Want to see something seriously disturbing?

[thrashgirl]

If you haven't seen this, prepare for the most disturbing thing you've witnessed since you walked in on your grandparents making aunts/uncles uke: . If that's never happened to you, prepare to see the most disturbing thing of your life.

It's Yahoo "Music" (using the word loosely)'s "25 Best Heavy Metal Bands." I'm sure you can imagine its bad, but, wow. Reading this was like watching my family members torchered and killed before my very eyes.

I can't say I was suprised at how terrible it was--that was pretty much expected--but, God, the inconsistency. Do they mean just mean "heavy metal" bands? Then why are there so many non-metal artist who influenced metal (but weren't metal themselves)? Why so many artists who were influenced by but, again, were not themselves actually metal?

Normally I wouldn't get so worked up over something like this, but it just irks me knowing that thousands of drooling idiots will take it seriously. And the comments, my God: "Where is Cradle of Filfth/Dimmu Borgir/Slipknot/Manson/Godsmack/The Who/Cream/the Beatles/Spice Girls/etc?" That, and I'm pre-menstrual. :Mad:

Enough of me, see for yourself:

25. Meshuggah (One of the few justifiable picks, intended to start you off with high expectations that will be brutally crushed within the next few picks.)

24. Mercyful Fate (again, justifiable, but he has the nerve to mention King Diamond, who's self-named band doesn't make it, and that "Venom was #26, so I left them off." KILL.)

23. Alice in Chains (Seriously? Okay, yes, they're a moderately respectable grunge band, the only one of their kind, but, no, they're not metal, in any sense.)

22. Uriah Heep (Another pick that seems semi-reasonable, until you see it in the context of who's ahead of them and who gets left off.)

21. Pantera (I guess it could be worse. Could've been Disturbed or Slipknot...)

20. Thin Lizzy (Again, doesn't seem so bad until you see the rest.)

19. Kyuss (You don't need me to tell you what's wrong with that.)

18. Guns N' Roses (If radio-friendly, glam rock is your thing, you'll be pissed they weren't higher.)

17. Kiss (Once again, are we talking about "metal" bands or "pre-metal" bands?)

16. Dio (Okay, one that's not a complete crowd-pleaser. Still don't like it, though.)

15. Robin Trower (How many more important blues guitarists can you name off the top of your head? Yeah, that's a big number.)

14. Rush (If you haven't given up hope for this thing yet, you have now.)

13. Spinal Tap (See, I told you. )

12. Deep Purple (Definitely a reputable pick, but again with the 'are we talking actual metal or classic rock that helped influence metal?)

11. Slayer (By now this guy has to have figured 'Some one is going to kill me over this list.' Guess he figured if he threw in a thrash band they'd at least spare his children. And given the rest of the list so far, I'm pretty sure he means 1998 Slayer, not 1986.)

10. Iron Maiden (He knew he couldn't get away with leaving them off.)

9. Motorhead (I'd have them higher, but at least they made it.)

8. Aerosmith (Could've put a lot of similair but less pop bands here that would've pissed me off a lot less.)

7. Judas Priest (Okay. You got one.)

6. Metallica (...And the war begins: "they used to be great", "yeah but they sold out", "yeah but they used to be great", etc.)

5. Jimi Hendrix (Respectable? Hell yes. Early metal influence? Sure, I'll buy it. Metal? Personally don't think so.)

4. Van Halen (Makes a little more since to me than Hendrix, but I still don't like it.)

3. AC/DC (Wouldn't be my personal choice, but I guess I can live with it. Or I could if the rest of the list weren't so terrible.)

2. Led Zeppelin (Personally, I put 'em in the same category as Van Halen and Hendrix; it all comes down to 'what the hell is this a list of, exactly?')

1. Black Sabbath (Who could've guessed?)

Here's the URL:

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/listoftheday/69730/the-25-best-heavy-metal-bands

This being the "Old School" forum, my guess is a lot of people won't agree with me that "classic rock" is not metal. I just think that, while stuff like AC/DC, EVH, Jimi and the rest were important to the development of metal, they, themselves, were not metal, in the same way that R&B, jazz and funk aren't gangsta rap, if you follow that somewhat strange analogy.

 

[Wyvern]

25. Meshuggah
24. Mercyful Fate
23. Alice in Chains
22. Uriah Heep
21. Pantera
20. Thin Lizzy
19. Kyuss
18. Guns N' Roses
17. Kiss
16. Dio
15. Robin Trower
14. Rush
13. Spinal Tap
12. Deep Purple
11. Slayer
10. Iron Maiden
9. Motorhead
8. Aerosmith
7. Judas Priest
6. Metallica
5. Jimi Hendrix
4. Van Halen
3. AC/DC
2. Led Zeppelin
1. Black Sabbath

Well there's a lot to argue in here. First the revisionism factor, we call now classic rock stuff that is either hard rock which in time is sometimes equal to heavy metal (the lines can come very blurry with those two monikers), or stuff that was pretty heavy on its own time like let's say Sabaton is now for us.

So I'm gonna vote against being true metal (IMHO) as for 2,4,5,8,13(c'mon is not even a real band :Shedevil ,15,23. With bands like Meshuggah, GNR, Kyuss, Kiss and Pantera I leave it for the taste of each one, I recall Messhugah being very heavy by the time of "Destroy Erase Improve", same with Metallica they may have changed but the first three albums are pure metal.

Now they have: Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Uriah Heep, Dio, Deep Purple and Motorhead. Taking the rest off for personal reasons is a great list if you at least mentioned those bands. I would have thrown Rainbow and Saxon too in it, but I'm a fanboy

Any other opinions?

NP: Tyr - 'Valkyrjan'

 

[poundingmetal74]

Most of the bands listed, by today's standards, aren't metal. Some never were metal (Hendrix, or my very-surprised-to-be-seen-in-this-list Trower). All in all, another list, means nothing at the end of the day. Seeing the list does make me want to put on Bridge of Sighs though.

And hey, at least it's not as awful as the 2004 Rolling Stone greatest guitarist list.

For the record, Facelift (A.I.Chains) is a metal record.

 

[sixxswine]

I read that last night. Quite lame...

 

[thrashgirl]

For the record, Facelift (A.I.Chains) is a metal record.

I thought someone might say that. If it's metal, its only barely. It could just as easily be heavy grunge. And after that album, they were all grunge with the exception of one or two songs.

I'm actually okay with Alice, musically. Only grunge I can really stomach. But if this is supposed to be a list of "metal" bands, I don't see how they make the cut. Same thing with Kyuss. They're good stoner rock, but that's a long way from metal.

 

[thrashgirl]

Most of the bands listed, by today's standards, aren't metal. Some never were metal (Hendrix, or my very-surprised-to-be-seen-in-this-list Trower). All in all, another list, means nothing at the end of the day. Seeing the list does make me want to put on Bridge of Sighs though.

And hey, at least it's not as awful as the 2004 Rolling Stone greatest guitarist list.

For the record, Facelift (A.I.Chains) is a metal record.

It just gets to me...such a sad reminded of what nu-metal has done to true metal.

But hey, they call it "forum fodder" for a reason. May as well make use of it.

 

[thrashgirl]

Well there's a lot to argue in here. First the revisionism factor, we call now classic rock stuff that is either hard rock which in time is sometimes equal to heavy metal (the lines can come very blurry with those two monikers), or stuff that was pretty heavy on its own time like let's say Sabaton is now for us.

So I'm gonna vote against being true metal (IMHO) as for 2,4,5,8,13(c'mon is not even a real band :Shedevil ,15,23. With bands like Meshuggah, GNR, Kyuss, Kiss and Pantera I leave it for the taste of each one, I recall Messhugah being very heavy by the time of "Destroy Erase Improve", same with Metallica they may have changed but the first three albums are pure metal.

Now they have: Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Uriah Heep, Dio, Deep Purple and Motorhead. Taking the rest off for personal reasons is a great list if you at least mentioned those bands. I would have thrown Rainbow and Saxon too in it, but I'm a fanboy

These are the bands that I don't think should be considered real metal or even influential on the genre. Not saying they're good or bad (I like some, don't like others), just saying I don't consider them metal, at all:

Alice (23), Kyuss (19), GN'R (18), Trower (15), Rush (14), Spinal Tap (13), Aerosmith (8), Jimi (5)

Then there are the bands that I think should get credit as early pregenitors of metal, but aren't actually metal themselves. If this was what the list was meant to be, a lot of these would have a really good case, but they just aren't true "metal:"

Uriah Heep (22), Thin Lizzy (20), KISS (17), Deep Purple (12), Van Halen (4), AC/DC (3), Zeppelin (2)

These are the bands on the list that I think are "true" metal. Not saying whether I think they're good or bad (I'd rather listen to some of the bands mentioned that I don't consider true metal than Pantera or Dio), just that they are metal:

Meshuggah (25), Mercyful Fate (24), Pantera (21), Dio (16), Slayer (11), Iron Maiden (10), Motorhead (9), Judas Priest (7), Metallica (6, well, at least they were at one point), Black Sabbath (1)

Oh, and did anyone else notice that Slayer and Maiden were right next to each other? Kinda interesting because, I believe, Slayer was offered their first contract with Metal Blade after Brian Slagel saw them playing "Phantom of the Opera," which, by the way, is a song I f'in' love.

 

[KMADD]

I wouldnt say Kyuss should be in the top 25 but shit they were a great band back in the day Blues For A Red Sun is a good stoner rock cd.

 

[Wyvern]

Alice (23), Kyuss (19), GN'R (18), Trower (15), Rush (14), Spinal Tap (13), Aerosmith (8), Jimi (5)

Agree.

Uriah Heep (22), Thin Lizzy (20), KISS (17), Deep Purple (12), Van Halen (4), AC/DC (3), Zeppelin (2)

UH, TL and DP are metal as hell , te rest I agree with you.

Meshuggah (25), Mercyful Fate (24), Pantera (21), Dio (16), Slayer (11), Iron Maiden (10), Motorhead (9), Judas Priest (7), Metallica (6, well, at least they were at one point), Black Sabbath (1)

Pantera like I said I leave to each own, personally I can't stand them and I blame them for the opening the doors to what some call nu-metal (THAT IS NOT METAL AT ALL!), so I use the term mallcore that's very fond in the Witches-Brew forum I attend instead. I don't know enough Meshuggah to make a judgement, but I'm sure Thin Lizzy is way more metal than they are.

 

[wdiv]

Same dude also has a top 25 hair metal list, which is nearly as accurate as the other list...

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/listoftheday/32122/the-25-best-hair-metal-bands

 

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

The only ones on that list that deserve to be on it imo:

1. Sabbath
2. AC/DC
3. Judas Priest
4. Maiden
5. Motorhead
6. Slayer
7. Metallica
8. Dio
9. Deep Purple

These bands i consider Metal regardless of era because they were metal for their time as compared to the rest of the music industry at the time. I would even though VH in there for good measure especially the first album (Eruption and Running with the Devil).

All other bands are either metal (but don't deserve to be on a top 25 list), not metal (blues guitarists, grunge bands, classic rock bands/artists , glam bands etc.)

 

[thrashgirl]

UH, TL and DP are metal as hell , te rest I agree with you.

They were heavy for their time, but that was well before mine. I just have a hard time seeing pretty much anything pre-1980 besides Sabbath and a few others as "metal." Guess I'm too young to get it?

I don't know enough Meshuggah to make a judgement, but I'm sure Thin Lizzy is way more metal than they are.

And I don't know enough about Thin Lizzy to offer much help. I've probably heard less of them than at least 20 of the other artists on this lists.

 

[Wyvern]

They were heavy for their time, but that was well before mine. I just have a hard time seeing pretty much anything pre-1980 besides Sabbath and a few others as "metal." Guess I'm too young to get it?

Most probably sugar, but you still can go and check after all this is the Old SCHOOL

 

[sumairetsu]

They were heavy for their time, but that was well before mine. I just have a hard time seeing pretty much anything pre-1980 besides Sabbath and a few others as "metal." Guess I'm too young to get it?

Perhaps. You have to remember the absolute dreck that was coming out of the music industry back in the 1970's to know that some of the bands on this list were groups putting out the heaviest stuff at the time. Back then, you had to deal with the glut of programming going to crap like Barbara Streisand, Captain and Tenille, Tony Orlando and Dawn, Roberta Flack, Disco music and all kinds of other crap. Back then, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple's "Burn," or Judas Priest's "Sad Wings of Destiny" were about the heaviest things you could find in the stores.

 

[SoundMaster]

Alice in Chains was indeed a metal band that somehow got mislabeled "grunge".

 

[kuier]

Any list that starts with ...

Now for 25 performing outfits who have made Heavy Metal what it is.

25) Meshuggah


... will not be entertained by me any further.

 

[Wyvern]

Back then, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple's "Burn," or Judas Priest's "Sad Wings of Destiny" were about the heaviest things you could find in the stores.

Absolutely right! The time frame is very important to understand a list like that.

In 1977 came out "Saturday Night Fever", disco was rampant but let's see what the metal camp was giving:

Black Sabbath - "Technical Ecstasy"
Rainbow - "On Stage"
Thin Lizzy - "Bad Reputation"
Judas Priest - "Sin After Sin"
Motorhead - "Motorhead"
Scorpions - "Taken By Force"
Rush - All The World's A Stage
Ted Nugent - "Cat Scratch Fever"
Kiss - "Love Gun" and "Alive II"
Blue Osyter Cult - "Spectres"

and more I can't recall right now. We can argue that some weren't metal were hard rock (like I always said those monikers are blurry lines), Motorhead was a bit more punkish, Kiss and Ted Nugent more hard rock IMO (but I can be wrong).

The point is that if you take disco on one side and and album like "Taken By Force" on the other, undoubtedly the later will me very metal to me

 

[tsorl]

Alice in Chains was indeed a metal band that somehow got mislabeled "grunge".

Well I wouldn't go as far as saying they got "mislabeled" because they were one the very bands that defined the grunge sound in the first place. They sure were a lot heavier than for example Pearl Jam and no doubt fall under the metal umbrella as well at least in my books. The AiC case is probably my favorite example of people shooting themselves in the foot by making sharp genre divides in the realm of hard rock and refusing to listen to anything that's not in their side of the fence. Killer band.

I'm sure from the band's financial point of view it was a helluva lot better to be labeled a grunge band than a metal band in the early 90s...

 

[Wyvern]

by making sharp genre divides in the realm of hard rock and refusing to listen to anything that's not in their side of the fence.

Ah, the whole subgenre divisions and tags is nothing but a headache. I agree that some monikers can help you decide in advance if you want or not listening to a paticular band or album (of course you can miss great music by just reject plainly without giving at least a listening). So I'm cool with: traditional, speed, thrash, death, doom, black, progressive, but beyond that it becomes fuzzy for me.

But today is going nuts, go to The End Records webpage and see how they label bands, look at bands in MySpace how they label themselves. Now it's all muddy and complicated. Still after all this years people are arguing about hard rock and heavy metal.

My view:

1. ask they sound like what/who?
2. listen to some and make your own choice (at least MySpace let you do so)

 

[thrashgirl]

Well I wouldn't go as far as saying they got "mislabeled" because they were one the very bands that defined the grunge sound in the first place. They sure were a lot heavier than for example Pearl Jam and no doubt fall under the metal umbrella as well at least in my books. The AiC case is probably my favorite example of people shooting themselves in the foot by making sharp genre divides in the realm of hard rock and refusing to listen to anything that's not in their side of the fence. Killer band.

I'm sure from the band's financial point of view it was a helluva lot better to be labeled a grunge band than a metal band in the early 90s...

I like AiC alright, I just don't think they're "metal." They had some songs that might be "metal," but as a whole, I just don't think so. I mean, they came from the same time and place as Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, etc., how can they not be grunge?