Death Metal / Doom Metal

[Hovned31]

Morbii, thanks for posting all the songs-you've given me some new bands to check out. I've been listening to High on Fire, The Sword, Mastodon and Machine Head a lot lately and these bands looks like good complements to that.

 

[Morbii]

Don,

No response? Or just felt none was necessary?

I, too, thought the conversation was interesting, which is why I ask.

 

[Dr Zaius]

Don,

No response? Or just felt none was necessary?

Here you go.

This does make a lot of sense to me too. But (as you explain below), I don't think it shows the whole picture. Knowing I listen to this type of music may just mean that I like the sounds of extreme music. It may also mean I have issues with depression (given some of the nature). Or it could mean I'm evil. I'll take a combination of the first two (though, if part 2, it's probably more of a driver than a being cause of). I'm also more or less a misanthropist myself when it comes to humanity. I like people (I don't think I hate ANYONE in specific), but humanity itself is just pure evil - I have experienced this fact over and over.

That last bit is interesting. Dark themes are pretty consistent for me across the board when it comes to music, art, computer games, movies, etc. Not sure why, but I've always liked "unhappy" endings like Planet of the Apes, cautionary tales of sci-fi/fantasy destruction, and end of the world stuff. That said, it's just kind of harmless fun for me. I don't think humanity itself is evil. That probably partially explains why I like scary movies like The Thing or Alien, but I abhor torture porn like Saw and Hostel. Similarly, I like dark, heavy music, but a lot of times death and black metal is just too much for me.

At the end of the day, all themes aside, the music itself has to be good. And that's where I struggle with metal bands at times. At lot of them have impressive technical skills, but not-so-impressive musical skills. I don't care how technically proficient the band members are, if they can't make memorable, enjoyable music that stays in my head, then I won't waste time with them. Of course everyone's definition of memorable and enjoyable is different.

Some people think of Metallica as crude, heavy metal noise without any subtlety or musicality. And at the other extreme, I've heard more than a few metal heads heap scorn on Metallica as being too mainstream and lacking "real metal" bite, essentially relegating it to the same status as Justin Bieber. Personally, I think Metallica successfully occupies that space between really hard rock and hardcore metal. Their tones and riffs are thick enough to satisfy most metal fans, but their songs retain a level of musicality often lacking in other metal bands. My point is that one man's hardcore freak is another man's lightweight poser.

As far as the critical mass, I think death metal can also have similar followings. But let's not stop there: look at stuff like Grateful Dead even. Look at Justin Beiber and Britney Spears! Some people just listen to the music, other people start dressing like whores. So, I think a LOT of music can do that. I think it probably depends on the person. I'm also sort of thinking that it might even SEEM that way moreso with extreme metal simply because it CAN be offensive.

Yeah, if you're a diehard Beatles fan, it probably doesn't come across as fringe, even if you do take it to the extreme and start wearing the t-shirt, so to speak. But with black metal (and sometimes death metal) it can put some people off because it is so over the top to begin with. When you add in the sometimes politically charged lyrics, then it isn't surprising when people start giving you funny looks.

But what about horror films (or even non-horror films)? Though, to contradict myself, I suppose it also depends on the intent of the director/writer.

I mentioned movies earlier, but I'll make one additional point here. For whatever reason, I think a lot of people tend to view movies and music differently. If you see someone at a scary movie, you probably won't draw any conclusion other than that they were in the mood for a scary movie. But if you see the same guy going down the street blasting rap music or black metal, then I think people do tend to draw conclusions about who and what that person is.

I agree that PN is pretty fringe, and I know what they're about, but, frankly, I don't know what they're saying and I don't want to. The music itself is phenominal and I don't want to ruin it by knowing.

My wife thinks this is hilarious, but from the time I was a little kid I always remembered that song "Gimme' Foreplay" by the Alan Parsans Project. I didn't love it or anything, but I always thought it was kind of a cool, edgy song with a memorable melody. Then I got older and found out they were actually saying "Games People Play," and not "Gimme' Foreplay." Strangely, I felt the song had lost something. :nuts:

 

[Morbii]

That last bit is interesting. Dark themes are pretty consistent for me across the board when it comes to music, art, computer games, movies, etc. Not sure why, but I've always liked "unhappy" endings like Planet of the Apes, cautionary tales of sci-fi/fantasy destruction, and end of the world stuff. That said, it's just kind of harmless fun for me. I don't think humanity itself is evil. That probably partially explains why I like scary movies like The Thing or Alien, but I abhor torture porn like Saw and Hostel. Similarly, I like dark, heavy music, but a lot of times death and black metal is just too much for me.

I definitely hear you on this, and maybe that's what separates us. I dislike Saw and Hostel too, but that's mostly just because I regard them as being terrible films

At the end of the day, all themes aside, the music itself has to be good. And that's where I struggle with metal bands at times. At lot of them have impressive technical skills, but not-so-impressive musical skills. I don't care how technically proficient the band members are, if they can't make memorable, enjoyable music that stays in my head, then I won't waste time with them. Of course everyone's definition of memorable and enjoyable is different.

Again, I hear you on this. A lot of "buzzy" bands I just like. But don't get me wrong, I don't like them *all* for me to REALLY appreciate it, it does have to be really memorable and stay in my head. Though, like you alluded to, our definitions will probably clash again. I go back to PN, which is completely memorable for me (well, the last two albums, anyway; the first two don't hit me as strongly).

Yeah, if you're a diehard Beatles fan, it probably doesn't come across as fringe, even if you do take it to the extreme and start wearing the t-shirt, so to speak. But with black metal (and sometimes death metal) it can put some people off because it is so over the top to begin with. When you add in the sometimes politically charged lyrics, then it isn't surprising when people start giving you funny looks.


I mentioned movies earlier, but I'll make one additional point here. For whatever reason, I think a lot of people tend to view movies and music differently. If you see someone at a scary movie, you probably won't draw any conclusion other than that they were in the mood for a scary movie. But if you see the same guy going down the street blasting rap music or black metal, then I think people do tend to draw conclusions about who and what that person is.

Again, agree. The music is more extreme, and if people do know what some of it is about, you CAN definitely get those looks (though, funny enough, I don't think I've ever really gotten any to my knowledge when blasting hardcore metal in my car). Strangely. I don't think most people truly know what is in some of it, though.

And yeah, music and film are definitely regarded differently. I sort of wonder partly if it's because of what a director is trying to get across. I think most horror films are just entertainment, for example. I'm thinking someone that sits through some of the more insane films *could* possibly be looked at strangely in the same way, but I think stuff like that is fewer and further between than in the music world .

My wife thinks this is hilarious, but from the time I was a little kid I always remembered that song "Gimme' Foreplay" by the Alan Parsans Project. I didn't love it or anything, but I always thought it was kind of a cool, edgy song with a memorable melody. Then I got older and found out they were actually saying "Games People Play," and not "Gimme' Foreplay." Strangely, I felt the song had lost something. :nuts:

Haha, nice.

Thx for the reply.

 

[Dr Zaius]

Okay, so what do you consider "good" metal? As I said, I like stuff that's musical as well as hard. Here's some examples.

[video=youtube;CD-E-LDc384]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD-E-LDc384[/video]

[video=youtube;jsmcDLDw9iw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsmcDLDw9iw[/video]

[video=youtube;09LTT0xwdfw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09LTT0xwdfw[/video]

 

[Dr Zaius]

Some more good ones.

[video=youtube;Qj1ar0Ma_kA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj1ar0Ma_kA[/video]

[video=youtube;1CsN_KLikhA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CsN_KLikhA[/video]

[video=youtube;qRxW1zXDCoE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRxW1zXDCoE[/video]

 

[Morbii]

I presume you were talking to me, so here's a quick rundown:

Enter Sandmann is a song I've always really liked. Even if I can't get into newer Metallica (hell, I wasn't really even into OLDER Metallica, either).

As far as Iron Maiden, I can't STAND the vocals. Often vocals are what can make or break music for me... though, the music itself is good. Unfortunate in my mind, really.

Disturbed... eh.. I'll leave it I used to like some mass-produced "metal" like that, but mostly I'm not into it. It has to be really, really good, and it usually isn't. I suppose there is much worse out there.

Lamb of God is a band that I pretty much associate with metalcore. I had a HUGE metalcore phase around 10 years ago, and still like much of the music. It's pretty rare that I listen to it (metalcore) much anymore, though. And really, metalcore is awesome live.

Ozzy: not really a fan of his vocals. I also haven't heard many Ozzy songs that really did it for me, but I guess I can be really thankful to him for his influence over Abbath of Immortal, whose music I do love.

Saturnus right away sort of reminds me of this band named "Insomnium", only not as good in my initial estimation and probably not lyrically even close to the same thing (Insomnium, incidentally, is one of those bands that has amazing lyrical content, IMO).

 

[Dr Zaius]

Ha ha, that's what I thought you would say.

Have you ever heard of Stuff White People Like? It sounds like you may fit into category #41.

If you mention a band you like and the other person has heard of them, you lose. They own you. It is essential that you like the most obscure music possible.

Checking out Insomnium now. They sound somewhat similar, both being melodic death metal (one if from Finland and the other Denmark). Saturnus has been around a lot longer and has been touring for years while Insomnium is just starting its first European tour. I've listened to about 10 or so of their songs so far, and my initial impression is that they are good. They do tend to have a somewhat faster tempo and more vocals, as much of Saturnus' work borders on instrumentals.

As for Iron Maiden, I'm not a huge fan but I do like that one song. That said, it's cool as hell that Maiden was successful enough that they operated their own custom Boeing 757 for the Flight 666 tour, and was Piloted by lead singer Bruce Dickenson. How many bands would love to do that? But can you imagine Ozzy piloting a plane? Hell, he just got his drivers license about a year ago!

 

[Morbii]

Ha ha, that's what I thought you would say.

Have you ever heard of Stuff White People Like? It sounds like you may fit into category #41.



Checking out Insomnium now. They sound somewhat similar, both being melodic death metal (one if from Finland and the other Denmark). Saturnus has been around a lot longer and has been touring for years while Insomnium is just starting its first European tour. I've listened to about 10 or so of their songs so far, and my initial impression is that they are good. They do tend to have a somewhat faster tempo and more vocals, as much of Saturnus' work borders on instrumentals.

As for Iron Maiden, I'm not a huge fan but I do like that one song. That said, it's cool as hell that Maiden was successful enough that they operated their own custom Boeing 757 for the Flight 666 tour, and was Piloted by lead singer Bruce Dickenson. How many bands would love to do that? But can you imagine Ozzy piloting a plane? Hell, he just got his drivers license about a year ago!

LOL, no kidding. Ozzy wouldn't be around any longer

As far as being #41, I may have that a bit (especially when it comes to metal), but I think you may be overstating it! I didn't trash all of it, and mostly I see it as a difference in taste (though, you've gone ahead and admitted yourself that those aren't all favorites of yours either!)

 

[Dr Zaius]

Well, you have to bear in mind that I've not been a huge metal fan in the past. I've always been more of a hard rock, AC/DC kind of guy. It's only within the last few years that I've slowly developed a taste for metal, but I suspect my preference is going to be for metal which is less hardcore or fringe than what you like.

Lamb of God will be here in a few weeks and I've considered checking it out. But I've seen videos of their concerts and I know it gets way wild and pretty rough in there, so I'm not sure yet.

 

[Morbii]

Well, you have to bear in mind that I've not been a huge metal fan in the past. I've always been more of a hard rock, AC/DC kind of guy. It's only within the last few years that I've slowly developed a taste for metal, but I suspect my preference is going to be for metal which is less hardcore or fringe than what you like.

Lamb of God will be here in a few weeks and I've considered checking it out. But I've seen videos of their concerts and I know it gets way wild and pretty rough in there, so I'm not sure yet.

That's cool. Well, if you do end up really liking Lamb of God, I can probably share a few metalcore bands that are also really good that you might be into (and not fringe stuff, mind you!).

 

[Dr Zaius]

That's cool. Well, if you do end up really liking Lamb of God, I can probably share a few metalcore bands that are also really good that you might be into (and not fringe stuff, mind you!).

I wouldn't say I'm much of a metalcore fan, but I do like some of the Lamb of God stuff. Here's a cool video I found of the boys having fun on the tour bus.

[video=youtube;2t9Hax53GNY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t9Hax53GNY[/video]

I use the same amp they are using in the video (Mesa Boggie Mark V). I have it connected to a Mesa Rectifier 2x12 cabinet and I can tell you it will rip down walls! I may eventually upgrade to a 4x12 just for the cool factor. :devil:

 

[RecursiveForest]

I am listening to Arghoslent - Incorrigible Bigotry at the moment. I listen to more black metal than death metal, and more death metal than doom metal, but I like all three. Also big into thrash and NWOBHM.

 

[bendizoid]

I don't want to dis anybody's music but I can do without Lamb of God. I had to listen to it once and started getting a headache. The only redeeming quality I could find was the excellent drumming. I like singing not screeching or whatever the Hell you call what that singer does.

Takes all kinds,
Bob

 

[Matt Book]

I don't want to dis anybody's music but I can do without Lamb of God. I had to listen to it once and started getting a headache. The only redeeming quality I could find was the excellent drumming. I like singing not screeching or whatever the Hell you call what that singer does.

Takes all kinds,
Bob

Thrash Metal is the Best Metal....

Bendis and I saw a great show in 2000-Slayer/Pantera...

 

[Hovned31]

Thrash Metal is the Best Metal....

Bendis and I saw a great show in 2000-Slayer/Pantera...

One of the best shows I ever saw was Slayer/Motorhead in 1988!