Metal band Unlimited’s front man Pham Viet Thanh (C) says rock is a mature form of music and should be recognized as such

Heavy metal sensation Unlimited want nothing more but for people to accept rock as a legitimate form of music, says the band’s lead singer.

With gentle manners, a mild voice and not a touch of eccentricity in anything he says, it’s hard to imagine the dark lyrics and piercing screams of his music coming from Thanh’s gentle face.

Despite the legions of female fans that scream for him at his shows, the front man of Vietnam’s most popular metal band – and thus Vietnam’s most popular rock band – doesn’t seem to care about his looks.

“Don’t call me ‘beautiful’ or ‘handsome.’ That’s not what you call a rocker,” says Thanh, who sings for metal band Unlimited.

“I always cut my hair myself. I can’t stand wearing it short. I get depressed if it’s too short,” says Thanh, adding that he needs the long hair to perform, especially as headbanging plays such a large role in Unlimited’s act.

He says long hair expresses the natural freedom conveyed in rock music.

But in contrast to his smart and elegant demeanor is his gloomy and harsh singing voice, which fuels his passionate and often dark music.

Complimenting the young rocker’s dark and morbid are his gentler, poetic lyrics about love and death and good and evil.

Classical upbringing

Thanh’s father, famous music producer Pham Viet Tan, encouraged son to play piano as a child. Exhibiting extraordinary talent at a young age, Thanh was already studying at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music by the time he was just 16.

It was there that he and his friends first came up with the idea of starting their own rock band.

“We had been playing rock and heavy metal since we were teenagers,” says Thanh. “But I’ve never forgotten my background and strange as it may sound, power metal and classical music share the same rigor for harmony and composition.”

Asked about his music specifically, Thanh describes Unlimited as, well, “unlimited,” of course.

“It’s all about what we like,” he says.

More specifically, he says the band has been inspired by legendary metal acts including Metallica, Stratovarious and Dream Theater.

“We don’t want to cover other people’s songs like typical pop bands. Rock is about passion, creativity and sometimes you need to break the rules,” he says.

Maturity

Thanh got the opportunity to illustrate the connection between heavy metal and classical music when Unlimited performed with the HCMC Conservatory Orchestra last August. The show was a huge success and proved to be a delicate combination of rock and symphony music where each style enhanced the other.

“We hoped playing with a symphonic orchestra would make rock more visible and respected,” says Thanh.

“People think rock bands and fans are crazy, long-haired and uneducated teenagers. But our show proved them wrong. We only hope that rock and power metal will be more accepted as the mature music forms they are.”

Most of Thanh’s time is now taken up mastering and preparing additional video clips for the “Unlimited Symphony” live concert DVD.

“This will be the best rock DVD ever released in Vietnam because it will be the first rock DVD here,” jokes Thanh. But the joke is not without its butt as Thanh says, “how sad is that?”

A woman’s touch

Unfazed by the rock’s underground status, Thanh and Unlimited may very well accomplish their dream of making rock more respected in Vietnam, so long as they have a little help from their friends.

In addition to the PR and visibility, another benefit of the orchestra project is Unlimited’s now fruitful collaboration with opera singer Ngoc Tuyen, one of the conservatory’s most extraordinary female voices.

Tuyen first worked with the band on the orchestra collaboration, but she’s now singing with the band regularly and is scheduled to play an integral role on several tracks for the band’s upcoming album.

“Tuyen has done an excellent job,” says Thanh. “Her pure soprano matches our style perfectly, my voice in particular. She will be indispensable to our next album.”

This ain’t pop

Apart from singing with Unlimited, Thanh is also known as a successful arranger with several local music projects at his father’s recording studio, Viet Tan.

Thanh recently won Best Musical Arrangement at the Canh dieu vang (Golden kite) national film awards earlier this month for his work in the box office smash Giai cuu than chet (Hot kiss 2).

Most of Unlimited’s demos and LPs have been produced at Viet Tan, where Thanh enjoys ultimate creative freedom.

“Other recording studios in HCMC only work with pop music, They don’t understand rock and don’t even no how to record drums,” he says.

That’s why the band’s first full length album, the 2007 release Tai sinh (Reborn), was recorded at his home studio. Thanh also arranged most of the music for the album, which was one of the year’s biggest domestic hits.

But will Thanh, like many leading front men, eventually go solo?

“I can’t imagine myself performing onstage with just a microphone. I want to be with my band,” he says. “You know what often happens in my worst nightmares? I’m standing alone in the middle of the stage lip-syncing! I’m against going solo.”

But after all the hard work, Thanh still doesn’t consider himself an “artist.”

“I’m practical. I’ve been around this industry since I was a kid. The only thing that matters to me is that you are passionate about what you do. Then and only then, if your talented and original, you’ll shine in the music world.”

Reported by Hai Mien