection, diversity, range and your own unique style, is what Suresh believes takes to be a good vocalist. Being a metal band which incorporates different styles of metal music, "One moment" says Suresh "I will be singing. The next howling, wailing, screeching, growling or barking, whatever it takes to capture the moment of the song". Singing for Suresh is a tool of expression, and the most important part is feeling its soul. "When singing, I'm speaking. Speaking of different subjects, especially aspects of the dark side of life. It is necessary to capture the depth of the song in your voice, feel its emotions, climaxes and anti-climaxes" explains Suresh. Music is a mode of building unofficial relationships. An invisible thread which springs from the musician, passes on to his audience, and invariably links all those who have a love for it. Says Suresh "Stigmata has not won any awards. But seeing over 2000 people coming for our shows, dancing, rocking, shaking heads, having a good time, gives a lot of happiness, much more happiness, I think than any award can give". Talking to Suresh about himself, a word which constantly arises in the conversation is "Conformity"-living to other people's expectations. Never having conformed to what was expected as a teen, he does not do so now. "I believe in being myself. You don't have to be different to be original. You need to be yourself. That's originality in itself". Another aspect to Suresh is the darker side of life. "I believe there has to be joy and happiness in life, but it is also important to be aware of the pain and agony of those around. I use the blackness I feel and see around me and let it out through my singing and writing". Song lyrics is not the only part of this guy's writing talents. He also scribes poetry and novels (none of which have been published yet, though a book of poetry by Suresh de Silva just might be on the way to the public eye in time to come). A lover of fantasy and horror Suresh feels he has a multi personality disorder, as he can never stick to one subject when writing but keeps diverting it from one to another. Having almost completed a book of poetry, Suresh says he writes whenever in the mood, sometimes about five poems a day. What's his poetry like? "Morbid" comes the answer. "A range of subjects which vary from child abuse, to decadence, social, economic and political strife, to war and apathy". Suresh uses all the literary devices in his writings, whether it be in songs or poetry. "Metaphor, simile, imagery, climax, anti-climax, puns, irony...I use the whole lot" says he who believes all song writers are poets first, as the lyrics they write are in a way a form of poetry. Having a love to read as well, he's a lover of Stephen King, James Herbert, Yeats and Robert Frost. His all time favourite book is Tolkien's epic novel on hobbits, dwarves, elves, wizards and men. Tell us about Suresh the teen? "Suresh the Teen" he says "has always had a liking for the fairer sex". Having studied in St.Thomas College Mount done English, GRC and Econ for his A's (which he sat last year) "College Life" he says "Is the best time ever". Jumping out of school, bringing CDs to class, defying his parents and teachers, rebelling about everything, teenhood he says is about change, self assertion and self discovery. "Looking back now, I really miss those days, now gone forever". Today in the Arts Faculty of the University of Kelaniya studying English, Western Classics and Phsycology, plus working for an advertising firm doing copy writing, Suresh is torn between differrent things, he wants to specialise in later on. "I have a flare for writing, but once started working have realised the importance of management as well". Music is something however, which will always be in his life, whether he be singing on stage, going for a show or listening to the radio. Other than singing, reading and writing, Suresh loves basketball (says he doesn't have much time for it now), working out and occasionally going out with his friends. He loves to wear black, is crazy for leather wear and at present is infatuated with earrings. "Despite the popular notion that it will hurt, I did it. It did hurt, but I'm in love with it and it's something which makes you want more. No I don't want to look like a jewellery showcase, but I might have a few more done, where no one can see it" says the eye brow pierced guy. Of love Suresh says it's the most important aspect to a person's life. "Love is an emotion you can't define. It keeps evolving. It has its good and ugly. It's not all dandy. Love can bite at times. You just need to accept the whole package". What does he look for in a girl? "Independence", "Maturity" and "Confidence". "She should know herself. Not be predictable. Be impulsive. And definitely be sexy" he says. Confident, persuasive and determined is how Suresh describes himself. Once his sets his eyes on something, be it music, work, studies or girls (???) he goes straight after it. A strong believer in discipline, he says there are limits for everything. He's also proud, says he accepts his arrogance "but not to the level of being prejudiced", and does not give a rat's tail about what people think. Suresh's ultimate dream is for the band to go as far as it could. "We're already the first metal rock band in Sri Lanka. To be able to stand where we are, is a part of our dream come true. But I want us to be persuasive in chasing our dreams. Conquer it all. Make the band international if we can, otherwise, go as far as we can go". |
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