Metal Review Websites

[Zephyrus]

With so many new metalheads depending on the internet to keep them in touch with the underground, metal review sites have thrived. Countless enthusiasts, myself among them, read album reviews every day in their quests to discover new bands and their albums.

In this thread discuss your use of metal review sites and list some of your favorite sites and explain.

For me my favorite sites are:

1. The Metal Observer (http://www.metal-observer.com/)
-With new reviews every day covering a wide range of bands from the mainstream hits to the demo's of the underground, I depend on their extensive review catalogue to read about albums by bands I'm thinking of getting into. The site boasts dozens of experienced reviewers who know their stuff and rate it fairly and accordingly.

2. DeadTide.com (http://deadtide.com/)
-Not as wide a selection of reviews as TMO but I like their layout and the reviewers' personalities.

3. Metal Reviews (http://www.metalreviews.com/)
-My third choice for reviews. I like their "skeletal" merit system.

 

[Killbot]

I use metal-observer sometimes, it's pretty good and of course the Metal-Archives reviews can occasionally be useful as long as you can tell the difference between fanboy rantings and an objective opinion.

 

[Zephyrus]

I use metal-observer sometimes, it's pretty good and of course the Metal-Archives reviews can occasionally be useful as long as you can tell the difference between fanboy rantings and an objective opinion.

Yeah that's my main beef with Metal Archives, other than the faulty server.

 

[CAIRATH]

M-A reviews are horrid. For the most part they either fall into the category of fanboy raving or elitist asshole unnecessarily trashing an album just because it doesn't meet whatever stupid criteria he has in his pea-sized brain. Basically there are far too many people rating things 100 (or 90+ at the very least) and far too many people rating things 10 or whatever unrealistically low ratings they come up with.

And yes, a half-decent host wouldn't be a bad idea either. That site is down more often than it is up.

 

[unknown]

I use M-A, Lords of Metal, Sea of Tranquility, Worm Gear Zine and Transcending the Mundane

 

[hibernal_dream]

I stopped using Metal Observer a few years ago when I realised that nothing received less than 80/100

 

[Zephyrus]

I stopped using Metal Observer a few years ago when I realised that nothing received less than 80/100

what are you talking about? I see tons of lower scoring reviews on that site. And regardless, wouldn't you rather have a site reviewing more good albums than bad?

 

[metal_wrath]

M-A reviews are horrid. For the most part they either fall into the category of fanboy raving or elitist asshole unnecessarily trashing an album just because it doesn't meet whatever stupid criteria he has in his pea-sized brain. Basically there are far too many people rating things 100 (or 90+ at the very least) and far too many people rating things 10 or whatever unrealistically low ratings they come up with.

And yes, a half-decent host wouldn't be a bad idea either. That site is down more often than it is up.

Agreed.

I usually use of course Metal Archives, as well as Chronicles of Chaos and sometimes Amazon.com cust. reviews can be helpful, as well as their Listmania lists where people can list recommendations for a certain genre and stuff

 

[Orfanos]

A good site is also www.metalcrypt.com

For Metal Observer, is true that they give easily big ratings.
I think that the rating thing in a music review is useless. If anyone wants to know the opinion of the reviewer, let's read the review, not the rating.

 

[Killbot]

A good site is also www.metalcrypt.com

Oh yeeeeeeah, I forgot about this site, good stuff... the quizes are fun too... and by fun I mean lame, but they pass a few minutes.

 

[Alongside Death]

I always check Metal Observer and sometimes Metal Archives. Sometimes I check reviews of album that were rated 0/10 or 1/10 at MO. I remember I was laughing when I read a review of a black metal band called "Arsenic".

 

[PanzerKunt]

I use limewire

 

[Astrum]

I use metal-observer sometimes, it's pretty good and of course the Metal-Archives reviews can occasionally be useful as long as you can tell the difference between fanboy rantings and an objective opinion.

basically

 

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

There's no such thing as an objective opinion, fyi. An opinion can explain both sides of itself quite well, but it can never be truly objective. But, that is another topic, so I digress.

Vampire is good.

 

[Nico]

I can't bear to read through reviews on a screen. I just don't care enough. Paper 'zines though, I'll read every review in the entire thing, if I've got the time. Even for the albums I know are shit.

Print zines >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> webzines

 

[Killbot]

An opinion can explain both sides of itself quite well, but it can never be truly objective. But, that is another topic, so I digress.

Indeed, I only used for lack of a better word. I think I got my point across regardless.

 

[hibernal_dream]

what are you talking about? I see tons of lower scoring reviews on that site. And regardless, wouldn't you rather have a site reviewing more good albums than bad?

Well it was a few years ago that I went there. All the metal albums got over 7 and occasionally they reviewed a really shitty US metalcore band which is obviously going to get 2/10 anyway.

 

[Gory Elephant]

I can't bear to read through reviews on a screen. I just don't care enough. Paper 'zines though, I'll read every review in the entire thing, if I've got the time. Even for the albums I know are shit.

Print zines >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> webzines

I could not agree more. Worm Gear used to be the absolute best, until they stopped with the paper distribution. It was HUGE, and totally packed with reviews. I loved it.

Does anyone know of any decent print zines that still distribute, and will mail on request? The guy from Worm Gear was pretty good about that, you just asked him to send you the last couple of issues, and if you slipped him a couple bucks for shipping he would take good care of you.

Any info much appreciated.

 

[Teh Grimace]

And regardless, wouldn't you rather have a site reviewing more good albums than bad?

reviewers need to base their number ratings in relation to other ratings.

if a reviewer thought that an album was a 10/10, and another was a 10/10, but, though he disliked neither, he actually liked the first one better, then the second should really be 9/10, and lower ratings should also be adjusted accordingly. it's mostly a standard that anything under 7/10 in such a format is basically considered "poor", with 6 representing having several major flaws and 5 or under pretty much as progressing degrees of "shitty", from "kinda shitty" down to "turd wrapped in a old sock".

5 should properly represent the middle. a decent album that you can enjoy if you make an effort but you wouldn't exactly wake up in the morning singing it to yourself would be a 5.

a 10/10 is how much i like "i see a darkness" by will oldham or jeff buckley's "grace"... as in, more than 99.99% of other music i have ever heard and will ever hear, albums that i like even more today, years later, than when i first fell for them.


reviewers are all queer anyway, though, so...

 

[Nico]

I could not agree more. Worm Gear used to be the absolute best, until they stopped with the paper distribution. It was HUGE, and totally packed with reviews. I loved it.

Does anyone know of any decent print zines that still distribute, and will mail on request? The guy from Worm Gear was pretty good about that, you just asked him to send you the last couple of issues, and if you slipped him a couple bucks for shipping he would take good care of you.

Any info much appreciated.

I'm not familiar with Worm Gear, but most 'zines are printed in pretty limited runs (fucking costly affair these days), so back issues are sometimes a bit tricky to obtain. In terms of high quality 'zines in the past few years, I highly recommend The Sinister Flame, Gallery of the Grotesque, Oaken Throne and Negura. All those are extremely professional and packed with content. The couple of issues of Bylec-Tum I have are also good, as is the smaller Kaleidoscope. There's also a satanic Aussie rag called Yersinia Pestis which has some cool material, but is a bit inconsitent.

See my sig for my 'zine (Northern Shadows).