Death metal vocals

[Goreripper]

For those of you who write death vox off as 'talentless', I found this in an article from a Kansas online zine about a band called Origin that explains the growly stuff better than I ever could.


"Despite what those who don't listen to death metal may think, lyrics are an important piece to the songs, even if you can't understand them. "For the most part you have to read 'em," Lee (Origin vocalist) said. "As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter what kind of music it is, a lot of times you can't understand what they're saying anyway."

Not even a master linguist could crack the code of Pearl Jam's "Evenflow" or James Brown's wonderful and indecipherable singing. Although one might not understand everything Eddie Vedder sings, he uses his voice as a melody to complement the music.

But in death metal, it isn't so much what the lyrics say as how they are said, with the vocalist using his voice as a rhythm, jackhammering a verbal riff to the omminous instruments pounding away behind him.

The words are there mainly for image, so there are those who get a kick out of reading them, especially those of the death metal genre.

"I spend a lot of time reading the lyrics," guitarist Paul Ryan said. "I like the music, but part of the fun of listening to a CD is reading the lyrics along with it, besides the fact that a lot of the stuff they say is all whacked anyway."


You can think it sucks all you like, but there is skill and talent involved.

 

[Sydo]

Originally posted by Goreripper
You can think it sucks all you like

Ok.

 

[spawn]

(I think this could well be one of those agree to disagree posts Spiffy Im not trying to start a flame war or anything either Goreripper )

They cant seriously compare Eddie Vedder to death metal singing, I can understand Eddie ok nearly all the time, and even some Def Leppard songs ive missed what some words are here and there because of the way he sings the melody lines, but misunderstanding a few words in a song is VERY different to a whole song composed of grunts and growls!

The rhythym argument doesnt hold up either because ive been listening to the Nile album and the growls are not the same from line to line, so dont form any kind of rhythm, even if the music is polyrhythmic, it still isnt a coherent rhythm vocally.

What they say is whacked anyway? So what does that matter? Look at Def Leppard lyrics! Some of them are silly and they said they only wrote them for the rhythm for the song (such as PSSOM) Just because the lyrics are silly doesnt mean you shouldnt even bother singing! Plus most of the top DM bands have very good lyrics.

Im not trying to be argumentative just for the sake of it, but noone has yet convinced me that grunts and growls are something that requires any measure of talent, nor does being able to growl for a full set mean anything, it just means you can go GRRR GRRR GRRRR! for 2 hours.

 

[Cyclonus]

I like all types of vocals equally.

Death vocals are just as hard to do as melodic singing. Training is involved, the right breathing needed, certain tongue positions are used, just as with melodic stuff. Death vocals are a challenge. I doubt anyone here could get a deep and smooth growl like Mikael Akerfeldt from Opeth, and then still manage to sing melodic after. He has trained himself enough to be able to growl that deep, and also be able to retract the false cords (above the vocal cords, used for growls) so he can sing again... it's a tough challenge

Also, it's a technique that fits the music. Growls are angry. Death Metal is angry. It fits.

And damn spawn, you like Sepultura, while not being Death vocals, they are screamed, so what's up with that?

 

[Icarus]

Soilworker your signature fucking rules

I cant wait for the full length album!!!!

 

[spawn]

Sepultura, Any Fear Factory album, The last Entombed album, all those are screaming and yelling, not growling! Theres a huge difference!

 

[Sydo]

My dog can growl with the best of them!
She can't sing too well though.

 

[Spiff]

Spawny, I can't be bothered arguing with such an ignorant person such as yourself, so I hope the following smiley makes up for it:



That is all.

 

[spawn]

Originally posted by Sydo
My dog can growl with the best of them!
She can't sing too well though.

Dog metal. The underground at its finest

 

[Spruce Goose]

Hahaahaha.... Dog Metal.

Reminds me of the simpsons:

'Ahh look, it's little Maggie Simpson driving a car'
'And look, there's a dog driving a bus'

 

[TRrEiTxIxRiE DTrash]

I wouldn't say there is no talent involved in growling. But I would certainly say the level of talent required is FAR less than traditional heavy metal singing.

And I don't get into death vocals myself. Closest thing I like is stuff like Kreator. But I don't have a problem with them, its not like I can't listen to them and think they are terrible. They just do absolutely nothing for me.

 

[spawn]

Kreator!

 

[Spiff]

I used to hate death metal vocals, but now I've learned to cope with them... AS LONG AS THE MUSIC IS GOOD. If it's just straightforward death metal with death metal vocals, then sorry, I ain't listening to it.

 

[spawn]

What is a death metal band with death metal vocals that you like Spiffy?

 

[Spiff]

I only like em if they're melodicish, Spawny - can't really offer a band that's both death metal musically and death metal vocally.

 

[Spruce Goose]

I agree with what Spiff said. If the music is good, and the vocals are growly, but the vocal melodies are good, then I like it.

Opeth

Opeth mix the 2 perfectly in my opinion. They also use normal vocals, and this is great too

 

[spawn]

But Opeth would never be described as a death metal band... Im still waiting I should do a review of the Nile album I bought

 

[Spiff]

I used to call Opeth a death metal band back when I first started listening to them (1997) cos I figured (incorrectly) everything with death metal vox was death metal.

 

[spawn]

But Opeths death metal vox are nothing like REAL death metal vox (if you follow what I mean...)

Everyone download Black Seeds Of Vengeance by Nile and then come and tell me what you think of Death Metal vocals.

 

[Aussie_Outlaw]

[color=#AOEOOA]Metal originally adopted the gravely cigarette-burnt and alcohol-eroded voice of punk rock's more deested vocalists, favoring its obscurity and the difficulty of marketing such an indistinct image in the world of concrete images concealing nebulous actualities and negligible rewards.

By reducing timbre from absolute tone to gritty, naturalistic, distortion and shearing melody to textural variance only, this style de-emphasizes vocals while making their presence fit into the texture of the music, allowing more dynamic variation in composition.

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