question to norsemen and swedes

[eskimometal]

just how popular is metal in Norway and Sweden? i mean as far as the mainstream goes?

i'm canadian living in toronto, a city with a population same if not greater than norway itself. metal here is totally taboo. On TV there is a chance to catch half an hour of metal a week and the only metal radio show has been cancelled. Luckily enough we still get a chance to see a concert now and again. Actually in the next 2 months there will be some good shows coming up including- Gwar W/dying fetus, Megadeth, Lamb of god w/ Fear Factory and Children of Bodom, Nightwish, Cradle of Filth w/arch enemy. Those are the shows im planning to see.
Its funny i always wonder where all the metalheads are coming from. CoF, LoG, and megadeth will be playing at a 2000+ people club

anyhow tell me how metal is seen in Norway or Sweden and what shows are you guys gonna see.

 

[fjellvandrer]

Isn't Kataklysm Canadian? I think so. That's one of my favourite bands, so the Canadian metal scene(if Kataklysm would be the only band there...) is still stronger than ,for example,the Romanian one...

 

[eskimometal]

indeed canada does have some great bands (kataklysm, cryptopsy, anihilator, quo vadis) they are all from montreal

 

[Desciple of Decay]

I'd say that metal is rather accepted (if that's the proper word) by others, even though they may not like the music in itself. At least where I live, the Gothenburg area, metalheads are rather commonplace. It's not really hiding under rocks or anything.
I don't know about canada, but it seems to me, correct me if I'm wrong, that the US is a rather strict counrty when it comes to religion and that people that listen to metal are largely regarded as devil-worshippers and general evildoers.

BTW, I have been wanting to get hold of a Dark Army album, it's a canadian band, you wouldn't happen to know where I might find them?

 

[g-magnetic]

my impression is that metal is a lot more accepted/known in scandinavia (norway at least). they seem to have quite a few television stations dedicated to metal. asgeir works for a metal magazine, you should ask him about the scene.

going to the children of bodom show as well

 

[iAMtheblackwizards]

I don't know about canada, but it seems to me, correct me if I'm wrong, that the US is a rather strict counrty when it comes to religion and that people that listen to metal are largely regarded as devil-worshippers and general evildoers.

It really depends on where in the US you are. Some areas are much more religious than others (but i think you could probably say the same for just about any country).

The reason the metalhead is rare in the US however, has little to do with religion, but other than the fact that it can be sometimes VERY hard to get your hands on metal, with the exception of a few bands. The other reason is that the heaviest thing you are going to hear on TV or radio is going to be mudvayne, and even that is a rare commodity (note: i have a large distaste for mudvayne). So people assume that it is the heaviest thing out there, and leave it at that.

 

[Ezaphen]

I would say that the acceptance of metal has grown during the past few years, after being tabooed in the ninetees (go figure). 2002 was the year that black metal really surfaced in Norway. Satyricon released Volcano, and P3's (national radio) musicboss Håkon Moslet (he acctually wrote for Scream Magazine for a short period in the early years) a-listed Fuel For Hatred. Dimmu Borgir and Satyricon* have figured in the media in relation to an albumrelease for quite some time, but nowadays even "new" bands can get a whole page in national newspapers. All the big newspapers frequently review metal albums. This week Enslaved's latest album ISA is reviewed in Norway's two biggest newspapers, VG and Dagbladet.

-Ez

Edit:
* I could write other bands like Mayhem here too, but every time Mayhem is in the news, the old question about churchburning comes up. The media isn't ready to let that issue go yet, and I'm afraid they never will when it comes to Mayhem.

 

[fjellvandrer]

Enslaved in Dagbladet?! COOL!!! Yeah, I'll check it!!

 

[Innipunn]

Adressavisen (Norway's best newspaper) even rewieved Darkthrone's new album Sardonic Wrath (It got 5) and they also had a local black metal serie in their weekly magazine for a while. And we have two hours of metal-videos+ a metal show with live bands on the TV once each week.

 

[Leper_/-\ffinity]

WOw, I hate you guys....the closest thing to metal here in Colorado is this funny looking black kid who wears a CoF shirt...bleh....besides that, the only other people that listen to metal are my bandmates/friends.

 

[insidethefall]

Yeah The U.S. media is all about commercial cookie cutter music, all about looks and true artists are very hard to come by (but sometimes fall through the cracks) metal is no exception...as long as the big newspapers, stations, magazines ignore bands than nobody will find out about them and that's the way the music industry wants it. I watched the new Ozzfest talent cometition thing on MTV last night (you know the 'american idol' of metal) and all the bands that 'ozzy picked' (more like sharon and the billion dollar music industry they are in cahoots with) were nu metal, just a lot of shouting and stomp riffs. This is how 'metal' is shown to the american audience. Thanks ozzy!

 

[Innipunn]

The big problem with the U.S is that it's one big capitalistic engine.




Microsoft's new world domination plans: (http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/tcpa-faq.html).

 

[The Metal Pigeon]

Yeah The U.S. media is all about commercial cookie cutter music, all about looks and true artists are very hard to come by (but sometimes fall through the cracks) metal is no exception...as long as the big newspapers, stations, magazines ignore bands than nobody will find out about them and that's the way the music industry wants it. I watched the new Ozzfest talent cometition thing on MTV last night (you know the 'american idol' of metal) and all the bands that 'ozzy picked' (more like sharon and the billion dollar music industry they are in cahoots with) were nu metal, just a lot of shouting and stomp riffs. This is how 'metal' is shown to the american audience. Thanks ozzy!

i fucking hate ozzy, that guy gives metal a bad name.

 

[fjellvandrer]

Ozzy is simply funny...Don't hate him, just laugh at what he is doing sometimes. It was cool when he warned his son not to take drugs and he said something like: "Just look at me!" As far as I am concerned I'm not interested in what is happening in the USA, it's enough for me to know that there was a great band in the USA, called PANTERA. But of course, Europe is kind of the 'centre of metal' and especially the Scandinavian countries and Germany.

 

[Innipunn]

i fucking hate ozzy, that guy gives metal a bad name.

Ozzy and Black Sabbath founded Metal. But founders don't have to be good. Besides Ozzy is a dope-wreck now, so I don't blame him.

 

[Trollwandering]

Everything works in 'trends' in the U.S, even the things that are supposed to be 'rebellious' and therefore not 'trendy', even metal. For example, the kids who wanted to be rebellious listened to nu-metal bands like slipknot/mudvayne now listen to Hardcore and they are all growing their hair out infront of their eyes. (Yeah, I know this thread was about metal in Scandinavia but I wanted to add my 2 cents ) BTW, Does anyone else notice this rather ironic punk trend that seems to be going on?
As for Ozzy, Once a musician has an action figure, halloween masks, and any other merchandise anyone can possibly think of made of them...I start to realize the Real reason they are in the music buisness.
Not very many people know about many extreme metal bands where I am. I Like it that way though because its kinda one of my pet peeves when things become popular. They cant learn about them from me because they can't read the logos on my shirts anyway!

 

[George]

The big problem with the U.S is that it's one big capitalistic engine.

Right on! When will we learn that money is not the root of happiness.

 

[Mormagil]

What do you mean it isn't the root of all happiness? Hasn't every celebrity tell-all biography show taught you anything?

 

[Innipunn]

Right on! When will we learn that money is not the root of happiness.

So there are Americans who has got the idea too!
Money makes poeple evil, just look at Bill Gates.

 

[insidethefall]

Right on! When will we learn that money is not the root of happiness.

America is a nation full of dreamers, of course the rich and glamerous is not our actual lifestyle but it's portrayed that way by the media. I think the problem with americans is that we're never satisfied. We always look for the newest, biggest and best thing (or whatever the media tells us is the best) and even if we don't have it we can always turn on the television for the latest soap opera, who wants to be a millionare and some reality show where we can pretend to marry some beautiful stinking rich girl/guy. This frame of mind coupled with peer pressure and media influence can really be disasterous.

However the good thing about this country is that there is a good selection of 'stuff' available, you might have trouble finding it but it's there if you look hard enough.