Controversial opinions on metal

[Vilden]

To Mega Therion, Emperor's Return, Morbid Tales and Into the Pandemonium are all clearly better than Monotheist.

 

[Kara-Shehr]

I second that, Monotheist rapes the old stuff. though it was really influential its just boring and lame compared to that mighty beast of a cd.

.

 

[gundamterran]

I actually get kinda bored with Monotheist after a while. I'd rather listen to the first two, not that Monotheist is bad, I just cant normally finish it in one sitting.

I dont really feel like arguing about opeth, but the people who say they're terrible and the people who worship them both blow them out of proportion. Opeth is a talented band, with it's share of good albums and bad ones.

Talented musicians do not make a good band. They lack any real cohesive songwriting, and they pretty much gain fans based on the novelty of "OOOH THIS PART HAS CLEAN VOCALS AND ACOUSTIC GUITAR! SO SENSITIVE!" Their songs are overly long without any real progression. The "Death Metal" parts are hardly Death Metal too. It's just overall disappointing and feels like they just slapped together parts of two different bands.

 

[WCannibal]

Elaborating on my previous post about CF, while I like their earlier work (as it is great straightforward proto-black which was obviously highly influential), I found Monotheist to sound darker and more atmospheric (it is DOOM after all). I don't have the nostalgia factor to bias me since I'm only 16, so I'm guessing that's probably why most fans would disagree.

 

[skeptik]

I think a lot of people really overestimate the amount of bands that actually have "real cohesive songwriting" skills when they criticize Opeth. The only reason that it's so notable in Opeth is because it's more obvious with the clear juxtaposition between acoustic and electric guitars, but that doesn't mean it's less frequent in most other bands. There are plenty of bands that we all listen to whose transition skills could be improved upon that we normally don't think to criticize simply because it's not as obvious. Granted, the fact that it's not as obvious and jarring does make it an easier pill to swallow in general.

 

[fps]

I think a lot of people really overestimate the amount of bands that actually have "real cohesive songwriting" skills when they criticize Opeth. The only reason that it's so notable in Opeth is because it's more obvious with the clear juxtaposition between acoustic and electric guitars, but that doesn't mean it's less frequent in most other bands. There are plenty of bands that we all listen to whose transition skills could be improved upon that we normally don't think to criticize simply because it's not as obvious. Granted, the fact that it's not as obvious and jarring does make it an easier pill to swallow in general.

very good point. many bands have a "riffs thrown together" songwriting approach. In fact it's extraordinary that most DM bands aren't being shat on for doing this considering opeth are being berated for trying to do it with some ambition and variation at least. what becomes "bad songwriting" for some because of the drawn-out passages and slower tempos (and i'm not a big fan of some of it, the Hessian Peel sections are jammed together like no tomorrow and the last two albums don't get any listening time from me) become "turn on a dime dynamic changeups" in death metal. Perhaps the metallers here are being fooled because the whole thing happens so fast in DM that they don't notice.

 

[Einherjar86]

I like Keep of Kalessin's Reptilian.

 

[Kara-Shehr]

I like Keep of Kalessin's Reptilian.

GASP!

 

[SentinelSlain]

I still haven't heard that album, but her performance on Within the Veil is enough to make me agree with your first statement.

wasn't it you that said the vocals were awful when I posted a Within the Veil song on the rate what the person above you slotted thread.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

wasn't it you that said the vocals were awful when I posted a Within the Veil song on the rate what the person above you slotted thread.

Uh, definitely not.

EDIT: Found the offending post so that I'm not sent to the furnace on false charges of poserificity.

 

[Karmablade]

brockemoth

what about it? its about a cage fight.

 

[Zephyrus]

Monotheist is the best Frost album.

To Mega Therion, my friend. It's possibly my favorite metal album from the 80's. Though I would rank Monotheist as their second best, if you only count full albums.

 

[Onder]

I
AM
SAB' OTH

PU-NISH-MENT FOR WI-CKED-NESS

 

[fps]

oh, metal is becoming far too well-produced. it's an immersive safe beautiful sound on a lot of the big recordings. that can't be right. can it? new enslaved i think went too far, nothing's sharp, not even the screaming and definitely not the guitars or the snare.

 

[KafkaX]

the twenty year XX thingy last April

That was a damn good show.

I met Kenny G and his son in the pit. Very random.

 

[Karmablade]

oh, metal is becoming far too well-produced. it's an immersive safe beautiful sound on a lot of the big recordings. that can't be right. can it? new enslaved i think went too far, nothing's sharp, not even the screaming and definitely not the guitars or the snare.

yeah the production on almost all metal albums these days SUCK! no dynamics, too clean, the snare sound, it just sucks, no feeling in it.

 

[CF87]

To Mega Therion, my friend. It's possibly my favorite metal album from the 80's. Though I would rank Monotheist as their second best, if you only count full albums.

To Mega Therion is the CF album. Into the Pandemonium has some good songs, but as a whole album is poor just because of the pointless garbage shit on it. Vanity/Nemesis is better.

 

[The Emptier]

That was a damn good show.

I met Kenny G and his son in the pit. Very random.

Yeah, I was in the pit. He was right behind me but I didn't say hi or anything because I didn't know if it was actually him There was only one person in front of me the whole night, and I liked how there was almost no moshing/moving at all. The other two Opeth shows i've been to were insane

 

[gundamterran]

very good point. many bands have a "riffs thrown together" songwriting approach. In fact it's extraordinary that most DM bands aren't being shat on for doing this considering opeth are being berated for trying to do it with some ambition and variation at least. what becomes "bad songwriting" for some because of the drawn-out passages and slower tempos (and i'm not a big fan of some of it, the Hessian Peel sections are jammed together like no tomorrow and the last two albums don't get any listening time from me) become "turn on a dime dynamic changeups" in death metal. Perhaps the metallers here are being fooled because the whole thing happens so fast in DM that they don't notice.

Here's the difference though. Opeth's fans parade around saying how genius they are, when in fact they fall into the same holes of most new school death metal, technical death metal, etc. When a band is hyped up to be the best thing since sliced bread, and they feel like just a bunch of random riffs and acoustic parts slapped together, something is wrong.

 

[fps]

yeah the production on almost all metal albums these days SUCK! no dynamics, too clean, the snare sound, it just sucks, no feeling in it.

i recorded a version of one of my band's songs (yes, yes, but hear me out) on a little dictophone and it sounded BEZERK. it's a heavy song, we'd never want to RELEASE it sounding like hell on earth, but it has a vibe, you can hear the emotions, occasionally a guitar or a cymbal or a line of vocals screams out, it's badass. borderline unlistenable but very cool. i'm gonna go give early black metal another try, i might be ready.

as for opeth (gundamterran), sometimes the combinations of parts really works (leper affinity, bleak, face of melinda, wreath is pretty cohesive, the moor is a great collage that creates a powerful mood, when is pretty much flawless IMO, april ethereal and others), and the OTHER thing to consider is that what seem at first to be random changes become something different once a listener has spent enough time with a record to KNOW what's coming. this changes the experience, the anticipation of the schism to come becomes quite addictive, it is itself something you can respond emotionally to very differently from the first few times you listen and go "well what the hell, why have they done THAT". i think opeth (excluding the last two records) reward repeat listening hugely.