Checked out the bands I didn't know about, pretty cool shit. Believer is thrash with violin and keys, and it works pretty well. The only problem is that the DRI like vocals don't fit well. Demented Ted is also pretty good, and Order from Chaos has a pretty weird guitar tone for metal. Overall, good stuff. Makes me wish I was born a bit earlier, just to see all these good bands in their prime.

Sucks how Baltimore went from having a booming metal community in the 90's to having little more than a few Saint Vitus rip off bands.

Blackened sludge/crust anyone?

The whole point of Sleep's dopesmoker was that the song would be almost the same the whole time, there's more trance that way, besides I salute any band that would want to do anything outside the box of the regular album format. Music is art, not product, and dopesmoker reflects that.

At 9/18/11 12:13 AM, TheThinWhale wrote: Music is art, not product, and dopesmoker reflects that.

I love experiments and repetition, but Dopesmoker is just a bit too extreme for me. Hearing 8 different variations of "duuuuuuuuuuduuuuuuu duuuuuuuuuuu, du dududu, du dududu" to no end got to me. And it seemed it was more of a "holy fuck I'm stoned lets play some shit" situation than a constructed concept. I do appreciate them doing something different, but I don't particularly like it.

Dopesmoker is perhaps the ONLY 20+ minute long song i've ever heard which I can honestly say had zero appeal to me. Hahaha

Just got home from the Evergrey / Powerglove / The Absence show!

Here are the setlists...

The Absence:
1. Maelstrom
2. Dead And Gone
3. Wartorn
4. Riders Of The Plague
5. Deepest Wound
6. From Your Grave

The Absence are basically if melodic death metal and thrash metal had raging sex. Pretty good stuff. The only problem I had with them was that they kept doing boring metal cliches(SHOW ME THE HORNS, HEY HEY HEY HEY, I WANNA SEE THE BIGGEST CIRCLE PIT EVER) without any original stage antics or anything. Either way, they were intense. (Even though the crowd hated them)

Powerglove:
1. So Sexy Robotnik
2. X-Men
3. Metal Kombat For The Mortal Man
4. Batman
5. Tetris
6. Birth Of A God
7. Gotta Catch Em All
8. Mario Minor

Powerglove were.... well, Powerglove. Anyone here who needs a summary or description of their awesomeness really needs to get their ass onto youtube and look into them.

Evergrey:
01. Leave It Behind Us
02. The Masterplan
03. Rulers Of The Mind
04. Blinded
05. Solitude Within
06. Nosferatu
07. As I Lie Here Bleeding
08. Monday Morning Apocalypse
09. Wrong
10. Watching The Skies
11. Misled
12. I'm Sorry
13. Frozen
ENCORE:
14. When The Walls Go Down
15. Recreation Day
16. Broken Wings
17. A Touch Of Blessing

Evergrey are a pretty awesome prog metal band from Sweden! They played a little off every album, except I THINK their first album. Their album "Glorious Collision" is one of the best albums of 2011 thus far, seriously. Even though Monday Morning Apocalypse and Torn both sucked dick, everything before those two albums kicked ass as well. :D

Now, sleep time. Going to a concert while sick is pretty damn exhausting.

Oh, there was about 350 or so people at the show. For those of you whom care.

Evergrey - Wrong

At 9/17/11 10:30 AM, AniMetal wrote: Everything Sleep has done, Jerusalem/Dopesmoker aside, is a masterpiece.

Dopesmoker is a fucking joke.

I actually love Dopesmoker and can listen to it in it's entire and really enjoy it, I love the atmosphere and the instrument tone and the vocals and the way it's kind of spiritual and you can really see where Al Cisneros gets his ideas for Om and their style is really kind of realised with Dopesmoker. I've listened to it about 10-15 times from start to finish.

At 9/17/11 02:28 PM, Tobi wrote:

At 9/17/11 10:30 AM, AniMetal wrote:

Dopesmoker is a fucking joke.

It's one of the best songs ever when stoned.

A reasonable thing to say, I am stoned right now and most days.

At 9/18/11 12:13 AM, TheThinWhale wrote: The whole point of Sleep's dopesmoker was that the song would be almost the same the whole time, there's more trance that way, besides I salute any band that would want to do anything outside the box of the regular album format. Music is art, not product, and dopesmoker reflects that.

Totally valid, and the trance style is so enjoyable and I fucking love it.

At 9/18/11 01:57 AM, Tobi wrote:

Hearing 8 different variations of "duuuuuuuuuuduuuuuuu duuuuuuuuuuu, du dududu, du dududu" to no end got to me.

Every metalhead I know in real life is fully into modern bands like Amity Affliction, Parkway Drive, Bring Me The Horizon and bands that do lots of one note chugs.

I think the way Dopesmoker, Sleep and Om use the same note in repetition is so many levels above the modern trends take on it, and the trance like way they do one notes has a mystical stoner quality. Everytime I hear one note stoner riffs from these bands I think "That is the way you do one notes".

And it seemed it was more of a "holy fuck I'm stoned lets play some shit" situation than a constructed concept.

As a musician I know what playing in a three piece stoner metal outfit is like, and a lot of effort went in to learning an hour long song, they spent time writing it and coming up with the structure. Totally wasn't like "lets play some shit." Even the lyrics are hectic and genius.

You all know I like a variety of music, Jimi Hendrix is probably my biggest influence and he's not metal, but I love metal, especially fusing the ideas of Hendrix with the heaviness of metal, you get a really stoner metal sound from doing that. So yeah from my opinion as a musician and artist I think Dopesmoker is great.

At 9/18/11 01:59 AM, AniMetal wrote: Powerglove were.... well, Powerglove. Anyone here who needs a summary or description of their awesomeness really needs to get their ass onto youtube and look into them.

The song titles should be self-explanatory. :P

Evergrey:

Maybe I haven't tried enough songs of theirs but I could never get into Evergrey. I hope it's because I heard the wrong songs.

So, Metallica released a short preview of their collab with Lou Reed.

It's...uh...

Animals as Leaders is a new favorite of mine. Some of the songs sound like they have warr guitar or chapman stick or something, but I don't think they do.

At 9/17/11 01:46 AM, PenisClown wrote: They're keeping the Sleep thing going. But really Sleep influenced everyone.

Well, not quite. They have a post-rocky sound to them, which Sleep doesn't. But they do also have that stoner rock sound, too.

At 9/17/11 06:32 AM, Tobi wrote: More people should check out Sleep's Volume 1, which is heavier than Holy Mountain in nearly every sense of the word.

That one is good, especially Wall of Yawn. It's my favorite Sleep song.

At 9/17/11 02:28 PM, Tobi wrote: It's one of the best songs ever when stoned. Otherwise it's kinda shit and is little more than background music too loud to be background music.

Check out Ufomammut if you haven't. They're the perfect example of great tree music. Lucifer Songs and Snailking are the best they've done.

At 9/17/11 02:51 PM, TheSporkLord wrote: Even though I've never toked up, I would imagine just about any music sounds good when high.

It is true that pretty much anything you enjoy sober is even better when you're high, but there are some things that are so perfectly appropriate for when you're stoned, that it's even better than other things...that are better. er yeah. For movies, some good examples are Fantastic Planet, Dark City, Dead Leaves, Aachi wa Ssipak, and for a good dose of "fffffuuuuu", Tetsuo: the Iron Man. For music, some good examples are Ufomammut, Boards of Canada, Massive Attack, and this

At 9/18/11 06:23 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: Check out Ufomammut if you haven't. They're the perfect example of great tree music. Lucifer Songs and Snailking are the best they've done.

Already know of and love them. Excellent shit, one of best stoner bands out right now (at least imo).

So, what do you guys think of Sonne Adam?

Does anybody know if/when Behemoth is coming to America?

At 9/18/11 12:27 PM, Bahamut wrote: The song titles should be self-explanatory. :P

Seriously haha

Evergrey:

Maybe I haven't tried enough songs of theirs but I could never get into Evergrey. I hope it's because I heard the wrong songs.

VERY likely.

Their albums Monday Morning Apocalypse(2006) and Torn(2008) were both absolutely awful.

Their new album sick though, and everything before MMA was good.

In Search Of Truth is my favorite album by them.

At 9/18/11 08:40 AM, PenisClown wrote: Every metalhead I know in real life is fully into modern bands like Amity Affliction, Parkway Drive, Bring Me The Horizon and bands that do lots of one note chugs.

Those metalheads are called "posers" and "scenekids."

Just saying.

I think the way Dopesmoker, Sleep and Om use the same note in repetition is so many levels above the modern trends take on it, and the trance like way they do one notes has a mystical stoner quality. Everytime I hear one note stoner riffs from these bands I think "That is the way you do one notes".

I know, but Dopesmoker is still a waste of time and is boring as all fuck.

At 9/18/11 04:04 PM, Centurion-Ryan wrote: So, Metallica released a short preview of their collab with Lou Reed.

lolwut?

At 9/18/11 06:23 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: Animals as Leaders is a new favorite of mine. Some of the songs sound like they have warr guitar or chapman stick or something, but I don't think they do.

I fucking love Animals As Leaders!

Some other bands to check out include Scale The Summit, Explosions In The Sky, God Is An Astronaut and If These Trees Could Talk.

All awesome post-metal instrumental only groups, each with their own unique style and feel.

At 9/18/11 07:39 PM, batman64 wrote: Batman..Powerglove
Pretty cool vid, taking something old, mixed with something new and making something new in an old format. And proving what I always knew..Batman is Metal. Thanks for the memories and giving me something new to dream about when I get some sleep.

Yeah, Powerglove are fucking awesome. :D

At 9/18/11 07:09 PM, TruBluFoxx wrote: Does anybody know if/when Behemoth is coming to America?

I'm sure they will eventually, not future dates that i'm aware of though. Check their official website.

At 9/18/11 07:39 PM, batman64 wrote: Stuff

Hey, bro. It sounds like you've got a lot on your plate right now. You should probably just relax for a few days. And maybe you should cut back on the grass a little? I don't know much about it, but my good friend Google tells me it can mess with your sleep sometimes.

Also, that tangent you went on about Lars Ulrich was really funny

So I've been listening to this band Raventale over the past few days, and I look them up and discover it's just the one guy doing everything himself! I mean, it happens a lot, and sometimes it's pretty obvious, especially with all these bedroom Black Metal bands floating around these days, but it sounds almost "too good" to be made by just one guy, if you know what I mean.

At 9/18/11 07:39 PM, batman64 wrote: Doctors looked at the new tests...positive they say.
She has Leukemia...giving her maybe 5 years to live.
And I can't stop crying..and my sleep is fucked.
Just a tired, old dopesmoker who loves Metal and Rock named batman.
And I don't have no fucking batpill that can cure Leukemia.
And I scream inside..and my life has turned into a dream come true into a damned nightmare.
And it fucking hurts.

Damn! That's fucking horrible... Let us know if you need anything, bro. We might be a lot younger then you dude, but we are all brothers in the Metal community... brothers who like to fight with each others and throw rocks at each others, but brothers nonetheless...

Damn, I'm sorry to hear about that, Bill.

Hey, Ryan. I don't know if you heard, but Axel Rudi Pell has a new album coming out this month.

Also, there's going to be a new Pain of Salvation, Hammers of Misfortune, Black Cobra, Solstafir, Skeletonwitch and Venom.

At 9/18/11 08:05 PM, AniMetal wrote: Some other bands to check out include Scale The Summit, Explosions In The Sky, God Is An

The only one of those I have not yet listened to is if These Trees Could Talk, which I've been meaning to hear. If you like those bands, you should check out Meniscus. Their song Mother is so good.

At 9/18/11 06:41 PM, Tobi wrote: So, what do you guys think of Sonne Adam?

It sounds alright. It reminds me of sludge bands like Kongh and Buried at sea. It's not quite my type of thing anymore, but I listen to that sort of stuff occasionally, and the occasional funeral doom album, which I find to be similar.

At 9/18/11 11:28 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: The only one of those I have not yet listened to is if These Trees Could Talk, which I've been meaning to hear. If you like those bands, you should check out Meniscus. Their song Mother is so good.

This band is phenomenal! My favorite Post-Rock band :)

So this week, I'm listenning to some new stuff. Not new as in something that recently came out, but stuff that I've never listenned to. So I'm starting with the two first Full Lenght albums of Dimmu Borgir. These two are supposed to be good from what I read on Metal Archives and Last.fm. I've already listenned to the whole For All Tid album once, but I've yet to hear Stormblast. I will also listen to the new Blood Red Throne album, that I've never seen mentionned anywhere in The Metal Hell... that's a bif "wtf" for me. I also need to listen to more albums by Electric Wizard. I already listenned through the whole Come My Fanatics... album and will soon listen the album Let Us Prey.

Then... em... some Sludgy/Doomish Atmospheric Metal or whatever... I never listenned to this one, so I can't say what they play really, not until I've actually listenned to the whole thing. The band is called Morne and they released and album named Asylum with the label Profound Lore, which is the label who released the last Agalloch album.

That's it for the next week or few weeks. Any of you guys listen to any of these albums?

It's pirate related but it's not Alestorm, Running Wild nor Swashbuckle!

So... I finally found a Skyclad song I like. Maybe there's still hope for me to enjoy them.

At 9/18/11 04:04 PM, Centurion-Ryan wrote: So, Metallica released a short preview of their collab with Lou Reed.

It's...uh...

I burst out laughing as soon as I heard the first line. That's alright, I wasn't expecting a whole lot from this anyway.

At 9/18/11 08:05 PM, AniMetal wrote: In Search Of Truth is my favorite album by them.

In Search of Truth, got it. I'll put that one on the list whenever I get around to it.

At 9/18/11 08:19 PM, Centurion-Ryan wrote:

At 9/18/11 07:39 PM, batman64 wrote: Stuff

Hey, bro. It sounds like you've got a lot on your plate right now. You should probably just relax for a few days. And maybe you should cut back on the grass a little? I don't know much about it, but my good friend Google tells me it can mess with your sleep sometimes.

His situation is terrible right now and if I were him, I wouldn't be able to relax. :( I really feel sorry for him here.

At 9/18/11 11:28 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: Also, there's going to be a new Hammers of Misfortune

That's all I need. I've been looking forward to this album as much as all the gamers looking forward to Skyrim.

At 9/18/11 06:41 PM, Tobi wrote: So, what do you guys think of Sonne Adam?

Boring. Sounds Incantation tinged.

At 9/18/11 07:39 PM, batman64 wrote: She has Leukemia...giving her maybe 5 years to live.
And I can't stop crying..and my sleep is fucked.

That sucks, man.

Anyone hear listen to Altar of oblivion? I'm liking them, labeled as epic doom metal I guess. Agyl style vocals. Worth a look if you don't already listen.

Also listening to spawn of possession. Pretty damn good tech death. They actually focus on riffs as opposed to blowing through everything as fast as they can.

Elder.

I discovered Elder months ago, earlier this year, but that still means their first album slipped under my radar for a year and some more. Elder's debut changed how I thought about writing my music because they did their version of stoner metal so well.

Now they've released a new album and it looks like it's going to be one of the best releases of the year. I just chucked on the first track and it's brilliant.

Elder, check them out. And get their new album. And their old one.

At 9/19/11 04:42 PM, TheSporkLord wrote: Anyone hear listen to Altar of oblivion? I'm liking them, labeled as epic doom metal I guess. Agyl style vocals. Worth a look if you don't already listen.

I feel I could do with listening to a bunch of epic doom metal right now. Candlemass still remain as my very favourite doom metal band but I'm sure there's still plenty of great stuff to hear from other bands. At least I have 14 doom metal bands sitting in my library but of course. more would be nice.

I've been on a discovery spree over the last two days and some of the stuff I've liked the most are Aria and Procession. The former has a strong Maiden vibe while the latter shares similarities with Doomsword. Also, am I the only one who gets a Bathory vibe from Procession?

So I saw Opeth on their FIRST show for the Heritage world tour.

01. The Devil's Orchard (First time ever)
02. I Feel the Dark (First time ever)
03. Face of Melinda
04. Porcelain Heart (First time ever)
05. Free Falling (30 second lolzie snippet)
06. Nepenthe (First time ever)
07. The Throat of Winter (First time ever)
08. Credence
09. Patterns in the Ivy II (First time ever)
10. Closure
11. Slither (First time ever)
12. A Fair Judgement
13. Hex Omega
ENCORE:
14. Folklore (First time ever)

That's right, I just saw Opeth play eight songs for the first time EVER. Be fucking jealous.

Also, everyone on metal archives, metalsetlists, return to the pit, etc, etc. is bitching and moaning about the setlist being ALL clean vocals. What a bunch of obviously fake fans.

Oh wow, and I totally forgot Katatonia opened. LMFAO

Katatonia's setlist:
01. Forsaker
02. Liberation
03. Soil's Song
04. Nephilism
05. My Twin
06. The Longest Year
07. Evidence
08. Chrome
09. For My Demons
10. July
11. Leaders

And TONIGHT i'm seeing Kyuss, The Sword, Milligram and Monstro! :D

So I checked out Iconoclast because I wanted to check out some stuff that came out this year in the world of metal.

I really liked it and I think the title track is probably my new favorite 10+ minute song.

So then I decided, since I liked Iconoclast, I would check out the rest of Symphony X so I have been doing that and it's really good so far. Paradise Lost stands out among the rest as a more focused, varied work but their other albums have a really neat combination of elements from bands like Helloween and Blind Guardian and makes it something different, fresh, and entertaining.

I find the 20+ minutes songs to be drivel though so I tend to just skip over those, I don't feel there is ever any need to make something that long but idk.

At 9/20/11 06:16 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: So I checked out Iconoclast because I wanted to check out some stuff that came out this year in the world of metal.

I really liked it and I think the title track is probably my new favorite 10+ minute song.

So then I decided, since I liked Iconoclast, I would check out the rest of Symphony X so I have been doing that and it's really good so far. Paradise Lost stands out among the rest as a more focused, varied work but their other albums have a really neat combination of elements from bands like Helloween and Blind Guardian and makes it something different, fresh, and entertaining.

I find the 20+ minutes songs to be drivel though so I tend to just skip over those, I don't feel there is ever any need to make something that long but idk.

What....? The Odyssey is probably one of, if not THE, best Sym X songs. Along with DWoT. My personal favorite album is The Odyssey as well, but I can see where you see Paradise Lost as a bit unfocused. I didn't care for it much at first, but it grew on me. Probably my 4th favorite Sym X album. For more Metal albums released this year I suggest:

Hell's Human Remains: A great NWOBHM record, they finally got their debut album released this year and it kicks ass.

Believer's Transhuman: A really cool prog/tech thrash band. Definately worth checking out.

Artillery's My Blood: Great thrash from a band that has been solid since the 80s.

Devin Townsend Project's Deconstruction and Ghost: OMG THESE TWO ALBUMS ARE AMAZING. GET THEM NOW.

At 9/20/11 10:38 AM, AniMetal wrote: Oh wow, and I totally forgot Katatonia opened. LMFAO

Katatonia's setlist:
01. Forsaker
02. Liberation
03. Soil's Song
04. Nephilism
05. My Twin
06. The Longest Year
07. Evidence
08. Chrome
09. For My Demons
10. July
11. Leaders

And TONIGHT i'm seeing Kyuss, The Sword, Milligram and Monstro! :D

Have fun seeinig Kyuss man, I've heard it's a great tour.

At 9/20/11 06:16 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: So I checked out Iconoclast because I wanted to check out some stuff that came out this year in the world of metal.

Cool :)

I really liked it and I think the title track is probably my new favorite 10+ minute song.

Great song! Except for the chorus... it's cheesy and cheap as fuck. When I listenned to it with my girlfriend in the car, I swear I was embarassed when the chorus started. Like... seriouslly...

Russel Allen : We aaarrreee strong !!!
Everybody: WE! ARE! STRONG!
R.A.: Weee wiiilll stand and fiiiight !!!
Everybody: FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!
then repeat...

it sounds silly...

The rest of the track is pretty good though :)

So then I decided, since I liked Iconoclast, I would check out the rest of Symphony X so I have been doing that and it's really good so far. Paradise Lost stands out among the rest as a more focused, varied work but their other albums have a really neat combination of elements from bands like Helloween and Blind Guardian and makes it something different, fresh, and entertaining.

It's cool to know that you enjoy their work :)

I find the 20+ minutes songs to be drivel though so I tend to just skip over those, I don't feel there is ever any need to make something that long but idk.

The Odyssey is an awesome track. The point was to make an amazing and epic odyssey in the form of a long progressive track, and it really worked. I suggest you give it a few more listens, you might just end up liking it, that's what happenned to me :)

At 9/20/11 10:08 PM, HeavenDuff wrote:

At 9/20/11 06:16 PM, Gobblemeister wrote:

Great song! Except for the chorus... it's cheesy and cheap as fuck. When I listenned to it with my girlfriend in the car, I swear I was embarassed when the chorus started. Like... seriouslly...

Russel Allen : We aaarrreee strong !!!
Everybody: WE! ARE! STRONG!
R.A.: Weee wiiilll stand and fiiiight !!!
Everybody: FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!
then repeat...

it sounds silly...

I actually like the chorus a lot, I always found that Power Metal is supposed to be kind of goofy and silly, that's just part of it's appeal.

The chorus is cool in the same way cheesy Arnold Schwarzenegger movies are cool, they are big and tough and at the same time they come off as just joking at the same time.

I love how none of you commented on the fact I saw eight opeth songs all performed for the first time ever. Especially considering the constant Opeth Fellatio in here.

At 9/20/11 06:16 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: Paradise Lost stands out among the rest as a more focused, varied work

Paradise Lost is a joke. Especially in comparison to The Divine Wings Of Tragedy and Twilight In Olympus. Just saying.

At 9/21/11 01:24 AM, batman64 wrote: Kyuss

Kyuss, The Sword, Milligram and Monstro were all amazing!

Monstro came on first and played for 30 minutes. They felt like Torche, only less proggie and more drug-inspired. They had great stage presence, eye contact and overall a unique and awesome feel!

Milligram came on second and they played for 40 minutes and felt like I was listening to Saint Vitus meets Soundgarden song structures meets some hardcore influence. They were kind of boring to watch, but good music nonetheless.

Then The Sword came on and played for 50 minutes and the crowd went berserk. They are TEN times better live then on recording, that's all I have to say.

Kyuss... pretty much raped everything and everyone. They were perfection in every sense of the word for a whole 120 minutes.

Kyuss and The Sword setlists coming tomorrow. AMAZING tour. If you ever have a shot at seeing Kyuss Lives, don't turn it down - you will regret it forever.

Kyuss - 50 Million Year Trip

At 9/20/11 10:02 AM, AniMetal wrote: So I saw Opeth on their FIRST show for the Heritage world tour.

Now that's pretty sweet. However, whether I'll want to see them in Manchester will depend on whether I like the new album or not. If it doesn't appeal to me that much, I'll be out of luck there. :P I was hoping they'd keep the Heritage songs to a minimum since it is a risky move for Opeth and Mikael was aware of many weren't going to like the new album.

At 9/20/11 06:59 PM, Zodir wrote: Hell's Human Remains: A great NWOBHM record, they finally got their debut album released this year and it kicks ass.

Devin Townsend Project's Deconstruction and Ghost: OMG THESE TWO ALBUMS ARE AMAZING. GET THEM NOW.

These are definite agrees (except for Ghost which I have yet to hear). I'll need to hear the new Artillery album to find out what the fuss is about.

At 9/21/11 01:24 AM, batman64 wrote: Napalm Death who had a Guitarist who is currently playing in Angel Witch.

Not only that, Napalm Death had a vocalist who formed Cathedral.

At 9/20/11 10:02 AM, AniMetal wrote:
Also, everyone on metal archives, metalsetlists, return to the pit, etc, etc. is bitching and moaning about the setlist being ALL clean vocals. What a bunch of obviously fake fans.

Honestly, an all clean set would put me off. Not that clean Opeth isn't awesome, but I do love their heavier stuff too and I'd want to hear some of it live at least.

Also, seeing Between the Buried and Me with support from Animals as Leaders tomorrow. Should be fun.