Metal Reviews

I've never come across that ANUS site before, but they seem to like both Nietzsche, Pentti Linkola and Black Metal which gives +10 points in my book.. Pity about all the racist bollocks. A discussion forum/resource on philosophy coupled with music could have been rather cool.

I think it is pretty funny when Paul Ledney opens a song by shouting "I vomit on god's child!!1!", but that probably comes down to taste. I'm not trying to 'convert' you. Just felt like dropping a few lines on the subject.



Doesn't that make your car go like: BRAKE...ACCELERATE...BRAKE...ACCELERATE...BRAKE...ACCELERATE...BRAKE...ACCELERATE?

It does, but who gives the shit about it!, its the music were talking about!

The visual that gave me made me laugh for a full minute. I have no idea why.


<straight face> No. </straight face>

It's a good question, and one I've had to answer before (if only to my poor mother). It has a lot to do with catharsis, at least in regards to the actual music part of it. As for the lyrics, I think the best answer is that there's just part of me that's fascinated by that sort of thing. I love horror movies and books, and I was raised on science fiction (battles, dragons and fantastic monsters were my bedtime stories) so concepts like apocalyptic wastelands were always just part of the fabric of my imagination. When I write stories, my main characters nearly always come to some horrific end (I think the nicest thing that's ever happened to one of them was getting eaten by a werewolf, and then only because he got to die quickly), so I suppose it's no great stretch to enjoy listening to music about horrible dismemberment.

Religion is another question entirely. I'm also kind of fascinated by the concept of the Devil and Hell (probably because my mind treats it more as the plot of a story, due to the doctrine I myself was taught) and hearing about terrible things happening to Jesus is just like the rest of it, but with the victim given a name. There's also a bit of revenge in it; I've been called nasty names and been told I was going to Hell enough in my life that I enjoy imagining what those people would think if they heard some of the lyrics I listen to. That probably feeds on the fact that I get a certain amount of sadistic enjoyment out of being that obnoxious person stopped at a red light with their windows rolled down and ridiculously loud music playing.

I also get a bit of enjoyment out of the apparent disconnect between my gender and my musical tastes.

I'm DEFINITELY a happy guy. I haven't felt depressed in anyway since I was a teenager. I don't dress in black, I don't think the world sucks, I don't hate people randomly.

When it comes to metal, I can honestly say the themes don't really worry me or even interest me that much. As long as it thrashes, and it thrashes HARD, the lyrics could be about anything.

I don't care if they're really silly (like anthrax on occasion) or anti-religion or just really violent and sick (anal lust by exhorder is a good example). In fact, when they get violent and sick like that, I just find it kinda funny. But as long as it's thrashing, i'll come back and listen again.

My point is that underneath all the themes that seem to define our wonderful genre of metal, it's really the music that keeps us all coming back. The lyrics really aren't nearly as important.

I hope I never make it into one of your stories.

I like bleak, conceptual lyrics because I really dig fiction and storywriting. A good example is Funeralopolis off Dopethrone. It just puts you in the world that they're trying to create, and a big part of that is the bleak lyrics.

Violent, sad, and depressed lyrics rock so long as they have a concept to them. I revel in it, but I don't encourage it. Examples like the Meshuggah song I always thought were more of what we see in the world, instead of what we want in the world.

Right right. I especially like the Cannibal Corpse and Saw comparison.

I don't generally find myself agreeing with bands views or ideals, but it's interesting to hear how things are from their perspective. My father used to say that music should sound and make you happy. Sure that's nice, but not all of it. Music has the power to funnel all kinds of emotions and atmospheres. Although I don't always feel like listening to something vile and negative, I like the Metal music.

Which got me thinking, there must be more positive metal lyrics out there while not letting down on the heavy sound? I can't really think of any right now...

Oh, almost forgot. There is a great quote from the game Max Payne 2 which I find somewhat fitting here:
Closing your eyes forces you to look at the darkness inside.
Maybe that's one of the reasons dark music is so enchanting. Or something, I'm not feeling particularly poetic tonight.

This is an interesting subject. I'm gonna try to start it up again.

I think extreme metal (death metal in my case) is like the sonic form of horror movies. It's violent music, it should have violent lyrics. No sane person is gonna take it seriously, just as no sane person is gonna watch a splatter movie and think it's ok to brutally slaughter everyone around him.
But why do we listen to it? Well like any kind of music, because we like it. Some people prefer melody, low to mid tempo and clean singing with lyrics about love, some don't. I prefer blast beats, shredding guitar riffs, intense growls and violent themes. I get goosebumps from listening to Vomitorys song Terrorize Brutalize Sodomize, others get a headache.
Gavin Baddeley (yes the satanist) says we all crave some form of violence in our lives. Not direct physical abuse, but like action movies, death on the news or in our case extreme metal. Without it our lives become boring.

Edit: I'm not saying it like it's the law, I just think he's right.

YES! and I've never understood those people who were saying all the time "I don't like violence and that violent music of yours" (and I go wtf?) and then I think wtf is going on in their heads; are there teletubbies bouncing around (LOL); I've been talking with one friend o mine about that kind of people and we concluded that most of them are on mental level like little children (If you know what I mean)...

When you think about it it's a really dumb question. "Why do you like that kind of music?". Yes I listen to death metal when I'm preparing my axe for a slaughter or when I'm building bombs in my garage. It gets me in the mood. Indeed "WTF". "I don't like that violent music of your". "Oh really? Why do you even give a shit?".

Well, on the lyrical side of things when I saw those lyrics for Hail of Bullets "plundering SS camps" etc. I just thought 'fuck me, this is cool as hell' and it gave me a great feeling.

Also lyrics of power are really good, like Grave-Soulless and Pantera-Becoming. Not to forget Manowar-Pleasure Slave and Metal Warriors.

I just love the idea that metal is the music of people who are powerful and elite. It's just cool.

and ironically people who like metal are neither powerful or elite

If god exists he's a Slayer fan!

Pff I like powerful lyrics

SLAAAYYEYERERERREEERREEREEERER