What Makes A Bad Metal Band?

[Vilden]

HBB is quite the enigma in that he has more superior taste than most here in alot of regards and I've gotten loads of great recs from him but then he spouts really shitty opinions more often than pretty much anyone else here too.

I agree on the newer watered down degenerete bm of nowdays though. Do anyone even listen to that shit?

 

[The Batlord]

I agree on the newer watered down degenerete bm of nowdays though. Do anyone even listen to that shit?

Not a whole lot but I can't hate after discovering Hail Spirit Noir. But their absolute commitment to 70s prog with a black metal mindset kind of separates them from those bands who just dabble in black metal and some other genre.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Although I'm not too familiar with Hail Spirit Noir (iirc I hated a song of theirs posted in one of the mixtape games), at least 70s prog is often rooted in guitar-based, heavier rock music. King Crimson, Genesis, Rush, and others had their moments of surprising proto-metallic heaviness. That's quite different from DSBM bands that just twinkle on a few chords for an hour straight, or post-rock wannabes with harsh vocals and blasting, or bands that mix three parts of MIDI folk melodies with one part metal and call it "folk/black" or "symphonic/black". Yet when a band with riffs entirely derived from thrash or death metal decides to add screamy vox or metalcore breakdowns, they're immediately booted from the cool kids' table. It's a double-standard and black metal is full of treasonous elements that are only just starting to be rejected because of its growing popularity (e.g. Sunbather), but underground stuff with literally no metal riffs gets a pass because of aesthetic choices.

 

[The Batlord]

On that note, as much as I like Yes, copying them with metal riffs thrown in makes for a bad metal band. If you wanna be progressive then please experiment and stop wanking.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

There aren't really that many prog metal bands that literally sound like Yes clones afaik. Certainly not Dream Theater or the others usually shat upon. I mean, a lot of prog metal bands do have that one obligatory closing epic-ballad done Heart of the Sunrise-style, but for the most part there's not much in common.

 

[The Batlord]

"Yes" is really more of a stand-in for 70s prog in general that prog metal bands ripoff to make boring wank while doing nothing of interest beyond making long songs with a lot of technical jibber jabber.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

I'll take instrumental wank over the ego/emotional wank of black metal tbh.

 

[The Batlord]

Experimental, non-hipster, black metal is vastly more interesting than lame prog metal. I'd take Blut Aus Nord, Dodheimsgard, or Sigh over Dream Theater any fucking day of the week. Experimental black metal, hell, even hipster black metal at times, is far more "progressive" than some band who is only progressive in terms of genre.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

>Sigh
>interesting

You just lost all credibility bucko. Enjoy your blackened stoner metal with Iron Maiden melodies and moog solos. They're one of the definitive blackened alt rock bands of today.

 

[The Batlord]

I like black metal, I like stoner metal, I like Iron Maiden, and I like synthesizers. Don't see the problem. I notice that you didn't mention any alt rock. Do you actually know anything about alternative rock? I listen to a fair bit and I'd never in a million years talk about alt rock and Sigh in the same sentence, cause I have, you know, common sense.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Sigh plays a lot of the same dumb riffs that any stoner rock and groove metal band of the 90s was playing. Both of those have significant overlap with canonical alt rock. Beyond their early stuff they shouldn't even be called black metal, they're just one of many Japanese bands that blends random styles like it's no big deal and gets a pass because kawaii desu~~ ^-^

 

[The Batlord]

Or they get a pass cause they rule. And I guess stoner rock could be called alt rock (although you're gonna have to point out to me where they have stoner rock influences), but I don't see how that's a bad thing, cause stoner rock is the fucking shit. And how is groove metal at all anything like alt rock? I have to assume we're not talking about Pantera or Machine Head, or else you'd be a goofball.

Also, whether or not you can call Sigh actual black metal is irrelevant to me, since a very big part of a segment of black metal was not being a mindless slave to orthodoxy. Like a metal version of post-punk. Which is cool as shit, since metal could always use more post-punk musical philosophy.

 

[Krow]

I own most of the early Sigh albums and what I'm reading is extra stupid. I guess that's HBBs signature move though, to talk about nonsensical influences and genres... whatever he can say to get a rise because he doesn't like black metal.

I haven't heard many of Sigh's later albums but early their strategy was, let's play some goofy almost theatrical sounding stuff... wait a minute, you know what would go good here? Some Celtic Frost.

 

[The Ozzman]

It's hilarious because HBB gets a rise out of all of you like I do.

 

[Krow]

It's hilarious because HBB gets a rise out of all of you like I do.

But you get mad, he has a pretty vicious poker face.

 

[The Batlord]

I mean, anybody who doesn't like black metal is probably not that intelligent. It's a difficult genre to appreciate at times, and some people are probably better off with death metal and thrash.

 

[Talos of Atmora]

I mean, anybody who doesn't like black metal is probably not that intelligent.

I'll take "pretentiousness" for 500, Alex.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Post-punk is another major influence on black metal, agreed, but that's not mutually exclusive of alt rock either (see: all those Scandinavian death metal bands that went alt/goth in the mid 90s).

Krow, I'm talking about Sigh's later stuff, not their earlier stuff.

 

[The Batlord]

Post-punk is another major influence on black metal, agreed, but that's not mutually exclusive of alt rock either (see: all those Scandinavian death metal bands that went alt/goth in the mid 90s).

Krow, I'm talking about Sigh's later stuff, not their earlier stuff.

So can you not appreciate alt rock either?

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

I mean, anybody who doesn't like black metal is probably not that intelligent. It's a difficult genre to appreciate at times, and some people are probably better off with death metal and thrash.

Lol.