Alright cool, I'm still gonna upload it so if anyone else is interested, just send me a PM.

Mr. Bungle was the first band that got me into experimental music in general. One of my favorite bands.

i guess i'll be the first to say something about bungle besides OMG! BUNGLE!!!

mr. bungle is great and all but i really don't get how so many people classify them as any kind of metal. i suppose if you only listened to their demos and first album and skipped most of the 2nd you could but by the time the band was done they were very much their own style. the band proved this without any shadow of a doubt on 'california'.

i find that the bulk of bands who name drop bungle generally 'try' rehashing the apparent chaos of 'disco volante' without ever seeming to be capable of writing a complete song in just one style. that's what really set bungle apart for me, they were capable of pulling from all sorts of styles at the drop of a hat, AND they were also able to stick to one style for the duration of a whole song. a track like 'sweet charity' doesn't need a big metal breakdown in the middle for example.

i've yet to hear a bungle baby take that step, all i hear is a bunch of bits and pieces of stuff thrown together without any evidence there was anything else to the selections. conversely, most of the time those musical mosaics come across as glued together, there's no underlying sensation of the chaos just happening. it's calculated and at that point, no longer chaotic. i get the impression that more often than not the multitude of styles in most of the followers becomes more of a musical masturbatory measuring stick than anything necessary to propagate the musical piece.

Arcturus is cool - check out La Masquerade Infernale.

I wrote a review/commentary for it here, but it's kinda crap as it was one of my first.

I may well be able to contribute to this thread to some extent but that would involve finding out whats classed as Avant-Garde metal first :D

I get so lost in genres and especially crossovers.

fantomas anyone?

Ah, yes the other side oh Mr. Patton's multi- faceted genius. Tomahawk is awesome too.
I think for me the Voivod would be the godfathers of avante guard/experimental metal. Their cover of Floyd's Astronomy Dominae is amazing.

I only have Nothingface by Voivod but I've never liked it. Is it worth bothering with the rest?

If you can't get on with nothing face then I would doubt if you could get into anything else. I love Voivod personally and have done for years.

A few of my mates with similar music tastes love Voivod too. I've just never been able to get away with Nothingface. I may check out some of their earlier output sometime anyway as I know Nothingface was their fifth record and rarely do I not start from the beginning of bands discographies. I keep trying it again every now and then hoping its just a grower but so far no such joy.