Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

The cringe-worthy video for Breaking the Law didn't help either.

Yeah, they just had to put the best classic of the album in one of the most ridiculously awful metal music videos. That's why I purposely put up a different video when sharing that song in the Track of the Day thread.

particularly "Metal Gods" & "The Rage" which sit amongst my favourite heavy metal tunes ever

Two great songs from the album! Though "The Rage" sits at a passable level for me...

Despite over half the amount of songs in British Steel being brilliant classics, the album suffers a couple horrid mainstream sh*t-wipes. Listen and weep from the stench:

A heavy metal classic from a classic album from a classic band:

When you mentioned The Sphere, I realized that you were also talking about my Celldweller submission. I thought the "Into the Void" track would be accepted because it has the Industrial Metal tag in RYM, I didn't realize that the release actually has be in the site, but it isn't because it's a single. I'll keep that rule in mind along with a couple others (studio material only, must already be in this site, no album-less singles (LOL a "single" rule to replace another "single" rule!)). Once again, until I find more industrial metal bands that appeal to me, I'm gonna take a break from submitting one track per month submissions to Sphere playlists and listening to Sphere playlists.

Did I actually say something about more than one song per band? I don't think so, but I know that rule already.

OK, Daniel, I'll just focus on making the judgement submission for the Children of Bodom release, then wait until everyone else comments on the post-sludge situation before getting to the Isis one. The other bands' releases I mentioned I will leave alone. And I'm still up to following these two new rules (studio material only and single-clan only).

For the post-sludge situation, we've discussed this before, but the debate keeps spiraling off course and we're torn between the situation the genre should settle on. Like I said, while it makes sense for Sludge Metal to be a Fallen genre because it's basically a more hardcore doom metal, Atmospheric Sludge is quite different as it focuses more on the experimental atmosphere of Post-Metal. We've put that discussion on hold because I kinda tried to force the decision by making multiple judgement submissions at once (I know how to do that better now by making separate submissions, one per day, and keeping the connection subtle), but now based on a couple submissions I made ever since, for Solstafir's Svartir Sandar and Rosetta's The Galilean Satellites (the latter you gave me the idea for, Daniel), I now see that I believe atmospheric sludge is solely a post metal subgenre, with the only sludge element being the vocals. Not only that, I don't think I've ever been interested in a sludge metal band that's NOT in the Infinite. Even Mastodon is considered regular sludge metal in their first few albums, but progressive metal all the way. So yeah, I think atmospheric sludge metal is a post-metal subgenre that should stay in only The Infinite. Though we might have to change the name so it doesn't still seem like part of sludge metal. "Sludgy Ambient", anyone?

I enjoyed Anthrax's State of Euphoria slightly more than most other listeners, but still not enough to get me interested in that band full-time. What didn't help was this anti-climatic piece of sh*t song. Besides the awful lyrical quality, just saying "sc-sc-sc-schism" in half of the chorus does not make that chorus real!

Here's a list of bands I can find that are in my home-country Malaysia...

3 hard rock/heavy metal bands: Candy, Masterpiece, Search

And 3 thrash metal bands: Brain Dead, Cromok, FTG

However, I've barely heard of any of those bands, except for a few songs by Search that my mom likes (she likes classic metal ballads, but not the heavier modern stuff). I know someone who is from my country who's a metal artist. Remember my YouTube buddy Danny Ultrawiz? Well even though his music is in Spotify, he's not in RYM so it might be difficult to add him into this site or one of the clan playlists if we don't know his exact style. But I say his music has potential in The Guardians and The Pit as primarily heavy metal and thrash metal with secondary genres groove metal and melodeath. And it's still hard for me to communicate with him since he started his hiatus from YouTube, but never say never! I plan on making a Spotify playlist compiling his full available discography, so stay tuned for that...

That's very cool, Daniel! As some of you already know, I never really go to any metal concerts. I wish I could attend metal shows but *sniff* I'm broke... I mean my family has money, but our budget is a little tight. However, in the rare not-yet-happened chance I win a free ticket to a metal concert, I would definitely take that opportunity. When my father and I were doing a bit of Christmas shopping in 2019, we went to this stall that was selling metal T-shirts and bought a shirt there that I would save for Christmas day (And yes, that's my Trivium shirt). The shirt came with this little flier advertising... (drumroll please....)

An Anthrax concert in my home-country! That's really sweet and a bit unexpected, considering how my country banned Megadeth from performing here because the government thought that band's mascot Vic Rattlehead was too edgy. However, what I've received was just a flier. I would still have to buy my own ticket. RM338 for a concert ticket?!? That's about as much as a speeding ticket! No thanks!! I also wasn't feeling too much of the thrash zone, though I started leaning near that direction with Vektor. So I never went to that Anthrax concert, and it was postponed anyway because of the virus that started hitting my country a few weeks before when that concert would've been on. A couple of those rules though: "Admission for 13 to 18 years old MUST be accompanied by an adult at all times. NO AUDIO OR VIDEO RECORDING ALLOWED." Clearly, times have changed... Anyway, I may not have that chance of seeing Anthrax live, but I'm plan to write a review for one of their albums, so stay tuned....

Despite not being a fan of Metallica (not right now anyway), I've known a bit of their biography by reading that section about them from the thrash metal chapter of Andrew O'Neill's History of Heavy Metal, and can understand what went right and wrong throughout their journey. Their debut Kill 'Em All was a rough yet acceptable start (as are many bands' debuts), but their next 3 albums formed the band's ultimate thrash trilogy, with Master of Puppets ruling the thrash community (well, ALMOST all of it... The blood still reigns for Slayer!). The band kept going after the tragic loss of their fallen bassist Cliff Burton to maintain the legacy of the band he wished would live on. However, their self-titled 5th album (also known as The Black Album) was a twist into the mainstream for the band when they discarded most of their thrash for a slower heavy metal style. This caused their reputation in the heavier metal community to plummet, while winning way more new fans than the earlier ones they lost. But their next 3 albums were a sad but true turn of events... Load took things in a more bluesy direction, while its counterpart Reload had more of a classic hard rock-inspired sound. Then the album that would make 6 years later was much worse... St. Anger showed the band falling victim to the nu metal movement and was considered by many to be one of the worst metal albums of all time. All in all, those 3 albums were so unlike what they've done in the past, and most of their fanbase has deserted them, despite the band staying in the global charts. Their two most recent albums Death Magnetic and Hardwired...to Self-Destruct resulted in the fanbase building back up, but just not the same as their first 5 albums.

Now here's something I've realized: After writing my review for Voivod's Angel Rat the other day, I noticed that they've taken a similar stylistic direction to Metallica. You can say that about a few other thrash bands, but this is especially true for Voivod! Their first two albums were a rough yet acceptable start, but their next 3 albums formed the band's ultimate thrash trilogy, though far more progressive than Metallica. However, Angel Rat was a twist into the mainstream for the band when they discarded all of their earlier thrash for a classic-ish progressive rock/metal sound. But their next 3 albums were an experimental turn of events that didn't fit right for the band, especially when a different vocalist took over in the second and third parts of that experimental trilogy. Their next hard rock-ish heavy metal trilogy showed a promising return to what they had before that experimentation, and after the passing of their guitarist Piggy, they finished off the second and third parts of that trilogy with his leftover demo guitar work. Of course, now we know that Voivod's thrashy progressive metal sound is back in business, but who knows what's in store for Metallica in the future? Maybe Metallica would fully return to their thrash metal sound for their next two or three albums, but I won't expect too much. Whichever sound a band decides on would be their next album's fate.

Anyway, it appears a couple other well-known albums like Anthrax's State of Euphoria and Judas Priest's British Steel are near the bottom of the 10+ chart list, even though there's nothing totally wrong with those albums from what I've known. Perhaps I can give those two albums each a review to hear for myself. More reviews coming, all!

Update due to Xephyr's vote:

Metalcore: 4

Non-metal: 1

Yeah, I'd suggest that the Fear, & Loathing In Las Vegas track is metal too Andi & it's definitely Melodic Metalcore-based so I feel like we've got it right to have Trancecore as a subgenre of Melodic Metalcore if these four tracks are a true reflection of the Trancecore sound.

I agree, Daniel! That track is symphonic trance-metalcore at its best with the metal-synth mix as well-balanced as those other 3...

Daniel, Xephyr, and Saxy, perhaps you guys would also dig Voivod's 1991 twist into the mainstream that is Angel Rat. It's not as bad as some people think! You might find a lot of beautiful guitar and broad vocal hooks to expect in prog-rock/metal that fans of Pain of Salvation, Riverside, and the softer material of Devin Townsend should hear...

I don't know any issues with release cover arts, but here are a couple involving release years:

I suggested this change before, and since nothing has happened there, I'll suggest it again. Symphony X's self-titled debut was released in 1994, not 1996. This error was because the release on their official label Inside Out Music was not until 1996, but it was actually first released in 1994 via Japanese label Zero Corporation. The second album The Damnation Game was released in 1995, so this looks like The Damnation Game is the first and this album is the second, but it isn't!! Ben, please change this album's release year to 1994.

I've never been too sure about the release year for Riot's Rock City being 1977, despite popular belief. Barely anyone has heard of them until at least 1978, which was the year they started selling a decently prominent amount of copies and performed with AC/DC and Molly Hatchet, and then later right when they were about to lose momentum, DJ Neal Kay of the Bandwagon Soundhouse helped spread the word about them in the UK, earning the band a higher fanbase and encouraging them to continue. And even though the original vinyl label says 1977, that's not highly reliable because some CD/vinyl publishing years might be slightly false (like for example, Symphony X's The Divine Wings of Tragedy has the release year label 1996 even though its official release year is 1997 (what is up with Symphony X album release years being 1996!?)). With that, I'd like the release year for Riot's Rock City to be changed to 1978.

Metalcore: 3

Non-metal: 1

So far, trancecore is getting a good amount of votes on the metal side. With those 3 tracks representing the subgenre very well, the fate of trancecore in this site is in good metal hands. If anyone's up for something slightly challenging, here's another song to listen to alongside the other 3, I'll tell you my opinion about it once I get some feedback:

Update due to Daniel's vote:

Metalcore: 2

Non-metal: 1

Update due to Vinny's vote:

Metalcore: 1

Non-metal: 1

I remember listening to all 3 of those songs! Here's what I think of them: "Sorry, You're Not a Winner" is a perfect fusion of metalcore and synths that can cause a mosh-pit in a nightclub. I count that song as metalcore for its heavier riffing and occasional breakdowns. "The Final Episode (Let's Change The Channel)" I remember because I kept bumping into Friends memes based on the yell of "OH. MY. GOD!!!" That song is pure heavy metalcore with the trance synths not appearing prominently until around the last minute. "Stick Stickly" is known for starting the "Crabcore" meme because of the members squatting like crabs in the music video. And oh man, the synth-infused metalcore heaviness from those other two songs continues there! Can you f***ing feel it, Mr. Krabs?! Anyway, that's 3 trancecore tracks that, to my ears, all count as metal. So there might still be some potential for trancecore to stay in this site, maybe as a trance metal subgenre...

Metalcore: 1

Non-metal: 0

I think I'd learn more about Prog Metal on the whole if I did the 1st Decade one, but how can I pass up having a reason to finally write reviews for From Mars to Sirius, Biomech, Metropolis Part 2, Evergrey's arguably best album, Bath, Catch Thirtythree, Light of Day, Day of Darkness, plus like 5 others that I'm excited about? 

Most of those are great albums! The 2nd Decade seems like a great era for progressive metal, and I probably should've done that challenge instead of The Modern Era one.

I forgot about the clan challenges sometime after I finished the one for my 4th clan The Fallen, and after Ben stopped creating new challenges. I'm glad to see the revival of clan challenge appeal, but I don't intend on returning to them now, unless we see the unlikely ability to lock in a 5th clan, in that case, I would take on a challenge for The Pit...

I did not post my monthly playlist and feature release outcomes until now because I was a little busy with other things this month and only reviewed 3 releases so far, but they are mostly perfect, so here are my scores:

THE FALLEN: The Gathering - "Mandylion" (1995) - 5/5

THE GATEWAY: Dir En Grey - "Uroboros" (2008) - 5/5

THE INFINITE: Lucid Planet - "Lucid Planet II" (2020) - 4/5

The Fallen and Gateway releases each deserve a perfect 5 stars, the former I've first listened to 5 years ago, and the latter I've first listened to this month! The Infinite release is great but could've been slightly better. I'm just at the lower edge of people who enjoy that album. Thanks for these amazing feature releases, everyone! Looking forward to more of this cool activity, along with feature release submissions for next month coming in via private message...

PS: NecroDevil, if you're still active after your big round of ratings, I highly recommend those releases I've mentioned above, please give them each a rating and maybe a review.

Here are my overall ratings for the playlists I've reviewed this month (May):

1. Fallen playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 8)

2. Guardians playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 9)

3. Infinite playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 12)

4. Pit playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commended: 5)

5. Revolution playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 14)

Another rewarding playlist month for me, this time my playlist ratings for all my 4 clans plus one are each an average total of 4.5 stars. And yes, I enjoy my Gateway suggestion.

My small talk about "Darkness and Hope" reminded me of that Moonspell album and song:

My "Darkness and Hope" quote above reminded me of another Pearls Before Swine comic, which I've also just made a parody of:

Here’s another band that might have a link between the trad styles of heavy metal and doom, Grand Magus! They’re 21st Century classic heavy metal with epic Viking lyrical themes you might find in power metal, and they frequently have slower doom, especially in their first couple albums.

Going back to the main topic, here's a Spotify playlist I just made to show what I'm talking about when I say the elements that shape up epic doom need to be emphasized on gothic/death-doom, like those songs I mentioned above: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/75EvbiKoz4Vyizs1Ix2SE2

Honestly, if southern metal were added here, I'd put it forward for The Pit more than The Fallen. To me, it's always sounded like more of a descendant of groove metal than anything doom-related. I think the muddied waters there comes more from the frequent overlap with stoner and sludge metal, but those themselves are already steps away from the core "doom metal" approach (sludge metal, for example, mixes doom with more hardcore influences, and those influences also appear as a common feature of groove metal).

Thanks for this suggestion, Tymell! Let's all stop these new clan ideas for a while and let The Fallen be. Southern metal might fit very well in The Pit, and it could also replace another Pit genre, speed metal. Of course, speed metal is still around, but it is now a Heavy Metal subgenre in RYM. That would pretty much cause speed metal to move to The Guardians as a subgenre to Heavy Metal. But then the Pit would be more of a mid-tempo groove clan than a speedy thrash one. We'll just see how it goes from there...

Currently there are 232 primarily voted Epic Doom releases in RYM, so I see some potential for the genre to appear in Metal Academy.

I've listened to a couple Volbeat tracks before (via music videos on TV), and with the "Metalbilly" parts of their sound, I'm genuinely surprised that nobody has added the Southern Metal tag to them, not even secondarily! Even though the band is from Denmark, rockabilly originated from the American South and is a key part of Southern rock. Volbeat is a band I would call "Danish Southern Heavy Metal". I still think if the southern metal genre gets added here as a primary genre, I don't think it can fit in The Fallen because that clan already has so many genres (currently 5), and while southern and its relatives sludge and stoner have their doom roots, a decent number of bands of those styles don't follow those roots for the most part and have their own unique style, whether it's the hardcore of sludge or the mid-tempo groove of southern and stoner. With that, southern metal might end up having its own clan, and sludge metal and stoner metal can move out of The Fallen into that new clan as well. So while doom metal, gothic metal, and drone metal stay in The Fallen, southern metal, stoner metal, and sludge metal would have their own clan which we can name... The South!

1985 and 1986 were the first two years of death metal with the earlier releases of Possessed, Sepultura, and Messiah. However, they also have the thrash metal tag, and while there's nothing wrong with death/thrash, I personally think that if a genre's "traditional" or "standard", it means it stands out as truly that genre without any other genre tying in. In that sense, Death's Scream Bloody Gore should be the starting point for traditional death metal because it's the first album to be pure thrash-less death metal.

Subgenres make a lot of sense because then it’s easier for people to listen to a descendant of a main genre they generally avoid, like how I used to listen to melodeath while avoiding the standard death metal, and how I listen to doom metal while avoiding funeral doom. Indeed, one of the problems with the Epic Doom Metal label is, bands with that tag (Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus, and Solstice) are much closer to standard doom metal. While the only difference is the addition of classical-sounding keyboards, more operatic singing, and fantasy lyrics to add that "epic" sound, the traditional doom sound is still dominant. In my opinion, those "epic" additions really have to be emphasized in balance with the doom sound. Here are a few gothic/death-doom songs that demonstrate what I'm talking about and hopefully my idea would catch on:

Two things for me to talk about here:

1. Since we're discussing anniversaries, here's another special album having its x5 anniversary today:

Happy 15th anniversary to this grand progressive metalcore concept album! Though that's just for the US release. The original Canadian release for the album was in the previous year, but I won't argue.

2. We discussed this in an earlier thread, but I don't mind sharing my opinion again here. Epic Doom Metal really is an actual doom metal subgenre. I wasn't sure RYM would ever feel like using that subgenre because of the overuse of the term "Epic" to describe other genres for some bands in websites such as the Metal Archives (for example; "Bal-Sagoth = Symphonic/Epic Black Metal", "Battlelore = Epic Symphonic Metal", "Dethlehem = Epic Melodic Death Metal", "Ensiferum = Epic Folk Metal", "Manilla Road = Epic Heavy/Power Metal"). Yeah, overly adding the word "Epic" to genres for bands that are already epic enough can make that word a little less...epic. I'm glad that RYM now acknowledges Epic Doom Metal, but it's a subgenre for Traditional Doom Metal, a label some of us find redundant. I'm fine with Epic Doom Metal being a valid subgenre here, but Traditional Doom Metal releases should just be part of the conventional Doom Metal genre...

My thoughts on some tracks:

Evile – “The Thing (1982)” (from “Hell Unleashed”, 2021)

5/5. Evile is back with some more killer music, rising against the pandemic! This f***ing brutal song is a tribute to a certain classic sci-fi horror film directed by John Carpenter. This awesome THING basically sounds like Sadus gone Annihilator, though some might think of Slayer or Megadeth. The intro at around the 30-second part has a bit of groove. Probably the most amazing aggressive thrash song I've heard this year, enough to almost have my pants sh*t on. If there was another Thing remake, this good fast song should be part of the soundtrack. The bridge halfway through can induce absolute headbanging! Every awesome thing a thrash fan wants and more is right here including the tone, speed, and lyrical subject. An epic cure to drinking depression you just gotta f***ing love, all in amazing thrash splendor! Not even Gojira could go ultra-fast in a common basis. The speed is all in the vocals, guitars, bass and drums. They pretty much assimilated their influences way more than The Thing into a blend that can never be duplicated. Some of their vocabulary has not been used by anyone else, not even Eminem (like the word "transmogrified"). Once more, this is a great song based on a sci-fi horror classic. Well done guys! Thanks for this, Sonny and Daniel!

Lamb Of God – “Black Label” (from “New American Gospel”, 2000)

4.5/5. I had this one as a Revolution playlist suggestion, but I replaced it because its album New American Gospel is tough groove metal to my ears, with small hardcore elements borrowed from the Burn the Priest album. I'm not sure what I was thinking adding that song suggestion. I made a judgement submission for this album to be removed from The Revolution. Anyway, an example of a well-crafted songwriting moment is its opening buildup, which is filled with the groove moments and layers of screaming madness Lamb of God would be known for. Another notable thing is the lyrics that are basically screaming scat gibberish with lyrics fit in based on what they sound like. Love that song!

Anthrax – “Metal Thrashing Mad” (from “Fistful Of Metal”, 1984)

4.5/5. Another incredible song! This one has inspired the name thrash metal when Kerrang! writer Malcolm Dome coined the term for his review for the song's album Fistful of Metal. However, compared to that other thrash band Evile, I'm still not up to this band until I feel like I'm ready which would be a long while from now. Scr*w Nickelback, the voice of Neil Turbin is far better than the lead singer of a band many people are addicted to these days...

Exciter – “Delivering To The Master” (from “Violence & Force”, 1984)

5/5. Boy am I excited for this band! This is the best underrated true pioneering force of speed metal! I love the great singing from Dan Beehler who can multitask by also playing the drums even in live performances.

Cryptosis – “Game Of Souls” (from “Bionic Swarm”, 2021)

4.5/5. Once again showing the band is at the top of their progressive thrash game. That is all...

An almost completely sh*tty remix album that turned most of the songs from one of the band's weakest albums into something worse:

Hello again, MartinDavey87! I don't know whether or not you have listened to those two Linkin Park recommendations, but I hope you had because I have a couple more for you; their remix albums Reanimation and Collision Course! Also could you please help me vote in the Rap Metal subgenre for both releases? Seems a little tacky and I don't wanna spoil too much for you before your reviews, but many of the songs in each album, especially the latter, have a more hip-hop-ish metal sound with mostly or solely rapping in the vocals. You don't have to vote if you disagree, though it's very likely you'll find what I'm talking about. OK thanks Martin!

Couldn't these guys just add in some of Linkin Park's rock/metal music instead of only keeping the rapping ?!

Only Linkin Park knows how to make even a Jay-Z song appealing to my ears:

Cheers for the rec, Daniel! Here's my review summary:

An underrated band from Australia, Lucid Planet play a style of heavy-psych-prog-metal with bits of electronic trance, to be enjoyed whether or not you love progressive metal, that brings Tool into the minds of their listeners. Before this album, Lucid Planet made a more psychedelic rock debut, and while I haven't listened to that debut, I'm never really a fan of just psychedelia, so I'm not gonna try that one. If the psychedelia is elementally part of a progressive metal sound though, I can't say no to that. The band made an astounding mind-blowing evolution, though a few things seem a bit lumpy. While it's not entirely perfect, I would suggest passing it on to many more listeners who would enjoy it. It's up to us where and what the journey would bring....

4/5

Nearly a carbon copy of the original besides the vocals and additional programming:

The two most brilliant nu metal remixes you'll ever hear in your lifetime:

Continuing the theme of classic heavy metal songs that have developed speed metal, Tymell's recent review of Accept's Restless and Wild made me remember this fast song with its proto-thrash riffing and double-bass drumming: