False Metal: The Financial and Farcical Return of Heavy Metal

[Jim LotFP]

False Metal: The Financial and Farcical Return of Heavy Metal

by Dave Burns

False Metal is an extensive look at the publicity machine that controls the popularity of heavy metal. From Black Sabbath and the dawn of heavy metal to the cover of today's glossy heavy metal magazines, False Metal uncovers the layers of propaganda, secrecy and misdirection to find out what is going on behind closed doors. By examining the evidence gathered from over 175 sources, the truth is revealed: The financial health of heavy metal is controlled by people with no regard for the music or its fans. False Metal is required reading for everyone who believes in the integrity of heavy metal.

False Metal features investigations of The Sword (including behind-the-scenes details of their mass media exposure), Decibel magazine (and the business practices of its parent company), Avenged Sevenfold, Dragonforce, Dave Grohl's Probot, The Darkness, Spinal Tap, "retro metal", and more.

Read the html version here: http://www.lotfp.com/content.php?editorialid=55

Right-click and save the pdf version here: http://www.lotfp.com/backissues/FalseMetal.pdf

 

[Occam's Razor]

So am I the first one who has finished reading?

Anyway...being remote from the American music scene here in Germany, I've never realized which dimensions this indie-turned-metal-movement has grown to. I've always seen the tendency in Europe as well, but would never have believed that it could hit big here, too. - Scary thing, and I bet Decibel will be pleased to read this.

It's probably time for you Dave to change your address to prevent being threatened to death or so by the major-mafia...

Your final words are appropirate, but I fear they display but a dim hope.

I posted the link to the article on some boards, and all the feedback I got so far is that this is way too long and uninteresting...well...

Maybe you should have put an introduction before the whole thing to summarize what it is all about.

 

[Jim LotFP]

I posted the link to the article on some boards, and all the feedback I got so far is that this is way too long and uninteresting...well...

Maybe you should have put an introduction before the whole thing to summarize what it is all about.

The LotFP front page has the "press release" I'd sent around, you can put that in your posts.

As far as the "too long and uninteresting", bah. It's not all AWESOME, but the parts that aren't build to the parts that are. It needs to be taken as a whole.

Sanna wanted to know what The Sword looked like, so I went to their site. One of them is wearing a Hammers shirt on stage, haha.

 

[Occam's Razor]

One of them is wearing a Hammers shirt on stage, haha./quote]

Now with the odd new band-pictures of Hammers, and considering that Scalzi can look damn indie with glasses and short hair, maybe they can benefit from the trend. That would be the most deserved hype for years.

Concerning the more "reader-friendly" style: I don't see how that can be achieved when handling such a topic. I mean, it is based on facts mainly, and during the Demoniac-passages, I had to laugh nevertheless once or twice, considering the "cosmopolitan" follow up band.

My complaint was directed towards the lack of an intro. Reading through the first pages makes you think of another whiny "Sab-started-it-all-and-it's-only-been-going-down-since-then"-article

 

[BenMech]

I finished it within one workday.

One thing about Demoniac/Dragonforce - What do they say about the NSBM and racist materials, these days? Was Herman just a hired session musician, or was he partial to Demoniac's raison d'être?

 

[Jim LotFP]

One thing about Demoniac/Dragonforce - What do they say about the NSBM and racist materials, these days? Was Herman just a hired session musician, or was he partial to Demoniac's raison d'être?

Has anyone asked them?

Herman was a late addition to the band, appearing only on their third album. Totman was on all three though.

 

[DBB]

Of course I can envision Burns rolling his eyes right now thinking I'm saying he should dumb this shit down for people that are too stupid and unworthy, ha, ha, ha... but what can I say!?

Oh no. That wasn't my reaction at all. I guess it can kind of come off that way and seem that is how I would react. But I actually feel pretty dumb and am down myself right now. The two articles I have written have been a growing process and me finding things out about myself and heavy metal as I go along--not starting from some point where I knew everything and all there was/is to know. After I am done all the air is let out of the balloon as the energy that sustained me during writing escapes and I feel flat. The voice may be authoritative and confident, but the researching and writing process can be painful at times and leads me to look at things at a different light as I discover things that I did not see before. What people make of it is up to them, and I am at the point where I'm not going to berate anyone for anything for awhile.

Thanks for the comments, I can certainly see those flaws in my approach and will file them away for future reference.

 

[BenMech]

MTV's You Hear It First segment on The S-Word

So . . .

 

[Zealotry]

My god, this article just keeps going on and on and on and on...

Next time, please, a little redundancy checking, Mr. Burns! My wee brain can'ts takes no mores!

There's a lot of overlap between this article and 'impure metal', which can really be excised, I think.
Once again, well-researched, and well-articulated, but a lot of the points are belabored.

 

[Jim LotFP]

There's a lot of overlap between this article and 'impure metal', which can really be excised, I think.
Once again, well-researched, and well-articulated, but a lot of the points are belabored.

I agree that False Metal does overlap with Impure Metal at times, but I also believe that somebody shouldn't be required to read Impure Metal before reading False Metal... so the overlap is necessary, I think.

 

[Zealotry]

Overlap is never necessary. Perhaps footnotes/endnotes may be in order, but there's no reason for people to have to read through the same argument over and over again.

 

[Cheiron]

**copying the comments I made in the progpower forums

I think he was offtrack about Avenged Sevenfold... as a part of the reason for their change away from core, was that the lead singer almost lost his voice doing the growls. So he had to cut down. And they seem to love their new style, while still playing their older songs at concerts. Their new style isn't that new in some ways either, as their older songs had a lot of good guitar mixed in. Plus, two of the guys have a 2002 album out from their band Pinkly Smooth that is funk-prog-metal. So..

Also, calling something 'false' doesn't make it 'bad.'
__________________

My primary issue when reading this (and I do like both articles. Very well written, and very well thought out), is that there wasn't enough of a discussion of the seperation of a metal genre, defined by a style, or elements in music, and metal as a more musical/social movement. There are many groups out there that we call metal, that have nothing in common with Black Sabbath, but are certainly still metal. Perhaps it is their 'loudness' and uncompromising nature, that seperate them from rock... or even just art/progressive rock, free jazz, etc. I think that metal is more than just a musical/social movement, and therefore what might be 'true' or 'false' could lose some relevance.

In the end, we are of course supposed to identify what we like to listen to, and not care about anything else. We should not let the popularity of our band affect our enjoyment of the band. We should not think of it as a travesty that our band isn't more popular. We surely can hope that a band we enjoy earn money, but is that really important? I love ProgPower because it brings in new groups that I otherwise never would have a chance to see. I don't believe that ProgPower is a lucrative business offer for these bands. ProgPower, to me, is a celebration of -metal- and talented metallic artists. While it certaintly can act as a gateway to the American metal audience, solid, devoted, and refreshing live performances is the only real way to break in and to develop a dedicated fan base that will support you as long as you stay honest to them.

 

[Occam's Razor]

Just as an aside: Avenged Sevenfold's singer was recently interviewed by Metal Hammer UK. He said he appreciates white power music, loves Skrewdriver as well as radical black rap from Ice Cube; but of course, he stressed that he is "no lyric kind of guy". No brain kind of guy as well apparently...

 

[Jim LotFP]

Just as an aside: Avenged Sevenfold's singer was recently interviewed by Metal Hammer UK. He said he appreciates white power music, loves Skrewdriver as well as radical black rap from Ice Cube; but of course, he stressed that he is "no lyric kind of guy". No brain kind of guy as well apparently...

It confuses me enough when singers just sing words that other people have written, but a singer that doesn't care about lyrics? That's pretty amazing.

 

[Jim LotFP]

Also, calling something 'false' doesn't make it 'bad.'

Oh yes it does. Metal does not automatically equal good, and non-metal does not automatically equal band, but "false" (or "dishonest", if you will) is not good for any artistic endeavor. Economic endeavors on the other hand...

My primary issue when reading this (and I do like both articles. Very well written, and very well thought out), is that there wasn't enough of a discussion of the seperation of a metal genre, defined by a style, or elements in music, and metal as a more musical/social movement.

I a lot of criticism about what the articles don't cover, and it doesn't make sense to me. Lengthy as they are, I see the articles as being quite narrow in scope. They are not a discussion of "this is heavy metal", they are not in any way supposed to be general histories of heavy metal or any one part of heavy metal. They are about identifying manipulation of the heavy metal genre by misrepresentating or omitting history, and supporting the accusations with past similar examples and counter-examples to show that business does not have to be done that way.

For example, I've seen in several places that Burns "glossed over the NWOBHM" when talking about Holocaust... getting sidetracked over the movement itself and the fact that several bands went on to become million-sellers is completely besides the point. Holocaust was there to illustrate that somebody in the midst of a commercial renaissance did not catch on as others did, but still continued on just doing what they do for decades anyway. Good music, longevity, and respect are not dependent on deception, pandering, or trying to catch on to the latest craze. Discussions of, say, Iron Maiden and Def Leppard's success and "true" or "false" qualities wouldn't add much to the point of this particular article.

Now I would agree that such subjects could do with a Burnsian approach, but this wasn't the article for those subjects to appear in. I hope more people take it upon themselves to pursue heavy metal writing (I have neither the patience nor discipline to be that thorough) in this manner, because heavy metal needs more people with a critical eye and an attention to history and detail.

My interpretations, of course.

In the end, we are of course supposed to identify what we like to listen to, and not care about anything else. We should not let the popularity of our band affect our enjoyment of the band.

eh, I'm convinced that a band can't escape the effect of popularity, and a band that doesn't "play ball" can't become popular. So when a band is popular, my first thought is not "Good for them," but "What did they compromise to get there?" ... which then repeated enough times threatens to become "They drew a crowd? They must suck." I try not to fall into this trap without hearing a band first, but it certainly has affected my buying decisions in the past.

We should not think of it as a travesty that our band isn't more popular.

My sense of outrage over a band's obscurity ends as soon as a band can afford to record an album as soon as it's written and release the album as soon as it's finished.

ProgPower, to me, is a celebration of -metal- and talented metallic artists. While it certaintly can act as a gateway to the American metal audience

hmm. ProgPower seems to be a celebration of a *certain kind* of metal, certainly not metal as a whole. There is a certain thread connecting all the bands. That's not a problem by itself (although when people say Devin Townsend didn't belong playing his solo material, I wonder...) but the stylistic variety of bands pales in comparison to Europe's version.

solid, devoted, and refreshing live performances is the only real way to break in and to develop a dedicated fan base that will support you as long as you stay honest to them.

That touring is still so important in this day and age makes me want to say snarky things about how effective the internet really is for bands still seeking an audience, but I'll refrain.

... and I also a think a band should stay more honest to themselves to any fan base... I'd guess that members of The Sword appreciate the people coming to their shows more sincerely than Agalloch appreciates their crowd, but that may just be cynicism or buying too much into their respective public personas.

 

[Cheiron]

I listened to The Sword before I read your article (and I honestly had no clue who they were, nor that they were hyped, just a random find) and though 'this sucks.' I read your article and decided to find out just what the hype was all about. So I started listening to the album again, and I thought, 'this sucks.' I find it hillarious that they tried to hype a band that cannot even play together. On that album, its far more rare, than common, when the band actually plays in time with each other. Either they are poor musicians and cannot listen to what each other is doing, or it was produced by more pro-tools wankers, who don't have a clue.

Anyhow, the reason I thought you should have gone more into seperating metal as a movement, and metal as music, is because you at times would discuss metal in one or the other ways. Is metal a social movement in and of itself? Or is it part of a different social movement? Perhaps the same type of one that started the original emo movement (you know the one where bands were often broken up before their CD could be released)? Or is metal just style of music?

I think that these questions are largely important for your discussion of what is 'false' metal and what is 'true' metal, and what the commercialism of metal means. Perhaps it does mean a death to the social movement of metal, but I don't think it stops 'metal is a style of music.'

And yes you are right that ProgPower doesn't have the diversity that some of the other European shows have. Good for them. The extreme metal community has a larger outlet in the United States, and has various fests, and definitely more touring going on. ProgPower is meant for a different type, though they always mix in an oddball or two.

As for 'in order to become popular you must compromise your music.' There is also the possibility that there are lots of kids growing up today loving Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, and the like, and will sit down and say 'this is the style of music we want to play. Its got some quality licks, its engaging with the listeners, and its fun.' Then they make something, like that, which gets heard by a few radio stations as they are doing some small shows. It gets onto a local radio station, other people hear it, like it, its heard elsewhere. The group becomes popular based on independently produced songs, that they made for the sole reason of 'this is music that we like.' In this case, I would say that popular music can be born without people compromising the style of music they want to play.

But thanks for writing about these issues. At least it gets people thinking.

 

[Jim LotFP]

Threads on other message boards concerning False Metal: positive, negative, indifferent:

http://www.bravewords.com/braveboard/viewtopic.php?t=21658
http://www.earth-dog.com/lounge/viewtopic.php?t=9435
http://www.aversionline.com/blahg/2006/06/no-comedy-just-tragedy-well-sort-of.html
http://www.pahardcore.com/boards/to.......&forum_title=All things METAL \m/&M=0&s=1
http://drama.acidpit.org/viewtopic.php?t=6623
http://www.hellridemusic.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10642
http://metal-rules.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=41281
http://forums.southernlord.com/viewtopic.php?t=14482
http://community.livejournal.com/ultimate_metal/628232.html?style=mine
http://ilx.wh3rd.net/thread.php?msgid=7065767
http://www.lambgoat.com/mb/thread.aspx?id=651750
http://www.miskatonic.34sp.com/viewtopic.php?t=3285
http://www.rockhard.de/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30668
http://www.decibelmagazine.com/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=234&page=1#Item_0
http://pmx2.krose.org/forum?action=view&forum_id=1&message_id=19235
http://www.fuzzrock.com/forums2/all...e Metal: The Financial and Farcical Return of
http://www.rawnervepromotions.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22019
http://www.violentlyoldschool.org/viewtopic.php?t=4240
http://www.guitarists.net/forum/view.php?forum=11&thread=60832
http://www.necrometal.com/necrometal/viewtopic.php?t=952
http://www.sdmetal.org/prod/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=14033
http://www.queermetal.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=142
http://www.pmrising.com/pm/viewtopic.php?t=3171
http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=244185

I do believe only the Rock Hard forum thread was started by anyone associated with LotFP. Not bad.

 

[Occam's Razor]

...and the Rock Hard Thread did not go anywhere because these people refuse to read English or consider Dave a whiny has-been, because I had pointed them to Impure Metal before already...too bad.

 

[Europa Ascendent]

Intentionally kept apart by the powers-that-be and inhabiting a wasteland of multi-lane highways, gas stations and monolithic brick buildings, the "kids" hung out in parking lots talking about how miserable they were, shuffled through malls like zombies as metabolism manipulating Muzak filled the air, or gathered in gangs to slash at one another with switchblades in a futile attempt to beat back the monotony.

Christ, the melodrama is painful.

 

[Europa Ascendent]

And I still don't get it. Why the obsession with trad metal (which hasn't been creatively vital since the early 1980s, for the simple reason that, by that point, everything that could or needed to be said had been said)?

More importantly, why worry about the commercial fringe of metal? The creative impetus driving the genre has always come from the underground, which couldn't possibly be more indifferent to The Sword or Early Man.