The antonym to "technical" is not "ordinary". I never called Zero Hour ordinary. It seems this is where the rub lies... You thinking I think ZH is "ordinary" (which is not a word I'd use to describe them) would somehow cheapen your enjoyment of it? Or what?
By the way, you mentioned Meshuggah. When you've figured out Meshuggah's rhythmical concept, the music isn't as daunting anymore (and the rhythm guitars aren't that difficult compared to the drums), but it sure isn't "easy" music, and I wouldn't argue against someone calling them technical. When it comes to Meshuggah the only thing I'd argue about is the incessant misappliance of the word "polyrhythm", by people who don't know what an actual polyrhythm is.. because Meshuggah has very rarely played polyrhythms, and nothing more complex than a 5:4 (there's an argument for a 6:7, but it can be thought of in other ways...)... but that's for another discussion (that I've had way too often). There are more instances of polyrhythmics in Tandjent than Meshuggah, actually. IIRC, even a 7:3 in one track.
And Tandjent and Meshuggah are way more technical than Zero Hour. I have no "agenda" here as you might think, but who cares because you don't take my posts seriously. right?
I don't use SA as THE yardstick either. My yardstick is taking many many bands into regard. And sure, as I've said earlier, a part of the "technical" thing will always be somewhat subjective because it's sadly tied to the "difficulty to perform" thing, and different people have trouble with performing different things in music... but it's far from all subjective... You need to draw the line somewhere... or if we considered ZH "tech metal", then that'd open the door to about... well a thousand other bands that play trickier material, by that virtue alone... I don't like putting bands in genres, but it's a necessary evil and I'd rather not have the same thing happen to tech metal genre that happened with the progmetal genre, wherein you will now have utter powermetal bands playing around. The only time genres are useful, is when they're descriptive and at least somewhat accurately so. Oh yeah, Angra have sooo much in common with Dreamscape, right?
As for Death and Control Denied as you mentioned, the tech here mostly lies in the drums.
Bleh. This is a stupid and useless discussion indeed and it makes it sound like I constantly go around judging bands' level of technicality, which I reaaaaaaaally do not do.
P.S. And yeah, I would say what I've said here has more merit than Ken Golden's word, considering he wrote that incredibly stupid and plain untrue statement saying "Zero Hour represent the cutting edge of tech metal". I like the guy but he deserves to be reprimanded for such... outright transgressions. Or well, yeah, I guess it's marketing speak and the "truth in advertising" seems to work, considering what some people have said here. What Zero Hour themselves know or think, I don't know, and I don't pretend to either assume or even care. D.S.
