Metal Reviews

Okay, so I am a very uninformed person when it comes to metal, but I'm learning. I noticed that many bands stuck with the 'true metal' tag are exactly the same as power/speed metal bands. Don't you think that bands such as Slayer are deserving of the title 'true metal' as well as thrash? I need someone to give me a good definition because I'm not seeing too much difference between true and power metal right now. But that's because I'm still listening to way too much metalcore :oops:

True Metal is a made up genre some Power Metal bands use to sound less like trendwhores.

Agreed, in a way. But no, bands like Slayer do not deserve it, a band that really deserves it does not exist.
Hmm, apart from that it is a defininition used by bands that sing about metal and the unity between metalheads mostly.

When Nuclear Blast wanted to make an opening to the heavy/power audience and signed Hammerfall, they used the term to promote them as the "genuine" deal. It originates from the "Death to false metal" slogan Manowar used in the inner sleave of Into Glory Ride.

Anyway, it's basically what Radagast said, "true" were basically a bunch of german smurf power bands back in the late 90s.

Its pretty much just a phrase that Manowar coined and everyone else grabbed onto to be original. But really, as said before, no difference.

I never liked that term but I know a lot of the reviewers do. I guess you can say it's used to describe Power and or Speed Metal bands with little or no keyboard use, thus more riff driven, that take heavy influence from 80's bands. Lyrics usually praise metal or battle or something along those lines.

Like I said, I never like that term, it kind of implies that it's automatically a better style than others which has always bothered me. Mind you I like bands considered to be true metal a lot but I would prefer to just stick to the power and speed terminologies or even the "traditional" tag which to me implies the band has heavy roots in 80's Metal... I prefer that over True Metal (i.e. traditional power metal or traditional speed whatever).

To me true metal is metal that is devoid of any modern influences...and slick productin. True metal is essentially British Heavy metal, or NWOBHM if that works for you. Jag Panzer's Ample Destruction is a good reference point for what True Metal should sound like. The first three Nocturnal Rites albums were true metal....the Liege Lord albums as well. SO I guess you could say that true metal for the most part doesnt really exist anymore. There are some underground bands that do it pretty well.


Goat Horn from Canada was true metal....but they're starting to sound like Hammerfall now. Metalucifer is true metal as well...as cheezy as it may be.

Haha Metalucifer rock! "Ride of the charioooots!" (with an ultra japanese accent!)

Could you pls give us some info on these Goat Horn guys, never heard of em...

they're kind of Doomy....at least on the early releases, so kind of a blend of priest and cathedral...but they're really fallen into the Hamemrfall category lately, and I think they care too much about their image. They're great guys though, and the songs of theirs that I do like are particularly awesome. Check out Fortress Doomed, its a great song. Anyway I'm pretty sure they have a website.

Judas Priest

HAIL METALUCIFER ! *plays Heavy Metal Drill*

Thnx m8, I'll check it out![/quote]

you should check out Harbinger too

The only Harbinger I know of is a relatively new band that released a couple of demos I think. I remember stumbling upon them because one of them is called Cyriis

Yeah thats my band..ha ha our drummer loves all things involving John Cyriiis.

Hahahaaa killer! I'm leaving for army duty next week, but once I come back I deffinetely want to order that demo! Anyone that loves Cyriis has to play in a killer band

Cheers!!!

I would say that you would be describing traditional metal, as Crims previously said. It'd honestly be better if we just altogether did away with this genre label, as it's main selling point is that it's simply better than the other 'false' genres.

Or even better. Only one band may have that title, and that would have to be Lost Horizon.

well then you're totally eliminating all the underground bands that are 100X more genuine than the bands that call themselves true metal. Traditional metal in any sense is the true form of metal and thus deserving of the pseudonym true metal.

That sentence there pretty much sums it up. I despise the term "true metal" and would rather use traditional, classic or just plain heavy metal to describe the concerned genre.

I would too but we live in a world where false metal exists so we have to label it true metal just to explain what REAL metal is to those who are new then what's out there in the mainstream.