Your input would be appreciated

Korlich said:
I´m tired of the fact that almost all BM bands write about slaying christians or praising the devil or whatever. First of all it´s NOT very original since they all do it and always has.

I don't think it's meant to be original. It's about fitting a style which they regard as already perfect. As for keeping religion out of songwriting, I disagree. AFAIC there are no taboo subjects for lyrics, as long as you do it well. And if you really do enjoy black metal but want to see it done without a religious focus - well, I'm sure you can figure out which end of the microphone to scream into.
 
Korlich said:
(...)Under these circumstances I really enjoy Opeth steping away from that and keeping the focus on quality song writing and pushing musical boundaries.
Agreed! Couldn't have said it better. In fact, couldn't have probably said it that good. :cool:
 
lord667 said:
And if you really do enjoy black metal but want to see it done without a religious focus - well, I'm sure you can figure out which end of the microphone to scream into.

Or listen to Heart Of The Ages.

Then again, if you're Christian, even that would probably twist your poor mind.
 
that's really the beauty of opeth. i usually have no problem separating the image from the music, i'm quite fond of bands like dimmu, gorgoroth, emperor, immortal, yatta yatta yatta...but opeth is just down to earth. like how akerfeldt jokes around at concerts and stuff. i mean, my friends smoked up with the martins, akerfeldt gave us a lesson on 4/4 time signature at a show i went to, they're really just themselves, not some trumped up product of pop-satanism or occult pursuits. their image is not embarassing in any way, they will probably be the only crazy metal band who doesn't regret their past pursuits years from now.
 
I abhor band photos. Remember when U2's Joshua Tree came out, they had a photo of them all looking in different directions besides right at the camera. Ok, cool enough at the time. But every fucking photo you see now(especially of unsigned bands), has at least one asshole looking at the wall next to him. I want to reach through the picture and strangle them! :yell:
 
the image thing can be fun... i mean we all appreciate escape from ho-hum reality sometimes. a little theater can be really a good thing. dress up, act like someone/thing else, it's good for you. i mean, what else is halloween for?
nonetheless, i do like opeth's laid-back attitude. the joking and smiling and focus on the music is really refreshing. it's one of the things i like about them. the dvd really brings that all out and i find it very charming. you don't need to be a bad ass to make bad ass music.
 
I have no idea what you're talking about.
























immortal.jpg



Emperor has some nice ones.

Anyway, Immortal probably wants them to be like that. Most bands are just unintentionally funny.
 
Any band that has photo shoots of any sense, or album art immediately sets up an image for themselves. Opeth talked about how on the early albums they printed, it had no logo, none of their photos or anything... well that all contributes to their image.. its the perceived view someone gets of them when they think of 'Opeth', or to be more precise in that time 'the band with no logo and a fucking flower on their album' :).

The Blackwater Park photo session was extremely proggy, and one of those photos is what introduced me to the guys... so the image of Opeth that has stuck with me is the 70s prog thing, and I mean that was the REASON i got into them. Just looking at the guys I could tell the music is something more than mere metal, that even in their laid-back oldschool look I knew I'd find a band worth praising. So it proved to be.

Anyway, most of the 'evil' image with bands just goes with the turf.. I mean it's metal, you're not supposed to take 90% of it seriously. Bands do it because they want to, and it's better to see Slayer as a bunch of redneck freaks (well not really, reffering mainly to King there) than otherwise, because it instantly also gives you an idea of what the music is about.
 
Moonlapse said:
Any band that has photo shoots of any sense, or album art immediately sets up an image for themselves. Opeth talked about how on the early albums they printed, it had no logo, none of their photos or anything... well that all contributes to their image.. its the perceived view someone gets of them when they think of 'Opeth', or to be more precise in that time 'the band with no logo and a fucking flower on their album'
Well sure, you look at the back cover of Orchid and you see a bunch of dudes silhouetted against the sky. How elusive and mysterious can you get? Its still an image, corpsepaint or not.
 
Another point on image. Is it just me, or did Metallica start sucking precisely at the point where they cut and styled their hair and stop wearing 3/4 length sleeve concert shirts?
 
No, Risquit. They started sucking (for this upcoming individual) precisely when they started making sucking music from an individual's point of view.
I liked the Loads very much, despite some of the less good stuff. I hated St. Anger.
Has nothing to do with image. If you think a band starts sucking when they cut their hair or do something similar you're an idiot, whether the band is Metallica or your über-UG black metal band.
 
hilarious stuff! risquit: i hear what youre saying about not looking at the camera. it always annoys me but recently has started to make me laugh so i like it.
staffan: youre not looking at the camera man! what the hell?! im kidding of course, cool picture.
horseman: nothing is funnier than that picture. is it for real? god. what if that was your dad? embarrasing but amusing.
moonlapse: that was exactly my experience with BWP - the first time i heard opeth. the pictures in BWP as well as the artwork had nearly as powerful an effect as did the music. for me, it wouldnt have been the same. i found myself thinking my local hiking spots looked like BWP. thanks for sharing your view.....
 
Image adds something to the music. It is part of a bands personality.

Sure, you could say that the Black Metal bands dressed in corpse paint and spikes are going way too far, but they are just separating themselves from everything else. I mean, that was the motive back in the day. Of course, nowadays many of these bands may focus more on their image than their music, which is sad to say the least. Opeth also has an image. Many of you may disagree with me, but they have a fucking image. They are just very modest about their image, which is something I respect about them. When all is said and done they are truly a band that is mostly about the music. I have never seen Opeth photo shoots that even match the caliber of Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth. Do you know why? Because Opeth simply doesn’t care about conveying an image. They just walk out onto stage and play.

And yeah, there are stereotypes that exist within metal. Not all metal bands have long hair. Not all metal bands are “Satanists.” Not all metal bands wish to convey a grim image. There are also a variety of metal genres ranging from doom to death, so it depends. I think that all bands adopt some kind of image. That is pretty much universal no matter who you listen to. I don’t even think that Opeth portrays a uncanny image. They remind me of the long hair rockers of the 70’s more than anything else, which is kind of cool.
 
Every band has an image.

Corpsepaint and medieval weaponry is an image.
Tight leather pants and hairspray is an image.
Regular clothes and settings of nature is an image.
No logo, no pictures, nothing visual... that's an image too.

Image is unavoidable, I don't think that is or should be what we're arguing here. The problem is bands who use image to sell albums, bands who falsify themselves to portray a certain image. I can't speak for everyone, but as far as I'm concerned, if a band out there wears corpsepaint and all because they like it and because that's who they feel they are, then i applaud them for having the fucking balls to do it despite knowing that the majority of people will dismiss them as insincere and a joke.