Voivod's "Nothingface"

Daniel
Daniel
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
First Post March 30, 2020 07:57 PM
Post #2631

I challenge anyone with a decent knowledge of progressive rock bands like Rush, Yes or King Crimson to listen to Voivod's "Nothingface" & hear anything that shouldn't be categorized in the same fashion. There really isn't any metal left by this stage so I'm proposing that it be tagged as "Non-metal".

Xephyr
Xephyr
The Guardians The Infinite The North
March 31, 2020 03:14 PM
Post #2638

This is a tough one since it absolutely skirts right on the edge of being punk/hard rock rather than Metal. Using your comparisons of Rush and the even more progressive Yes though I think Nothingface still belongs in the Progressive Metal tag.

Although the riffs and vocals are definitely more Hard Rock-centric, the Thrash influence is still definitely noticeable in the bass, drums, and the overall tempos and feel of the songs. Zero songs on Nothingface have that free-wheeling Rock n' Roll impression because of the chug of the bass, slower double bass drum, and the overall dissonance of the minor keys and chords. While certain parts of it may have zero metal, like the beginning of "Inner Combustion" and the verses of "The Unknown Knows", there's still a darkness and slight aggression of the entire product that I think can only be categorized as having Metal influences still. 

Daniel
Daniel
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
March 31, 2020 08:31 PM
Post #2649
We'll have to agree tp disagree on this. I've never seen any thrash influence in Voivod's sound at all to be honest & the tempos here are fairly tame in comparison to past works. Sure there's a bit of double-kick work here & there but the bass playing is very similar to Chris Squire from Yes & I can't say that the atmosphere feels like anything more than you'd get from your heavier hard rock bands. Ultimately, I just don't think they've utilized metal tools enough to warrant inclusion within the confines of the metal spectrum but our differing opinions is why it's such a great record for the Hall Of Judgement, isn't it?
Ben
Ben
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
April 19, 2020 05:02 AM
Post #2782

This release has been added to the Hall of Judgement.

Daniel
Daniel
The Fallen The Horde The North The Pit
October 21, 2022 09:00 PM
Post #12691

I've decided that a YES 1 NO 6 tally is close enough to a consensus on this one so I've denied my submission & "Nothingface" will remain in The Infinite under the Progressive Metal genre.