Oh how Erik would have loved to have been a fly on the wall during this conversation.
While chatting with Nemtheanga about music, Mark says, "Why don't you tell him your thoughts on Bathory." With this remark, Alan shoots me a curious glance. Never one to be shy with my opinions, I said, "I think they're terrible." He asks why. I say, "I think everything they do is immature; lyrics, music." He asks me about the lyrics. I say, "The guy can't refrain from using the word "hammer" in every third sentence."
Alan, than seemingly possessed by Erik's demon spirit, begins to explain to me their importance. How he bought "Under The Sign Of The Black Mark" as a kid in 1987, and was so blown away by it. And though it borrowed from Manowar, how it was totally unlike anything he had heard and how it defied classification. He explained the importance of Bathory to the genre, and how despite my protests, that Bathory had a number of very good lyrics.
I explained that unlike him, I hadn't heard Bathory until 2003. And by that time, all the people they influenced had already taken what they did and built upon it. He seemed familiar with this perspective, as he relayed a story about trying to turn friends on to Venom. These were friends who had been listening to a number of bands influenced by Venom, but had never heard Venom. He talked about how they hated it, and didn't really see the connection.
I think at that point, Mark said something like, "Holy crap, check out the blonde playing darts" and the conversation drifted on to other subjects.
So, I'll revisit "Hammerheart" once more, as I seem to do annually. While I'd bet dimes to dollars I'll find it just as unlistenable as I always have, I'll try to approach it with an open mind.
Zod
While chatting with Nemtheanga about music, Mark says, "Why don't you tell him your thoughts on Bathory." With this remark, Alan shoots me a curious glance. Never one to be shy with my opinions, I said, "I think they're terrible." He asks why. I say, "I think everything they do is immature; lyrics, music." He asks me about the lyrics. I say, "The guy can't refrain from using the word "hammer" in every third sentence."
Alan, than seemingly possessed by Erik's demon spirit, begins to explain to me their importance. How he bought "Under The Sign Of The Black Mark" as a kid in 1987, and was so blown away by it. And though it borrowed from Manowar, how it was totally unlike anything he had heard and how it defied classification. He explained the importance of Bathory to the genre, and how despite my protests, that Bathory had a number of very good lyrics.
I explained that unlike him, I hadn't heard Bathory until 2003. And by that time, all the people they influenced had already taken what they did and built upon it. He seemed familiar with this perspective, as he relayed a story about trying to turn friends on to Venom. These were friends who had been listening to a number of bands influenced by Venom, but had never heard Venom. He talked about how they hated it, and didn't really see the connection.
I think at that point, Mark said something like, "Holy crap, check out the blonde playing darts" and the conversation drifted on to other subjects.
So, I'll revisit "Hammerheart" once more, as I seem to do annually. While I'd bet dimes to dollars I'll find it just as unlistenable as I always have, I'll try to approach it with an open mind.
Zod
