Bloodywood — comprised of Karan Katiyar, Jayant Bhadula, and Raoul Kerr— are torchbearers and metal barrier-breakers hailing from India. Their hard-hitting yet modern folk metal sound has made the world sit up, take notice, show up, and sing along.
Today, the band announces its worldwide signing to Fearless Records and shares the video for the "nu" single "Nu Delhi," which offers some insight into the band's history, as well as its home city.
The track is packed with guttural vocals, hip-hop-influenced verses, and chaotic rhythms and it's a nod to the diverse heritage of their home city of New Delhi. The song also walks the line between several musical styles — boldly and without a net!
Watch the video below:
"New Delhi, known as the melting pot of India, is arguably one of the most diverse cities on the planet," the band shares. "With a history of that has seen as much bloodshed as it has peace and celebration, it made for the perfect womb to birth this band. The contrasting visuals, cultures, and backgrounds thriving within the city is accurately reflected in our music — where genres that cannot work together on paper...somehow do. With this song, we wanted to talk about the deadly, yet nurturing nature of the city and how it can give you a life beyond your wildest dreams if you play your cards right, or end it if you try to outsmart it."
Bloodywood are also announced their extensive UK and European tour plans. All dates are here.
Now that you've enjoyed a taste of "nu" Bloodywood, let's learn a little more about the band's origin story and how, exactly, they got here.
Bloodywood first caught the attention of the internet with their YouTube channel, when multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer Karan Katiyar and vocalistJayant Bhadula were about to get deadly serious about their craft. Bolstered by the support they were getting, Bloodywood dropped "Ari Ari" in 2018. A Punjabi folk song made famous in the early 2000s remix boom in India by hip-hop act Bombay Rockers, Bloodywood pushed it further with help from the gritty New Delhi-based conscious hip-hop artist/rapper Raoul Kerr.
With the additional accessibility from Kerr's English rap verses, Katiyar's inimitable flute melody, and Bhadula's powerful vocals, the band's first original song "Jee Veerey" dropped in 2018 and brought a flood of praise from around the world. With this release, the band discovered its sound and message. Songs like "Endurant" (an anti-bullying anthem) and "Machi Bhasad (Expect A Riot)" arrived in 2019 saw Bloodywood level up, adding Kerr as a full-time member. "We're trying to push the limits of the impact that music can have on the world," says Kerr. "Whether it's the battles within or the fight for a better world, our sound is meant to bring everyone together and win."
Joined on tour by drummer Vishesh Singh (a fixture since their early days), bassist Roshan Roy (a seasoned figure in New Delhi's indie music scene) and dhol player Sarthak Pahwa, Bloodywood took their music out of the studio and to concerts across Europe, UK and Russia for their first-ever tour. The sold-out "Raj Against The Machine Tour" in 2019 was proof that an Indian metal band’s global online following would convert into packed venues.
Even a global pandemic couldn't stop the juggernaut that was Bloodywood — "Yaad," released in early 2020 had deepened their storytelling. The band followed it up in late 2021 with "Gaddaar," taking aim at how politicians use religion to gain votes. Songs like "Aaj" and "Dana Dan" (the latter rallying against rape culture) built up to the release of their debut self-released album Rakshak in 2022. It was important to them to keep fighting the good fight, whether it was against one's closely-held inner demons or the decaying standards of global governance. It earned them a nomination for Best International Breakthrough Artist at the Heavy Music Awards in 2022.
Bloodywood went on to perform to packed crowds and at major global festivals — from Lollapalooza India, Download Festival, Bloodstock (UK), Hellfest (France), Summer Breeze (Germany) to Brutal Assault (Czechia), to Fuji Rock (Japan) and American mainstays like Louder Than Life and Aftershock.
In 2024, "Dana Dan" even made it to a pivotal sequence in the Jordan Peele-produced action movie Monkey Man, directed by and starring Dev Patel.
Now, after more than a year of chipping away at their new material, Bloodywood are ready to show the world the depth and power of Indian folk metal all over again.
