The Brooklyn Rail

There is something poetic about a heavy metal musician emigrating to the United States and arriving here on Halloween. But whereas that American holiday traffics in a capitalist caricature of horror, guitarist Metal Sam (his stage name; he asks not to use his given name, saying “it’s dangerous, but also nobody knows me using that name”), who fled his native Afghanistan after the Taliban’s 2021 retaking of the country, and performs as Rig Veda, understands real terror and mortality.

“After the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan, many people who worked for the former government or were somehow associated with it had to flee the country,” said Sam. “The reason for me was obvious. Me and my brother founded the first black metal band in Afghanistan. We played live in Kabul and many people knew about us.” When asked about family remaining, Sam demurred, citing concerns about their safety.

Reports in 2023 saw Taliban officials burning instruments and harassing local musicians, something which also happened during the initial reign of the Taliban from 1996–2001, when the country was known as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and all forms of music were considered haram, the Arabic word for forbidden under Sharia law. To quote an official notice from 1998: “Those who listen to music and songs in this world, on the Day of Judgment molten lead will be poured into their ears.” Actually, it sounds like a press release for a metal album.

Sam was born January 25, 2001 in Kabul, less than nine months before the invasion of Afghanistan by U.S. military forces in response to the September 11 attacks, and grew up during yet another turbulent era in the country’s history. Coincidentally, it was the same year Acrassicauda was founded in Baghdad, Iraq, another heavy metal band forced to leave their homeland because of increasing threats. Sam had been unaware of them until this author mentioned them, and after watching the 2007 documentary Heavy Metal in Baghdad said, “It’s very inspiring. I think we have a very similar story and there’s a lot in common. I’d love to play with them together! I admire them.”

Sam discovered metal through YouTube videos, starting with Metallica, graduating to Slayer—still his favorite band—and then discovering bands like Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, Burzum, Behemoth, Watain and others. He began playing guitar when he was 17, an undertaking complicated by various factors. First, there was getting an instrument. As Sam relates, “Musical instruments were commonly found in many stores. But, when it comes to electric guitars, drums and pedals, it was different.”

“Back in the days when there was a music scene, you could find some musical instruments at a very high cost. Pedals did not exist, except for a few that were super expensive. Maintenance was another issue. Who’s going to fix your amplifier or guitar pedal? Nobody’s got the skill. My first distortion pedal wasn’t working when it arrived, but somehow I got it fixed. I got my instruments from abroad.”

Then there was a lack of established metal musicians from whom he could learn so he returned to YouTube and taught himself from online lessons. Finally, there was distrust and outright hostility toward the music he was making. “Metal has always been frowned upon in my country, regardless of the government approach. It is because people don’t want to accept anything new. They see it as a threat to their traditions and religious beliefs.”

Now he has his own YouTube channel. On it are two videos of music made while he was still in Kabul, “Dasyu” and “O Fire,” crawling slabs made more ominous by their low-fidelity recordings. More recent items are live performances, one from New York and the other from New Haven, Sam performing solo in the former and with a dancer in the latter. The musicians he worked with back in Afghanistan quit early on so Rig Veda is both Sam’s band and alternate persona, though he does hope to work with others again. The name comes from Hinduism, one of the faith’s sacred texts. Sam explains, “This book provides valuable information about the history of a region that includes Afghanistan. By doing so, I hope I can admire our history and ancient culture. The pre-Islamic era was as interesting as the other time frames, which is often overlooked.”

As to the subject matter, Sam has no end of modern inspiration, unlike, say, Scandinavian black metal that must look back past centuries of comfort and prosperity to the dark times of the Berserkers. “I do get inspired from real life events,” he says. “Things in my memories and also what I saw on the news literally every day growing up. There was an ongoing war in my country since I was born. I’d like to show it to other people so they can understand how bitter of a phenomenon this is. And there’s no better way for me to do that other than black/death metal music.”