Metal, A Dying Genre
Idea Of Blog:Metal, once a genre feared by parents and religeous groups alike, is now coming to the same fate it did in the late eighties.
Recap:
In the eighties the "Glam Metal" scene came to an end. The end was caused by the introduction of Power Ballads.[The first powerballad in metal was by motley Crue on their "Theatre Of Pain" Album]. With powerballads emerging metalheads lost interest, and with the emerging grunge scene moved on to get the heavier music. This killed metal until the early to mid 90's when the group "Pantera"emerged, then it all changed.
Pantera a band from Arlington, Texas, brought back the heavy metal scene when they put out the album "Cowboys From Hell". The metal scene went up from there. Pantera released several more albums such as "Vulgar Display Of Power"," Far Beyond Driven" and others. They also launched other groups such as Down, Damage Plan, And Super Joint Ritual. As the years progressed more and more bands emerged making the genre even stronger, and taking it to extrememes never before seen. Bands like Marilyn Manson And The Spooky Kids, Slipknot, Disturbed, Devil Driver, Hatebreed. All of these bands created huge buzzes and touched new bases. Marilyn Manson a band from the early 90's as well being one of the largest. A band with an original heavy sound with the odd or downright scary image exploded its way into the heavy metal world when the hit single "Sweet dreams" came into play. [Originally done by the eurythmics]. Marilyn Manson became one of the hugest and largely protested bands. However it brought about new comings in the metal community. Slipknot, also became huge with the song "Wait and Bleed". They brought a heavy sound to a new generation of pissed off headbangers. Disturbed, and Hatebreed did the same thing. Devil Driver, showed the next level also. With their heavy guitars, insane drums, and great vocalists screaming. Metal continued to grow stronger and stronger with many other bandss emerging.
Up until now Metal has continued to grow. The new generation of metal is destroying an amazing genre. the "Melodic Metal" scene is destroying the genre. This type of metal is becoming huge. Older heavier bands are selling out to this in order to continue making money and mantain its fanbase. The melodic metal seems to be nothing but a genre of pop metal. Teen girls liking these bands just because they feel that the singer, or band is hot. bands like Bullet for My Valentine, Atreyu, Killswitch engage, or even Avenged sevenfold. Bands like these are killing the genre because they are so comercial , and are making it so hard for other bands who are actually original, talented, and are doing what its all about. Metal has always been about ass kicking, face melting, head banging music. Now it seems to be about which band has the hotter band members, which band has the better melodic singer, ect. The genre is dying, it wont be long before real bands arent around, and its all melodic garbage.The genre needs another band like pantera, or slipknot, disturbed, metallica or something to save it.
Ill be putting a better worded version up in a few days.
Recap:
In the eighties the "Glam Metal" scene came to an end. The end was caused by the introduction of Power Ballads.[The first powerballad in metal was by motley Crue on their "Theatre Of Pain" Album]. With powerballads emerging metalheads lost interest, and with the emerging grunge scene moved on to get the heavier music. This killed metal until the early to mid 90's when the group "Pantera"emerged, then it all changed.
Pantera a band from Arlington, Texas, brought back the heavy metal scene when they put out the album "Cowboys From Hell". The metal scene went up from there. Pantera released several more albums such as "Vulgar Display Of Power"," Far Beyond Driven" and others. They also launched other groups such as Down, Damage Plan, And Super Joint Ritual. As the years progressed more and more bands emerged making the genre even stronger, and taking it to extrememes never before seen. Bands like Marilyn Manson And The Spooky Kids, Slipknot, Disturbed, Devil Driver, Hatebreed. All of these bands created huge buzzes and touched new bases. Marilyn Manson a band from the early 90's as well being one of the largest. A band with an original heavy sound with the odd or downright scary image exploded its way into the heavy metal world when the hit single "Sweet dreams" came into play. [Originally done by the eurythmics]. Marilyn Manson became one of the hugest and largely protested bands. However it brought about new comings in the metal community. Slipknot, also became huge with the song "Wait and Bleed". They brought a heavy sound to a new generation of pissed off headbangers. Disturbed, and Hatebreed did the same thing. Devil Driver, showed the next level also. With their heavy guitars, insane drums, and great vocalists screaming. Metal continued to grow stronger and stronger with many other bandss emerging.
Up until now Metal has continued to grow. The new generation of metal is destroying an amazing genre. the "Melodic Metal" scene is destroying the genre. This type of metal is becoming huge. Older heavier bands are selling out to this in order to continue making money and mantain its fanbase. The melodic metal seems to be nothing but a genre of pop metal. Teen girls liking these bands just because they feel that the singer, or band is hot. bands like Bullet for My Valentine, Atreyu, Killswitch engage, or even Avenged sevenfold. Bands like these are killing the genre because they are so comercial , and are making it so hard for other bands who are actually original, talented, and are doing what its all about. Metal has always been about ass kicking, face melting, head banging music. Now it seems to be about which band has the hotter band members, which band has the better melodic singer, ect. The genre is dying, it wont be long before real bands arent around, and its all melodic garbage.The genre needs another band like pantera, or slipknot, disturbed, metallica or something to save it.
Ill be putting a better worded version up in a few days.
Comments
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I did not contradict myself at all, you have taken two separate sentences and muddied the contexts. That statement about no one being right or wrong wasn't referring to whether it was dying or not, what I was referring to was the fact that these are opinions, and opinions are not fact. Neither one of us can be said to be wrong or right based on an opinion. If you want to prove something you have to do a sh*tload of research and test your data with the worst possible chain of statistical analyses imaginable, only then can you state it as fact. So having said that, I reiterate, we have differing opinions, you think it's dying, I think it is not. And until the data is tested, it's really just conjecture.
Grandma, April 22nd, 2008 at 03:23:57am
I dontl isten to the radio or watch mtv. i watch 1 hour of tv a week thats house. Metallica did switch their focus, and the guitar riffs went downhill, the lyrics all changed, and they began shooting videos, and getting radio play. when did it happen? after and justice for all, th en full force after the black album. Rap music? I probably know more about that than anyone on here cause i am a rap artist, i constantly listen to it mainly underground, tech n9ne, immortal technique, mc supernat, AZ ect. Yeah real is out there but not enough.. and you contradicted yourself in saying it isnt dying at all, then saying noones wrong here they have different views. if it isnt dying at all, then im wrong. if it sorta is/ sorta isnt then noone is wrong.
syco-cheechoo2, April 21st, 2008 at 09:20:58pm
No studio albums, but three live ones.
Define good, everyone's music taste is different Steven. What sounds good to one person, sounds like sh*t to another so that argument is redundant.
Metallica did what they wanted to so, the whole sellout argument is also redundant and a phrase way too overused these days. If a band shifts focus it's their choice, they do what they want to do. If some fans don't like it, so what? The band was obviously happy with it and it's their music.
Bottom line is, metal isn't dying at all, it's still out there, in a variety of forms and in it's original form, you just have to know where to look, just like you have to look in places other than MTV and local radio to find intelligent rap. As in many things people's opinions will differ on the subject. No one is right or wrong here, we just have different views.
Grandma, April 21st, 2008 at 04:43:46am
Metallica still produces music, but lost a HUGE ammount of their true fans at the black album. they are a big example of SELLOUT. megadeth hasn't had a good album since symphony of destruction. Anthrax hasnt made an album in quite a few years.
syco-cheechoo2, April 20th, 2008 at 02:36:24pm
Metallica, Mega Death &; Anthrax still produce music, and are still widely loved within the scene.
Tholomew Plague, April 20th, 2008 at 08:48:34am
BR00T4L, You said i am only talking about a few subgenres? Nah, metal as a whole. especially thrash..thrash metal practically died when metallica, anthrax, megadeth,n sh*t like them stopped makin albums. grindcore has never been great to begin with. deathmetal is one subgenre that hasnt changed really. nu metal is the metal that isnt doing anything bad to metal as a whole. as a matter of fact its broiught more fans into the metal scene.
now as a whole i didnt say metal is dead, i mearly said it is dying. and when i say it like that i mean the true talent within. what metal overall used to be about. its just becoming too comercial. and in the end the more comercial it gets the real metal fans wont always support it. it'll cause it to die. i mean yea they'll still have fans. but most will only be bcause of the fad and comercialism of it.
syco-cheechoo2, April 20th, 2008 at 12:52:51am
Metal isn't dead.
"Bands like Marilyn Manson And The Spooky Kids, Slipknot, Disturbed, - Marilyn Manson, Bullet for My Valentine, Atreyu, or even Avenged sevenfold"
Btw those bands are nu-metal, not real metal. (:
Go see a decent metal band and you'll see that the metal scene is still alive. I go to metal gigs once in a while and there aren't 498746 girls screaming the leadsingers name or anything. I think only deathcore/nu-metal/hardcore bands are (becoming) very populair. You can't just say that all metal is getting commercial.. What about (suicidal) black, doom, avant-garde, death, thrash, folk, grindcore, progressive metal, huh? (: You've only been talking about a few lame subgenres so yeah..that's not enough to 'prove' that metal is dead or anything. I don't even think you've heard at least one band of every genre is just named..
"The new generation of metal is destroying an amazing genre."
Not really..I know plenty of really good ~newer~ bands that aren't commercial or anything, you just don't have to look for them on MTV or anything..
And I agree with 'man of infirmity, April'.
Sorry for my bad spelling/grammar.
DARKPSYDE, April 19th, 2008 at 04:46:28am
I see you mentioned Marilyn in there =] It made me smile. Great blog,
Kurtni, April 19th, 2008 at 12:05:55am
i've seen this same type of thing happen to the bands i like. when i was growing up i listened to sum 41 and blink 182. then i listened to the OLD fall out boy, green day, taking back sunday. so sum 41 broke up for a long time and their music hasn't sounded great since Does This Look Infected. blink 182 is gone. fall out boy has totally changed and sold out. green day isn't making new music. TBS isn't really doing anything either. a lot of "screamo" crap took the place of the old stuff i liked. and they aren't really sell outs, we just say they are because they aren't like our favorite bands. and i agree with most everyone else, Avenged Sevenfold isn't really metal. they are a type of metal but they can't be classified in the same type as most of the other bands you've listed. these bands never sold out..they're doing what every band does, trying to make money. and they aren't making the music we want, instead they are attracting all the preppy kids. i've had the same problem as you though...its sh*t to listen to that stuff when you have always listened to great bands. i think if you give some of these bands time they'll either die off or turn into something great. i hope at least. right now everything sucks. my boyfriend LOVES metal. recently hes been listening to Rage Against the Machine. They aren't quite metal but they sure are heavy. But once again, they arn't making new music. so its hard. i guess we either have to keep listening to the good, old stuff or try to find a new band.
suburban.zombie, April 18th, 2008 at 07:45:46pm
ok i probably know as much about metal as george w bush knows about grammar but i have heard metalheads saying that montley crue and that sh*t "isn't real metal" and same with slipknot. Not that i know what i'm talking about or anything but i just wanted to add that.
Mycophobia, April 18th, 2008 at 07:29:36pm
I agree metal is becoming very commercial, but what genre isn't? There still are metal fans. A genre can't really die. There will always be someone listening to it.
neen bean, April 18th, 2008 at 07:23:58pm
actually, i don't believe metal is dead.
there's newer heavy metal bands im sure none of those who are in it for looks know about.
there's Amon Amarth, Opeth, Behemoth, Lamb of God, Dimmu Borgir, Mastodon, Strapping Young Lad, and i suppose Slayer, but they've been around forever.
pseudo superhero, April 17th, 2008 at 11:23:58pm
What I'm trying to say is:
Metal already changed drasticly once before. A fan of the really really 60's and 70's metal may have thought that it died when the 80's and 90's style of it came to be. Now you're thinking its dieing because you perfer the 80's and 90's style over todays. So, I soppose its already "died" before the first power ballet.
As for the comercial stuff, you're dam right. I don't like it, so I pay it no attention what-so-ever. I just listen to the music.
Blarg!, April 17th, 2008 at 06:43:23pm
I beg to disagree there Steven. It might seem like that, but the reality is very different, you cannot judge how the genre is going by listening to the radio or watching MTV. Radio and TV will only play what is commercial after all it is a business, but that doesn’t mean the original metal sound is dying, it’s still out there you just have to dig a little to find it. As to ‘glam metal’, well when that hit it was seen by a lot of metalheads as a joke. The genre didn’t die out then, it just retreated. It kept on doing what is was doing with a small but dedicated following. If you look further than TV and radio you will find a large number of new metal bands out there that have the sound of the originals.
As an oldie who was actually around for the first wave of metal, I can honestly say that the bands you listed above, ie Avenged Sevenfold, Bullet For My Valentine etc, those to me are not really metal, they are more akin to heavy rock or possibly soft metal. Just because a band is loud doesn’t make them metal.
The Reverend makes a good point about the “oldies” getting old and dying off. I wouldn’t want to see them on stage in their zimmer frames, they did what they set out to do and are getting on with the rest of their lives. And yes, Manowar hasn’t changed in the slightest, even down to the picking girls out of the audience for a backstage quickie. True metal is always there, just not conspicuous. And the ‘new’ metal won’t change that.
Grandma, April 17th, 2008 at 04:53:46pm
Whats causing metal to die is the REAL metal bands, dying of old age. Not being able to play anymore because they forgot their songs and have arthitis. Avenged Sevenfold is a totally different type of metal, if you can even class it as metal. They're new wave. They arent ACTUAL metal. Real metallers would rather eat gum off their shoe than listen to them. So they cant be classed as metal in my opinion.
Everything is of a different genre of metal. The real metal is ManOWar and Dragon Force. Most metal bands arent dying out. Man0war and Dragonforce are STILL producing good music, and Cradle of filth has been going for over 20 years and have never sold out any of their music, they're still a TYPE of metal.
Metal will never 'die', Just old school metal will. The only reason for that is because they're all old men now :]
Tholomew Plague, April 17th, 2008 at 04:37:04pm