What would you suggest for someone new to (good) metal?

[Perdition's Light]

Hey, I've got a friend (it's not me, you fucks) that I found out likes Opeth but he doesn't know much about the genre as a whole. I asked him if he'd like to hear more of it and he was very interested. Now he's a smart kid, so I know he can appreciate some good music, but at the same time I don't want to scare him off with stuff that's too inaccessible for someone at his level of appreciation.

So what would you suggest? I don't want to expose him to anything plastic, or over-the-top wankery with little substance. Here are a few off the top of my head, though I'm sure some will disagree over whether these albums are significant, or overrated, etc. ...

Aeternus - Beyond The Wandering Moon or ...And So The Night Became
Agalloch - Pale Folklore or The Mantle
Falkenbach - Magni Blandinn Ok Megintiri
Graveland - The Fire of Awakening or ??? (what's a good introduction to Graveland?)
Burzum - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, Filosofem
Amorphis - Tales From The Thousand Lakes
Arghoslent - Incorrigible Bigotry (haven't heard others)
Darkthrone - A Blaze In The Northern Sky
etc.

I'm going to take several albums and make an mp3 CD for him. Keep in mind I'm only trying to steer him in the right direction and let him decide what he likes, not impose my taste on him (ok, maybe a little), so recommendations don't have to be albums that I/you particularly care for. Just something to help develop his sense of taste. Thanks in advance.

 

[10293847]

Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness

If he doesn't like this, he doesn't like metal.

 

[Vital Remains]

kalmah
children of bodom
cryptopsy
at the gates
arsis
and as said earlier morbid angel

dont start with any reall really hardcore black metal because he will probably have a stong distaste for it at first entry. get him in to some melodic death and slowly work from there. i didnt really like black metal when i first got into the heavy music style. it was too crazy for me. But i enjoy it considerably after slow exposure.

 

[MasterOLightning]

Altars of Madness is pretty essential indeed.

The Jester Race is also a good introductory album.

 

[DE]

whilst lots of those are great albums, £10 says he goes straight back to his opeth and crap 5 minutes after hearing them

 

[no country for old wainds]

Drudkh's Autumn Aurora is perfect for this sort of thing. Maybe Summoning, too? I agree with most of your list, though maybe not the Darkthrone (too inaccessible?) or Amorphis (the clean vocals will make him cry) or Agalloch (because, well, yknow)

 

[BasilisK]

Add Ensiferum and old Vintersorg based on the criteria.

 

[Helspyre]

Carcass - Heartwork
Blind Guardian - Imaginations From The Other Side
Iced Earth - Something Wicked This Way Comes
Ensiferum - Ensiferum
Testament - The Gathering
Sonata Arctica - Winterheart's Guild
Persuader - Evolution Purgatory

...just trying to think of some "accessible" albums with varied tastes...

 

[Guthrum]

Destroyer 666 - Phoenix Rising
Slough Feg - Any of the albums

These are definitely accessible.

 

[melodic_shreddings]

The Persuader or Quo Vadis. If they like opeth, definetely show them Behind the Scenery

 

[DE]

Drudkh's Autumn Aurora is perfect for this sort of thing. Maybe Summoning, too? I agree with most of your list, though maybe not the Darkthrone (too inaccessible?) or Amorphis (the clean vocals will make him cry) or Agalloch (because, well, yknow)

pale folklore is amazing, you're a faggot nixothy

 

[Susperia]

Hypocrisy.

It's what I started off with. And they're great.

 

[plaguewilder]

Hypocrisy's 4th dimension is a great start!! Amorphis is also a good idea. Burzum, Drudkh, Dark Throne etc...are a little too much for a newbie. Save them for later. Autumn Aurora is one of the best albums I have ever heard but not good for a new person to metal. How about Borknagar and Rapture??

 

[Birkenau]

AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH

Don't put him onto too much music initially, cause he'll just go back to Opeth like DE said. AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH AGALLOCH

 

[Perdition's Light]

ehhh, I'm not going to try to expose him to Borknagar or Rapture because I personally can't stand those bands.

DE - That's a good bet in most cases and you may even be right, but hey, everyone starts somewhere, right?

Altars of Madness is a good call for sure.

I may do Hypocrisy, though I always avoided them because I thought death metal about The Greys from the X-files was, well, gay. Whether it's good music or not, I really have no idea.

Amorphis is definetely getting axed.

Summoning and Drudkh actually occured to me later today along with a few others, but good input. Thanks everyone, except for Birkenau, as I listed Agalloch in the FIRST POST.

 

[Birkenau]

Fine.

Agalloch, Novembre, My Dying Bride, Ulver, Katatonia.

 

[The Deacon Dr. O]

How about some oldschool metal? We should all know our history...

Black Sabbath
Iron Maiden
Metallica (up to justice)
Megadeth (up to RIP)
Judas Priest
Slayer
Dark Angel
(Bathory)
(Savatage)



Death Metal:

Amon Amarth
Asphyx
Arsis
At The Gates
Behemoth
Death
Gorguts
Immolation
Incantation
Massacra
Morbid Angel
Slayer
Suffocation
Vader



Thrash:

Artillery
D.R.I
Dark Angel
Nuclear Assault
Sodom
Testament

(I know, thats a pretty poor thrash list, but thrash is not my specialty)

 

[Procella]

I think you should give him both some classics and some new things. I also think that the music you give him should be as varied as possible. Let him know how wide and fascinating genre metal is.

My suggestions:
Candlemass ('Nightfall' or the new album)
Evergrey - 'Recreation Day'
Tiamat 'Clouds' or 'Wildhoney'
Enslaved 'Isa' and/or In The Woods 'Heart Of The Ages' - great albums, and good to introduce somebody to black metal


I agree with the most of suggestions already made, so I won't repeat them...

 

[Mort Divine]

Acid Bath - When the Kite String Pops
In The Woods... - Heart of Ages
Amorphis - Elegy
Solefald - Pills Against the Ageless Ills
Overkill - The Years of Decay
Saprogenic - The Wet Sound of Flesh On Concrete
Demigod - Slumber of the Sullen Eyes
Diabolical Masquerade - EVERYTHING

 

[Blodsmert]

Amorphis is definetely getting axed.

That's a mistake, dump the Graveland and Darkthrone if anything, your mate will just laugh at you if you play him Graveland and beat you for making him listen to Dorkthrone.

Birkenau seems to have the right idea, in the same vein, November's Doom and The Prophecy