Check Out Sri-Lankan Hardcore Band ILLAN KAAPAN Outta Australia – Respect To Immigrants

As the world is dealing with the rise of far right anti-immigrant sentiment, we will always big up fellow Asians in the West making theirselves known. We just got word that there’s a brand new band called ILLAN KAAPAN made up of Sri Lankans about to rip it up in Australia. One quick DM to the band, and we got this SICK response back. Check that out below and make sure to go jam that demo.

Sit back and read…keep supporting diversity in hardcore especially in the West where it’s still very much white dominant.

“We’re an all-Sri Lankan metallic hardcore band from Naarm (Melbourne). I loved hardcore and heavy music from all the way back in Sri Lanka, but while there’s a sick metal scene in the country (shoutout STIGMATA, SACRAMENT and MASS DAMNATION) there’s no hardcore or punk scene.”

“When I moved here 9 years ago it was a huge opportunity to get stuck into hardcore and emo and these spaces that weren’t there in Sri Lanka, and to see artists that I could only have dreamt of seeing before. Over the years I had it in the back of my mind to start a band, and that started with reaching out to George (guitars) – who’s been in dope bands like PULSE, VICIOUS CYCLE and STRICKLAND and is currently in the very cool MILOU MOON. It was a mission putting together an all-Sri Lankan hardcore band in Naarm, but my mate Prince (drums) was stoked on us, and we wanted to play in his excellent grungegaze project Nineteen Ninety Hate, so it worked out. The final piece of the puzzle was Ko (bass), who I met while co-working at a WeWork and had never played bass before but lucky for us, is Sri Lankan/Indian. I asked him to join and now he shreds unbelievably in just 6 months on the bass. Overall, we’re just really stoked to be here, man. Not just as four brown people making music, but just for the opportunity to hang with each other and make music at all. We feel immensely lucky.”

“Not just as four brown people making music, but just for the opportunity to hang with each other and make music at all.”

“The reason it was so important for us to make this a hardcore band through and through was because the shared rage and community of hardcore reflects the rage and community of the immigrant experience. We wanted to make really angry, heavy, groovy hardcore for people to throwdown to in shared anger and community. Whether you’re from around the world or right here, from +94 to +61, we want everybody to rage as one regardless of who they are and where they’re from. That being said, we’re a Sri Lankan band and everything we do is a love letter to Sri Lankan pop culture. We really wanted this to be at the forefront because we’re a pretty small country, and while we paint in pretty broad strokes with our music that speaks to everyone, it’s sick being able to put all the cool shit coming out of Sri Lanka in the context of hardcore. And being based in Melbourne, the Melbourne scene is so fucking sick right now. There’s so much community and love with so many hectic as shows happening every week. Shout out Forewarned, Heat, Gravitate, Blood on My Hands, Blood Oath, Resurrect, Gush, Time Peace and countless others

Our demo tracks are in broad strokes about finding community in the rage of being an immigrant and not settling into the roles people expect of you. There’s a lot of racism in Australia, which has recently been directed greatly towards immigrants, and with that in mind we don’t want to feel any sense of shame for being who we are and would rather die brown.”

Huge thanks to the band for sending all that info – so much of resonates with us specifically because we’re in the midst of putting together an (almost) all Pakistani hardcore band here in London called MASHAAL.

Here’s a dope track by track breakdown from the band:

Intro
Every hc band needs an intro. This is 1:45 purely for the style moshers, no 2-steps to be found.

The opening sample is from Ahankara Nagare by Ranidu – probably the best Rnb/hip hop song from Sri Lanka – and the very first riff incorporates the chorus melody from the song.

We knew people might be wondering what Illan Kaapan means, so this track is the translation with the only lyrics being ILLAN KAAPAN – FUCK AROUND FIND OUT.

Pain Mask
This track is about how we’re stuck in an endless cycle of having to wear a mask to hide the pain of slumming it through the day to day. Whether that’s work or whatever, it’s important to not let life pass you by even if you’re trying to survive.

In Memory
This is the sad one on the demo lol. It’s about losing a loved one and having to deal with that hurt but not holding onto it alone and celebrating that life wherever you go. My grand dad passed away over COVID in Sri Lanka while I was in Australia. We’ve all lost people far too early as well and this is born from that.

Fear of Shame
In Sri Lanka there’s a term called lajja baya, which essentially means fear of shame. People – often elders and more culturally-adherent folks – would ask you if you have no lajja baya if you’re doing something that they think is bringing shame to you and your family, when in reality these things are just forcing you to fit into a narrow point of view. This same sense of shame is pushed on immigrants. Whether that’s minimisation of our culture to assimilate, and changing the way we look and talk and function to make others more comfortable. This applies in a wider sense to everyone who might hear this track, immigrant or not. There’s no shame in who you are and whether you’re a new to country international student or a pit demon from Franga throwing down at Singing Bird, you should never feel that fear of shame.

The opening sample is from Gajaga Wannama which is a centuries old composition from Sri Lanka. This melody is repeated in the opening lead line, and is turned into a breakdown at the end. As probably the first Sri Lankan hardcore band, this was our way of also paying respect to Sri Lanka’s first big metal band, Stigmata, who covered Gajaga Wannama on their track Andura.

We also use a line to pay respect to one of the greatest anti-racist songs ever written – 245A by Hands of God.

https://www.instagram.com/illankaapan/