The Metal Month III Progress Thread

[Trollheart]

Nah, I like it as it is. The whole point of going "off the grid" with countries not normally associated with metal is exactly that: to look into dark corners of the world, metal speaking, where you wouldn't normally expect to find the genre flourishing, or at least surviving. Iran surprised me, I must say, with its relative diversity. Anyone could do a feature on Norway or the USA: where's the fun in that? Whether it's relevant (and that's entirely subjective anyway) or not is beside the point.

As for Pirate Metal: hell that was just a blast and I enjoyed every minute. Let's not lose sight of the fact that, though this is Metal Month, it's still my journal and as ever I write about stuff I like. Hopefully others like it too, but I'm not gong to start writing to someone else's format, or idea of what they think I should be writing.

I try to maintain a balance between important, not so important and just damn fun sections, which seems to have worked fairly well so far. I can't see any reason to change that at this moment.

[Trollheart]

Day twelve:

Another new album, this time from NWOBHM sweethearts Raven, British Steel is the subject of our "Featured Artiste" slot today, more of "The Metal that made Me" with Virgin Steele, and another recommended album, this time from Violet and it's Municipal Waste. Then we're continuing through Ninetales's top ten with Agalloch, Drudkh and Neurosis.

[The Batlord]

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Anyone could do a feature on Norway or the USA: where's the fun in that? Whether it's relevant (and that's entirely subjective anyway) or not is beside the point.

Well, if you want to know what kind of metal exists all over the world, then wouldn't it be better to pick a scene in a particular country or area that is relevant and influential? Wanna know about death metal? Florida, Sweden, and Finland would be great places to really beef up your knowledge of the genre. Thrash? San Francisco, New York, and Germany. Black metal? France has had a surprising number of influential bands over the last decade or so, not to mention Norway.

[Trollheart]

That's not what I want to do though. You're hung up on one genre per country; I'm not. The whole idea, again, of TILoM is to show that metal thrives or survives in all countries you can name. Not death metal, or black metal or prog metal only, but ALL types of metal. If I want to concentrate on one particular subgenre, that's what "What's that all about?" is there for.

Anyway, I appreciate your input but I'm not going to be changing the format.

[The Batlord]

Originally Posted by Trollheart

That's not what I want to do though. You're hung up on one genre per country; I'm not. The whole idea, again, of TILoM is to show that metal thrives or survives in all countries you can name. Not death metal, or black metal or prog metal only, but ALL types of metal. If I want to concentrate on one particular subgenre, that's what "What's that all about?" is there for.

Anyway, I appreciate your input but I'm not going to be changing the format.

Never for a second thought that you would.

[Trollheart]

Here, what do you think of this? A chance for people to share their first metal band? Talk about it, or let me, and review the album? "Metal Memories" sucks balls, but a better title and we could have something for next year...

[The Batlord]

I still like my idea of you exploring specific scenes, even if it doesn't replace your International Metal section. Exploring Florida death metal and San Francisco thrash is a prerequisite for anyone serious about educating themselves about metal, just like the NWOBHM.

[Trollheart]

It's a good idea. "The State of Metal"? Geddit? Yeah I'll think of a better title. But yeah, assuming I can get a bit of help on something like that it could definitely fly.

[The Batlord]

Originally Posted by Trollheart

It's a good idea. "The State of Metal"? Geddit? Yeah I'll think of a better title. But yeah, assuming I can get a bit of help on something like that it could definitely fly.

You've done Slayer, and I'm sure listened to plenty Metallica and Megadeth during your many decades of pointless existence, but there's plenty of Bay Area thrash to educate you on. You did that one Morbid Angel album, but it was one of their worst, but otherwise I'm pretty sure you're a Florida death metal n00b. A decent idea would be a Top 5, or most "relevant" 5 of the best albums from a scene. Just an idea of how you could do it...

Spoiler for lotta ****:

San Francisco/LA Thrash (they were linked)

1. Exodus - Bonded by Blood
2. Testament - New Order (or The Legacy)
3. Dark Angel - Time Does not Heal (or Darkness Descends)
4. Death Angel - The Ultra-Violence
5. Blind Illusion - The Sane Asylum (debatable as to whether they should be in the top five, but they're prog thrash, so you might dig them more than other albums)


New York Thrash Metal

1. Anthrax - Among the Living (or Spreading the Disease if you've already heard that"
2. Stormtroopers of Death - Speak English or Die
3. Overkill - Taking Over (since I know you've already heard The Years of Decay)
4. Nuclear Assault - Survive (or Game Over)
5. Carnivore - Carnivore

(If you've already heard "too much" Anthrax, then I'd replace them with Whiplash's Power and Pain.)


German Thrash Metal

1. Kreator - Pleasure to Kill
2. Sodom - Agent Orange
3. Destruction - Infernal Overkill
4. Tankard - Beast of Bourbon (debatable as to whether they merit inclusion, but they'd be a bit of fun after Kreator, Sodom, and Destruction)
5. Coroner (technically from Switzerland, but close enough, and they're prog thrash, so you'd probably get more from them than the above bands) - Mental Vortex (or No More Color)


Florida Death Metal

1. Death - Human (I think you might actually have heard this before, so Scream Bloody Gore if so)
2. Obituary - Cause of Death
3. Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness (or Covenant)
4. Deicide - Legion
5. Morbid Saint - Spectrum of Death


Swedish Death Metal

1. Entombed - Left Hand Path (or Clandestine)
2. Unleashed - Where No Life Dwells
3. Dismember - Like an Ever Flowing Stream
4. Grave - Into the Grave
5. Carnage - Dark Recollections


New York Death Metal

1. Suffocation - Pierced from Within (you might get more from that than Effigy of the Forgotten, which would otherwise be my rec)
2. Immolation - Dawn of Possession
3. Cannibal Corpse - The Bleeding (maybe not quite the logical choice, but if you're going to like any CC album, I'd say it would be this one)
4. Malevolent Creation - Retribution
5. Demolition Hammer - Epidemic of Violence


Finnish Death Metal

1. Demigod - Slumber of Sullen Eyes
2. Convulse - World Without God
3. Purtenance - Member of Immortal Damnation
4. Demilich - Nespithe
5. Unholy - The Second Ring of Power


Gothenburg Melodic Death Metal

1. At the Gates - Slaughter of the Soul
2. In Flames - The Jester Race (or maybe Colony)
3. Dark Tranquility - The Gallery
4. Hypocrisy - Abducted
5. Soilwork - Natural Born Chaos


Norwegian Black Metal

1. Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
2. Emperor - In the Nightside Eclipse
3. Satyricon - Nemesis Divina
4. Enslaved - Isa (I guess this one, since it's sort of inbetween their black metal and prog metal phases)
5. Dodheimsgard - 666 International

(Leaving out a bunch of essentials, but you've already familiarized yourself with Burzum, Darkthrone, and Ulver, so...)

Obviously that's more **** than I would ever expect you to do, but even covering some of this in one form or another would give you a pretty excellent crash course in a lot of sub-genres you're pretty uneducated in (no offense). I know I'm leaving out plenty of sub-genres, but you don't really need to familiarize yourself with the NWOBHM or power metal, do you?

I also know you've already done albums by Entombed and In Flames, but they really weren't the albums I would have suggested for you to introduce yourself to them. The ones you've heard from Burzum, Darkthrone, and Ulver, however, were the albums to listen to.

And you might call it, "Trollheart's Metal World Tour"... or something less ****ty.

[Trollheart]

That's nowhere near too much. I'd do that easily in a month, and this time I'm going to take the whole year to write Metal Month IV. I like that idea a lot. I'm gonna run with that for next year. You want to be involved, or just leave me to flounder? I was thinking (if the former) it could be a Master/Grasshopper thing, with both our comments on each album. Or maybe not. Great idea though.