Kevin's Watch

Anyone else here into any of the various forms of "extreme" music? It's a niche genre, so I'm feeling peeps out before I start posting material potentially no-one else here likes

Over the past few years I've gotten big into death metal, with beloved bands also in sludge, black metal, doom metal, and various hybrids. This could also be a place to discuss hardcore punk, grindcore, metalcore, or bands of that general family.

Or hell, if you don't like it but wonder what it's all about, hit me up for discussions and explanations! It's an appeal I certainly found very baffling even a few years ago.

Any takers?

I'm into some of it. I just don't care for the shrieking vocals that a lot of (forgive me if I get this wrong because I'm far from an expert on this) death metal bands use. I can only take the growly vocals in short bursts as well.

That said, I do like the aggressiveness and anger involved in a lot of it.

Death metal predominantly uses growls, peppered with other harsh vocalisations, if it's almost all shrieking, you're probably listening to black metal or something with a black metal influence. No apologies necessary, while I know many metal heads get uppity about this stuff, I'm really the opposite of that.

As for the harsh vocals, I've come to love them as the most fitting vocal expression of such harsh, aggressive, evil sounding music.

Frosty aka Softy is into death metal.

The closest I come to those genres you mention is aggrotech from bands like Combichrist, but not their new stuff (though you might like their newstuff because it is sort of a mix of aggrotech and metal)

Here are a few from them:

Older stuff that I like
Combichrist - Sent to destroy
Combichrist - Enjoy the abuse
Newer stuff that you might like
Combichrist - Maggots at the party

But, I'm more into the industrial, goth, EBM, post industrial, neo-psychodelia, neo-folk, dark ambient, darkwave and so. When Softy looks at the forum, she will be a big contributor to your discussion, I am sure.

Ananda wrote: But, I'm more into the industrial, goth, EBM, post industrial, neo-psychodelia, neo-folk, dark ambient, darkwave and so.

That sounds like what I listen to these days.

Cambo wrote:It's a niche genre, so I'm feeling peeps out before I start posting material potentially no-one else here likes

I'd say post away - maybe people will discover something new. I would be curious to see if I recognize any of your favorites.

Probably not, as most of the metal that I like could be classified as rock, and the rest is probably on the obscure side.

Sorus wrote:

Ananda wrote: But, I'm more into the industrial, goth, EBM, post industrial, neo-psychodelia, neo-folk, dark ambient, darkwave and so.

That sounds like what I listen to these days.

Oh, nice. What are some of your favourite bands?

To be honest Ananda, I enjoyed the first style of songs you posted much more than the metal-influenced stuff by that band I felt the repetitive riff structure worked a lot better with the more electronic sound.

Sorus wrote:I'd say post away - maybe people will discover something new. I would be curious to see if I recognize any of your favorites.

You asked for it!

Here are my absolute favourite extreme metal band Gorguts. Don't let the rather cliched name fool you: these days they produce a highly technical, dissonant and compositionally complex brand of death metal that nothing else quite compares to. Their landmark album Obscura was a game changer, really bringing the avant-garde into the death metal scene, creating a new kind of extremity when everyone else was playing harder, faster, more technical.

Gorguts- An Ocean of Wisdom

Something a little more traditional, here's a recent song by death metal band Autopsy. The album cover may not be for the squeamish- Autopsy are notorious gross-out merchants in image and lyrical content. I like the slow, doomy flavour Autopsy bring to their riffs, and on this particular song I love the variance in his vocals, he's all over the place while still sounding absolutely disgusting. You can tell how much fun he's having. "I was transsfixxed-ah!"

Autopsy- She is a Funeral

Something perhaps a little more palatable for people who appreciate punk and hardcore- sludge metal started life as a merging between slow, heavy riffs and angry snarled punk vocals. The band who started it all were Eyehategod, and they remain giants of the genre.

Eyehategod- Serving Time in the Middle of Nowhere

Sorus wrote:Probably not, as most of the metal that I like could be classified as rock, and the rest is probably on the obscure side.

Alright Sorus, I've showed you mine, you show me yours

Of those, I liked the Eyehategod one the best. The others reminded me of the Death Metal Rooster. You have any of your bands that do more electronic type stuff?

That death metal rooster...I'm dying.

Electronic music isn't often combined with metal (nu-metal aside...shudder), the closest bands I personally like would be Nine Inch Nails, who you probably know, who was industrial with strong metal influences on two of his albums especially...and "industrial metal" bands like Godflesh and Ministry.

Godflesh- Like Rats

Ministry- Stigmata

I liked the rhythm of the first one, though I couldn't make out the lyrics. That's the big drawback to the growly side of metal for me.

The stuff I tend to gravitate to is probably way too soft for your tastes, but here's a few anyway:

Lake of Tears - Evil Inside, Demon You/Lily Ann

Well of Souls - Realms of Reverie

Joachim Witt - Vandemar

Ananda wrote:Oh, nice. What are some of your favourite bands?

Ego Likeness, The Crüxshadows, Diorama, Solar Fake, Abney Park, Sunday Driver, Rasputina

A couple of those are more steampunk, but I don't think that's an actual genre, at least not yet. What are some of yours?

Sorus: I'm loving Well of Tears! Some top-notch traditional doom metal! I have nothing against metal that isn't extreme or the heaviest of the heavy- I have a wide taste both within metal and across other genres. Yesterday I was switching between death metal and Janis Joplin!

Bands I like that are similar to your linked posts:

Candlemass- Solitude

Pallbearer- Foreigner

I think I've heard Candlemass before. They're good.

And Death Metal Rooster is epic.

Sorus wrote:

Ananda wrote:Oh, nice. What are some of your favourite bands?

Ego Likeness, The Crüxshadows, Diorama, Solar Fake, Abney Park, Sunday Driver, Rasputina

A couple of those are more steampunk, but I don't think that's an actual genre, at least not yet. What are some of yours?

Ego Likeness is good. I like al to of their stuff. Have you seen the songs they posted to their youtube channel a couple of months ago? Not sure if it was a side project or what, but I liked it.

Crüxshadows are good, too. We have Diorama albums, though I think that is more something my husband likes. Rasputina are still making albums? I haven't listened to them since about 2001. I remember the diamond song was funny.

The others, I haven't heard of. Can you share a song by them that you recommend?

What I like... well, we have a lot of music. We have a huge electronic collection (stored electronically, not electronic the genre!), a massive amount of CDs and a wall full of albums.

I can just name some that come to mind:
Rome, Switchblade Symphony, Kirlian Camera, VNV Nation, Wolfsheim, Android Lust, Portion Control, Current 93, Legendary Pink Dots, Coil, Blutengel, Kent, Covenant, The Cure, Faith and Muse, Sisters of Mercy, Dead Can Dance, Einstürzende neubauten, Deine lakaien, Joy division, Bauhaus, Ultravox, Moby, Neikka rpm, Apoptygma Berzerk, Schiller mit Heppner, Sitd, Implant, rotersand, Ayria and so. Lots more I didn't think of, I am sure.

Poor Cambo. We should start a new thread. (Sorry!)

Ananda wrote: Ego Likeness is good. I like al to of their stuff. Have you seen the songs they posted to their youtube channel a couple of months ago? Not sure if it was a side project or what, but I liked it.

Stoneburner? That's one of Steven Archer's side projects. I'm thrilled that you like Ego Likeness - they're one of the bands I try to get everyone to listen to, usually with limited success.

I'm at least slightly familiar with several of the ones you named.

Ananda wrote:The others, I haven't heard of. Can you share a song by them that you recommend?

Abney Park: Throw Them Overboard, Building Steam, All the Myths are True

Solar Fake: The Shield, Here I Stand, Your Hell Is Here

Rasputina is still around, and I believe that Melora Creager has some side projects as well. A Retinue of Moons is one of my favorites of their newer work.

I can't find good versions of my favorite Sunday Driver tracks.

So I will substitute Unextraordinary Gentlemen's Ants Under Glass and Skeleton Goes to Town

And for Cambo - Therion is the band I was trying to remember the other day. Son of the Sun is one of my favorites. I believe they started as death metal, but most of what I've listened to is from their symphonic era.

I'll have to bookmark the thread for later perusal. I have a wide range of metal likes from Viking to gothic to symphonic to pagan (But I do appreciate other genres such as opera and soundracks as well!). Some very long-time favorites: Moonsorrow, Korpiklaani (named "accordion metal" by one e-fester), Týr, Fortíð, Amon Amarth, Finntroll, Nightwish, Amorphis, Fejd, Metsatöll, Ensiferum...and many, many others containing decorative letters from the fascinating Nordic collection of ᚦäöåõøðœ.

I'll leave you guys with this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yHsmZy-YS8
(The Viking raid begins around 15:00.)


It's NOT Softy.

__ wrote:
I'll leave you guys with this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yHsmZy-YS8
(The Viking raid begins around 15:00.)

That looks good. I will check it out in depth after the headphone-eating gremlin under my desk falls asleep.

I am not quite sure where this band would fit in within the genre, but I am really into Huntress right now. If you haven't heard of them, here's a video to the epic 'Eight of Swords'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SKELDVRJDY

There is also a band out of Baton Rouge who absolutely blow me away. They classify themselves as 'mercurial metal. Their name is Cea Serin. The melodies (IMO) are amazing. Here are a couple of links to a couple of their songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFy3iD_zF7k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2PvLUuQby8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okPdpjQMDHc

I've been checking out some of the stull that y'all have posted...not too sure yet on any, but am still checking stuff out.

Cambo wrote:
Ministry- Stigmata

I'm mostly staying out of this thread, because...similar to the steampunk thing...there's a lot that is spectacular, but sooooo muuuuchhh boring/derivative/stolen crap to wade through to find the yummy chocolate center...but I have to say:
I love Ministry.
I won't delve into why...I'm not sure I COULD, anyway...but I love Ministry.

To the extent that, I was in a shop in Camden or nearby on a trip abroad [peter, I think, knows Camden...I think we talked about a club there once], and I paid a fair amount [about 75 or so pounds IIRC] for 2 bootleg DVD's of Ministry shows in Europe. They're probably on youtube or something, I probably got ripped off...but I saw them there and bought them. And I like them.

Vraith wrote:

Cambo wrote:
Ministry- Stigmata

I'm mostly staying out of this thread, because...similar to the steampunk thing...there's a lot that is spectacular, but sooooo muuuuchhh boring/derivative/stolen crap to wade through to find the yummy chocolate center...but I have to say:
I love Ministry.
I won't delve into why...I'm not sure I COULD, anyway...but I love Ministry.

To the extent that, I was in a shop in Camden or nearby on a trip abroad [peter, I think, knows Camden...I think we talked about a club there once], and I paid a fair amount [about 75 or so pounds IIRC] for 2 bootleg DVD's of Ministry shows in Europe. They're probably on youtube or something, I probably got ripped off...but I saw them there and bought them. And I like them.

I liked ministry for a period, too. Was a funny trajectory they took. They started off very new wave pretty boys and ended up metal or something close to it. I enjoyed their albums up to the Jesus Built My Hotrod one. I saw them play that year or around there, I think.

Vraith wrote:I'm mostly staying out of this thread, because...similar to the steampunk thing...there's a lot that is spectacular, but sooooo muuuuchhh boring/derivative/stolen crap to wade through to find the yummy chocolate center...

This is a problem with all genres, but I've noticed it is particularly bad with metal. Metal fans are a very conservative bunch musically, and often have strong ties to particular subgenres. This can lead to things like bands being celebrated for near complete replication of another popular band's sound, while bands that stray from their original sound are derided. The latter happens especially when previously harsh, heavy and complex bands release material that is softer simpler, or that crime of crimes, poppier.

In some cases either response is justified. A band may make a well known style so well they truly own it and turn the familiar into a revelation. The latest Dead Congregation release is being hailed as that for death metal, and I agree. In one way it's by-the-numbers old school death metal. But the execution is such an achievement of technical ability, atmosphere and above all songwriting, that it moves from generic to transcendent.

Dead Congregation- Immaculate Poison