(written by Islander)
Today we’re touching base again (for the seventh time in the last four years) with The Second Fovea, a band originally birthed in India but whose members are currently spread among the U.S., India, and Canada.
Two of their previous singles which were the subject of all those previous writings focused upon wildlife — manta rays and snakes – but all of their songs, including those two, have carried socio-political messages, and most directly in the song “Headshot”, which was a potent condemnation of racism and hate crimes across the globe.
What we have for you today is the premiere of a lyric video for a new single from the group, and as you can see, it’s devoted to Bengal tigers, and more specifically (as the band tell us), it’s “dedicated to the legendary Bengal Tigers of the Sundarbans in India — the world’s largest mangrove forest and one of the last remaining strongholds for this endangered species.”
As you’ll soon see, while The Second Fovea clearly wish to preserve and protect the species, the lyrics of this new song celebrate the tiger’s lethal power and ferocity, and the music also channels that lethal ferocity.
“Claws of Bengal” is a hard-charging, heavy-grooved, and almost relentlessly savage assault of melodic death metal and tech-death. The vocals manifest the beast through furious roars and piercing screams. The drumming is thunderous, booming, and vibrantly battering, while the bass is a heavyweight slugger. In keeping with the song’s subject matter, the riffing generates sensations of marauding and mayhem — maniacally writhing, viciously seething, and rapidly swirling.
The song also takes a dark and ominous turn. The pacing slows, and the music seems to stalk, moan, and channel misery. But it ramps up again too, led by vibrantly darting and swirling guitar performances, and the song also becomes savagely glorious in its mood.
For this song, the lineup included drummer Priyam Srivastava, guitarist and bassist Jerry Nelson Ranee, and guest vocalist/lyricist Dheeraj Govindraju (also credited with FX). Credit for the video goes to M.irvan Dionisi. Live drums were recorded at FANG Studios with Nick Loiacono, and the song was mixed and mastered by Luc Chiasson.
The Second Fovea will release the song on digital platforms in the near future. To find out when that happens, to follow the band, and to listen to their previous singles, see the links below.
https://thesecondfovea.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/thesecondfovea
https://www.facebook.com/thesecondfovea/