|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 2, 2014 2:08:59 GMT -5
There can probably be a general music thread as well, but I've decided metal gets a special place this month.
The rules:
1. Post a Youtube, Spotify or other link so we can have a listen without too much trouble. 2. Add a brief description of what you're posting.
---
My first offering comes from my ongoing quest to find female-fronted bands that aren't symphonic/power metal. This one is labelled 'extreme metal' and has a combination of clean vocals and growls/screams. I'm onto my second video now, so I think that means a tentative 'like'.
Note: Do not be fooled by the innocent-looking girl in the white dress.
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 2, 2014 14:31:44 GMT -5
Ah, yes, metal does indeed need a special place!
So does that mean that you've given up on your quest to find more bands like Dark Tranquillity, or is that a co-quest? :-D
That said, I'm trying to find some good female-fronted metal that isn't thrash metal, symphonic metal, power metal, or metalcore as well.
(Might I make a suggestion? If anyone listens and likes the linked material, 'like' the post!)
Not strictly related to previous, I'm currently listening to:
Seasons Apart by Draconian
Swedish melodic doom metal. Female vocals are clean only, but tentatively like. I've got the entire album lined up on Spotify to listen to later. The growled vocals remind me of Dark Tranquillity/Insomnium in terms of style.
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 4, 2014 21:32:13 GMT -5
Definitely liking Draconian . ...and now on to some old favourites, since I'm too lazy to keep searching for new bands and I want people to fall in love with metal. First one is going to make me want to switch projects, because this is more or less the theme song of one of my favourite characters. I've also been in love with this band's singer since about 2006, though, so if I'm going to post favourites I'll always start here. Anyway, this is Finnish 'gothic metal' band Poisonblack. I've never been too sure about the subgenre classification, but I think that's where it usually sits. Sort of downbeat rock/metal.
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 5, 2014 21:12:50 GMT -5
According to the internetz, next time Draconian releases an album this lady will be doing the female vocals: All the :LOR3L3I: songs are available for free download here: www.reverbnation.com/lor3l3i/songs
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 7, 2014 1:04:26 GMT -5
Neat! I think her style would work with Draconian. So, after one listen to Turning Season Within [Album] by Draconian (album of the aforementioned song), it made it onto my 'play in the car' list, and therefore my 'like' list. ^_^ Hmmmmm, depending on the interpretation of what this thread is for (spam your taste, or post what got you hooked on metal, or post new stuff you found), my choices will be vastly different. I'm just going to go with all three, and rotate. (:-D One of the first metal bands I ever got into was Lacuna Coil. They do make use of the male growl/clean female vocal thing, but the growls are more minimal, and Cristina Scabbia's voice, far from being operatic, is by turns strong and high, or mesmerizing and emotional. Swamped by Lacuna Coil from ComaliesOur Truth by Lacuna Coil from KarmacodeAlso, I like their cover of Depeche Mode's Enjoy The Silence better than the original. Those are some of the songs that got me hooked on this band, but it's worth listening to the full albums. (That said, I think their earlier albums are better, because later they turned from gothic/ambient/metal to more poppy hard rock.)
|
|
|
Post by TearsOfNightfall on Mar 7, 2014 4:14:40 GMT -5
Draconian aren't bad. Turning Season Within is probably my favorite of their albums. The new singer doesn't sound bad, either, though I'll miss their old one. As far as female-fronted bands go, have you heard ReVamp? They're not extreme metal but they're not exactly symphonic/power metal, either (though there is some influence from those, as the singer's old band After Forever was symphonic, and she is also the current Nightwish singer). They aren't my favorite band, but I like the singer a lot - her vocal style ranges from clean, to classical, to heavy growls. ReVamp - Anatomy of a Nervous Breakdown: On the Sideline ReVamp - Wolf and Dog Lacuna Coil were one of the first metal bands I got into too, though I don't listen to them much anymore. I agree with their old albums being the best, for sure.
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 7, 2014 20:01:48 GMT -5
All those symphonic/gothic female-fronted bands pretty much sound the same to me. It's not bad, but I can't remember the last time I heard a really standout track from a band in that subgenre. Just not my thing, I guess. Have I posted Dark Fortress yet? Okay, that better be the next stop. First, some videos I haven't watched lately because my computer is steadily getting worse at anything Flash-related. If these turn out not to be what they claim, let me know: Ylem: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNloyxCoftsHirudineans: www.youtube.com/watch?v=x401frOxlAMlinkThe Valley: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVJVdUbyY8g...and that's as far as I want to push the poor old Celeron for now. Those three videos are all from the most recent Dark Fortress album, Ylem, which is only partly because I like the album. Mostly it's because that was the first page of search results and my computer turned me down for page 2. Anyone know how to magically resurrect a dead desktop? I need it back .
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 8, 2014 1:39:45 GMT -5
Soilwork. In the middle of Long Live the Misanthrope from their newest album. One of my favorite bands, but a little too hyper to be really productive for writing. I only really listen to music when writing when I need to drown out the TV, though. Otherwise I find silence works best. I really like Soilwork's The Living Infinite! In the vein of (slightly technical) death metal, though, I prefer Scar Symmetry's Holographic Universe, which is one of my favorites. @siana - Desktop necromancy. :-( TearsOfNightfallYes, I have listened to ReVamp. Good stuff. :-) Yeah, I like a fair number of female-fronted bands, of varying vocal styles, gothic or not but...I am not a huge fan of Nightwish, or boring operatic vocals. That said, though, Nightwish sounds a lot better with Floor Jansen on vocals, because Floor Jansen has an amazing voice. Currently listening to orchestral/sort-of-technical death metal - Omnivium [Album] by Obscura. Linking the whole album, because that's how I listen to it. If you don't want to listen to the whole album, though. Track 3/Ocean Gateways - one of my favorites.Track 7/Velocity - Because it has Morean in it. His guitar solo shows up at ~3:20.Track 9/Aevum - Because this song is awesome.
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 12, 2014 7:21:37 GMT -5
How come I only just discovered the existence of Amon Amarth?
I can't decide if I like them or if it's just the lure of a metal band made up of beefy blonds. I guess I'll make a decision on that after I listen to them for a while instead of just watching videos.
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 12, 2014 20:16:43 GMT -5
What? Wow. I'm sure I might have mentioned them, especially when Viking metal came up! Back when you were writing about Oskar and Leora, I think I once asked if Oskar looked like Johan Hegg. XD
Anyway, Guardians of Asgaard is my favorite of their best songs. Most of their albums sound pretty much the same, although I slightly prefer Twilight of the Thunder Gods and Surtur Rising. (Stay away from their latest album, though. It's pretty forgettable.) It's one of those bands which I like, but which doesn't get very many plays. It's good to listen to just to headbang, because it does get repetitive after a while. Very good for exercise though, because I can't flag when 'VAAAAAALHAAAAAAAL AWAITS MEEEEE!'
Currently listening to:
Solitude Aeturnus - Beyond The Crimson Horizon
This album dooms. I think 'doom' should be used as a verb now, because sometimes saying 'this album rocks' doesn't quite work the same way. I could swear I got that idea because I saw the band themselves use it that way in some of the liner notes for their first album, Into The Depths of Sorrow, but upon rereading, I can't find it.
Did I mention this album DOOMS?
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 12, 2014 20:52:50 GMT -5
What? Wow. I'm sure I might have mentioned them, especially when Viking metal came up! Back when you were writing about Oskar and Leora, I think I once asked if Oskar looked like Johan Hegg. XD That sounds familiar. Perhaps more to the point, a google image search looks familiar. I just came face to face with a threatening-looking and sadly neglected character. While I'm here, something that has Roy Khan in it:
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 12, 2014 21:13:41 GMT -5
Derp. I've listened to this song so many times. I can't believe I never realized that it was Roy Khan singing some of the vocals.
Just finished listening to Beyond the Crimson Horizon. Currently listening to Twisted Mind again. Now that Avantasia is on my mind, this is queued up next.
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 13, 2014 21:28:03 GMT -5
Maybe it's the weather. While it was cold, dark, wet, and s***ty outside, I was happy enough to hide in a corner and let my headphones doom and gloom about me. I'm still in my doom metal phase, and I might always be, but now I'm trying to mix it up a bit. There's just something about imminent and inevitable sunshine and warmth, that makes me want to break out and smash something...metaphorically speaking, of course. Warm weather gives me something to hate. XD You know what that means! Death metal! Being as it is the genre of metal that even non-metal listeners are familiar with, and which spawned a lot of the genres I already listen to, it actually embarrasses me how much I don't know about straight-up death metal. When I was getting into metal, I started off from the traditional Black Sabbath hard rock/old school metal camp as well as Slayer/Metallica/Pantera-esque thrash, and subsequently the power metal camp after Iron Maiden, and then transitioned to symphonic/operatic metal, melodic death, technical/progressive death metal, viking metal, and then doom. I think I avoided some supposedly classic death because it all sounded like exactly the same riff and drum beat relentlessly pounded into my ears for an hour on end. (I'm sorry, all you death metal fans on the internet...I don't like Cannibal Corpse.) Brutal, yes, but boring. Still, though, I want to see what all the fuss is about, because I know there is death metal out there that I actually like. There's got to be more out there. To that end, I've queued up some albums which the internet tells me are the best straight up death metal albums. Just listened to: Covenant [Album] by Morbid AngelSo why didn't I just start at the beginning, and go with Death for my first listen? Because Morbid Angel happened to be the first on my Spotify death metal playlists, that's why. I'm not even going to attempt a review, because I just finished listening to it, and it takes a few listens to get the sufficient depth. Initial reaction, though, I really like this album. Some very good riffs! According to Google, that's an understatement. No doubt, upon further listens, they will be in my head. According to Google, Covenant was one of the definitive albums that helped shape death metal as a genre. Well and so, I can see why. If anyone reading already knew all this, you have my full permission to laugh at my ignorance. >_> I realize I should probably have something of a 'recommended if you like' nature here, but given that I'm not a metal reviewer, I'd at best tie myself in knots by comparing apples to oranges, and at worst come off like a pedantic little poser s**thead of the sort that gets trolled at on troll forums because they try to write like an expert on things they don't know about. I'm severely underqualified to write an in-depth essay about the history of metal, and while I enjoy complex music, I don't have enough knowledge to analyze every blast beat and time signature change. What I can write about, though, is whether I liked it, and...and...I think I already did that, so I think I need to curtail this very long post. TLDR version, I really liked it: excellent riffs, memorable songs, and I will certainly listen a second time.
|
|
|
Post by Siana Blackwood on Mar 15, 2014 1:03:30 GMT -5
I was going to be all old and cranky about fandoms, but I think I'm too lazy. Have a Scorpions song instead:
|
|
|
Post by Agent Double Oh Zero on Mar 15, 2014 1:19:45 GMT -5
Fandoms? What about fandoms? They're not inherently a bad thing, I don't think. It's just when people start getting creepy that it's better to stay away from the rabbit hole. Currently listening to: Perfect Symmetry [Album] by Fates WarningProgressive metal. Similar but not the same as Dream Theater (I think they were around before DT). Like.
|
|