Controversial opinions on metal

[SoundMaster]

Agalloch have them because they started as a black metal band and are still heavily rooted in black metal. Same for enslaved. I'd sooner have enslaved ditch some of the dodgy cleans than the harsh stuff which works just fine.

And they make perfect sense in Enslaved's current output. Two of the most recent EPs are black metal. And even if you think of the albums as purely prog, prog has always been all about outlandish and weird vocals. It's the modern proggy metal shit with soft in key totally boring and irritating, wouldnt be out of place in soft rock or pop, vocals that need to fuck off.

To my ears, it's Grutle's screams which are (now) annoying. They perfectly fit their 90s output, but stand out like a sore thumb since. They feel forced these days. It's asif they feel they "have to' use them simply because they're from Norway and were part of the 90s scene.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

the first ten seconds of "Leather Rebel" totally dominate us. But then the rest of the song unfolds…and I reach for their 70s output.

LEATHER REBEL! Liiiiiiiightning in the daaaaaa-aaaaaaark! How can you not love that?

 

[divine_torture]

I'm not saying death metal doesn't say hooks (in fact I wasn't really even talking about them in my first post at all) I'm saying they're not as important relative to trad, and more importantly that variance in songwriting isn't as important.

I agree with some of your examples, disagree with others. I love Consuming Impulse as much as anyone, and I agree that the songs are easily discernible from one another, but I don't hear it as an album where order is absolutely critical. It's a collection of bitching 3-4 minute riff-fests, one after the next. Same goes with most Death. With early At the Gates I can get more on board, although even there the second album has a pretty drastic shift into a more straight-forward headbangable blur by its second half. I can also agree with Incantation where you can have some incredibly brutal and fast material contrasted with the giant doom-influenced epics, and everything in between.

The lyrical themes mentioned in Hypocrisy and Origin are more a case of the homogeneity I was talking about. "Semi-conceptual" because they share a similar basis, but afaik it's just aliens and more aliens, or whatever the theme happens to be. I don't know of a Hypocrisy album where I think "Oh yeah, that moody alien lull before the big alien peak really brings it all together", although admittedly I don't like Hypocrisy so maybe I haven't been giving them a fair shot?

I'm too drunk to respond the way I normally would. But, you didn't mention every album after Consuming Impulse, or after Leprosy/Human. Both of those bands went on to create increasingly more cohesively sound albums and fantastic continuity I'd measure up to nearly any trad trek you're head wandered on.

And Hypocrisy, even in interviews and said by Peter Tagtgren are simply musically important. The lyrics are not a major focus point. Hence all the no lyrics in there shit god damn them. Ha. But its about aliens and Satan, so what more do you need. They're a high quality band, in my book.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Individual Thought Patterns and Symbolic are two of the least album-feeling albums I know of, u joking m8? I mean, sure, the former closes with one of their best known songs and the latter with the longest one, but it's just a bunch of independent musings from philo-Chuck over a bunch of riffs that tend to resemble each other. Might as well call Annihilator cohesive.

 

[The Butt]

People who don't like Painkiller are fucking gay.

NIIIGHT CRAWLER, BEWARE THE BEAST IN BLACK

 

[SentinelSlain]

I guess Im a fucking faggot then.

I prefer to listen to other shit going on at the time. That album just doesnt hit me. I dont get it. They got me with SWoD, but not SC.

Give me some old Sabbath, Zepplin, Rush or even KISS. (Yes, I said KISS fuck the haters). And before I start a shit storm, Im not saying Kiss is better than Priest so dont even fucking start.

Here's another one then, The Oath and Exciter are Kiss's best songs.

Painkiller is good but I don't really listen to it any more. It is forced heaviness, which I suppose creates an interesting sound, but, it's certainly lacking in many ways.

I used to be a total JP fanboy, but I can't be bothered with a lot of their albums nowadays.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

I agree with The Oath, but I didn't even know KISS had an Exciter. Sounds good though, defo metal at least.

 

[The Ozzman]

People who don't like Painkiller are fucking gay.

NIIIGHT CRAWLER, BEWARE THE BEAST IN BLACK

 

[ProphetofHatred]

People who hate on Death are pretentious hipsters.

 

[Onder]

People who hate on Death are pretentious hipsters.

Well I don't hate on them but I think they're pretty boring. They always seemed that way to me. I gave up already.

 

[J.]

Speaking of trad, i was listening to slough feg. Hardworlder and atavism are their best ones. I like traveller too. Deadmen is ok. Twilight is alright

 

[matt schrauben]

People claiming Priest are overrated are just as silly as that opinion. You can't have both words "Priest" and "overrated" in one sentence.

I used to think they were. But then I took the time to really dive into their 1970s material. That shit is pretty unbeatable.

 

[crimsonfloyd]

Well I don't hate on them but I think they're pretty boring. They always seemed that way to me. I gave up already.

I just find a lot of Death's later material to be fairly uneventful. I'm not saying it's bad, but it's also not compelling. I'll find adequate satisfaction from listening to it, but I'll also lack the desire to go back and give it another listen. Also, I find Chuck's pseudo-philosophical musings to be tiresome. Now Leprosy, on the other hand, is a masterpiece.

 

[Dak]

Override of the Overture

 

[SoundMaster]

I just find a lot of Death's later material to be fairly uneventful. I'm not saying it's bad, but it's also not compelling. I'll find adequate satisfaction from listening to it, but I'll also lack the desire to go back and give it another listen. Also, I find Chuck's pseudo-philosophical musings to be tiresome. Now Leprosy, on the other hand, is a masterpiece.

I share this view. I *do* enjoy the latter era, for the most part, but it's simply far less exciting than the first few albums. And the last album is unlistenable due to vocal style Chuck adopted for it. Just unlistenable to my ears……perhaps the worst vocal performance ever, rivaling even the abominable screams Yoko Ono cursed our ears with in the early 70s.

 

[Krow]

Death's first four are rock solid osdm. None are really favorites of mine except Spiritual Healing though. After that, i lost interest... The other albums arent bad or anything though.

People who don't like Painkiller are fucking gay.

NIIIGHT CRAWLER, BEWARE THE BEAST IN BLACK

This.

And I'm sticking with it, if i pick my top five heavy metal albums, Painkiller is on the list, which looks something like...

Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Slayer - Show No Mercy
Dio - Holy Diver
Judas Priest - Painkiller
Pagan Altar - Judgement of the Dead

 

[Dak]

Now Leprosy, on the other hand, is a masterpiece.

Leprosy is by far the best of the pre-proggish Death albums.

 

[divine_torture]

God Dethroned is a really quality band. Obviously Bloody Blasphemy is widely accepted as their masterpiece, but I really enjoy the first 2 all the way up to The Toxic Touch, and their last 2 were still quite listenable.

 

[waif]

I find Death's Spiritual Healing kinda dull. I think it's in an awkward place between the increasingly polished and complex prog-thrash stuff and the raw death-thrashin' roots.

 

[ProphetofHatred]

I seriously want to know, what thrash band is heavier than Possessed?