Best use of contrasting things? (Growly to clean, quiet to loud, etc.)

[anonymouswierdo]

Um, don't you mean dynamics?

I just quickly looked up dynamics, and it appears more specific than I am meaning. It refers only to the loudness/softness of music, does it not?

 

[Gory Elephant]

'Y know how some bands, such as Fear Factory, alternate between a couple of types of vocals, some tracks switch between slow and fast or loud and quite? Well, what is the best use of that type of stuff you've come across? Have you never heard it done well at all?


Remember, neither the band nor the track has to actually be good, just the use of contrast.

Most bands fail at this, I think. Metal is all about violence to me, so if they take the contrast (or dynamic, whatever) too far, then the problem is that what they have provided as "contrast" is simply non-metal, which I think ruins the piece, more often than not. Sure, subtle contrasts are good, i.e., the slower parts of an obituary song that are crushingly heavy, or the different vocal styles from Exhumed (in that the contrasting one to the growly death metal voice is neither clean nor super high pitched, as some gore grind bands do), but too much contrast is not good for the coherence (coheseviness??) of the piece overall.

mike

 

[Evil Dead]

I've gotta say, some of Opeth's transitions (especially on later albums) sound so alike and forced that I end up finding myself wondering how insecure they must be as musicians never to deviate from their formula aside from tossing in a soft song every now and then. Just speculation, but... eh.

True.


Early Ulver did a pretty good job. Garm was pretty decent. Sanrabb from Gehenna is good too.

 

[Dän]

Yeah, but that was an obvious pre-planned exception, and even so it was marketed as balanced against the dark, heavy Deliverance... so the same kind of idea was being played on either way.

Don't get me wrong, I still love the band, just the more other music I listen to the more I think they could do a lot more with their sound.

.

 

[Saparmurat_Niyazov]

I like the contrast between the Karelian Isthmus and Tales From 1000 Lakes. That's a more impressive "contrast" than any found within the dynamics of their individual songs.

 

[entanglement]

There's another good band called Novembers Doom that I recently discovered.. that does it quite well. These guys are really good at doing what they do, despite the fact that their music is mostly a transition between Opeth and Katatonia.. they do pull it off quite nicely.

 

[Dazed and Brutal]

There's another good band called Novembers Doom that I recently discovered.. that does it quite well. These guys are really good at doing what they do, despite the fact that their music is mostly a transition between Opeth and Katatonia.. they do pull it off quite nicely.

They're better than Opeth.

 

[Xorv]

Circle of dead children. From stomach churning growls to ear piercing screeches. They're really good. I wonder if it's the same guy....hmm....

Agalloch? eh? naaa

ummm.....

 

[CF87]

Edge of Sanity has some usage of clean vocal parts and melody, the band does not have a drastic clean/growl or soft/heavy approach though.

 

[Xorv]

you stupid guys

 

[metal_wrath]

They're better than Opeth.

May The Children of the Night drink of your blood at the Altar of Satan in the darkest night, during the midnight hours in a darkened forest where no screams are heard but the howling of the wolves who feast on your Flesh under the Grimnest nights during the Unholiest hours under the Moonlight Night!

 

[Hell Awaits Us All]

behemoth uses fast drums and mid-paced riffs beautifully IMO

the riffs are around 140-170 BPM and the drumming seems to be around 220 - 260 - works beautifully

 

[skeptik]

perfect for pumpin some mothafuckin iron i mean am i rite

 

[V.V.V.V.V.]

 

[Matt]

perfect for pumpin some mothafuckin iron i mean am i rite

Actually yes

 

[Zhou Tai 04]

My Silent Wake does this very well.

http://www.myspace.com/mysilentwake

 

[Hell Awaits Us All]

perfect for pumpin some mothafuckin iron i mean am i rite

especially on chest days

gotta get those pecs pumped!!

 

[Matt]

Today is chest for me, probably can't get to the gym today though

 

[Hell Awaits Us All]

LMAO at the quote in your sig

 

[DarkBliss]

the riffs are around 140-170 BPM and the drumming seems to be around 220 - 260 - works beautifully

Ah yes, dude, eventually it all comes down to who does it fastest. Speed statistics, it always cracks me up when I see them. Marduk comes crasbanging at 300, but the Berserker exceeds them at an astonishing peak of 500 BPM. Ooooh, ya, ladies and gremlins- The Berserker scores at 525! Winner is the one who comes first, just like in sex, right?