Are we living in METAL's BEST ERA EVA?

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Wham!, Culture Club, Frankie Goes To Hollywood,

Since 1980 metal has been very much alive in the 80's (Black Sabbath/Dio, Iron Maiden etc). You are being a smart ass bringing up those pop/new wave bands.

Troublezone wrote:

Not even close to the magic of the 80's.

:glee: Definitely not.

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Wham!, Culture Club, Frankie Goes To Hollywood,

Well, now we have American Idol so I guess this era sucks.

Marc Mason wrote:

Is it possible that you've overlooked quite a bit of stuff from this decade? If ya say that it hasn't even touched what was achieved back then, I think that ya probably weren't really looking for much in the way of new Metal releases this time around. There certainly was a lot of greatness to be had. Ya just had to go looking for it. It wasn't hand-picked and delivered to your doorstep, like during the 80's.

Oh ofcourse I've overlooked... as much as I've overlooked stuff made from the '80s... But this decade still fails!

Opeth, Amon Amarth, In Flames, Cradle of Filth? Fail!

Warbringer, Toxic Holocaust, Delirium Tremens,? Fail!

The Lord Weird Slough Feg, Bible Of The Devil, Twisted Tower Dire? Fail!

And mind you, I like most bands stated up there, some are even favorites (TLWSF rules all!). Twisted Tower Dire kills! Some In Flames material is really good. Cradle of Filth and Warbringer suck balls though! Anywho, this era is still thwarted!

Warbringer, Toxic Holocaust, Delirium Tremens, Slough Feg and Twisted Tower Dire all rule! Those are a few bands making this decade great.

A couple other 80's bands who had their own distinctive styles worth mentioning:

VoiVod

Celtic Frost

I think we're living metal's most technical era to date, everybody is trying to outdo each other.

I mean listen to this:

http://www.myspace.com/thefaceless

I like, but I'm like WTF?

I'm not sure I'd say this is metal's best era. I could argue either a timeline of '82-'92, or perhaps '84-'94 as the definitive metal era, before the post-grunge collapse killed off metal in the mainstream completely. That's not to say all good metal was in the mainstream; far from it. However, this could easily be consider the 2nd best era for metal, in that, with the advent of the public internet, our access to new music & new metal is unparalleled. In today's world, you can browse MA and see all kinds of bands you may not have known existed, both from the "golden era" of metal, and many of today's acts are there. Had it not been for the internet, I probably wouldn't have discovered half of the bands I listen to. I would also not have NEAR the education of hard rock/metal that I do because having grown up in a small town w/ a "metal moratorium" in my parents' household, I had to sneak my metal in via my friends until I was old enough that they just accepted the fact that I was going to listen to what I wanted. My CD collection has doubled in the last 3 years due to the internet, and I've acquired a handful of awesome metal vinyl recently that I would likely never have ever seen or received had it not been for the internet. So, I'd say this definitely qualifies as the 2nd best era for that reason alone.

Add to that the fact that we are seeing continued proliferation of metal in nearly all its forms, and that seals the deal for me.

Necrosultan wrote:

Marc Mason wrote:

Is it possible that you've overlooked quite a bit of stuff from this decade? If ya say that it hasn't even touched what was achieved back then, I think that ya probably weren't really looking for much in the way of new Metal releases this time around. There certainly was a lot of greatness to be had. Ya just had to go looking for it. It wasn't hand-picked and delivered to your doorstep, like during the 80's.

Oh ofcourse I've overlooked... as much as I've overlooked stuff made from the '80s... But this decade still fails!

Opeth, Amon Amarth, In Flames, Cradle of Filth? Fail!

Warbringer, Toxic Holocaust, Delirium Tremens,? Fail!

The Lord Weird Slough Feg, Bible Of The Devil, Twisted Tower Dire? Fail!

And mind you, I like most bands stated up there, some are even favorites (TLWSF rules all!). Twisted Tower Dire kills! Some In Flames material is really good. Cradle of Filth and Warbringer suck balls though! Anywho, this era is still thwarted!

Alright. But, maybe luck just had it that you overlooked all the members of the WIN-WIN club. Because, when you drag those bad boys out, then, not only does the scales even out, but they tip in favor of the current decade.

Members of the WIN-WIN club include Baroness, Mastodon, Giant Squid, The Ocean, Pelican, Intronaut, Red Sparrowes, Opeth, Agalloch, Sahg, Torche, Aghora, Spiral Architect, Blotted Science, Redemption, Ayreon, Unexpect, Skeletonwitch, High On Fire, Arsis, Lamb Of God., Isis, Gojira...(90's) Machine Head, Iced Earth, Blind Guardian (90's).

That's a good share of what's right with this past decade. Then, on top of that goodness, there are all the bands who got their start in the 80's, but waned for a decent stretch, then recollected their thoughts and attacked this past decade full force. The vast majority of Thrash bands are in fine form right now. Those, and the other bands that were mentioned in my intial post.

So, not only does this decade have the best of what the 80's had to offer, but it also has a whole new crop of groups who have pretty much reinvented the wheel. The 80's had a whole bunch of dead weight that it had to contend with. And, those were the Glam bands. And, they just ruined everything. The Glam bands were comparable to the Post-Grunge bands who just ended their almost decade-long tenure, roughly from '97 to '05. These are the fakers...and every single musical movement seems to have 'em.

Post-Grunge and Glam Metal bore one glaring similarity. Both are corporate solutions on how to peddle Heavy Metal or Grunge to small children and teenage girls. Real Grunge and Real Heavy Metal were musical forms that arose organically in folks' garages, by actual artists, through a process of trial and error. Once the inventions were complete though, big business moved in and stole those ideas, removing all of the threatening elements, smoothing out the rough, noisy edges and selling the resulting product to a larger, non-discriminating audience.

Marc Mason wrote:

Alright. But, maybe luck just had it that you overlooked all the members of the WIN-WIN club. Because, when you drag those bad boys out, then, not only does the scales even out, but they tip in favor of the current decade.

Members of the WIN-WIN club include Baroness, Mastodon, Giant Squid, The Ocean, Pelican, Intronaut, Red Sparrowes, Opeth, Agalloch, Sahg, Torche, Aghora, Spiral Architect, Blotted Science, Redemption, Ayreon, Unexpect, Skeletonwitch, High On Fire, Arsis, Lamb Of God., Isis, Gojira...(90's) Machine Head, Iced Earth, Blind Guardian (90's).

That's a good share of what's right with this past decade. Then, on top of that goodness, there are all the bands who got their start in the 80's, but waned for a decent stretch, then recollected their thoughts and attacked this past decade full force. The vast majority of Thrash bands are in fine form right now. Those, and the other bands that were mentioned in my intial post.

So, not only does this decade have the best of what the 80's had to offer, but it also has a whole new crop of groups who have pretty much reinvented the wheel. The 80's had a whole bunch of dead weight that it had to contend with. And, those were the Glam bands. And, they just ruined everything. The Glam bands were comparable to the Post-Grunge bands who just ended their almost decade-long tenure, roughly from '97 to '05. These are the fakers...and every single musical movement seems to have 'em.

Post-Grunge and Glam Metal bore one glaring similarity. Both are corporate solutions on how to peddle Heavy Metal or Grunge to small children and teenage girls. Real Grunge and Real Heavy Metal were musical forms that arose organically in folks' garages, by actual artists, through a process of trial and error. Once the inventions were complete though, big business moved in and stole those ideas, removing all of the threatening elements, smoothing out the rough, noisy edges and selling the resulting product to a larger, non-discriminating audience.

Yeah, yeah, I get what you're saying. And it's not a matter of luck, pal, but of taste what we differ in - and I ofcourse hold the truth when it comes to grand and exquisite musical palate. Becuase while you babble on about mediocre bands such as Lamb of God (FAIL!), Mastodon (DEFEAT!), and/or Aggaloch (LOL!), I keep it real by mentioning Motorhead, Overkill... CRIMSON GLORY!!!

And then your ramble continues on about glam metal while conveniently forgetting the current heap of mainstream metal crap! Purveyors of nu-metal/core/screamo nonsense! Give me early Motley Crue, Twisted Sister any day over Slipknot or Hatebreed.

I do enjoy some this new surge of heavy metal goodness, however, but I still think it pales musically to the original scene. Nothing more. Good topic, anyways. Favorite bands of this current wave: Twisted Tower Dire, While Heaven Wept, Fastkill, Slough Feg, Opeth, Spiritual Beggars.

This all boils down to taste and opinion really. If someone is more into dance/disco metal they will probably favor these here times. But if you were into technicallity/theatrics and watching the birth of speed/thrash/crossover metal you will prefer the 80's. I much prefer the originators (overkill,exodus,anthrax) to the imitators (any band from 2000's).

Troublezone wrote:

If someone is more into dance/disco metal they will probably favor these here times.

detuned wrote:

Troublezone wrote:

If someone is more into dance/disco metal they will probably favor these here times.

Korn, Disturbed, Static X, Lincoln Park etc...

Dance/Disco Metal does sound like an interesting venture, I must admit. But, the only track that I can think of that would fit into this new sub-genre is Ozzy and Dweezil Zappa's cover version of The Bee Gee's Staying Alive...."All aboard the Disco Train!".

Metal has been merged with pretty much every other discipline of music imaginable. Troublezone says Disco is already covered. But, there's still one genre untouched. The next wave of Metal is going to be a merger of the most brutal Death merged with 70's Soft Rock. lol. If there's someone here who isn't familiar with the stuff, check out the following tune: http://www.imeem.com/elfyie/music/U3XeOB0f/bread-baby-im-a-want-you/

That's the band, 'Bread' with their super-70's soft-rock hit, 'Baby I'm-a want You'. Probably, the mellowest band that could ever be placed under the category of 'Rock'. Actually, there's nothing at all that rocks about them. lol. Possibly, they could be used to rock a baby to sleep. But, that's all the rockin' that they could conceivably do. Bands have even figured out how to merge things like Reggae and Jazz with Metal. Let's see if they could figure out a way of merging Bread with Metal.

Back to topic....In no way did I want to sleight the 80's. That's where alot of the Metal goodness derives from. We keep on talking 80's, but the 70's are just as important. Maybe even more so because that's what those 80's bands were listening to. It's only been the last two or three years that I've really realized how much of Metal's evolution was done during the 1970's. A lot of it.

Just look at all the stuff that Richie Blackmore accomplished with Deep Purple and then with Rainbow. He was responsible for bringing much of that Classical music-based approach to Metal guitar playing. Everyone credits Randy Rhoads, but it was Blackmore that Rhoads was admiring and emulating at first. Hard Rock/Metal singers like Dio and Coverdale and Hagar and Ozzy and Robert Plant and Steven Tyler all got their start in the 70's.

Bands like Sabbath and Montrose and Budgie and Zeppelin and Rainbow and Priest and Heart and AC/DC and Kiss and Rush were all heavy as schitt back in the 70's. It's actually only during the 80's that all these bands went uber-soft and rubbery on us. There's a whole thread here dedicated to just how important the 70's were in the evolution of Heavy Metal. And, I think the era deserves just as much of a nod as both the 80's and today. Big ups. Can I get a witness?

Now what about the psychedelic fuzz of the 60's? Hmm...

Just the very tail-end of the 60's. That's where the power chord and the distortion pedal gets it's start. Then, it was just mere minutes before some chilly bloke lays down a blistering guitar lead that rips the paint off of some record exec's office walls. And, the rest is history, as they say. Smoke 'em if ya got 'em.

Marc Mason wrote:

But, there's still one genre untouched. The next wave of Metal is going to be a merger of the most brutal Death merged with 70's Soft Rock. lol. If there's someone here who isn't familiar with the stuff, check out the following tune: http://www.imeem.com/elfyie/music/U3XeOB0f/bread-baby-im-a-want-you/

That's the band, 'Bread' with their super-70's soft-rock hit, 'Baby I'm-a want You'. Probably, the mellowest band that could ever be placed under the category of 'Rock'. Actually, there's nothing at all that rocks about them. lol. Possibly, they could be used to rock a baby to sleep. But, that's all the rockin' that they could conceivably do. Bands have even figured out how to merge things like Reggae and Jazz with Metal. Let's see if they could figure out a way of merging Bread with Metal.

Have you heard anything by Bread but simply their hits? They actually did know how to rock a bit in their early days. Not rock like Foreigner or Bad Company rock, but rock just enough to give them credibility as a rock band playing mostly guitar pop. Early stuff like "This Isn't What the Government", "Fancy Dancer", or the incredible guitar solo in "Guitar Man" (I know, it wasn't performed by an actual band member) are examples of that. Personally, I would ADORE a band that would combine 70's soft rock w/ metal in some form. I think it would be truly interesting to hear. To me, Bread is second only to ABBA as the greatest pop group of the 70's. Bread rules.

No way. Not only do I find someone who knows who Bread actually is, but I seem to locate their biggest fan....on a Metal board no less! lol. And, I am familiar with the track 'Guitar Man', and it sounds just as mellow as everything else in their brepertoire. Mel-low. Laid Back. With my mind on my money and my money on my BREAD. Today the bands are strugglin' to be known as the heaviest group around. Well, in the 70's, there was a small gaggle of groups who competed to be the mellowest band in town. Bread won. Hands down.

Marc Mason wrote:

Well, in the 70's, there was a small gaggle of groups who competed to be the mellowest band in town. Bread won. Hands down.

It was the Quaaludes.

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[quote="Necrosultan"]Warbringer, Toxic Holocaust, Delirium Tremens,? Fail!

This part of your post? FAIL!

You say Fastkill is good and Delirium Tremens sucks? They are damn near identical? And Toxic Halocaust, Warbringer, Municipal Waste, Bonded by Blood are as killer as almost anything I was moshin' to in the 80's. In Flames? Ugh.

I will agree that we are not living in my favorite era, nor the best musical period E-V-E-R. It may seem like it to some, but the fact is, is that it is sooooooo much easier now days to record and release your own stuff and/or sign with one of the 100,000 indie labels out there. Those options were not as available in the 80's and before. So, it is only by the shear numbers of bands out in the 00's that there is inevitably going to be some good releases. But if you look at percentages [to me]: the 80's = 80% good/great 20% below average - the early 90's = 50/50 - the late 90's = 20/80 - the 00's = 10% good/great 90% unlistenable/waste of time.

Troublezone wrote:

detuned wrote:

Troublezone wrote:

If someone is more into dance/disco metal they will probably favor these here times.

Korn, Disturbed, Static X, Lincoln Park etc...

How are these bands considered dance/disco metal? And those bands have seen their day already. They're dying out.

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How are these bands considered dance/disco metal? And those bands have seen their day already. They're dying out.

Think about it. there's a certain pop/urban influence not to mention a rhythmic vocal delivery that brings to minf hip hop or industrial influences.

I'm still trying to figure out who "Eva" is.

Alf and Ralph are longing for Goob. Does Eva know where they is?

These two are having their Best Week Eva!