What The Fuck Is Up, Denny's?

Hardcore as a subgenre has never been as close to the threshold of the global mainstream as it is in 2025. Turnstile’s 2021 album ‘Glow On’, shattered the glass ceiling that the genre very much seemed determined to collectively avoid. It showed the world that hardcore had shed the tribalism and the gatekeeping tendencies of its past to become something that was fluid, adaptable, but still undoubtedly authentic: something that people from all walks of life could find resonance with.  

For me, the allure of Hardcore or Hardcore Punk is its unrelenting energy, its understated poignancy, and its unapologetic willingness to speak truth to power; to call out the bullshit and refuse the Kool-Aid that people are all too quick to chug down. For someone who likes heavy music, it’s got the crushing guitar riffs; it’s got the soaring and guttural vocals; it has the engrossing lyrical narratives; it has the familiarity of indie-synths in the case of bands like Turnstile, but it also has so much more.  

The Rise Of Pacifist

The first time I saw Indian hardcore band Pacifist play was in April of 2022 at antiSOCIAL Pune. We were just about coming out of the collective havoc wreaked by lockdowns and the pandemic, and band-based music was still trying to redefine its collective identity. I’d seen snippets of their balls-to-the-wall, high-octane shows and had listened to a fair amount of their catalogue, but nothing really prepared me for the sheer spectacle that unfolded that night. 

Their 45-minute set was a gorgeous cacophony of rage and discontent that was anchored by a collective spirit of togetherness. It was like everyone there found an ephemeral moment of mutual catharsis; there was a sense that this was a collective community that could speak truth to the unrelenting apathy of the powers that be and the entrenched cynicism of the urban sprawl. Comprised of Vocalist Sidharth Raveendran, guitarists Apurv Agrawal and Ashish Dharkar, bass player Utkarsh Jaiswal, and drummer Varun Sood, Pacifist marshalled their audience into rapture and tapped into a primal need to move, to be seen, and to experience beauty and find balance through moments of profound and unrelenting chaos. 

“It’s not about appeal because it’s never been about appeasing anyone,” explains Raveendran while reflecting on Pacifist's journey, “it’s more about being inclusive. If a bunch of people want to write simple three-chord punk rock that’s queer affirming, it’s about giving them the space to do that.” 

Not A Popularity Contest

It was clear that this was music that wasn’t meant to be listened to via 15-second snippets, drip-fed to you by an algorithm designed to induce reverie. It was meant to be felt, shared, and experienced collectively. It was, for me, a representation of what homegrown hardcore could be and what it could do for not just the alternative Indian music landscape but the larger scene as a whole. 

“This is not a popularity contest genre,” says Raveendran. “Everyone’s in their own respective cul-de-sacs waiting to get their chance to play. I don’t think it enjoys the kind of uniformity that other genres like metal have, where you know what to expect. With hardcore, there’s nuance in understanding exactly what the lyrics are talking about and being able to connect emotionally with it. It’s always politically aware and rooted in working together and helping each other out.” 

Billed To Destroy

With ‘Billed To Destroy’, a gig IP helmed by Raveendran and co’s podcast-turned-gig promotion initiative, ‘Haramcore’, Homegrown hardcore is aiming to draw a line in the sand and push back against the bland, vapid, and myopic programming that’s becoming all too pervasive, particularly within mainstream circles. Coming to three cities — Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru — Billed to Destroy is going to be a celebration of both the legacy of Indian hardcore as well as its bold and bright future. Featuring Pacifist themselves alongside Shillong-based supergroup Catatonic, and Nepal-based Hardcore mainstays Strangle with select date support from up-and-comers Tryst and FTA, it’s a culmination of more than half a decade of blood, sweat, and tears. 

With influences ranging from Title Fight to At The Drive In, Catatonic have been steadily carving a niche for themselves and representing the essence of Indian hardcore across the Northeast. With one EP already under their belt in 2025, they’ll be debuting songs from their latest EP, ‘Metanoia’, at Billed to Destroy. Since 2012, Nepal’s Strangle have been the forebearers of their country’s distinct and tightly knit hardcore sound community and are best known for their blisteringly fast-paced live shows and uncompromisingly aggressive sound.  

Pune’s Tryst and Delhi’s FTA represent a bold new wave of young and hungry hardcore bands. They’re injecting the exuberance, earnestness and even the no-holds-barred naivete that allows bands to push the boundaries of a subgenre. They’re unfettered by the burden of expectation and are looking to set the standard for future Hardcore bands that will no doubt follow their lead. 

Rather than a threat, Billed To Destroy is an earnest invitation to the rest of the scene to embrace subversiveness and to reject the intoxicating allure of uniformity. In the wake of music festivals that look more like shopping conventions and AI bands up the wazzoo, it’s a reminder to the larger scene that things weren’t always like this. More importantly, it underlines that things don’t have to stay this way; that you can build thriving subcultural communities for music that prioritise the artists, the fans, and the experiences over brand endorsements and predominantly international acts that were last relevant a couple of decades go; that you can break even and make money without forsaking everything that makes a concert, gig, or show feel authentically homegrown.

The Bridges Between Us

“Actual physical community and having access to something in your city that you can go to on the regular and spend time interacting with and building on other people’s ideas does more for hardcore’s growth than having a certain aesthetic or a certain sound,” reflects Raveendran. “From the perspective of bands and creatives in the community, it helps people to understand what you’re trying to build; it gives them a gateway into your sound.”

Pacifist, for their part, have never really seen themselves as hardcore ‘traditionalists’ in any capacity. Since their debut they’ve always toed the lines that divide emo, indie, and alternative sensibilities. “I think I listen to the most harcore in the band,” smiles Raveendran. “Everyone else is practically an indie musician in their head.”

This eclectic mix of influences and sounds has allowed the band to lay out a blueprint that positions hardcore as a vehicle for a renaissance of sorts, both musically and beyond. It’s showing up-and-coming bands and artists that the Indian musical and cultural landscape can thrive if it draws on a diversity of influences and builds bridges to other alternative subcultures that continue to exist on the periphery. 

“Collectively, between all the bands on the line-up, we’re bridging the geographical and regional boundaries that divide the scene,” says Raveendran. “I know for a fact that I’m going to be seeing a lot of Nepali hardcore and metal heads show up for the gig in Bengaluru because a huge chunk of them live there, but I don’t think they’ve gotten a chance to feel and be represented on a stage like this.” 

An Antidote To Isolation

The power of South Asian hardcore is that it's about so much more than just the music. It champions togetherness, kinship and mutual respect; it fights for those most vulnerable and shines a light on all that’s going wrong in our world. It makes you feel like you’re a part of something bigger than one band, or one show, and one night. Hardcore pushes back against the myth of those ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ concert experiences that make you spend money you don’t have just to feel something. 

Billed To Destroy is not a once-in-a-lifetime concert IP but rather a chance to experience something beyond the banal homogeneity that’s been normalised in the last few years. It’s a chance to kick up the roots of what was once a creatively diverse, truly independent Indian music scene and bring that energy into its modern manifestations — whether it’s a multistage festival or an underground neighbourhood dive bar gig. 

“It’s a great antidote to the hyper-individualism that’s being constantly peddled to us by social media when it comes to everything we consume,” says Raveendran as he signs off. “It’s an invitation to just let loose and be yourself. You don’t have to be the guy right in front, throwing moves or stage diving. Even just being present and sharing space that energy makes you feel free in some way.”

It’s always a risk to try something new, but if you do decide to take the dive, Billed To Destroy will give you something authentic to hold onto whether it’s a safe space and a community that supports, nurtures and lifts each other up or even just a place to find yourself in the comforting roar of a clamouring crowd. 

Billed to Destroy is coming three Indian cities — Delhi, Bengaluru, & Mumbai on July 25, 26, & 27 respectively.

You can buy tickets and find out more about each band here.

You can follow Haramcore here.

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