Death (the band) and the Death of Death Metal
IntoHiding
Deathmetal is going to meet its demise shortly, but the subgroups are
_VERY_ promising. For example, (and I don't give a F-CK if any of you
think this music sounds "wimpy" - its about MUSIC not your manliness), is
the Scandanavian Melodic/Classical Metal scene. The bands (ie- Katatonia,
Unanimated, Dissection, Opeth, Amorphis, Dark Tranquillty, In Flames
etc..) are just the begining of a scene that is selling _amazingly_ well..
If you don't like it, thats cool... but I think that scene is way better
then the american scene every was.
- IntoHiding
The MegaHamster
>
> Well guys (and girls), I 'm going to have to call it quits for my timely
> interests in Death Metal. I've had a good time buying albums, going to
> gigs, and experiencing the scene, but I think it's over.
> Apparently Chuck Schuldiner has formed a new band called Control Denied.
I go tthe impression that Death is only on hiatus, not disbanded (which
would be sort of hard, since Chuck *is* Death, I guess :)...). When this
Control Denied project (which might well be very cool) is over, it seems
Chuck plans to return to Death, and who knows, prehaps with lots of new
and cool ideas for Death!
M
--
"Het ruikt hier naar onzin... *snif, snif*... Hmmm, heerlijk!"
(Kamagurka)
MegaHamsteR Martin | email: rug...@astro.washington.edu
UW Astronomy, Seattle | WWW:
http://www.astro.washington.edu/rugers/index.html
Philip Wang
>interests in Death Metal. I've had a good time buying albums, going to
>gigs, and experiencing the scene, but I think it's over.
It's been over for many years now, ever since black metal came back into
popularity (if we're talking about fashions and musical trends).
>Apparently Chuck Schuldiner has formed a new band called Control Denied.
>This group is supposedly a vehicle for Schuldiner's explorations with
>"classic" metal song structures and themes. His old band, Death, basically
>spawned the Death Metal genre. Since Chuck has lost interest in Death
>Metal, that, to me, is the mark of the end (and I don't worship him or any
>other musicians, BTW).
It's not because of Chuck that death metal (as a fashion statement) is dead.
The hiatus (as the state of Death has been reported to be) is just a symptom
and not a result.
But the band death hasn't exactly been playing death metal since the Human
album (the last two were more and more increasingly '80s metal influenced and
the results seem more similar to albums by bands such as Sentenced or Therion
and not really anything like their own Scream Bloody Gore or Leprosy). I don't
consider Death to be the band that spawned death metal. I consider death metal
to have spawned from black metal and Death was "one of Cronos's kids that he
just couldn't swallow" to give a bit of a metaphor. Most FAMOUS death bands
lost interest in death metal but there are a lot of not so famous bands that
are actually doing something nice with it and keeping it fresh.
>There have been other indications of Death Metal's demise. The collapse of
It's commercial demise is more like it. The style does still thrive fairly
healthily, but I don't think anyone really cares so much about the bands that
made it big playing death metal.
>the Earache/Columbia affiliation.
How about the birth of the Earache / Columbia affiliation? How about Relativity
getting rid of all of its metal staff? How about Roadracer dumping everybody
on their death metal roster? This stuff happened a bit before Earache and
Columbia got divorced.
>Lack-luster new albums from some the
>genre's best acts (Napalm Death, Sepultura, Entombed, Morbid Angel,
>Deicide).
I wouldn't say they were necessarily the best (maybe Entombed and Morbid Angel)
but certainly they were among the most popular. The latest Napalm Death album
sounds great and more interesting than the last few. Sepultura hasn't been
death metal since the Arise album (even that one only had one or two death
songs at the most). Entombed is said to be going more and more punk now and
not so much metal anymore (which is why Lars quit to join Therion).
>Few concerts or tours.
Doesn't bother me since I only have time to hit maybe two or three concerts a
semester anyway.
>Death Metal has died.
As a commercial entity yes. As a genre, hardly - there are many genres of music
that have long since ceased to be money making genres, but there are many
musicians who still enjoy writing and performing music of that style. Death
metal will be one of them.
>Of course, I could still follow the Death Metal bands that I appreciated
>in their primes; just like some of the classic rock fans who travel to
>Reno, NV to see ELP or Yes perform in a hotel theatre. But I am going to
>decline.
Or maybe you could look at much less famous bands (I've been checking out
albums by bands like Agressor or Crematory and Dissection) and see what happens
to them. While I consider Morbid Angel to be really fantastic there are bands
like Dissection who aren't so famous but I think will easily upstage the band
on their current tour.
>Every style of rock and roll has a short period of innovation, and to me,
>Death Metal seemed new and fresh from 1987 to 1994, which is actually a
>good run of it.
It's not like death metal as a fashion statement would have lasted forever.
>Death Metal was Thrash Metal's ugly younger brother and
Death metal was black metal's kids.
Sometimes when I look at demo sections in magazines and also in Wild Rags's
newsletter, I see all these unsigned bands - hundreds, even thousands of them
after a while, and they all seem to be death metal bands. They all have either
sesquipedalial lyrics styles and/or band names, or else they are black metal
wannabes, or it's just thrash but to market themselves they call themselves
death - a lot seem to tell the label that they are offering something really
unique and really new but if you hear some of them, what you get is really
boring and insipid riffs based on minor thirds and sixths with a guy who's
shoved a microphone in his mouth and him just grumbling unintelligably. Some
of them have song titles that sound really grotesque an eerie but if you read
the lyrics, they're about the environment or about politics or other social
statements. I almost never see melodic bands get reviewed in magazines. I never
hear about power metal or classic metal bands - almost every single new band
is a death metal band. Or now also they say they are black metal bands (but
what a lot of so-called black metal bands are are really death metal
instrumentation with shrieks and howls instead of growls and chokes. Absu and
earlier Marduk, for example).
>Thrash Metal died too when Metallica sold out.
Metallica was never thrash metal to begin with. They were just really fast
heavy metal and influenced by thrash but never really played it. Thrash metal
is actually still very viable - do you listen to Kreator? Sodom? Sepultura is
thrash and a lot of people think their new stuff is great (I hate Sepultura
myself). Fear Factory is getting more thrashy and Dehumanizer is a more
interesting album than Soul Of A New Machine was. Slayer's albums are still
Slayer's albums (Divine Intervention obviously has a lot in common with their
older Def American releases) and Bathory returned in a thrash style for their
last two albums. Commercially they are all still healthy acts even though the
creativity level might not be nearly as high as in the '80s. Still a lot of the
new thrash albums are quite superb. You might want to check out the new Venom
lineup for instance. Albums like Temples Of Ice and The Waste Lands have a lot
of mood and atmospheres while still retaining the intensity that they were
known for. Actually I think the newer stuff is heavier than the old stuff with
the classic lineup when they were black.
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Chris Pedersen
: PEMCR wrote:
: >
: > Well guys (and girls), I 'm going to have to call it quits for my timely
: > interests in Death Metal. I've had a good time buying albums, going to
: > gigs, and experiencing the scene, but I think it's over.
Screw that noise...Who gives a fuck if Chuck left the scene...in my
opinion he left the scene after Spiritual Healing...one man does not a
scene make! I agree that the scene had its peak and is no longer what
it used to be..but there are still some good releases and a couple of
bands putting out quality albums...I don't think the death metal scene
or the thrash scene is dead...I think that you just have to be more
selective in what you buy, that is what I do...I think that it will
not be what it was, but it still has its place in the musical
community and will stay alive. just my thoughts.
cp
I spit on those who choose to pose.
Cory Stevenson
In a previous article, pe...@aol.com (PEMCR) says:
>Well guys (and girls), I 'm going to have to call it quits for my timely
>interests in Death Metal. I've had a good time buying albums, going to
>gigs, and experiencing the scene, but I think it's over.
>Apparently Chuck Schuldiner has formed a new band called Control Denied.
>This group is supposedly a vehicle for Schuldiner's explorations with
>"classic" metal song structures and themes. His old band, Death, basically
>spawned the Death Metal genre. Since Chuck has lost interest in Death
>Metal, that, to me, is the mark of the end (and I don't worship him or any
>other musicians, BTW).
>There have been other indications of Death Metal's demise. The collapse of
>the Earache/Columbia affiliation. Lack-luster new albums from some the
>genre's best acts (Napalm Death, Sepultura, Entombed, Morbid Angel,
>Deicide). Few concerts or tours.
>Death Metal has died.
>Of course, I could still follow the Death Metal bands that I appreciated
>in their primes; just like some of the classic rock fans who travel to
>Reno, NV to see ELP or Yes perform in a hotel theatre. But I am going to
>decline.
>Every style of rock and roll has a short period of innovation, and to me,
>Death Metal seemed new and fresh from 1987 to 1994, which is actually a
>good run of it. Death Metal was Thrash Metal's ugly younger brother and
>Thrash Metal died too when Metallica sold out.
>Enjoy. - Peter
>
You're sad. You may not worship Chuck Schuldiner, but he obviously has a
say in your decisions. Think for yourself. There is plenty of GREAT
death and black metal out there. You just have to search. The
underground doesn't need people like you anyway. Enjoy.
CORY
"Demons race into my eyes..."
--
"...those rednecks are probably enjoying this!" -Dawn of the Dead
"Demons race into my eyes..."