Daniel's Forum Replies

A few blues records from the weekend:


Eric Clapton - "Sessions for Robert J" (2004)


Son Seals - "The Son Seals Blues Band" (1973)


Freddie King - "My Feeling For The Blues" (1970)

November 06, 2023 06:48 PM

How about "Free Baby"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



It's hard/psychedelic rock for mine.

November 05, 2023 07:18 PM


But as I've said before, if they're missing the sludge then I just won't call it atmo-sludge.  Biggest example is Rosetta.  Too atmo, not sludgy enough.

Quoted Rexorcist

I agree on your Rosetta statement. You'll find a Hall of Judgement entry to go along with that too.


https://metal.academy/hall/72

November 05, 2023 07:15 PM

The only real change that may be worth considering in future is the addition of epic doom metal as a sub-genre as I am coming to the opinion that it has sufficiently divergent attributes to differentiate it from conventional doom.


Quoted Sonny

Ben & I are still a bit on the fence about epic doom metal to be honest. We're certainly open to it if there's a majority who think it's necessary as it isn't a hard one to implement but can't think of an epic doom metal release that doesn't sit just as comfortably under a conventional doom metal tag. We're certainly not experts on the subgenre so could be wrong but most of the time it seems to be just the vocal style that makes these releases worthy of the "epic" prefix, is it not? I know the heavy metal influence is important but we find that in other doom metal bands too & they don't seem to be tagged as epic doom unless the vocal style is operatic/theatrical (see the early Trouble, Witchfinder General & Pentagram albums for example). Perhaps you could give us some examples of epic doom metal releases that you feel need to be separated from conventional doom metal to help justify this addition Sonny?

Staying with Metallica but moving further into their career, check the riff at 0:42 in "The End Of The Line" from their 2008 "Death Magnetic" album & compare it to the main riff in Pearl Jam's "Why Go" from their 1991 debut album "Ten".



I'd suggest that this is another example of plagiarism personally.

November 05, 2023 06:48 PM

How about "Toxic Shadows"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



I've got it down as hard/progressive rock.

November 05, 2023 11:39 AM


I'm not Fallen, but I really do see a clear distinction between atmo-sludge and post-metal, and refuse to call one the subgenre of the other.  There's a little overlap, and that's it as far as I'm concerned.  Post-metal shouldn't just be long atmospheric metal.  Take bands like GYBE, Sans and Tortoise in post-rock.  There's more to it on a structural spectrum, and most atmo-sludge doesn't meet that standard.  They're just slow and atmospheric, big woop, like atmo-black.

So my final point is: I wouldn't mind if atmo-sludge returned as a separate entity, but I have little to do with the Fallen save voting on halls that the Fallen happen to be on, so whatevs.

Quoted Rexorcist

For the record, Atmospheric Sludge Metal is a term that RYM penned & popularized. Most other major metal sites ignored it & the term has only recently been taken up by a site like Metal Archives, presumably caving to long-term pressure from RYMers. In fact, I used to use the term at several other sites prior to us starting Metal Academy & was generally laughed at which caused me to revert to using post-sludge metal for many years now as people better understood what I was talking about.

RYM's definition states that "Atmospheric sludge metal is a Post-Metal subgenre that takes the dense, punishing textures of Sludge Metal with an extensive, otherworldly atmosphere, performed with an emphasis on atmospheric and textured riffs" so there's definitely no distinction between Atmospheric Sludge Metal & Post-Sludge Metal as far as RYM are concerned. In fact, if we go further back then the "post-metal" term was originally penned to label the post-sludge bands that popularized the post-rock influenced sound in the early-to-mid 1990's. If there are Atmospheric Sludge Metal releases on RYM that are simply "long, atmospheric metal" then they've been mistagged but in my experience that would be the exception rather than the rule as I've found that the majority of Atmospheric Sludge Metal releases on RYM contain the required post-rock characteristics. They're far more often missing enough genuine sludge metal for them to be an appropriate fit for The Fallen though & the action we've taken to split the subgenre into two separate genres makes it easier for us to remove one from a release if the use of both is deemed to be inappropriate. I also see no reason to have a specific subgenre for this post-subgenre when we don't for other post-xxx combinations & the fact that it meant we had a cross-clan subgenre was really annoying too so I'm pleased to be done with it to be honest.


Seriously, how fucking doomy is this cover version from just eight months after Black Sabbath released the original on their 1970 self-titled debut album?? Unfortunately the rest of Flower Travellin' Band's 1970 debut album "Anywhere" doesn't contain any other metal songs to speak of & takes more of a jam band/heavy psych direction but it's a good listen nonetheless.

November 05, 2023 01:34 AM

There’s three subgenres under the Doom Metal genre i.e. Doom Metal (Conventional), Death Doom Metal & Funeral Doom Metal.

November 05, 2023 12:02 AM

We removed the Atmospheric Sludge Metal subgenre from the site altogether Sonny. Nothing else has changed. I’m just interested to know if there’s anything else worth considering at this point or if everyone is comfortable with the current configuration.

November 04, 2023 10:38 PM

I had a listen to 1970's "Kirikyogen" album from Kuni Kawachi & Friends yesterday which is essentially a collaboration between a little-known Japanese psychedelic rock artist & two of the members from Tokyo's seminal Flower Travellin' Band. It's listed on Metal Archives so I thought I'd better explore it in the interest of being thorough/comprehensive. There's nothing that even resembles metal on this record though. There's not even any hard rock or heavy psych to be honest. It's purely a psychedelic rock release as far as I can see so there's no need for us to bother with it.



At the moment the next release we'll be investigating is Budgie's 1971 self-titled debut album. Please let me know if you think there's justification to cover Sir Lord Baltimore's self-titled sophomore album, Flower Travellin' Band's "Satori" or Thin Lizzy's self-titled debut though as I'm open to everyone's ideas. I might try to give those three a listen/revisit before we get through "Lucifer's Friend" to see if I think they're worth exploring too.

November 04, 2023 10:04 PM

Here's my adjusted Top Ten Progressive Metal Releases of All Time list after adoring this month's The Infinite feature release with Dream Theater's "Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory" being the unlucky record to drop out:


01. Leprous - "Live at Rockefeller Music Hall" (2016)

02. Lucid Planet - "Lucid Planet II" (2020)

03. Mastodon - "Leviathan" (2004)

04. Cynic - "Focus" (1993)

05. Opeth - "The Roundhouse Tapes" (2007)

06. Epiphanic Truth - "Dark Triad: Bitter Psalms to a Sordid Species" (2021)

07. Gojira - "From Mars to Sirius" (2005)

08. Dream Theater - "Images and Words" (1992)

09. Opeth - "Deliverance" (2002)

10. Devin Townsend - "Ocean Machine - Biomech" (1997)

Now then, what have we here? This sole release from a mysterious & anonymous metal collective is the perfect example of a Metal Academy feature release in my opinion. It's a record that's been largely overlooked but nonetheless possesses enormous weight & substance. It's obviously been put together by some seriously accomplished metal musicians with an enviable understanding of the dynamics that modern metal is capable of too. Across the three lengthy tracks we see Epiphanic Truth seamlessly drawing together influences from progressive metal, post-metal & death metal, accomplishing a collective whole that easily encapsulates the best elements of each. The progressive metal component is probably the least effective with the more melodic clean vocal sections temporarily drawing me away from the captivating soundscapes but the incredible tension-building & climactic post-metal elements easily make up for it & are the highlight of the album for me personally. Imagine the savagery of Ulcerate & 1990's Napalm Death being layered over a progressive metal base & sprayed with the tribal repetition & atmospherics of Neurosis & you won't be far off the mark with the aggressive death metal vocals sitting somewhere between Napalm Death's Barney Greenway & Grave's Jørgen Sandström.

Opening track "The Truth of the Beast" is clearly the most straight-forward & brutal inclusion but lacks the cerebral elements of the other two tracks & is therefore the least impressive of the three. Neurosis-inspired post-sludge number "An Inescapable Verdict" is the clear highlight for me though & is right up there with the best material I've heard this year. The epic centrepiece "Our Vile Roots Flourish Beyond Light" is kinda a combination of the other two tracks, spending a good two thirds of its run time in similar progressive death metal territory to "The Truth of the Beast" before closing out the album with eight minutes of superlative post-metal & thoroughly crushing me into dust in the process. I genuinely loved this record & would be very surprised if all of our The Infinite members don't experience a similar response to it.

4.5/5

November 04, 2023 07:32 PM

Rex, to be clear, it's your turn to nominate the December feature releases for The Infinite & The Pit. You need to private message me those any time between 1st November & a couple of days before the end of November.

Here's another example of Metallica pushing the plagiarism boundaries. Check out the part at 3:33 in "Seek & Destroy" from 1983 & compare it with the section at 1:48 in Saxon's classic "Princess Of The Night".



November 04, 2023 07:15 PM

How about "Keep Going"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



This one's not straight forward either. The doom sections sound like they could have been ripped straight off a Soundgarden album & are metal as fuck. There's a psychedelic feel to the deeper clean parts though & the rest of the track is so clearly hard rock based. I think I'd have to suggest that it sits most comfortably in the heavy psych/stoner rock space.

November 03, 2023 09:45 PM

Here's my updated Top Ten Atmospheric Black Metal Releases Of All Time after deciding that I simply must include this month's feature release in there somewhere at the expense of Lurker of Chalice's self-titled album (sorry Ben):


01. Burzum – “Filosofem” (1996)

02. Akhlys – “The Dreaming I” (2015)

03. Altar of Plagues – “Mammal” (2011)

04. Burzum – “Hvis lyset tar oss” (1994)

05. Wolves In The Throne Room – “Two Hunters” (2007)

06. Paysage d’Hiver – “Im Wald” (2020)

07. Progenie Terrestre Pura - "U.M.A." (2013)

08. Paysage d’Hiver – “Winterkaelte” (2001)

09. Murmuure – “Murmuure” (2010)

10. Altar of Plagues - "Teethed Glory & Injury" (2013)


https://metal.academy/lists/single/160

My first four days at my new job have gone really well. The first 2.5 days were basically spent completing online training & inductions but the last 1.5 days were really interesting & encouraging. I'm really enjoying learning about managing a business in an entirely new industry (i.e. the construction machinery one) while the wider team seems to be embracing me & are really happy to have someone with my skill sets & experience coming into their business which has given me a much-needed ego-boost after recent events had dented my confidence a touch. The commute has been punishing though. It's been more like 95 minutes to get there in the morning & around 110-120 minutes to get home in the evening. Plenty of metal listening has been conducted during that time which is a bit of a concern for the state of my withered ear drums.

I'm afraid I struggled with "Vertumnus Caesar" which was fairly easy to predict given that its style isn't really in my wheelhouse. I'm not sure it's the best fit for a The Guardians feature release either as I don't feel it's a "heavy metal" record per se. Malokarpatan use black metal vocals & aesthetics as the basis for their sound & then layer them over the top of a whole range of different genres including symphonic prog, speed metal, heavy metal, black 'n' roll, thrash metal, avant-garde metal & progressive metal so "Vertumnus Caesar" is really hard to pigeon-hole but I feel pretty strongly that it shouldn't be in The Guardians. I'd suggest that leaving them solely under Black Metal (Conventional) might be the best approach as that element is the only common denominator across the tracklisting & I think adding the album to The Pit or The Infinite would be a stretch.

Anyway... "Vertumnus Caesar" is simply a bit too quirky & consciously unusual for my taste. I'm not the biggest fan of black 'n' roll or blackened speed metal so those sections kinda lose me. The opening intro track is an absolute abomination with a horrible out-of-key melodic component that gives me a similar response to finger-nails running down a chalk board too which doesn't help. The blackened heavy metal of the title track & the epic progressive black metal closer "I hle, tak zachádza imperiálna hviezda" are pretty enjoyable but I'd rather leave the rest of the album to those with a stronger penchant for this sort of thing.

3/5


P.S. I'd encourage anyone participating in this feature release to vote in the below Hall of Judgement poll.

https://metal.academy/hall/437

I really don't think there's any doubt about Metallica stealing 1986's "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" (which was supposed written by James, Lars & Kirk) from obscure NWOBHM outfit Bleak House's 1980 "Rainbow Warrior" single now, is there? This would have to be one of the most blatant examples of plagiarism you'll find in all of metal in my opinion.




I've just added these two nominations to the Hall of Judgement:


https://metal.academy/hall/434

https://metal.academy/hall/435

November 03, 2023 06:54 PM


I think the horn is distracting people on this one. Hard rock.

Quoted Morpheus Kitami

Nah, the horn is just peripheral. "Ride The Sky" is built around a chuggy, galloping, palm-muted bottom-string metal riff that sounds like something Iron Maiden would have come up with a decade later. You can easily hear Steve Harris playing it. 


Anyway... how about "Everybody's Clown" then? Metal or not? Subgenre?



The start & finish is a little ambiguous as there are one or two harder riffs that could go either way but I feel that the rest of the song & the overall feel tie "Everybody's Clown" to hard rock with a strong progressive rock influence running through that middle section.

It's been far too long since I've heard it to be able to provide an informed comment on that Morpheus but I tend to think that it's not a relevant comparison as Goblin's soundtrack was a brilliantly conceived record in its own right (with or without the film) & focused more on mood & atmosphere while Deceased... seem to be trying desperately to create a similar feel to a band like Autopsy but haven't got the required level of sickness & depravity. Interestingly, I saw Goblin perform parts of the "Dawn Of The Dead" soundtrack at the Metro Theatre in Sydney a decade or so back which was a rare treat.

This is fucking fantastic Ben. Super-premium atmospheric black metal with a strong & highly original psybient component & some excellent extreme metal drumming. How could I not love that?! The mature use of melody, the knack for building tension & the inherent creativity are simply so impressive. "U.M.A." is the perfect Metal Academy feature release in my opinion as it's criminally underrated & underappreciated.

4.5/5

Lucifer's Friend's most acclaimed moment is a clear example of plagiarism with the horn part exactly emulating Robert Plant screams in "Immigrant Song" which was released just a month earlier.




November 02, 2023 07:03 PM

Let's kick off our deep dive into the self-titled Lucifer's Friend album with their most popular track "Ride The Sky":



Metal or not? Subgenre? I've got this one down as heavy metal. It sounds exactly like Deep Purple's more metallic moments only with that obvious bit of Led Zeppelin plagiarism. Great song though regardless.

Fair enough. FYI I had two other tracks listed as potential for December but I didn't feel that they were quite as strong as the Black Sabbath & Sir Lord Baltimore songs so they didn't make the cut. Feel free to swap those out with either (or both) of these if you'd prefer to go that way:


Trouble - "A Sinner's Fame" (from "Trouble", 1990) [Stoner metal]

Darkthrone - "Forest of Darkness" (from "Frostland Tapes", 2008) [Death doom metal]

This one didn't do a lot for me to be honest. It's overly long & the zombie apocalypse theme doesn't really suit Deceased's sound as they're simply not deathly or grimy enough to pull it off in my opinion. I dunno about it being a death/thrash release either as I hear very little legitimate death metal here. It's just a thrash record with vocals that sound like Venom’s Cronos as far as I can see. 

3/5

November 02, 2023 10:54 AM

Cathedral - "In Memoriam" demo (1990)

God damn, I love me some early Cathedral & their 1990 demo tape is just about the very definition of pure doom for mine. I sought it out back in the mid-90's after purchasing their groovier 1993 sophomore record "The Ethereal Mirror" & realising that Cathedral may never be the same again. If you can't get enough of their debut album "Forest of Equilibrium" then this should be essential listening.

4.5/5


Here's my adjusted Top Ten Conventional Doom Metal Releases of All Time list:


01. Pig Destroyer - “Natasha” E.P. (2008)

02. Ufomammut & Lento - "Supernaturals - Record One" (2007)

03. Celtic Frost - "Monotheist" (2006)

04. Warning - "Watching From A Distance" (2006)

05. Cathedral - "Forest Of Equilibrium" (1991)

06. Anathema - "The Silent Enigma" (1995)

07. M.S.W. - "Obliviosus" (2020)

08. The Electric Wizard - "We Live" (2004)

09. Cathedral - "In Memoriam" demo (1990)

10. My Dying Bride - "The Angel & The Dark River" (1995)


https://metal.academy/lists/single/128

I spoke to Ben about it this afternoon & we're comfortable for you to follow whatever direction you'd like on this topic as long as you're consistent Sonny.

November 01, 2023 07:28 PM

Candlemass - "Candlemass Live" (1990)

I hadn't heard this release before but jeez it's a solid live effort which shouldn't come as any surprise given that it came right at the end of their classic run of 1980's albums. The Mercyful Fate-ish lead guitar work & the vocals of Messiah Marcolin are simply superb. I place this one behind only the first two studio albums in terms of Candlemass' discography overall.

4/5

I actually took a similar position to yourself on this topic to begin with Sonny. It wasn't until Vinny submitted a couple of tracks from releases taken from outside the designated clans that I started to question myself. I think they might have been thrash tracks from death metal releases from memory. Upon listening to the tracks in question I found myself struggling to disagree with him that they fit nicely on the relevant playlist & I thought it a shame not to include them given that they wouldn't fit comfortably on their own clan's playlists so would essentially be ineligible for inclusion on ANY playlist. So I decided to relax my position on the topic & these days I have much more of a problem with the occasional incident where people select a track from a The Fallen album that very clearly doesn't sound like The Fallen so will essentially dilute the playlist. I think that's much more of a problem personally.

November 01, 2023 07:14 PM

And finally, the final track from "Kingdom Come" in "Ain't Got Hung On You"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



I've got this one down as a dirty blues rock track which means that I've only found a single metal track on "Kingdom Come" in the title track so I can't justify the claims that it's a metal record. Anyone got a different result?

We'll start to look at the self-titled 1970 Lucifer's Friend album from tomorrow.

It's an interesting question Sonny. Personally, I see no problem with selecting one-off tracks that I feel fall comfortably into different clans than the album they're drawn from. In this case I feel that our The Fallen members are the most likely to enjoy them so it makes sense to me. I mean, what's the point of including them in a The Guardians playlist when they'll sound a bit out of place & are better suited to another clan? If you disagree that these tracks are traditional doom metal & stoner metal respectively then you're free to omit them. I've always left it up to the playlist owners to make the final call uncontested on these things.

For the record though, I firmly believe that the "Black Sabbath" album is better suited to The Fallen than The Guardians anyway. There's currently a Hall of Judgement poll running for it.

No nominations from me this month Andi.

No nominations from me this month Andi.

Here are my nominations for the December playlist Vinny:


Exodus - "The Last Act Of Defiance" (from "Fabulous Disaster", 1989) [Thrash metal]

Hellish - "The Ancient Entity Of The Darkest Light" (from "The Dance of the Four Elemental Serpents", 2022) [Thrash metal]

Nihilist - "Sentenced To Death" (from "Carnal Leftovers", 2005) [Death/thrash]

Scatterbrain - "Here Comes Trouble" (from "Here Comes Trouble", 1990) [Thrash metal]

Motorhead - "Locomotive" (from "No Remorse", 1984) [Speed metal]

Iced Earth - "The Funeral" (from "Iced Earth", 1990) [Thrash metal/US power metal]

Here are my nominations for December Ben:


Windir - "On The Mountain Of Goats" (from "Likferd", 2003)

Sarcofago - "Satanas (2nd Version)" (from "Die... Hard!!!", 2015)

Darkthrone - "A Blaze In The Northern Sky" (from "Frostland Tapes", 2008)

Here are my December nominations:


Xecutioner - "Find The Arise" (from "1986 Demo" demo, 1986)

Sarcofago - "Satanic Lust (Instrumental)" (from "Die... Hard!!!", 2015)

Darkthrone - "Land of Frost" (from "Land of Frost" demo, 1988)

Nihilist - "Supposed to Rot" (from "Premature Autopsy", 1988)

Napalm Death - "Rise Above" (from "Mentally Murdered" E.P., 1989)

Neuropath - "Incantations of Decrepit Nihilism" (from "Desert of Excruciation" demo, 1995)

Here's my nomination for the December playlist Xephyr:


Mercyful Fate - "Curse Of The Pharaohs" (from "The Beginning", 1987)

No member track nominations included this month Xephyr?

Here's my nomination for the December playlist Saxy:


Living Colour - "Type" (from "Time's Up", 1990)

Here are my submissions for the December playlist Sonny:


Black Sabbath - "Black Sabbath" (from "Black Sabbath", 1970)

Plateau Sigma - "Maira & the Archangel" (from "White Wings of Nightmares", 2013)

Sir Lord Baltimore - "Kingdom Come" (from "Kingdom Come", 1970)

November 2023


01. Sadist – “Perversion Lust Orgasm” (from “Crust”, 1997)

02. Amorphis – “On Rich & Poor” (from “Elegy”, 1996)

03. Adramalech – “The Book Of The Worm” (from “Psychostasia”, 1996) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

04. Edge of Sanity – “Crimson, Pt. 1” (from “Crimson”, 1996) [Submitted by Daniel]

05. Godgory – “In Silence Forever” (from “Sea of Dreams”, 1995)

06. VoidCeremony – “Forlorn Portrait: Ruins of an Ageless Slumber” (from “Threads of Unknowing”, 2023) [Submitted by Daniel]

07. Hypocrisy – “Roswell 47” (from “Abducted”, 1996)

08. Baring Teeth – “An Illusion of Multiple Voices” (from “Ghost Chorus Among Old Ruins”, 2014)

09. Pestilence – “Malleus Maleficarum/Anthropomorphia” (from “Malleus Maleficarum”, 1988) [Submitted by Daniel]

10. Blind Equation – “Fade Away” (from “Death Awaits”, 2023)

11. Immolation – “Burn With Jesus” (from “Here In After”, 1996) [Submitted by Sonny]

12. Vader – “Blood Of Kingu” (from “De Profundis”, 1995) [Submitted by Sonny]

13. Deicide – “They Are The Children Of The Underworld” (from “Once Upon The Cross”, 1995) [Submitted by Sonny]

14. Leng Tch’e – “Derisive Conscience” (from “The Process of Elimination”, 2005)

15. Torture Rack – “Forced From The Pit” (from “Primeval Onslaught”, 2023) [Submitted by Sonny]

16. Nile – “I Whisper In The Ear Of The Dead” (from “In Their Darkened Shrines”, 2002) [Submitted by Daniel]

17. Oni – “Creature of Chaos” (from “Incantation Superstition”, 2023) [Submitted by Sonny]

18. Necrophobic – “Nailing The Holy One” (from “Darkside”, 1997) [Submitted by Sonny]

19. Gorerotted – “Dead Drunk” (from “A New Dawn For The Dead”, 2005)

20. Cryptopsy – “Pathological Frolic” (from “Blasphemy Made Flesh”, 1994) [Submitted by Sonny]

21. Birdflesh – “Coffinfucker” (from “Night of the Ultimate Mosh”, 2002)

22. Exumed – “Clawing” (from “Horror”, 2019) [Submitted by Sonny]

23. Abyssal – “I Am The Alpha & The Omega” (from “Antikatastaseis”, 2015)

24. Altarage – “Cataract” (from “Worst Case Scenario”, 2023) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

25. First Days of Humanity – “Chainsaw Dripping With Cum” (from “Atrocities” E.P., 2020)

26. Circle of Dead Children – “Destiny Of The Slug” (from “Human Harvest”, 2003)

27. Last Days Of Humanity – “Garbagebag With Human Waste” (from “Last Days of Humanity/Lymphatic Phlegm” split, 2004)

28. Phyllomedusa – “Covered With Slime As Decoration II” (from “Desiccation in Progress (Version II)”, 2011) [Submitted by Daniel]

29. Napalm Death – “Morbid Deceiver” (from “The Curse” E.P., 1988) [Submitted by Daniel]

30. Ozigiri – “Girl At The Grave” (from “おじぎりなら死にましたけど?” E.P., 2020)

31. XavlegbmaofffassssitimiwoamndutroabcwapwaeiippohfffX – “Gore” (from “Gore” E.P., 2016) [Submitted by Daniel]

32. Disgorge – “Womb Full Of Scabs” (from “She Lay Gutted”, 1999)

33. Regurgitation – “Acid Enema” (from “Tales of Necrophilia”, 1999)

34. Coprocephalic – “Concrete Exhumation” (from “Gluttonous Chunks”, 2013)

35. Vulvectomy – “Abdominal Ectopic Pregnancy” (from “Abusing Dismembered Beauties”, 2013)

October 31, 2023 07:12 PM

How about "Helium Head (I Got A Love)"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



I've got blues rock/heavy psych on this one.

October 30, 2023 10:51 PM

Which word? “Hard” or “rock”?

I had to start at 9 AM today so they could prepare for me. It took a full two hours to get here. I’m hoping to do a 7 AM start in future.

October 30, 2023 07:15 PM

Iced Earth - "Iced Earth" (1990)

I picked up the self-titled debut album from Florida US power metallers Iced Earth through tape trading back in the early 1990's & quite enjoyed it but this revisit has seen me bumping my score up a touch. I simply adore the rhythm guitar work of Jon Schaffer who may be the best exponent of his craft to ever pick up a plectrum. It's a total thrash riffathon which easily makes up for the fact that Gene Adam's vocals are a little bit dodgy in compariosn to later singers, sounding much more similar to Teutonic thrash front men like Schmier (Destruction) or Thorsten Bergmann (Living Death). This release is just as much of a thrash metal release as it is a US power metal one with the influences having been drawn equally from "Master of Puppets"-era Metallica & from classic Iron Maiden which works beautifully. "Iced Earth" is an underrated release that should really be essential listening for fans of both genres.

4/5


Here's my updated Top Ten US Power Metal Releases of All Time with Griffin's "Flight of the Griffin" now dropping out of the list:


01. Crimson Glory - "Crimson Glory" (1986)

02. Iced Earth - "Alive in Athens" (1999)

03. Manowar - "Into Glory Ride" (1983)

04. Medieval Steel - "Medieval Steel" E.P. (1984)

05. Crimson Glory - "Transcendence" (1988)

06. Iced Earth - "Iced Earth" (1990)

07. Metal Church - "Blessing In Disguise" (1989)

08. Queenryche - "The Warning" (1984)

09. Riot - "ThunderSteel" (1988)

10. Fates Warning - "The Spectre Within" (1985)


https://metal.academy/lists/single/127

On the other side of the coin, is Blondie's 1980 hit single "Call Me" (which was written by Italian Giorgio Moroder) not built on a suspiciously similar riff to the main one in Black Sabbath's "Children Of The Grave"?




October 30, 2023 06:56 PM

How about "Hell Hound"? Metal or not? Subgenre?



This one is Led Zeppelin-inspired hard rock for mine.