The Cheapening of Mainstream Metal Genre

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[Night Records]

Hey guys, don't take anything I say personally, and sorry for this long post and the time it takes to get to my point.

I am a fan of death metal, black metal, British 80s heavy metal, etc.  I like a lot of stuff.  However, I have a few things to say:

When metal first started with Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Judas Priest (it's funny how they're all British bands), it was rather shocking - it was loud, not fast at all, but it was some serious heavy shit.  It became very popular.  And that kind of music was good, because it was different to the Beatles and their carbon copies.  Then punk came, sales of metal records took decreased sharply, etc, you know the story.

New Wave of British Heavy Metal resulted in new popularity and interest in metal, it was faster, Iron Maiden blah blah blah, no radio play etc etc etc, Kerrang came about to make the NWOBHM well known, you know the rest.

My point is that, when you look at all the new popular bands that came with the New Wave of American Heavy Metal, it was and still is total bullcrap.  Nu metal, basically rap combined with some metal elements and electronic, took the world by storm, and that is very very depressing.  How can you combine hip hop ie black ghetto music, not to sound racist or anything, with mainly white music?  I didn't mean that quite the way it sounded, but oh well.

Punk itself is quite enjoyable.  What is not enjoyable is seeing all the metalcore bands emerge, declare themselves to be metal, and watching them slowly but surely take over interest in the mainstream - I mean, I know people who enjoy pop who know about Death and Cannibal Corpse, not so much Black Metal, and everyone loves Metallica and Megadeth.  But when I tell people that I listen to metal, and own a record label, they look at me, and ask me why I'm spewing up emo bullcrap, and I tell them to fuck off, because real metal is not metalcore, and not what the public believes to be metal.

Also, there is Avenged Sevenfold.  I know I shouldn't care how they dress, but they give metal a bad name - they look like emos, and it doesn't help metal's image when the public is told that these guys are the ones to bring metal back.  Dude - haven't those guys listened to Iced Earth or something epic like that?  The music itself shows some talent, and some kind of stuff, but when you compare that to the rest of metal, those guys are just idiots.

Finally, there is the way Kerrang reports about metal.  For a magazine that started to promote metal, it's idea of metal has gotten rather fucked up.  And people reckon it is a metal magazine, when really it isn't.

So there is my butthurt, venting kind of bitching post.  Hope you didn't waste too much time reading that.

[Esoteric]

There is always garbage no matter what era it is. Nu Metal, Glam, Deathcore, ect. There will always be stupid trends that are not a good representation of metal itself and should not be used as a generalization. Once you get past that you'll stop worrying about pointless shit

[Feoreunn]

Metal gives itself a bad name, we don't need Kerrang for that. How many people you know listen to metal but only know the really popular bands, snatched up by big labels, promoted the shit out of and put highest on festival bills? And those are mostly not the best bands in the genre, for example Sabaton and Dragonforce for power metal. They're not pioneers, they're not brilliant, they just happen to be popular for no good reason.

Frankly, a crusade to let the world know what metal really is, is a lost cause, because the genre itself is infected. As long as you yourself know it, I wouldn't lose too much sleep over it.

[Sirliftsalot48]

And those are mostly not the best bands in the genre, for example Sabaton and Dragonforce for power metal. They're not pioneers, they're not brilliant, they just happen to be popular for no good reason.

Sabaton is good though, Dragonforce is not.

[metaldomdom]

Dragonforce were good before they started to get all dancy-trippy-ultrabeat techno in their song. They should have left the keyboard in the background with a solo from time to time

[Sargon the Terrible]

Metal is underground.  This used to frustrate me too, but you have to accept that part of the genre is that it does not appeal to most people and so they don't know about it.  It takes effort to be a metal fan, it means taking time to hunt for new bands and listen for new stuff.  Most people just take whatever they hear on the radio and that's fine for them - they have no desire to look for new music. they just take whatever is fed to them.  It always amazes me how I'll turn someone on to Nightwish or Blind Guardian and they go on about how awesome they are but they never ask if there are more bands like that, more sounds they might like.  Music fans have been programmed by radio play to be passive, they take what you give them and that's the end of it.

Metal will never be an aboveground genre and that's just the nature of the beast.  If it were to emerge out of the underground that would destroy so many bands, because really, how many bands could stay relevant and serious if they were raking in money?  If metal were popular all the bands would be scooped up by big labels and pressured to be more commercial, while a ton of shit bands would be marketed and flood the landscape.  It would destroy the scene for years, if not decades.  Metal needs to be underground to survive, and it is so frustrating when people have no idea what it is and think that stupid Lamb of God cockshit is what we're talking about, but it's the price we pay for a healthy scene.

[Feoreunn]

Sabaton is good though, Dragonforce is not.

I like Sabaton, but there are a lot more interesting power metal bands than them, is all I'm saying.

[metaldomdom]

Everything that Sargon said is true. I had some young "metalheads" in my carpentry class that thought Lamb Of God, Korn, Bullet For My Valentine and Avenged Sevenfold were metal. I checked all of their Ipod, and none of them had Maiden, Black Sabbath, Metallica (only one and he had St-Anger), Judas Priest or any real metal. Kids nowadays don't like to find an hidden band or read reviews.

They just take what's on the radio

[Warhammer]

Yeah, look at what happened to Metallica and Queensryche when they got some money in their pocket. Mainstream Metal will always be kinda lame because it appeals to the larger audience. Look at the 80's with Def Leppard, Poison, Skid Row and Dokken. Sure some of their tunes were pretty good, but compared to Iron Maiden, Testament, Mercyful Fate old Metalica it was kinda of a joke. Nu metal is a natural progression that will be ignored by most old school Metalheads like myself and others here. If the new generation wants to listen to Bullet for my Valentine I don't see a problem with it because they don't want to appreciate what their dad listens too. They want their own music.

And Kerrang has been obsolete for years anyways since the invention of the internet and you have sites like this and Blabbermouth.

[darigaaz]

I think after years of listening to real metal, i have come up with the conclusion that metal is not a teenager's kind of music.
The maturity to delve into the complexities of the subject and the knowledge one acquires comes in time, only if one really is intrigued by it. So lets say you're a teenager with no interest in literature, mythology, general history or general knowledge even, but you hate your life, are always angry and want to have sex every 5 minutes cos its all you can think about.

Well commercialising music is what satisfies these teens. Think about it. The Glam scene brought the ladies as did the whole Gothic Nightwish era (not that it was bad by any means) which contrasted greatly with the black metal scene around the same time.

In America Nu metal became popular with the bands mentioned such as Korn, Linkin Park, Slipknot etcc..... for teens who have no interest in anything but venting out anger and getting laid, while the ppl who want to listen to heavy metal do as Sargon did because common sense implies, that if i like Blind Guardian, chances are there are other bands playing somewhat in that style......

So yeah its frustrating to try and explain metal, but why bother in the first place??

Would a rocket scientist bother to explain to even his parents his subject if they just had a general idea of how a rocket works??
No he wouldn't but he would explain it at conventions, with other scientists, and like minded or potentially like minded ppl.

That's why events such as Keep It True http://www.myspace.com/keepittruefestival and Hammer of Doom http://www.myspace.com/hammerofdoomfestival both organized by real Metalheads like Oliver are events which never disappoint!

As for magazines? Why the hell should I bother with them??? I have metalcrypt, metal-archives and metalstorm for reviews and new bands, and blabbermouth for news so FUCK magazines like Kerrang, Terrorizer and the lot They're a business not a band and there is no REAL metal magazine out there, except fanzines. Like my good friend Luis' Zine: http://www.myspace.com/krumhur and many others which come from a metalhead's real point of view so some intern who thinks Avenged Sevenfold are the new saviors of metal. Metal does not need to be saved!!

[Night Records]

Wow, so many replies!

I think that, unlike darigaaz, a teenager can understand metal.  He could have a lot of interest in literature, mythology (especially Irish), general history or general knowledge.  They may not have the full maturity to fully understand the concepts, but it is a huge generalisation to say that teens don't understand metal.

I agree with Sargon.  I met this girl who liked Cannibal Corpse, which surprised me, because I knew here as a pop music kind of person.  I asked her if she knew any other death metal, and she said no, and that Corpse was the only band she liked.  That was just a huge cop out.  She didn't know Death, let alone hear them, and she had no idea about thrash metal.

Iron Maiden, during the 80s, were absolutely huge, if my dad is a reliable source.  SO they were popular, maybe not quite in the radio friendly sense, but popular.  It's sad to see, however, good bands messing up for money.

 Primordial - Empire Falls

[darigaaz]

I didnt mean all, of course there are teens who like metal and are into LoTR and Mythology and all that, but a lot aren't and yet still listen to Slipknot etc.... to vent out teenage angst, which is what the labels for this kind of music are aiming for (Mainstream Metal as the thread title suggests)

In most cases that I see, teens into real metal, either have a bigger bro, or cousin or parent who shows them the way, very rarely are teens naturally inquisitive about old school metal after listening to radio 'metal'

[MetalMike]

Teenagers can definitely understand Metal.  The question is do they want to.  Many people are happy to be told what is popular which is why it is called "pop" music.  Fans of Metal don't want to be told what to like.  It's much more fun to go on a quest, whether that is on the web today or to a cool record store back in the 80s, and DISCOVER something new and cool.  Most of us come here because we won't have to sit through reviews of stuff that can read elsewhere.

Iron Maiden were and are huge.  The 15K people that I watched them with in 2008 were just as fired up and sang all the songs just as loud as the 15K I watched them with in 1985.

[Nosrac1691]

Iron Maiden were and are huge.  The 15K people that I watched them with in 2008 were just as fired up and sang all the songs just as loud as the 15K I watched them with in 1985.

I would give my left nut to be able to travel back in time and see them during the World Slavery Tour.

[Brewdog]

Everything that Sargon said is true. I had some young "metalheads" in my carpentry class that thought Lamb Of God, Korn, Bullet For My Valentine and Avenged Sevenfold were metal. I checked all of their Ipod, and none of them had Maiden, Black Sabbath, Metallica (only one and he had St-Anger), Judas Priest or any real metal. Kids nowadays don't like to find an hidden band or read reviews.

They just take what's on the radio

Particularly AM/FM corporate radio. Or Headbanger's Ball.