Wow, that was pretty depressing to read...I think I got to page 10 before closing it. A lot of people had good points, but they were buried beneath an endless flow of childish insults from ledmag and neal, to name the worst perpetrators. Those two guys, my friends, are why Neil Gregie keeps his finger on the delete button at Written On the Walls.
Enough excessive partisanship. I just want to make the point that the whole purpose of a band board is for people to discuss the band, and have you guys ever considered that randomly insulting people may cost Nevermore a few fans? Just a thought.
And as long as I'm talking about this, here's my personal essay on the two bands.
Vocals: Warrel is damn good, there's no denying that, but he has no clean voice...everything sounds scratchy. Vaguely reminiscient of that whiny shit from CKouRhnne or however the fuck you spell it; just, y'know, a good singer. Matt Barlow is one of the top vocalists in metal today; few can match his power. Warrel may be a bit more versatile in some ways, but you can tell that he hurt his voice back in the Sanctuary days. Matt just has so much force and emotion, and more range as well. IE 1, NVR 0
Rhythm Guitar: Again, Loomis is in no way a shitty guitarist, but Jon has chops the likes of which I haven't heard since the glory days of Messrs. Hetfield and Mustaine. "My Own Savior," "Burnt Offerings," "When the Night Falls," "Angel's Holocaust"...the list goes on. The rhythm guitar is the most important element in a song, and while Jeff is more than adequate, Schaffer's riffage is above and beyond today's metal. IE 2, NVR 0
Lead Guitar: Oh, no contest here. Jeff is absolutely BLISTERING when he solos, whereas Larry is more of a melody player - which Loomis does damn well too. Maybe it's because Jon isn't too into the concept of long solos - they just don't really fit in his songs. Whatever the cause, Nevermore wins this round handily. IE 2, NVR 1
Bass: Really kind of a push here...sometimes I can't tell what I'm looking for. Some of IE's best bass playing was on Horror Show, but since Stevie dicked over the band to go back to Testament (BAY AREA THRASH!!! \m/), they've gone back to the solid and über-tatooed James Macdonough. Sheppard rocks hardcore, and has done so for four-and-a-half albums. I guess I'm gonna have to give this one to Nevermore. IE 2, NVR 2
Drums: Richard Christy is GODLIKE...only Scott Travis, Nicko McBrain, and Lars Ulrich during the 80's and early 90's (or REALLY motivated now) can hope to surpass him. However, he's only been with the band for one album; Van Williams has been playing monster grooves with Nevermore for the past seven years or so. As somebody mentioned, Richie is more of a speed player against Van's flowing, jazz-influenced(?) beats, so it's hard to compare. But I'll go with the Seattle boys on this one. IE 2, NVR 3
Lyrics: Probably gonna catch heat for this, but how many times can you say "Drugs are not as bad as murder!" before it gets old? I know I'm generalizing, but I like Jon's varied, emotional approach more than the stuff Warrel writes. Even though Horror Show was a bit weighty on the cheese factor for some songs, the moral allegories of "Frankenstein" and "Dracula" were pretty kickass. And as a fiction writer, I'm very into the lyrical aspect of stuff like Night Of the Stormrider and the Something Wicked trilogy. That being said, Dreaming Neon Black drips awesomeness like a gravy-soaked turkey (mmm, turkey), and I'd love to see Dane write that novel he's talked about. In any case, Iced Earth by inches. IE 3, NVR 3
Songwriting: An oft-overlooked aspect of music - structure and timing. Where are the solos? Do you play the intro for four measures, or eight? When does the vocalist break in with his spine-chilling scream? Iced Earth is the clear winner here - Jon's approach to running the band may raise some hackles among you damn Commies
, but he writes perfectly structured songs with wicked riffs. Take "The Hunter" as an example. Nevermore has a bad habit of "musical masturbation" - that is, going into displays of mind-blowing talent that serve no real purpose. Prog bands are infamous for this. They've gotten a lot better with DHIADW, but PoE had some REALLY bad moments. IE 4, NVR 3
Live: Haven't seen either of them...I was having trouble in school last time IE came to San Francisco. Thankfully, I transferred to an arts school...FUCK THE JOCKOCRACY!!
So there you have it: Iced Earth has been conclusively PROVEN to be better. Therefore, if you disagree, you are WRONG. Your opinion is INVALID and you are a LAME FAG WHO SUX WARELL DANE'S DICK A ND SHULD FUCK OFFF!!!!!!!!11
I'd say "Don't flame me; only intelligent responses," but I have a feeling it'll do no good. So go ahead and flame me; it'll make me feel better about myself, and I'd be glad for an ego boost right now.
-Wishing I had put this much effort into my last essay in American Lit,
Pyrus
Enough excessive partisanship. I just want to make the point that the whole purpose of a band board is for people to discuss the band, and have you guys ever considered that randomly insulting people may cost Nevermore a few fans? Just a thought.
And as long as I'm talking about this, here's my personal essay on the two bands.
Vocals: Warrel is damn good, there's no denying that, but he has no clean voice...everything sounds scratchy. Vaguely reminiscient of that whiny shit from CKouRhnne or however the fuck you spell it; just, y'know, a good singer. Matt Barlow is one of the top vocalists in metal today; few can match his power. Warrel may be a bit more versatile in some ways, but you can tell that he hurt his voice back in the Sanctuary days. Matt just has so much force and emotion, and more range as well. IE 1, NVR 0
Rhythm Guitar: Again, Loomis is in no way a shitty guitarist, but Jon has chops the likes of which I haven't heard since the glory days of Messrs. Hetfield and Mustaine. "My Own Savior," "Burnt Offerings," "When the Night Falls," "Angel's Holocaust"...the list goes on. The rhythm guitar is the most important element in a song, and while Jeff is more than adequate, Schaffer's riffage is above and beyond today's metal. IE 2, NVR 0
Lead Guitar: Oh, no contest here. Jeff is absolutely BLISTERING when he solos, whereas Larry is more of a melody player - which Loomis does damn well too. Maybe it's because Jon isn't too into the concept of long solos - they just don't really fit in his songs. Whatever the cause, Nevermore wins this round handily. IE 2, NVR 1
Bass: Really kind of a push here...sometimes I can't tell what I'm looking for. Some of IE's best bass playing was on Horror Show, but since Stevie dicked over the band to go back to Testament (BAY AREA THRASH!!! \m/), they've gone back to the solid and über-tatooed James Macdonough. Sheppard rocks hardcore, and has done so for four-and-a-half albums. I guess I'm gonna have to give this one to Nevermore. IE 2, NVR 2
Drums: Richard Christy is GODLIKE...only Scott Travis, Nicko McBrain, and Lars Ulrich during the 80's and early 90's (or REALLY motivated now) can hope to surpass him. However, he's only been with the band for one album; Van Williams has been playing monster grooves with Nevermore for the past seven years or so. As somebody mentioned, Richie is more of a speed player against Van's flowing, jazz-influenced(?) beats, so it's hard to compare. But I'll go with the Seattle boys on this one. IE 2, NVR 3
Lyrics: Probably gonna catch heat for this, but how many times can you say "Drugs are not as bad as murder!" before it gets old? I know I'm generalizing, but I like Jon's varied, emotional approach more than the stuff Warrel writes. Even though Horror Show was a bit weighty on the cheese factor for some songs, the moral allegories of "Frankenstein" and "Dracula" were pretty kickass. And as a fiction writer, I'm very into the lyrical aspect of stuff like Night Of the Stormrider and the Something Wicked trilogy. That being said, Dreaming Neon Black drips awesomeness like a gravy-soaked turkey (mmm, turkey), and I'd love to see Dane write that novel he's talked about. In any case, Iced Earth by inches. IE 3, NVR 3
Songwriting: An oft-overlooked aspect of music - structure and timing. Where are the solos? Do you play the intro for four measures, or eight? When does the vocalist break in with his spine-chilling scream? Iced Earth is the clear winner here - Jon's approach to running the band may raise some hackles among you damn Commies
, but he writes perfectly structured songs with wicked riffs. Take "The Hunter" as an example. Nevermore has a bad habit of "musical masturbation" - that is, going into displays of mind-blowing talent that serve no real purpose. Prog bands are infamous for this. They've gotten a lot better with DHIADW, but PoE had some REALLY bad moments. IE 4, NVR 3 Live: Haven't seen either of them...I was having trouble in school last time IE came to San Francisco. Thankfully, I transferred to an arts school...FUCK THE JOCKOCRACY!!
So there you have it: Iced Earth has been conclusively PROVEN to be better. Therefore, if you disagree, you are WRONG. Your opinion is INVALID and you are a LAME FAG WHO SUX WARELL DANE'S DICK A ND SHULD FUCK OFFF!!!!!!!!11
I'd say "Don't flame me; only intelligent responses," but I have a feeling it'll do no good. So go ahead and flame me; it'll make me feel better about myself, and I'd be glad for an ego boost right now.
-Wishing I had put this much effort into my last essay in American Lit,
Pyrus
