.Editorial - Putting the heavy into Heavy Metal
Metal Reviews

Release year: 2004
Reviewed by Ben

To say that heaviness does not play a role in metal is quite naïve considering every genre, be it Black, Power, Progressive, Technical, True, whatever, they all fall under the umbrella of “Heavy”. But what does heavy truly mean? I stand by that bands such as Slipknot, Mudvayne and their ilk are not metal but yet their fans can listen to a band such as Dream Theater or Power Quest and tell me that “this shit is so much heavier than that pussy music”. Would that make Mudvayne heavy metal and Power Quest not? I say no. If heaviness was the only factor in terms of determining metalness then every band out there with downtuned 7 stringers could be called Heavy Metal bands. Even in the most elite of the elite spectrum, black metal, there are bands that are not as so-called heavy as others. Ulver’s Nattens Madrigal is held in the highest of esteems, on the upper most pedestal of True Black Metal and when I was conversing with my friend I said that this wasn’t exactly the heaviest black metal I have heard, but that is not it’s intention. Everything comes together on Nattens, the melodies (yes there are melodies there!), the chord progression, the thin vocals, the relentless drumming, even the production, all these elements gel to form what is considered a black metal masterpiece. In this case, “heaviness” is not what determines the metal factor of the music.

Power Metal is also under constant attack with the accusations that it is not heavy enough, it’s children’s metal. Groups such as Edguy, Freedom Call, and Thunderstone are spoken of by many as “weak” and “limp” and even “powerless”. When I ask someone to tell me why they say things such as this they end up nine times out of ten telling me that these groups just aren’t “heavy” enough. While the majority of these bands’ catalog is definitely not as hard as say, Darkthrone songs like Until We Touch the Burning Sun and Under the Moon to me are just as balls out and powerful as Over the Wall or Evil Never Dies. The main strength of Power Metal are the melodies, the guitar solos, the riffs, and the catchiness. While there’s plenty of Power Metal groups that are clearly fourth and even fifth tier, with songs that are catchy and infectious for about six listens and then after that you realize there’s nothing more underneath the candy coated surface and shelve the cd to gather dust, many layered and deep Power Metal groups exist that even if you play the same song over seven times in a row you still find something new to ooohh and ahhh about. Edguy is definitely one of these bands, as is Lost Horizon, Human Fortress, and the latest Heavenly. All of these examples have intricacies and depths to them that take some exploring to fully unveil, maybe this is their “heaviness”.

Progressive Metal has been accused of being nothing more than a musican’s outlet to show off their skills and to bombard us with scales and measures without any regard to actual structure whatsoever. “They can play decent but they can’t play one damn riff for more than five seconds,” is one complaint I hear quite regularly when it comes to Progressive Metal. Just as was the case with Power Metal, maybe the technical prowess is Progressive Metal’s “heaviness”. This is how the genre is defined and presented to the rest of the world. Dream Theater, Power of Omens, and Evergrey can play circles around ninety percent of all the bands out there even if they don’t have the skull splitting, face smashing, unadulterated heavy breakneck mighty riff that Deicide has.

So what exactly does the heavy in Heavy Metal mean? All the artists I have mentioned incorporate the distorted guitar, they all play loud and proud, and they are all metal. Metal is much more than simple heaviness, if it weren’t then we would be missing out on hundreds of killer bands that we wouldn’t give the time a day because it wasn’t “heavy” enough. So if you’re a hardcore Black Metal fan that hates everything else remember that Power Metal is still metal, and if you only love Power, then take a gander at Progressive and realize that it is just as metal as your favorite bands and vice versa.

Killing Songs :
Ben quoted
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.Editorial - A Brief Run Through Power Metal (in 3 1/2 stages) reviewed by Ben and quoted
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