Harsh and unnecessary.
Well, seriously, takingthemusicback or whatever his screenname is had a legitimate (albeit stupid) question, and what does he get? A complete fuck you by the majority of the people who replied to his thread.
Come on, how bitter are some of you? It seems almost as if you were old guys in tight underwear yelling at some kids to get off your lawn.
It really sucks that there seems to be an attitude of superiority present in this board, where the "n00bs" are rarely welcome.
That guy might just be new to the music (and metal in general) and was asking a legitimate question.
It's been about 6 months since I got into metal, and I know I was a real "n00b" back then (probably still am) but I appreciated the music and gave it a chance, and now I've come to discover one of the most complex/emotional/expressive/etc genres in music. That never would've happened if I encountered assholes telling me to get off their board and whatnot. I'd hate for a so called newbie to miss his chance to discover music of such high caliber as Opeth, just cause we all like to put people down.
People like Iandork are long time members of this board, and I personally think (and know) that he knows and feels metal more than I do, so I expect people like him to be of some assistance to us that are just newbies, I don't expect harsh remarks about how long I've been into the music myself.
Read the thread again, Takingthemusicback simply asked that question in a curious and friendly manner, to which Ian responds with that bullshit.
I personally have nothing against either of them, but Ian was the asshole this time. Think what you will of me, that's my opnion.