Today's Metal Scene

gizmo

OctavarIan wrote:

STEVE VAI! When did steve vai play here!?

Last October in Vicar St. with the exception of an overly long acoustic set it was fantastic.

Ph3n0m

I have to say I think the problem is lack of advertisement for these gigs

a) Most of the gigs are relatively small and are only advertised on websites (if you know of them), word of mouth and also posters (in town and selected shops (Sentinel and Sound Cellar))

b) Most people dont know about these because they cant access any of the information above

c) Most gigs only occur in Dublin - that is a fact, with the exception of some who play Cork or one other city, Dublin is the choice for these bands

d) I remember when I was younger, that I only ever found out about gigs by hanging around record shops and in town - but not everyone can or would do that

Anyone like to add anything else to what I said?

John

DOD Crew wrote:

My Bloody Valentine

Erm, My Bloody Valentine haven't done anything anywhere in over ten years.

Ph3n0m

John2 wrote:

Erm, My Bloody Valentine haven't done anything anywhere in over ten years.

DOD crew could have meant Bullet For My Valentine

John

Ah, that makes more sense. For a second I thought I had missed a My Bloody Valentine gig, I was sweating with dread!

Ph3n0m

John2 wrote:

Ah, that makes more sense. For a second I thought I had missed a My Bloody Valentine gig, I was sweating with dread!

really I sometimes sweat blood or sometimes whiskey....but mostly just man juice

BobTheBeat

Patricide wrote:

O MY GOD ARE YOU SERIOUS, killswitch and god forbid 2, i feel like jumping of the second story now.

Not only that, but they played late the previous year as well, with Everytime I Die! Sickened?!

gizmo

Killswitch played two years in a row?

Oh. My. ****ing. God.

LightofDarkness

My opinion is that the scene has gone stale, and is in danger of becoming stagnant. There's too many bands right now trying to sound like eachother and play from the same blueprint, just paraphrasing slightly because the print proves so solid with "the kids."
This isn't just metalcore mind you, this also goes for brutal death metal. The amount of suffo-clones and Aborted/Cryptopsy alikes is almost laughable. And it's all because it's come down to "if you're playing death metal and want it to be awesome, you need breakdowns, big tech riffs with lots of crazy tangent solos and odd time signatures played while blasting like a drum machine." Now while that stuff's cool and all, it's becoming very over-saturated. Death Metal needs to re-discover it's roots, the first bands didn't know what to play when death metal started, they just had this new idea of metal that they wanted to explore. But people stopped exploring and started trying to sound just like their favourite band. My suggestion is to think of something in your head that you think is death metal and is your own and just run with it. I'm trying to write music like this and it's paying off hugely, just thinking of words I want associated with my music like "crushing, oddly melodic, powerful, volatile." Now other people may have different ways, but it's just an idea.

But this goes for alot of metal. We need new ideas, not rehashes and merged, mutated versions of the old. Use the old as an influence, not a resource of interchangeable ideas to be remoulded into a polished but lifeless patchwork. Some bands do seem to be trying to go elsewhere, but they're just a few (look at Ephel Duath, Continuo Renacer, Lykathea Aflame, Pavor, Ingurgitating Oblivion, Mithras...). I'd like to hear others thoughts on this.

It wasn't me!

I missed a Bad Religion gig?!

Nevyn

Well then make sure you check the upcoming gig threads here and if you hear about a gig post about it there.

JC 2K3

I blame Roadrunner Records and the likes for all these shít commercial metal bands that all sound the same, hell even Opeth are starting to sound like that crap(although I must really listen to Ghost Reveries objectively past the first minute or so of Ghost of Peridition(ugh, sounds like Trivium or some shít like that...)

dimerocks

My problems with RR is there attitude towards bands. They feel that they can drop and stop supporting bands even on their label instantly. I am still sour at their treatment of Sepultura.

John

Well Roadrunner are essentially Universal Music and we all know they have no shame.

Karl Hungus

JC 2K3 wrote:

I blame Roadrunner Records and the likes for all these shít commercial metal bands that all sound the same, hell even Opeth are starting to sound like that crap(although I must really listen to Ghost Reveries objectively past the first minute or so of Ghost of Peridition(ugh, sounds like Trivium or some shít like that...)

Whoah, whoah... whoah... Hold it right there. Get listening to Ghost Reveries sharpish, it's a fantastic album. Granted, Ghost Of Perdition isn't their strongest effort, but there's some absolutely astounding songs on there.

Ph3n0m

Karl Hungus wrote:

Whoah, whoah... whoah... Hold it right there. Get listening to Ghost Reveries sharpish, it's a fantastic album. Granted, Ghost Of Perdition isn't their strongest effort, but there's some absolutely astounding songs on there.

have to agree with KH, its a good album - but by no means the worst album ever

Doctor J

In fairness to Roadrunner, they're a business, they're out to make money, simple as that. They brought a lot of great metal bands to the world back in the day and times have changed and Roadrunner have changed. Big deal. They survived the dark days of the 90's by changing what they sold to reflect what the market wanted at the time. Part of the problem? Sure. Still, if they hadn't they'd probably be as big as Under One Flag or Music For Nations...

Megadeth have just signed to Roadrunner too btw.

Show business, music industry, record company... etc

John

It's not that they have changed their focus but the way that they just dump bands that have given them success at the first sight of them being perhaps not as profitable as they were before. Every label is in business of course but not all businesses have to be jerks to survive. You have to be a jerk to be big but not to survive. Look at Mute records, they have changed a lot over the years but they don't just dump bands because they're not as profitable as they once were. Even now that they're part of EMI they're still a cut above most of the labels out there.

Ph3n0m

plus they are responsible for some of the best reissues in recent times. I direct you to the following

King Diamond - Abigail (RR 25th Anniversary Reissue)
Obituary - Frozen In Time
DevilDriver - The Fury Of Our Maker's Hand
Fear Factory - Demanufacture (RR 25th Anniversary Reissue)
Annihilator - The Best Of Annihilator
King Diamond - Them/Conspiracy
Obituary - The End Complete/World Demise
The Best of Malevolent Creation
Deicide - The Best of Deicide


and loads, loads more

Doctor J

Examples please.

Since Sepultura were the only ones named thus far, my recollection is that they released two fairly low selling albums (Against & Nation) after the years of success. Roorback didn't sell big for SPV either, despite being (IMO) a major return to form.

Don't get me wrong, i'm not saying it's a morally creditable way to conduct your business, but much much worse things go on than being dropped, being shelved for example. A lot of the blame lies with the bands, so desperate to "sign a deal" that they get into frankly stupid contractual situations. That's the music industry.

Roadrunner lost interest in the old school, it wasn't making them money anymore, it's business. Still, plenty of their old bands participated in that 25th anniversary thing they just did so they mustn't be that upset about it.

Agent Steel

Ph3n0m wrote:

plus they are responsible for some of the best reissues in recent times. I direct you to the following

King Diamond - Abigail (RR 25th Anniversary Reissue)
Obituary - Frozen In Time
DevilDriver - The Fury Of Our Maker's Hand
Fear Factory - Demanufacture (RR 25th Anniversary Reissue)
Annihilator - The Best Of Annihilator
King Diamond - Them/Conspiracy
Obituary - The End Complete/World Demise
The Best of Malevolent Creation
Deicide - The Best of Deicide

I'd hardly call "The Best of Annihilator" one of the best reissues of recent times - it's merely comprised of AiH and NNL, which are already available in the Two From The Crypt series. And are you honestly saying they've reissued "Frozen in Time" which was only released last year?

Ph3n0m

oh picky picky picky - forgot to add releases, so my text should have said

plus they are responsible for some of the best reissues and releases in recent times

Agent Steel

There's a big difference bro! Well, that and it's a slow day at work

dimerocks

Doctor J wrote:

Since Sepultura were the only ones named thus far, my recollection is that they released two fairly low selling albums (Against & Nation) after the years of success. Roorback didn't sell big for SPV either, despite being (IMO) a major return to form.

yeah but when you look at what RR did when Derrick joined these albums actually sold well. They didn't give any promotion to Nation at all. They never realy supported Derrick at all. Against sold somewhere in the region of 80,000 with little support. The first Soulfly album was actually less than this with support. Nation had zero album support and yet it sold 60,000. The fact that they didn't plug the records and support Derrick is what i attribute it too. They decided to support Soulfly and with the exception of Primitive(and god know why that album sucked) they have all sold similarly to the last to RR albums Seps did. Roorback was however a complete flop. And that I cannot understand because that album grooves.

Doctor J

But that is how the industry works. Labels will only push what they think will sell. Historically, bands who replace established singers usually disappear into the mud (Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath being notable exceptions to the rule). Clearly they saw that they'd have to pump a lot of money in and weren't confident about getting it back. That's the way it is, sadly. I say this as someone who picked up every Derrick/Sep album within a week of being released. More credit to Sepultura for Fighting On but it's a common practice in the industry. It's not right, it's just the culture of the trade.

I mean, it happened to Judas Priest too, who also ended up on SPV and then re-signed to Sony once Halford came back. Most people didn't and still don't give a damn about Tim Owens era Priest. Sepultura are also cursed to go largely ignored until such time as a reunion takes place... and then the fairweather fans come back, then the labels get interested again and the units shift again. Despite the last two Sepultura albums being among the best of their entire career it's money that makes the music world (biz and fans alike) tick.

dimerocks

Yeah true to an extent. Personally I think Seps make better more differnet music these days than they did back in the day. I am one of the few who is glad that Max left. If he has made Soulfly or Primitive with Seps there probably would have been a tonne of fans who left. A modern example of a succesful and supported singer change also on RR is KIllswitch Engage though....liked you little Fighting On thing.

It wasn't me!

JC 2K3 wrote:

I blame Roadrunner Records and the likes for all these shít commercial metal bands that all sound the same, hell even Opeth are starting to sound like that crap(although I must really listen to Ghost Reveries objectively past the first minute or so of Ghost of Peridition(ugh, sounds like Trivium or some shít like that...)

Thing is, Ghost Reveries was only released, not influenced, by Road Runner. The album was written before they signed. Also, I agree, still haven't gotten to grips with that album personally.

Necronomicon

Yeah I think every Sep fan has reason to have a gripe with RR (don't think the doc or dimerocks mentioned the whole Under A Pale Grey Sky being released behind their backs incident, or more recently a couple of Blabbermouth articles trying to discredit the band by repeatedly saying that Dante didn't sell very well upon its release) but you can't argue with their effectiveness. If a band is on RR you'll see their faces slapped on the shelves of every music store.

Per Liefsonson

Roadrunner's effectiveness at publicising their more modern bands does have one good effect though, it does make people more aware of metal as a genre. They can serve as a stepping stone into metal as a genre. Admittedly, not everyone will take it further and start looking into the more interesting bands of the genre but some do and I'm sure some people to come will too.

Patricide

bobmeaney wrote:

Not only that, but they played late the previous year as well, with Everytime I Die! Sickened?!

Man way to rub it in, i just feel like ive been shot, Missed god forbid when they played with trivium cause i was sick and i might miss the deftones cause of it too and now i find out i missed killswitch and god forbit twice, bah humbug.

Dammit why couldnt some of theese gigs be better advertised, I mean look at ozzfest in 02, not a load of people around here anyway even knew if it were on or not and im the only person i know that actually went.And thats ozzfest like there should be some irish metal mag i say or a website with every metal gig listing as they appear, thatd be cool.

Missed the mudvayne gig and the anthrax gig cause i didnt know they were on till there day cause of lack of publicity, same with exodus its somthing that could be fixed so easily but noones doing it so it SUCKS.

Sligtly O.T. but whens the new roper cd comng out?I look forward to hearing it.