AC/DC... Metal or not in your opinion?

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

Title says it all... having a debate with a youngin in the GMD forum and he seems to think he knows more about Old School metal then me... and that AC/DC was never metal.. in his word: EVER.... what is your opinion about AC/DC? .... the link to the thread is below.. try to read it all way to last page to get the full view of it... the youngin is MasteroLightning...

http://ultimatemetal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=264329&page=3

 

[Hawk]

I'd have to agree 100% with Satanstoenail! But I want to add this:

They are not metal but they are not iota less for it. For me personally AC/DC with Bon Scott is simply fantastic! You all know me as a demanding prog-head but I love 70's AC/DC.

They were so damn important in the late 70s and early 80s. Their albums 'Let There be Rock', 'If You Want Blood...', 'Powerage', 'Highway To Hell, and Back in Black' made a lot of heads turn into the direction of Hard-rock here in Europe.

Many of those people would later start to listen to metal. So I think that the value of AC/DC in the history of hard-rock and metal can hardly be underestimated.

Btw, Satanstoenail, welcome to UMOS!

 

[Satanstoenail]

Btw, Satanstoenail, welcome to UMOS!

Cheers

 

[Hawk]

Cheers

No problem!

 

[SoundMaster]

Undeniably metal, IMO. Along with Zep, Purple, etc.

I used to think not, but after having discovered a lot of early 70s rock this year, the heaviness of these bands really shines through.

In a lot of ways, Zep/Purple/ACDC are much heavier than death metal (whose lack of dynamics closes the door to heaviness).

 

[SoundMaster]

How can the tunes "For Those About to Rock", "Flick of the Switch", "Let there Be Rock", "Hells Bells", etc etc be anything but metal?

I know many here will disagree with me, but I've always considered bands such as AC/DC, Zep, Purple, Rush, etc., as metal. Not as simply hard rock (which can be defined by a band such as Foreignor, for example).

In my view, one of the heaviest songs ever remains Zep's "Dazed and Confused".

 

[Bryant]

Undeniably metal, IMO. Along with Zep, Purple, etc.

I used to think not, but after having discovered a lot of early 70s rock this year, the heaviness of these bands really shines through.

In a lot of ways, Zep/Purple/ACDC are much heavier than death metal (whose lack of dynamics closes the door to heaviness).

I think the line between what is metal and what is hard rock is very wide and gray. One could argue either way. However, if you look at their entire catalog, I think it shows AC/DC is a hard rock band.
The sound that Young, Young, Williams, Rudd, Johnson and Lange created on the "Back in Black" release was VERY close to metal and my favorite release (though I prefer the Scott era as a whole) by the band.
Metal or not (though I say not) I might not even be into metal were it not for the "Back in Black" release.


Bryant

 

[kittybeast]

Wikipedia's definition of metal:

"Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that emerged as a defined musical style in the 1970s, having its roots in hard rock bands which, between 1969 and 1974,[1] mixed blues and rock to create a hybrid with a thick, heavy, guitar-and-drums-centered sound, characterised by the use of highly-amplified distortion. Out of heavy metal various subgenres later evolved, many of which are referred to simply as "metal". As a result, "heavy metal" now has two distinct meanings: either the genre and all of its subgenres, or the original heavy metal bands of the 1970s style sometimes dubbed "traditional metal", as exemplified by Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Blue Öyster Cult and Black Sabbath."

With this definition and either without out, I stand on the side of AC/DC is heavy metal. This is a debate that could last a lifetime as we each hear things in the music we would not neccessarily deem as heavy or metal but someone else would.

 

[Wyvern]

Wikipedia's definition of metal:

"Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that emerged as a defined musical style in the 1970s, having its roots in hard rock bands which, between 1969 and 1974,[1] mixed blues and rock to create a hybrid with a thick, heavy, guitar-and-drums-centered sound, characterised by the use of highly-amplified distortion. Out of heavy metal various subgenres later evolved, many of which are referred to simply as "metal". As a result, "heavy metal" now has two distinct meanings: either the genre and all of its subgenres, or the original heavy metal bands of the 1970s style sometimes dubbed "traditional metal", as exemplified by Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Blue Öyster Cult and Black Sabbath."

I think the line between what is metal and what is hard rock is very wide and gray.

I hate revisionism. In the 70's-early 80's hard rock= heavy metal, now you have black symphonic metal, detah progressive metal, dark ambiental metal, death 'n' roll, industrial post-punk polymorphic pseudo-startified avant-garde psycho metal and God knows what other idiocy.

So Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Blue Oyster Cult, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Irish Coffee, etc to me are either hard rock or heavy metal (classic metal if you are a tag nuts) indistinctively, while Lynyrd Skynyrd, Allman Brothers, and so are classic rock (but not hard IMO).

 

[Dee Snarl]

Sonically: perhaps not.

Culturally: AC/DC is definitely part of the heavy metal canon!


If you grant that "heavy metal" existed at all in the 70s, who would its purveyors have been, if not Zeppelin, Sabbath, AC/DC, Purple, UFO, et al.?

 

[TheWhisper]

I personally have never considered them 'metal', but do not care if they are called so. I, like others have said, just consider them good ol' hard rock. By the way, I don't consider Zep, BOC and some of the others mentioned above to be 'metal' either. Again, I am not one to argue labels, as I don't really care what genre a band is placed in, just whether I like them, or not.

 

[Hawk]

If you grant that "heavy metal" existed at all in the 70s, who would its purveyors have been, if not Zeppelin, Sabbath, AC/DC, Purple, UFO, et al.?

What about Black Sabbath and Judas Priest? I believe these bands are the forerunners of Heavy Metal. But like Whisper I don't really care about labels.

People can name Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple what they want to me however Zeppelin is way to diverse to be called metal.

Then again, as Shakespeare once wrote: 'Whats in a name'

 

[Dee Snarl]

What about Black Sabbath and Judas Priest? I believe these bands are the forerunners of Heavy Metal. But like Whisper I don't really care about labels.

People can name Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple what they want to me however Zeppelin is way to diverse to be called metal.

Then again, as Shakespeare once wrote: 'Whats in a name'

I did say Sabbath, but Priest is an obvious one. Scorps? There are others, of course, but my point remains, though I can see yours as well.

Arguing labels and genres is pure fluff: it doesn't matter or get anyone anywhere, but it's still fun.

 

[poundingmetal74]

It's funny... I was listening to an interview with Geddy Lee the other day and he said anyone who listens to metal thinks Rush isn't a metal band, but anyone who doesn't listen to metal thinks they are.

Back on topic - I believe ACDC is a metal but a fringe metal band. especially their earlier work which was pretty heavy for it's time. Are they as heavy as Metallica? Certainly not. However, they have enough metalic qualities to warrant them a metal band.

 

[Hawk]

I did say Sabbath, but Priest is an obvious one. Scorps? There are others, of course, but my point remains, though I can see yours as well.

Arguing labels and genres is pure fluff: it doesn't matter or get anyone anywhere, but it's still fun.

I would have to agree with you there man.

 

[EVERLOSTINDEADETERNITY]

BLues/ Hard rock never metal. Period.

 

[Death Animal]

AC/DC has always been hard rock band to me. But they could be called heavy metal too. It realy doesn´t matter. I call it creat music.

 

[Wizo]

In the Razors Edge album sleeze, Angus discusses how they always got classed as genres they didn't want to be part of. Something about how in the 70's people called them punk, in the 80's people called them metal which annoyed them more than the punk thing. He goes on to say "We're a hard rock band!"

 

[Wyvern]

In the Razors Edge album sleeze, Angus discusses how they always got classed as genres they didn't want to be part of. Something about how in the 70's people called them punk, in the 80's people called them metal which annoyed them more than the punk thing. He goes on to say "We're a hard rock band!"

That reminds me an interview with Motorhead around the "1916" tour. Philty (then drummer) also questioned the tag thing and declare we are a rock'n'roll band.

Ian Gillan once interviewed said that if he ever got tag as a heavy metal singer he will kill himself

BTW welcome to the insaniquarium.

 

[Trans-Siberian Outcast]

What about Black Sabbath and Judas Priest? I believe these bands are the forerunners of Heavy Metal.

People can name Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple what they want to me however Zeppelin is way to diverse to be called metal.

I view Sabbath and Priest as metal, mostly because of their dark themes and the overall feel and heaviness of the music. Zep and Deep Purple are classic hard rock to me. Blue Oyster Cult was never metal (except for a few songs on Imaginos), hard rock all the way.

AC/DC, I'll give credit as a fringe band, but they are still just hard rock to me. Party music.