JUMPING DARKNESS PARADE: EYAL WANTS TO KNOW EVEN MORE ABOUT YOU
Friday, August 21st, 2009 at 4:30pm by Eyal Levi
Okay. It’s time for me to get the answer to a question which has been haunting my soul for a few years now. How many of you metal fans are musicians, how many of you are musicians in bands, and how many of you don’t play any instruments at all and just love the music? Please feel free to get as detailed as possible with your response.
DAATH is the kind of band that likes to meet all of our fans. Granted, we’re not as big as the Jonas Brothers yet, so we have time every night to talk to our fans. But regardless, we make a point of doing so. The grand majority, and I mean GRAND majority of fans we talk to, at some point will tell us about their band, or about a guitar they own, or about some sort of musical inclination they have. Is metal a style of music by musicians for musicians? Are straight up music fans that don’t play anything the minority? Or is it just that way in the more extreme genres of metal – since there aren’t as many fans to begin with are the people that are there just generally the bands in the scene?
I’m just seriously curious as to how many people out there are just straight up music fans. I can’t imagine that in other genres of music there are this many musicians in the crowd. But then again, other genres of music don’t happen to be as small as metal. It doesn’t seem like it, because the community is so structured, but metal is in fact a tiny part of the music industry. And to those of you who are just music fans…I wanna know. Do you give a fuck about things like guitar solos? How do you rate your favorite guitarists? What’s your criteria? What about drummers? Do you give a shit about their double bass speed? Or is it more just the overall feeling the music gives you?
See, I can’t think outside of a musician’s mind. When I was younger and I experimented with LSD and other similar drugs, I could sometimes step
outside of myself and just hear music for what it was. That was a mind blowing experience. For me to hear music outside the frame of being a musician made me feel so free and in some ways feel it so much more deeply that it makes me jealous of non-musicians. However, I wonder if it was just the acid, or if that’s how non-musicians listen to music.
I started playing music when I was three years old. Started on violin and piano. I continued that until I was nine. Then I took a three year break until I discovered electric guitar. In those three years, I found rock n’ roll and, eventually, metal. I was not thinking of Nirvana, or The Doors, or The Beatles, or Megadeth, or GN’R, from the perspective I would just a few years later. I was just experiencing how the music made me feel, and experiencing how it affected my emotions. And I have to say – it was deep. Again, in many ways deeper than how music affects me now that its my entire life.
That’s not to say that I don’t live, breathe, shit, eat, bleed, and write blogs for music. It’s my everything, and I would wither up into a raisin and shoot myself point blank in the face without it. (Some of you are going to suggest that someone remove music from my life so I just get on with it, but those of you who do so can go fuck yourselves with a sandpaper dildo.) I feel music incredibly deeply, but there’s always an analytical side to it. There’s always an intellectual side to it. There’s always an agenda to it.
How do you non-musicians hear it?
-EL
Musicians and non-musicians alike should visit Daath on MySpace.
Personally, I think what you described about how you felt it when you were younger may just have something to do with youth and inexperience. I’m a non-musician, and I still look back on how music made me feel when I was younger with a touch of nostalgia and bit of a sense of loss.
I love music (particularly metal, obviously), and I have for years. I’ve spent a lot of time in the critic’s chair, so to speak–analyzing, critiquing, pulling the music apart–but in a wholly different sense than that of a musician. In doing so, I do think I’ve lost some of the immediacy you associate with listening from a non-musician’s perspective. Having heard and thought music so much, as a musician or not, I think it’s difficult to just “listen.”
And, for the record… it was just the acid, dude.
I figured it was just the acid
And as to why there are so many musicians in the metal community… I think it at least has something to do with the passion, fanaticism, obsession, whatever you’d like to call it that metal seems to inspire in its fans. There are so many diehards (I think in part because it is a small community and consequently people often form their identities around it), and when you feel that way about something, you want to get personally involved. You want to directly be a part of it.
Well, as somebody that likes to leave replies on the majority of your posts, I find myself unable to answer your question because I am, in fact, a lead guitarist in a metal band in FL. So I suppose it would be safe to say that i’m on the same page as you. Music, to me, is a language in which tones are used to convey and manipulate the emotions and thoughts people. This is also where i draw the line at the importance of “lyrics” in music. While i do find it a integral part of creating a song, the overall impact of a song on somebody is initially derived from the “music” itself and not message. Titanic’s theme song had lyrics that were comparable to that of the ramblings of a drunken baboon, however the song was such a tear jerker to all the little teeny-boppers due to the “flute” riffs backing Celine’s erratically annoying voice (hey, i’d still do her).
I would like to think that the metal community is saturated with musicians based off the fact that metal fans seek something else from music than the majority of music lovers. And to really appreciate the amount of difficulty it takes to really write a good metal song, you have to know first hand (playing one of the instruments commonly used in metal). Metal pushes every facet of music past the superimposed limits set by the general population of listeners. Its an acquired tasted. And in many instances, I can understand why so many people don’t have the ears for it.
So all in all, i’m just as eager to see how non-musicians hear it as you are. I think it would offer a different perspective that could be applied to how I write music.
Let em’ rip.
I’m first and foremost a metal guitarist. I consider that to be like my mother tongue haha. I started in 4th grade on a cheap ass acoustic and just gradually proved my parents more and more wrong by getting progressively more serious with music. for 3 years I was in a band I started called Vanity of Rage. We were technical/melodic/whatever the fuck death metal and I loved it but I really wanted to pursue a career in Music Therapy and to get a degree in music, usually colleges only offer classical guitar programs. So since about a year before I started my freshman year, I took up classical guitar, largely on my own, developing terrible technique and habits but I somehow managed to make it into the program, despite there being only 3 open seats available. Since then, Classical Music has dominated my life and I wouldn’t have it any other way. The technical demand, musicianship, attention to detail and creativity required to be a good performer is what holds my attention. Every day is a struggle to interpret the music I’m learning to the best of my ability, focusing solely on musicality. But at the end of the day, I still put my classical guitar back in its case while wearing an Arsis shirt and having unnecessarily long hair!
Have you rocked it with an orchestra yet?
I think when you’re a musician, especially in metal, listening to music can be both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, you can appreciate great music so much more because you understand the dedication and ability of those who created it, and you know how difficult the process is.
On the other hand, it make you that much more critical of EVERYTHING. You find yourself constantly analyzing the songs and the players instead of just sitting back and listening with an open mind. I’m envious of (and frustrated with) people who can just listen to anything (and like anything) without regard to songwriting or musicianship, and just fall into the “if it sounds good, I like it” category.
Having said that, I’d choose the musician perspective any day. Much more rewarding.
I agree. It really makes you pick things apart to the point where you’re looking at other bands as competition rather than a new form of inspiration.
However, i’d still choose the musicians paradigm over anything else.
Exactly.
Doesn’t it irritate you when you ask someone what kind of music they’re into, and they respond with “oh I listen to anything on the radio.” Come on, put some effort into it. I mean, I do know a few people that are music lovers and probably do listen to everything, but I don’t think the average person really goes out of their way to seek out great music. Kinda goes back to the musician’s perspective, and wanting everyone to be as passionate about music as you are.
It doesn’t irritate me, it annoys the fuck out of me. I honestly do not understand how one can listen to a song, like it, and not even know or have any desire to know what genre it is. I swear to God if someone wants to start a fight with me all they have to say is the oh so common “I like anything with a good beat” or as you said “oh I listen to anything on the radio.” I don’t even consider these people fans of music, they don’t deserve to be called fans of music.
Maybe I’m being a bit harsh but still, its annoys the fuck out of me…
I love it when people say, “I listen to everything.” Bullshit you do. I know that I could play stuff for them and their fuzzy little heads would explode.
Haha for sure, whenever people say that I just throw on some Hate Eternal and watch them hate it
Yup… I know that’s the problem I have when I’m asked what kind of music I like. I mention a band,like Confessor and get this blank look because you know when they say “I listen to everything” , they really mean “I listen to anything on the radio and its mostly background sounds to my cellphone activity.
Personally, I feel that music is far more complex topic than people make it out to be. Too many people easily pass it off as subjective which I think is a cop out. IMHO, there are certain important aspects that need to be covered when just discussing the listening “chapter” of Music.
These are some(for me):
- A “trained” ear is priceless (you don’t have to be a musician but it helps)
- Proper stereo equipment is a must!
- Understanding the differences between audio formats/codecs
Ex. “Mp3 = CD quality” is an inaccurate statement.
I feel the same way Grover. I have noticed that many people do this and it’s annoying… I wonder if they would listen to Napalm Death or Cannibal Corpse.
I have a bass, which I haven’t played in years, and I wasn’t particularly good at it when I did play it. However, I think that I do hear things in music that I didn’t before I played bass. Then again, listening to Primus (that’s where I got the idea to play bass to begin with) had just as much of an effect on me. I found myself picking up on more.
As it is, for the most part, I listen to music with a combination of emotion, analysis, and intellect. It’s hard to define. I listen to stuff that sounds good to me. I suppose that’s a bit simplistic, but that’s the best way to put it.
I have been playing guitar and bass on and off for something like 15 years. I try like hell to play drums when i am around them as well. I’m not real good at drums mostly because I dont the chance to play much. But yeah I play stuff. I have been in 3 bands over the years,each with varying degrees of seriousness and each going no where at all but i still had lots of fun and i am currently getting ready to blow the dust off of my guitars and start working towards another band soon.Besides the instruments I also tried my hand at doing vocals as well as guitars in my last band and teaching myself to do vocals and play at the same time was a challenge but I picked it up pretty decently.
As far as music goes, I do analyze my music alot more closely than most of my non playing friends but mostly because I like to be able to pick out and understand whats happening during a song. I analyze the stuff more out of interest in how the music works more so than from a critical stand point. If i hear stuff that is just not working i will pick it out and mention it to whoever i am with but i dont tend to go looking for whats wrong with the music thats happening.
As far as your questions about giving a fuck about guitar solos and crazy drums and shit…..Yes i give a fuck in the sense that i love hearing that stuff and i love trying to wrap my mind around how some people can do the things they do but I dont give a fuck in the sense that if some of that stuff is not there it wont turn me away from the music as long as everything that is there is working…does that make sense? I do notice when something is missing and needs to be there,i also notice when there is just to much happening at once. As long as the music is working I dont need anything else besides what is already happening. I dont need 500 bpm drums or anything to like music.
and Eyal, i am with you in the sense that music is pretty much what keeps my mind working in any kind of manner that is usefull to being a sane person. Music is pretty much as important in my everyday goings as eating.
I’ll second that. I’m fortunate enough to be able to listen to my mp3 player all day while I’m at work, and if I couldn’t I’d go insane from boredom. It gets me through my day, whether I’m actually paying attention to what I’m listening to or not. (At this moment, I’m listening to the new Municipal Waste album… I’m partially paying attention to it. I mean, when you’ve heard one of their albums, you’ve heard all of them.)
I have never played a instrument in my life and I listen to metal cause i love the way it sounds and feels. When I listen to metal I don’t sit there analyzing the song and judge it by how complex the music is or how original it is. It’s the excitement and overall feel of the music that draws me in to it.
Im just a teenager but ive played guitar for about 3 years now started when I was 15 at first it was all about speed but because of my changing of instructors I now love to play jazz yes metal death metal speed metal METAL period is my favorite type of genre of music to listen to but I also like to dabble with other types of music and dont limit myself.
I find every aspect of music amazing and something special every instrument and every way to play it thats what I love about music theres not just one way to do something or play something new ideas are invented every day I love how it evolves thats what captivates me about music
I simply love the music. Studied music theory and played violin during 5 years, starting at the age of 8, then dropped. I own a guitar but I barely play. I concentrate on listening to a lot of music, especially but not only metal.
By the way it’s really nice to see a band that close to their fans. Keep it up
I’ve made music here and there, but I’m not nearly talented enough to call myself a musician. I’d like to have the patience and time to really practice, but I’m resigned to the fact that that’s just not the case right now. When it comes to listening to music though, it’s my fucking lifeblood. I love picking apart the different elements and instruments played in a song, and hearing things individually and then as a whole. I don’t know how other people listen to music, musician or not. So I don’t know how to compare myself to another. I’d like to be a musician, so maybe I listen to music like a musician does.
I also feel this
I also have to agree with you on this. I listen to music the same way, although sometimes my listening experience can go with the “mood or feeling.” Most of the time, I’m picking apart things like a puzzle and then piecing them back together, noticing how it all works together to make this awesome song. It’s always amazing for me when a band is able to put so many, drum beats, riffs, screams, vocals, solos, kitchen sink ect. together in an amazing combo. And I’m not even a musician. I’ve messed around a bit, but I don’t have the talent or time to even call myself one. I’ve never understood how anyone could listen to music differently from that, from noticing how everything just works together.
I’m no musician, but metal is one of the defining parts of my life. I can analyze everything about the way a certain guitarist or drummer plays, but I realized after trying, that I have very little to no talent. Granted I feel slightly guilty for judging certain band members on their performances when I have no real scale to base it on. Metal’s abundance of musicians is because so many people feel passionate about it to the point that they feel inspired enough to pick up a guitar and play. I have the passion and the will, I just can’t execute it. In the end I think that metal listeners are so much more passionate about their music, that many will pick up an instrument and play, but just as many will decide that it might not be for them.
Like oyu Eyal I started off playing Violin, with a splash of Piano. I have played a bucnh of different isntruments over the years, as well as singing in various projects. I have been playing so long that I honestly do not remember not having an instrument in my hand. I feel you pain though, I can’t listen to music normally now…I find myself showing people new music, but never entire songs haha. I will plug in my ipod and say “hey, listen to this guitar riff in this one section…the rest of the song sucks…but this ONE section is sweet”, replace guitar with drums, bass, vocals, whatever isntrument and repeat over an dover again and that is how I listen to music it seems, as sad as that is. I hae been playing bass more than anything for about 10 years now, and am currently in a band that is getting serious, and has some interest from some good to know people. We start our full length next week so we shall see how it goes, it is the music industry after all;)
But I digress, I feel a sense of letdown myself with music sometimes. That there should be that emotion there when I listen to a new song, that feeling that the person singing it is in your head saying what you feel, or the guitar player finds just that right riff to draw that emotion out of you. But anymore I look at music in such a mathmatical way it is hard to feal that way…sucks in a way. But like you said about yourself, music is everything, and I would not be able to function without it. I have no idea what I would do if I did not have a music project to be involved in.
I’m a jazz musician, whichc requires, in my mind at least, an ability to come up with something creative and original so that you can keep things interesting. That’s why I can’t get into new music as easily. I always think to myself, “Why should I care about *enter band here* when I know at least three other acts that do the same thing as well, if not better?”
I play bass (and drums, and guitar, etc.), but I haven’t been in a band for any real amount of time, simply for the fact that I think too much about how to make the music stand out from other acts that sounds similar.
Case in Point: the last band I was in was this sorta metalcore-ish band called ArGeeBee (name was not my idea), which was formed at this band camp kinda thing called Power Chord Academy. I was put in because two of my closest friends were in it and that whole group needed a bassist. Here’s the thing; if I didn’t have the “must make music distinctive” thing stuck in my head from five years of jazz bass lessons, I would still be in ArGeeBee, and I’d be the bassist of a competent, yet completely generic As I Lay Dying ripoff. Instead, I argued constantly with everyone in the group about where to go with the song we were trying to write.
(For the record, Power Chord Academy is essentially rock & roll band camp. You get put in a band with people who like the same music as you and want to play the same style, you write and record a song, make a music video for the song, then play it live. I did it because I wanted to do something really childish before I became a legal adult, and what’s more childish than summer camp? Well, pooping yourself, but I have my dignity…)
Anyways, In the end, my hopes of originality were crushed, and ArGeeBee ended up recording a song called “Yours to Keep,” which was your standard boring metalcore song (screamed verse, sung chorus, breakdown, minor third harmonies, and so on). Everybody at Power Chord loved it, even the indie kids.
Except me. I hated that song, simply because there was nothing interesting in it; there was nothing that made it stand out from, say, Devil Wears Prada, or any other screamo act.
Are there any other music people who feel the same way, or am I just a dick for being too anal about being original?
And I apologize for ranting about band camp…
You lose points for not including a sentence starting with “This one time, at band camp…”
Nah, you’re not being a dick. If you’re not going to do something original, there’s not much point to making music. Well, then again, there’s all those bands that sound like Nickelback getting all kinds of radio play and selling records, so what do I know?
I feel the same way you do. My friend and I went through the same thing a few years ago. We were in this band where the guitarists had an obscene obsession with Trivium, Atreyu, Avenged Sevenfold…you get the idea. When my friend and I joined they already had a few songs written, so we were just there to play instruments. The format was what you would expect from their influences, spider-webbing guitar, melodic riffs harmonized, clean singing with some screaming, etc. We went along with it for half a year figuring since we were new in the band we didn’t really have a say in it. However when we finally did start trying to bring ideas to the table the guitarists couldn’t handle it (granted we were trying to fuse death metal and thrash with their influences, but hey, maybe it could have worked) every riff we suggested was somehow turned into this generic Trivium riff. After a year or so of not making any headway and sounding like the next terrible fad wannabe metal band, we quit and tried to form our own band where we kept running into the same thing; guitarists who’s only dream seems to be wanting to be a guitarist in their favorite band. We’ve had a Lamb of God guitarist, The Black Dahlia Murder wannabe, a Between the Buried and Me guitarist, you get the idea. There’s nothing wrong with being inspired by a band, but that’s a far cry from trying to do the same exact thing. Our main goal in this band is to play music we like that is actually different and stands out from everything else. I knew we couldn’t be the only musicians in the world to feel that way.
I’m not a musician but I play guitar a little bit. First took it up when I heard the solo from “Symphony of Destruction” in like 2001 (Yeah, I was waayyyyy late) I never got completely serious about it, but I can play a little.
I do, as previously stated, work in the music industry though. I’m a fan of music, all genres. I just happened to enjoy Metal a lot more than I previously thought. Hell, it’s the reason why I ever wanted to pick up a guitar in the first place.
I’m not a musician, although I have played the guitar since 9th grade (1991). Still, I kinda feel like I listen to music as though I were a musician. Maybe from being friends with/living with many musicians (jazz, funk & soul guys), it kinda rubbed off on me to listen with a more critical/analytical ear. Or maybe I’m just musical (and too lazy & impatient to be a musician). And I love listening that way, feeling like I’m “getting it” on a whole ‘nother level as opposed to just kinda in one ear, out the other. I suppose that’s a big reason as to why I don’t like the Linkin Parks and other radio-friendly hard rock acts or much Pop/Top 40 stuff. It’s not because it isn’t metal or isn’t heavy enough (at least half, if not most, of what I listen to is actually non-metal anyway), it’s because it’s unchallenging and shallow and boring. It might have a nice melody or something here or there, but over all… blah. It’s like comparing the “Twilight” books to Anne Rice or even Harry Potter. There is nothing *wrong* with the former, but it simply does not have the depth or the nuance of the latter, you know?
Music is such as vastly important part of my life, I honestly cannot imagine being without it.
Eyal, I have to admit I love your blogs. They’re well spoken, and clever as fuck, and from one member of the tribe (you know the one…between the eyes/between the thighs as you put it) to another, I really appreciate the time and dedication you put into this. I am a musician, and have been for a long time, but years before I started playing, I was always able to dissect music and analyze it and relate to it. I was that kid that always got picked last, and got the shit kicked out of him on the playground every day, because I was too small to fight back. Thankfully, due to a serious MMA training class that I take, that’s all changed. But back in those days, music was my escape. The speed, anger, and insanity of metal was amazing. The angst of punk blew my mind. It made me understand that other people got it, and gave me something to aspire to. Years later I picked up my first bass, a red 4-string beast from a company called Hondo (which I think is now defunct), and had another great outlet for everything. The more I felt, the more I played. The more I listened, the more I was challenged to be better. A good 13 or so years later, I still feel the same way. I’ll always have that fire inside me, and music is what drives it, and for the life of me I’ll play until I’m six fucking feet under. Keep posting dude…love what you’re writing.
I’ve done a bit with sampling and the like, so I can’t really be considered a bonafied “musician.”
Music lover? Yep. Grew up with The Chieftains, Blondie, Count Basie, and mostly talk radio. So now I grab whatever I can if it’s artistically sound, from gangsta rap to D&B.
Gorillaz still rule, BTW.
I have been playing guitar for over 10 years now, I’m still terrible mind you, but I enjoy messing around most evenings. I have an Ibanez ART100, not a bad guitar and is more than adequate for my playing level. I think metal, as opposed to many other musical genres, tends to attract passionate, maybe sometimes, extreme people, who immerse themselves wholly into the ’scene’ as it were; This may shed some light as to why the musician ratio at metal/rock gigs is higher than at say, a Jonas brothers gig (since you did mention them) Since you brought up guitar solos, I will tell you what my single biggest gripe is with a lot of new metal bands; the technical ability today is far superior than musicians in any decade past, but the musicality is more redundant now than ever. I watch bands where the guitar players’ are shredding immaculately, the bass player’s hands are actually moving faster than the guitarists’ and the drummer is laying down blast beat after blast beat but between the lot of them there isn’t a tune to be heard within a million minds – What’s the point of being able to play 1000notes-per-sec and have everybody walk out the room not remembering a SINGLE HOOK. It doesn’t matter how heavy you are, if you havn’t some sort of melody in there you are certainly going to lose this listener. Nile has melody; it may be buried 10 layers deep but it is there – On the other hand, bands like say, Behold, the arctopus, I mean, seriously, whats the point of being able to shred your ass off if you are not able to write1 memorable tune?! Or maybe its just art and I’m missing the whole point – Anyhoo, 80% of guitar solos are reduntant, in my opinion, as they do not complement the song – Done correctly however and its probably the greatest, most powerful addition to most of my favourite songs; case in point? Selkies by BTBAM – i await the oncoming flames
I started playing guitar in 2003, just as something to do really. I don’t play in a band or anything, and to be honest I should be much better for someone who’s been playing for 6 years. It still takes me long to switch chords, my practice habits have been bad a lot, but I still pick it up here and there and play simple songs like Enter Sandman and crazy train. Hell, the only solo I can play is Smells like teen spirit by Nirvana.
Since learning to play guitar i appreciate stuff a lot more than before. Plus it helps so you know what the fuck is going on in a song fairly often
I am a drummer and i fucking love Kevin Talleys drumming as a whole not even speed just his grooves are sick as shit. I’ve had a few lessons from him. But anyway I always felt like the majority of non-musician listeners of any genre always focus on vocals more than anything. So i believe most of non-musician listeners of metal often are more aggressive people or have lifestyles that they can relate to lyrics. Then some people just appreciate the raw power of metal. I would definitely make the assumption that most metal fans are musicians because metal is no easy music to play and they appreciate the musicians like you that can write the sick ass riffs that you do, or the amazing solos. I also enjoy Jazz because it also is one of those harder genres to play. I think the problem with most consumers today is that they have no appreciation for musicianship because more than often they don’t recognize it, and apparently musicians do.
I have no musical abilities what so ever, but I do love music. I have to listen almost all day long when ever I can. Since I do not have any musical abilites I prefer to mosh in the pit and even joined a mosh group, the Pit-Bulls. I may not be able to play an instrument but have the same love for music and I may not have the same ear for the intricacies for it, that doesnt mean that I dont live and breathe music also.
Judging by all of the people I know (or have just met at shows) 95% have at least played an instrument. I know my appreciation for metal really comes from my own experience with the guitar, though I am merely a hobbyist play.
I think you hit the nail on the head when you say metal is music for musicians. Metal, specifically underground extreme metal, is fairly abrasive and by all logical accounts should not be enjoyable. But with a background in music you come to an appreciation for the music, and eventually become a fan of it. With out the background at first listen people normally will just say that it is not music and all of the other horse shit that is spewed out of the mainstream community.
Another little thing I have found in metal is that most of the fans are actually pretty nerdy/geeky, I am going to say that at a show 50% work in IT field. I could be wrong but from all of the shows I have been too and the people I have talked too, normally I find some sort of a nerd bond with.
so true about the nerd thing. everyone i talk to at the comic book store i go to is into metal or at least were into when they were younger
Eyal,
About three years ago after basically not paying attention to anything musically for over 20 years (I am 50) I decided to get back into going to shows and checking out new music. My first metal show in 23 years was to see Megadeth and I was hooked!! I got a MySpace account to keep tabs on area shows and have attended as many as I can afford. I don’t just go to metal shows, I like rock and blues as well. My iPod has metal, rock, blues and jazz. I like to listen to a lot of things and always have. My taste in metal has got definitely harder of late, to include black and death as well as thrash, but I like the variety.
I also bought a guitar and started to learn how to play, that isn’t going to well due to limited time, but I have picked up a couple of things along the way and now look at guitar playing and players differently. The one thing I learned to appreciate is skill and technique over toys.
One of the things that piques my interest is when a number of people trash a band, including yours. Part of the reason why I went to see you play at the Peppermint Beach Club was to find out if in fact DAATH was that bad, boy were they wrong!! Next to Goatwhore, you guys kicked major ass!! I look forward to the opportunity to see you live again.
My expectations are somewhat different than most people, for me to say a band sucks, you have to be terrible. I read a lot about people trashing one band or another, and sometimes I just don’t know why. One of them is Otep, while I don’t like everything she does, the songs I like I really like. I also saw her live a couple of years ago when she still had Aaron Nordstrom as her guitarist. He was playing an ESP X-Tone and I am still trying to figure out how he made some of the sounds he got out of that guitar! He had a half rack full of gear, but I was blown away! Isn’t that what you go to a show to hear?!
Enough of my nonsense, good luck on your European tour!!
Good times at the Peppermint Beach Club for sure. Thanks for coming out and sticking it out through that nasty heat.
I have to agree that being a musician is both a blessing and a curse. I’ve been playing guitar for a few years and my buddy and I are starting up a band, and we just hear music so much differently than our friends do. I know when I listen I have to break down every little thing that I hear. Most people will hear a guitar solo and think, “Oh, hey that was cool”, whereas I’ll listen to the solo’s composition, listen for the rhythm riffs being played underneath, and generally just paying attention to how the song is structured and how the riffs come together. Sometimes I envy people that can just listen to music and hear only the music, but at the end of the day, I’m grateful I analyze the song because I get a deeper appreciation for the music.
I play guitar, am not in a band, and i discover new music via the internet. Every time a site like metalsucks or blabbermouth has a bit on a band I’ve never heard of, I make an effort to check out their myspace and see if I dig them or not. Half the time I like what I hear, half the time I don’t. That’s how I discover new bands.
I don’t know what sort of replies you’re going to get as far as musicianship, since it is preety much all personal taste. Some will opt for speed/brutality/technicality over groove/hooks/catchiness. Me? I love it all
I play guitar as a hobby, not in a band. I would have to agree with your keen observation here. I have been around people who have/are currently going to school to receive a degree in something music related. One is a bassoon performance major. I recently showed him the wonder of Symphony X to hilariously predictable results. (”what is up with that drum fill?” and “why did they just eliminate a beat in that bar?” being my favorites) They almost impulsively give their .02 on every part they feel the need to. It is almost as if music is more intriguing than touching to these people. That is a problem far worse than just analyzing what is going on. Serious players are analytical, yet still seem to genuinely enjoy music. Professionals (anyone who goes to school for music) seem completely out of touch with the human aspect of music, rather describing it my modes, keys, and a variety of other ways. It gives them the appearance of being extremely distanced from the music. The music is no longer pure, but a group of notes that belong together for this or that reason. I am sure there are people who aren’t like this who attend music school, but this is what it is for the most part. I love music for the energy, but agree with your points. For some it is intellectual, but when is enough enough.
as a musician and full out music fan, i find it hard to relate to those who don’t listen to music. even those who are “casual” listeners. i don’t give a shit about solos, or drummer foot speed. if a song’s good, it’s good. even if it’s not metal. if it’s guitar based, i’ll probably dig it. unless it sucks, i’m talking to you nickelback.
i was talking to a friend recently, who is actually a smart and really cool chick, but she was telling me how excited she was coming back from a nickelback/hinder/papa roach show. i tend to be an opinionated asshole so i tried my best to hold my tongue but HOLY FUCK that was hard.
she’s also a metallica fan and thinks tool sucks and, come to think of it, i’m not sure why we’re still friends now. =)
Cuz you want to tap that ass probably. ha ha just kidding…
I’ll always consider guitar my instrument of choice, but I’ve played bass in a band before, and also studied classical composition on piano. To me, loves leads to idolatry, and eventually to mimicry. I listen to (what I consider to be) incredible music, and that makes me want to join in. I want to be able to play the songs I love, and I want to be able to create things like that, too.
The same thing happens when I read: I’m drawn toward writing, to shape something beautiful and meaningful.
It’s all rooted in people who just feel harder. I think that there are certain types of people for whom emotion just isn’t a particularly stirring experience, more like soft waves on a lake. For others, typically the artists, experiencing emotion can be like trying to cling to an oiled glass wrecking ball.
I played bass instruments, as a little girl…you know cello and viola and the like. I wanted to play drums, but mom wouldn’t have it because I was a girl…lol. When I was like 18 or 19, I bought a 65 gibson hollow bodied electric bass guitar and a little tube amp and taught myself how to play metal riffs, from my favorite songs. Later I picked up a cute little sparkly bubble gum pink peavy fury flying v electric bass and taught myself a bit more.
I never had the real inclination to be a true musician. I just wanted to try it to see if I could play stuff. The music was enough, for me. I have always felt something deeply, from music. I can see what you are saying about not being able to view it outside of the realm of creating it. It is so completely analytical and mathematical to create music.
I worship you guys for creating the music I dance to, fuck to, wash dishes to, drink and smoke with my buddies to. Ya’ll are my heroes, because I would never have the drive or the patience to create the shit you guys do, yet I have to have it, every day.
I play guitar, not in a band or anything, just doing it as a hobby.
Your observation has made me step back and realize something. I actually did seem to enjoy music more when I didn’t play. It’s kinda like when your a kid and everything just seems so great because there is that element of mystery. You just can’t imagine what it takes to produce some of the sounds you hear coming from your stereo.
Then you pick up a guitar and learn the basics. At that exact moment you actually even appreciate it more possibly, because it all seems so fucking hard to play that it just amazes you that someone has the coordination and talent to make a guitar sound that good.
Then you start getting good, or at least average. Then you sit there and start talking the lingo and finding yourself unimpressed by certain more simple riffs. Things have to be perfectly executed, to meet your higher standards, and it just isn’t so fun anymore.
I still love metal, but if for one day I could just go back, I definitely would.
Also, it’s great that metal musicians such as Eyal appreciate the fans so much and actually enjoy talking to them. A friend of mine went to see Incubus (I don’t like the band, but hey) and he had a backstage pass. When he met the lead singer he told him that his music is a huge inspiration for his band and started praising him. The lead singer just looks at him and goes “Hi”, and walks away, and wouldn’t talk to him for the remainder of the time that he was backstage. Way to appreciate the fans there buddy. Thank god most of the metal dudes are so cool to their fans.
Maybe he was just a dick because he realizes his band hasn’t released anything remotely good since S.C.I.E.N.C.E. (which is a great album).
I play bass in a band that I guess is primarily influenced by death metal like Opeth and Gojira, and more groove oriented stuff like Down, Mastodon, and Zao. I am a music performance major at college, and am half-way to my Associate’s. Music is a much bigger deal to me than probably everyone I know.
I am similar where as I started playing piano first around the age of 8, before that was just singing. Afterwards I picked up a bass and my brother’s acoustic guitar and the rest is history. i have a few friends that dont play anything that are huge fans of metal, but the majority of us live and feed off eachother and how we play. I will never find more inspiration that in watching other people play.
well i’m not a musician, but i grew up watching friends bands play live, so maybe that’s were my appreciation comes from. I’m a die hard lover of listening to music & try to search out unique organic sounding bands. always enjoyed listening to albums as opposed to flash in the pan one hit wonders. and it is a vibe it get, i don’t really pick it appart but riffs definitely get stuck in my head & maybe i analyze it subconciously? all i know is that it fulfills me & especially metal, although i dig a wide variety of music. & agree with the guy who said nickleback sucks! pretyy much agree with ‘bucketochicken’s’ viewpoint.
I have been into metal since I was 7 years old, and now, 20 years later, the passion for it has increased.
I have listened to everything from early Metallica and Iron Maiden, to newer bands such as Suicide Silence and Daath. I will say this: the intensity that bands today project is so much more fierce and powerful that it literally knocks me on my ass. There is nothing better than going to a show, screaming along with the lyrics, and thrashing with others as the band pumps out this rhythmic chorus of excitement.
For the few bands that I have played in, I have taken heavy inspiration from bands that I enjoy listening to. My vocal styling is very close to that of Daath, Devildriver, and even Job For A Cowboy. Now, as many people that are probably going to blast me for the latter, bands like Job For A Cowboy, Suicide Silence, Veil of Maya, Through the Eyes of the Dead, and IWRESTLEDABEARONCE are so intense that their mere stage presence alone will tear your face off of your head. Some of the melodies that “Deathcore” or experimental metal bands play now are so layered, textured and pure that it is amazing this stuff didn’t become more popular earlier.
The problem is that alot of the bands like this, Daath included, will have a hard time entering the ridiculous MTV based “mainstream” of popular music. Alot of bands have very poor marketing from their labels and just won’t see massive airplay, especially in mediocre towns like the one where I live. (Columbus, GA is a pit as far as good metal goes. Our scene HAD about 3 bands that were worth a fuck.)
Bands like Daath are so ahead of their time simply because of talent that is overlooked by mainstream critics. It pisses me off that I can’t hear good metal on ANY radio station unless I have Satellite Radio, and even then, half the bands on there are just faking their way through.
What drives me is the fact that bands like Daath, Suicide Silence, Job For A Cowboy, IWRESTLEDABEARONCE, and Divine Heresy are all equally powerful in what they do, but so very different in the sounds that they produce. But when you get down to the core of things, all of those bands are metal. Every fucking one of them are talented and can blow away most of this cookie-cutter bull shit that’s being passed off as metal now. It doesn’t matter what hair style they have, what clothes they wear, what brands they wear, or how they wear them, as so many useless fucking people like to point out. What matters is that they are all, respectively, masters of their craft and blow me away every time I listen to them. They are inspirational and drive me to do the same thing that they do, if not strive to do it bigger, better, meaner, and more energetic than they do. Which, by the way, is not an easy task.
All the little wannabe pricks that want to harp on how it all sounds the same and is never different, listen closer, you ignorant shits. Just because bands use double-bass in their drums does not mean it is all the same. Listen to the patterns. It’s mathematical. Bet you assholes didn’t figure that out.
For those who say that guitarists who just do triplets are all the same, listen closer. Again, it’s rhythmic patterns done in very different ways and is also mathematical. Same goes for bass lines. While their core and influence may sound very similar, I am hard pressed to hear something from one band that is exactly like another band. Sure, the similarities in some are so close to things from the past, but god damn it, if it wasn’t for musicians from the past, we wouldn’t have the ones of today.
And the next person who tells me that Johnny Cash sucks is probably going to get punched in the throat. The next person who says the Beatles were awful will have their sex organs ripped off or out of their bodies. The next mother fucker who says Judas Priest was horrible because of Rob Halford’s sexual preference will be stripped naked and thrown into the first corn field that I can find.
Music is so much more in depth than what all the fake little ass holes wanna make it out to be. IT IS NOT ABOUT YOUR FUCKING STYLE OF FASHION!!!! It’s about reaching out with your craft, your emotion, and your talent and touching those who wish to be inspired.
For that, I thank anyone who gets out there and plays.
I believe being a musician definitely plays into how you listen to music. When I hear a song, I am always imagining what led that person to play that (influenced it, etc…) also how he plays it, and how it could influence my playing. I have played guitar for 7 years about and have gotten pretty good, but I lack the motivation to put myself up to the next level. I am good at writing riffs, just not so good at writing songs. My ADD kicks in and I just start playing and forget where I even started. Eyal any tips on that actually? I recently just bought my dream guitar, PRS Custom 22 and plug into a mesa single rectifier combo, 2×12.
As for caring about solos and such…It is not necessary and for the most part solos are uninspired show off wankery that dont add much to the song. That is why I always liked a lot of Kirk Hammetts solos (older ones) They actually had a melody you could remember and fit in and added to the song. A good ripping solo can really make a song though if its done right. I have always been a fan of Daath solo’s cause they are not usually that typical and add to the song. Fast drumming is less important than original INTERESTING drumming. Listen to the radio and a lot of metal even and the drumming is all the same, just simple stuff with simple fills. Not saying simple is bad all the time, but at least make it interesting.
Record what you write. Then you don’t have to worry about remembering it.
Thank you so much for saying that! I’ve been writing songs for a few years now and every single time I write a decent riff I rush to put it on guitar pro so I won’t forget. Every other musician I know seems to remember their stuff. I was starting to feel like a failure or something.
IsntaTOTALdouchbag: If you have the means, definitely get Guitar Pro. It helped me get my all around musicianship to the next level without much effort plus it’s great for keeping riffs/songs. There are also other similar programs that allow you to plug your guitar into your computer and record and I believe it even tabs it out for you. Or maybe I’m just dreaming. Not trying to steal Eyal’s thunder or anything (like I could do that). The man’s a genius.
I realize that not everyone can afford this kind of setup, but I find this [starting at 1:48] interesting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kht_-R9SpdE
My, how times have changed…
I’m the exact same way. I use both pro tools and guitar pro when I want to document a good riff/melody/idea/whatever.
If you come up with something but none of those things are around, use the voice recorder on your cell phone. Most cell phones have one. If yours doesn’t, then get one that has it. It’ll help you big time
your right. i am a muscician, i play guitar and i sing, and its very hard to listen to music without thinking something like “the guitars suck” or “his voice is great”, so yeah i do care about guitar solos, and the speed of the drummer. i think its true that most metal fans, and im talking about real metal not shitty emo bands because thats gone very mainstream lately, are muscicians because they are the ones that can appreciate the structure of it instead of just wanting catchy hooks.i am a big fan of metal but when i want to listen to music freely i listen to pop music. for some reason that doesnt make me think like a muscician. =)
I am more of a fanatic than a musician, although I have played the guitar and took some lessons. For me, though, music is like air and emotion. Life can be difficult, and sometimes I feel like the only thing that got me through some of the hardest times was metal and my two kids, who keep me from being completely cynical.
At work, I work in the office Monday through Friday, and on Fridays, in the shipping department as well, since we laid off the poor guy who used to work in shipping, even though he had four chihuahuas to feed. So now we all take turns in shipping, and Monday through Thursday, my coworkers put the radio on and listen to lame pop and hip hop type stuff. Fridays are all mine, though, so today we listened to Nightwish, All That Remains, Shadows Fall (old stuff), In Flames (Reroute to Remain), and Testament – new stuff, the Formation of Damnation.
Metal: it gets me through life!
I wouldn’t personally say that I’m not a musician. Because I do play a variety of instruments, but I don’t have connections to bands or have that first hand expierence from day to day with music like people who are in the industry do. Most, find bands through hear say. They’re friends spread the word. The heavy metal society is very tight nit because we’re not as main streamed or popular as say pop or rap. Also, going to shows and surfing youtube. There are always ways of stumbling upon a new band. Whether its a live show like Mayhemfest or Ozzfest or something recorded and passed along. And I feel that even if I’m not apart of a band or anything or don’t play a certain instrument doesn’t mean that I don’t listen for the skill in everything a band does. All you have to do is appreciate the music, and understand the different sounds in order to find something that pleases the ears. Metal Lovers in general normally listen to the songs and find what they don’t or do like about it. Just because you don’t know the notes or how to play that instrument doesn’t mean that someone isn’t going to know if say a bass line is lacking in a song or if the drums are too overpowering. You know? Don’t have to play the instrument in order to judge and see if its pleasing or not. I don’t think it ever really makes a different whether or not you can play. People expierence music the same way as the person next to them. It’s freeing, emotional, strong, consistant…its an escape that anyone and everybody can share. Sure you’ll have a better understanding of what’s going on if you yourself is musically inclined somehow, but for the most part what comes out of those speakers can speak to everyone. That’s just how I see it though. I played the drums and am picking up the guitar, but music has always been the same for me…apart of who I am to be exact. Even before I picked up a lame woodwind instrument in the fifth grade, the passion has always been there which is probably what drove me to play in the first place.
Eyal,
I was born in the 60’s so i was a hippy child my life was in music though i didnt play until later years i took guitar leasons but bought pot with the money within a month, then drum same conclusion. Music is a way to get into what ever frame of mind or mood you choose their are so many diffrent types of music to FEEL. I personal feel music more then i hear it, if i feel pooh pooh i kick that shit out my CD player asap, dont put music together for money Ill know!!
i play drums, but not at any clip that i know the talent pool of though, im a fan of “god” drummers Kollias, Rdddy , Bruford, Reinert, Hoglon
Roddy, not rddy Derek Roddy :)
Eyal-
First off I have to say I am not someone who was beat up as a kid or got picked on on the playgroud or whatever. I didnt grow up poor or without a solid family base. I really have no reason to relate to any metal lyrics or meanings. I just fucking love it. It takes talent and drive to be in a metal band. I appreciate that you guys do this not for the money or fame but for the love of what u are doing. I am not a musician and have never ever tried to be one, (though I am a ridiculous air guitar player). Music always has got my attention. Especially heavier music. I am now 25 and grew up during the “Nu Metal” phase. I can remember being in 6th grade and somehow hearing about Korn’s first album. I was hooked at how heavy and angry that album was. Ok everyone will say “fuck Korn” and I agree, but that debut album was fucking influencial to many albums heard today. I quickly went from radio friendly shit like Bush to Sepultura. I was so blow away by the heaviness of “roots” and “chaos ad”. It wasnt until I left high school then moved on to college where I really started to pay attention to real metal. I heard Chimaira’s “Impossibility of Reason” and it changed my life. It was from there I discovered death metal and deathcore and metalcore and whatevercore. I love all of metal and all it’s genre’s.
I dont know shit about guitar or what it takes to play drums but I know a sick groove or a technical sounding song when I hear it. WIth that being said I am not impressed by bands like Dragonforce who shred for 20 minutes but have not wrote one quality bit of music. I want to headbang and smash my fist into a wall and feel alive when I listen to metal. Metal consumes me and will til I die. Keep the blogs coming. The new album rules!!!!
I didn’t get a chance to jump into the earlier age/occupation conversation this week, so I’ll start with that so the rest makes sense – 31, female, (Lutheran) Intern Pastor in small-town Minnesota. The crossover between metalheads and clergy is almost nil, but there are a few of us.
I took piano lessons for 8 years, guitar for 3. I also attended music camps (3 years piano, 1 guitar) in high school. I was in a punk band for about a year, and then played solo acoustic shows after that. In the last few years, I have mostly sang and played guitar just for myself. Most of my current musical performance involvement is in choosing hymns for worship and sometimes playing/singing – and although I would love to incorporate some Becoming the Archetype, The Chariot, or Hands, a lot of people just aren’t ready for that.
When I’m listening to metal, I am more likely to listen to the song as a whole than to actively listen for individual parts. Something really interesting or unique might jump out, but just as often, my metal-musician boyfriend will pick up on a guitar part or something going on with the drums that I just don’t notice right away. I kinda envy it, but it’s just not how I’m wired. If I had to pick one thing, I would say that lyrics/vocals stand out the most for me. A band can be amazing instrumentalists, and I respect technical skill, but if I don’t enjoy the vocals, I’m not going to listen to it. One of the biggest reasons I love metal is that the lyrics are deeper – I’d rather listen to Blind Guardian re-tell a fantasy/sci-fi novel or hear Ex Deo sing about ancient Rome than hear another pop singer or rapper boast about how much money they have or how sexy they are.
I am a musician myself, and I just fucking love music man. I live for it. I like everything across the board, mainly different styles of rock and heavy music, but all kinds of shit. For instance right now I’m listening to a Spanish-rock band called CHINGON which everyone should check out, they kick fucking ass. I think it’s the band from the movie Desperado…
Anyways, I’ve wondered myself what it would be like to hear music through a non-musicians ears. But I guess I really just listen to music and play it for the feelings it gives me. Sometimes I analyze and break it down, but I can also flip that and just let my ears take in the sounds. Music makes the world beautiful man! Cool post.
I don’t play in a band, but I am trying to learn drums. I like the sound of the music and the live experience. I’ve been to other genre concerts with my friends we went to see black eyed peas(she begged me) the atmosphere was boring the people there were in their own little bubbles. I just stood there waiting for this damn thing to be over with metal it’s the opposite it’s fucking insane the energy the bands give from the stage and the energy the fans give back. Its like being at a house party everybody are friends and having the time of their lives together moshing, screaming,stage diving because the the metal community is so close knit. I am a fan of guitar solos, but sometimes they don’t always fit and thats fine I’m not gonna die cause there was no solo in a song really liked. hearing a skilled drummer that can play double bass fast, (not just get up there and make noise) mixed lower toned vocals with loud guitars attract my attention. I pay most attention to the vocal and drumming If the drummer plays the same thing over through out the song or the vocals are high pitched obnoxious shrieks it gets old fast. Plus I really like seeing the look of peoples faces when I tell them the name of my favorite bands^_^ metal lyrics are written topics dealing with whatever the kind of metal it is whether its songs about blood,gore,norse gods its by the bands THEMSELVES not someone behind the scenes writing oh this is why I’m hot or some little girly singing about her boy friend…. Ok I’m pretty sure My ranting is over…
Metal, as a genre, consumes me; I don’t consume it.
I can’t really nail down what draws me to a particular band. I’d like to think that I’m something of a musical omnivore (excluding country and hip-hop), even with metal’s myriad sub-genres (even if I can’t get into power metal. And I’ve tried…believe me…I’ve tried). I think the music I feel like listening to at any given time is directly related to my mood. If I’m feeling somber and nostalgic, I might spin some Pearl Jam. If I’m raging pissed about missing a sale at work, I’ll be blasting All Shall Perish. If I’m in a mellow, contemplative mood I might put on some Isis or Neurosis. If I’m feeling creative, I might play some Genesis (Peter Gabriel-era, mind you). Just kind of depends.
I was always into rock and industrial all the way through high school and college and really didn’t get hard and heavy into metal until I was 24. I was just on the lookout for something different and more aggressive than what I’d been listening to up to that point. Now that I think about it, the only real “metal” in my collection up to that point would have been “In The Sign..” by Dark Funeral and “Expanding Senses” and “Rusted Angel” by Darkane. In the fall of 2003, I remember being at Best Buy on a Sunday afternoon and perusing the aisles, after which, on a whim, I walked out with “Nothing” by Meshuggah, “Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia” by Dimmu Borgir, and “Lovecraft and Witch Hearts” by Cradle of Filth. Not to sound over-dramatic, but those three albums opened an entire world to me and I haven’t looked back since.
My technical knowledge is pretty limited, to be honest. Musically, I can’t say I’m the most adept at dissecting the chord progressions or the melody lines or what scale a certain solo is based on or the exact moment that a time signature shifts (if at all). All I know is that I have a very visceral reaction to metal as an art form, and that includes not only the music, but the album artwork (which is why I refuse do download) and the live shows.
I think if I were to sit down and analyze metal as a genre, I wouldn’t pick it apart from a technical perspective necessarily. I’d be more interested in the discourses that come out of the music and what kinds of discourses are, in turn, created amongst the fans/listeners. If you haven’t read it, Dr. Robert Walser’s book “Running with the Devil: Power, Gender, and Madness in Heavy Metal Music” is great. If you can get past the fact that he mostly writes about Van Halen, Iron Maiden, and Motley Crue (it was written in 1993), Dr. Walser provides some great insight into the “rhetoric” of metal, as it were. Interestingly, he notes that metal seems to be more popular during times of social and political unrest and that it is a reaction to patriarchial sociopolitical structures. If we apply this theory 16 years later, it seems to me that metal went through something of a renaissance/resurgence during the Bush Administration. I’ve often wondered if, in light of metal’s recent surge in popularity, if anyone would care to duplicate some of Walser’s research for THIS generation.
Anyway, I’m rambling. Thanks for reading and thanks for opening up the floor like this, Mr. Levi. I caught your band on tour with Dark Funeral and Naglfar back in 2007 and it was AWESOME. Hope to see you guys out again soon.
So do you think that if the economy wasn’t in the shitter and we weren’t at war that metal might not be doing as well?
Glad you enjoyed that show btw. That was a fucking cool tour.
Just put that book on hold at the library. Thanks for the heads-up. Outdated or not, it sounds like an interesting read.
I play guitar and sing. Metal inspired me to become a musician. Alexi Laiho inspires me on guitar, Dez Fafara inspires my vocals. My favorite drummer is Mike Portnoy.
Its awsome you guys meet the fans. I got to meet Emil and i had a pretty long conversation with Kevin, after the show in Columbus OH on the dragon force tour. I wish i coulda met the rest of you guys tho.
~ First, some miscellany:
I seem to remember one of the members of Duran Duran famously saying, “We want to be the band everyone’s listening to when they finally drop The Bomb.” (As in nuclear, for all the post-Cold War babies reading this.) Fucking-A, man. That’s actually a pretty bad-ass antifesto, on par with “WE’VE COME TO KILL YOU ALL” and “I don’t like hamsters.”
“…those of you who do so can go fuck yourselves with a sandpaper dildo.”
I’ve never tried that. Is it fun?
~ And now for the Main Event…
As for the questions Eyal posed, I’m almost hesitant to speak more on the subject than I have previously, since I thought my prior comments were pretty revealing; in fact, so revealing that it was the Internet equivalent of inviting strangers in off the street and telling them to help themselves to the contents of my lingerie cabinet. You guys have so far fielded the question capably on your own, so I’m not sure what new “insight” I can contribute. But all balls out here on MetalSucks, so here goes…
Once again, for the record, I don’t play an instrument. I just love music. As such, I don’t really feel qualified to venture to guess why this genre of music inspires so many people to pick up an instrument and play, while for other genres…well, maybe not so much. I have my theories, but they’re all probably shit.
For my part, I don’t generally compartmentalize music – I experience it as a whole and its value to me is gauged by how it makes me feel. Actually, if you’ll forgive me for repeating myself: “Generally speaking, though, it’s the artists who either express a feeling better than I can myself, or who show me something about myself that either I didn’t know before or couldn’t identify — like movement out of the corner of your eye and it’s gone when you turn to look – who move me the most. The artists I’m absolutely passionate about are the ones who hold truths in front of me so I can look my fill and say, “Oh, THERE it is. I was looking at it all this time, but couldn’t see.” And that’s just as likely to be Djivan Gasparyan as Messhugah. (…) *shrugs shoulders* What can I say? I’m turned on by what I hear.” [For easy reference, my prior comments here: http://www.metalsucks.net/2009/08/10/jumping-darkness-parade-daaths-eyal-levi-on-listening-to-non-metal-music/ . Sorry, but I already explained myself the best I knew how.] Of course, this is influenced by the musicianship involved, as well as the arrangement and production.
I’m generally drawn to music that is deliberate, complex, and nuanced, but I can also appreciate a good rollicking lark whenever it’s applied with the proper spirit; for this reason, I rarely (please note my use of a qualifier) dig into rap, hip-hop, or pop, mostly because I perceive there to be little of any of the former and an over-abundance of the latter in those genres. If you want my money and attention, be bothered to learn how to play an instrument, as well as to compose and arrange actual MUSIC, rather than trusting a writing team, samples, and/or machine noise to bolster your vocals and dance moves. The application of overwhelming attitude and regrettable fashion choices do not make for compelling music. (Fuck you, Lady Gaga.)
I don’t know anything about music composition, theory, etc., but I wouldn’t go so far as to liken my appreciation of music to the old adage, “I don’t know much about art, but I know what I like.” I took a Music Appreciation course as a college requirement and I was totally excited to start, thinking I was finally going to gain some insight into how my favorite music is composed and structured. Wrong. I spent the whole semester pissed the fuck off because the dude would drone on about piccolo, legato, or what-the-fuck-ever but then never explain anything. He would play a piece of music and then say, “Hear it?” NO, I don’t freaking hear it!!! I hear a piece of music. I hear instruments. I hear (maybe) vocals. Which part of it are you talking about? WHY DON’T YOU EXPLAIN?? It would have been so much more helpful to me had he played the piece of music FIRST, and THEN sat down to piano or guitar or vocoder or what-the-fuck-ever and played the component parts to demonstrate what the fuck he was talking about. (I asked him to and the lazy fuck said no. You see, all the faculty in the music department had to “do their time” teaching a course they considered to be a throw-away for the unwashed masses and the dude was content to sleep-walk his way through the class. As a result, I remain mystified to this day, because he wouldn’t take the time to actually teach me something. Asshole.)
What draws me to metal? Again, musicianship, composition, arrangement, etc., but most importantly, THE WAY IT MAKES ME FEEL. I’ll be honest with you all, I didn’t get into the hardER side of metal until just a few years ago, because I couldn’t truly relate to the level of rage that’s implied in most of this music. For various personal reasons, I can NOW. I love the level of mastery in the musicianship that is freaking REQUIRED to play this music, the complex arrangements (no, it’s NOT “just noise”), the sensitivity it implies. After all, we wouldn’t all be so pissed off all the time and living for this music if we weren’t all sensitive enough to intuit that that the world is fucked and that’s something we SHOULD all be pissed about. But for the intensity of the music and for the anger that’s the hallmark and common thread of the genre, there’s room for more than that. AND SO THERE IS. We make our own rules and the genre continually evolves as we need it to.
Do I care about guitar solos, guttural versus clean vocals, and double-bass drum blasts? All in their due course. I require none of the above, but appreciate their competent and creative application. I notice when they’re done right and I notice when they’re done wrong, but competence and symmetry presented with conviction and a wealth of emotion allow me to transcend being, if only for a little while. For example: If a guitarist is show-boating and not letting the music breathe, it’s like the obnoxious drunk guy that won’t shut up and tries to fight everyone in the room. (Look at me! Look at me! I’m an asshole!) If the bass player isn’t doing their job holding down the bottom end and keeping the whole thing from spinning out of control, causing the cacophony of sound to be flung out into the cosmos, hopefully never to be heard or suffered again, my hips aren’t popping and I’m wishing him/her either death or castration for denying me my groove. If the drummer is so far out of pocket they don’t appear to be playing the same song as the rest of the band, my head isn’t banging so fuck your band. I’ll be at the bar, on the phone, ignoring you. In contrast, when it’s all done right, I will lose my shit in appreciation and praise your band to every available deity, that you may enjoy many returns of good fortune, the satiation of your myriad sexual proclivities, and never-warm beer.
And if you REALLY put it to me, I wish for the nerve to walk over to the stacks, turn around and back it up. (Just a little, you know, just to see how it feels.)
Take the time to move me. Please.
Metal draws a lot musically inclined fans, because any musician would know that metal is a showcase of extreme technique . at the very least Musicians at least acknowledge that fact even if metal is not there cup of tea.
well eyal…
I’ve been raised amongst a family of musicians, everybody in my family’s a freak, because we all play at least 5 instruments. I’ve been playing drums for 18 years, guitar for 11, bass for 11(both electric and upright) piano for 6 and harp for 4.
I started a band when I was 12 and we played shows up until this year, so 10 years. I left recently to pursue other musical interests, and we toured a lot, and burnt ourselves out by never giving ourselves time to hang out and just relax. we worked too much, too quickly and got tired of each other.
but music, even after being around it so much, has been the love of my life. and playing aggressive, technical music has been one of my bigger passions.
even though playing music is my biggest release, just listening to album after album is a favorite pastime for me. I’ve got over 2,000 vinyl records…and terrabite drive of music from the CD’s i’ve collected, so to be frank, i think i’ve got a wide variety and on any given day i can listen to whatever genre i’d like, but i always find myself coming back to metal. (and concealers came on earlier today…i listen to that thing beginning to end)
if you ever want to just talk music, it’d be fun to learn more about you.
Always talking music!
in response to your last article, i am 18 and soon to be a student. the only job i ever had was working at a pizza place, and i am going into biological engineering in college.
As far as my musical abilities, i am not a musician. All the women in my family are extremely gifted pianists, but i have only slightly dabbled on the piano and guitar. Because i have been exposed to music so much, i do understand it and i am not completely ignorant when it comes to music. However, for me music is an experience. I dont break it down into structure and harmonies and melodies and this and that. I just let it all flow freely. I hear it as a whole, not as individual instruments playing together. I let it control my thoughts and my emotions. The best is when i hear an interesting riff, or guitar harmony, or drum fill that jumps out from the normal flow of the song. It pulls me in. So i cant say that i suffer from an artists view point of music, or in fact that i benefit from being a musician. All i know is that music is a way for me to escape into myself. It is a medium through which all my thoughts and emotions can flow. Hell, sometimes it feels like a drug.
I’ve played piano for 8~9 years and guitar for only a couple. I’m nowhere near good or creative enough to call myself a musician, however. I’m going to art school this fall, but I’d give anything to have talent in music rather than art. Wish I’d picked up the guitar earlier. As shitty as I am at said instrument, I find myself appreciating music more and more since I first started attempting to play it.
Anyways, Eyal, I’m seeing you guys with Epica next year January, can’t wait!
I started out on trumpet in the third grade, played that for five years, then found my true calling. I’ve been playing drums for six years now and still haven’t lost the wonder of feeling sticks in my hands. I took up trombone two years ago because my band director begged me to, and dropped trombone when I wasn’t needed anymore. As you whether or not I care about guitar solos? I like them, not in excess, but metal without solos is a bit bland. Double bass speed? I don’t care how fast someone is if double bass is the only thing someone can do. Throw in some poly rhythms, break up the monotony! Speed is not necessarily skill. Anyone can be fast.
I started guitar a long time ago in my teens but never had anyone to help push me in the right direction. it wasn’t until my late 20’s that I started to learn how to actually play guitar. Since then I’ve taken on the Bass, keyboard and lately drums. I honestly think I should have been a drummer from the start.
It wasn’t until this year that I got in to Daath. After Metalsucks talking about the album so much, I had to hear it. I love the Concealers and The Hinderers. Futility…eh, not so much. Regardless, I’ve seen trends come and go and bands hang on through the death of those trends to become icons of their musical era. I’ve seen thrash at it’s peak and at it’s lowest and the recent revival and I love it. I’ve seen an iconic band go from masterminds of their form to the laughing stock of the metal world. I’ve tried other genres of music such as the common rock of today and even tried to tolerate Hip Hop because a lot of my friends listened to it. I always come back to metal and it’s the majority of what I listen to outside of some classic rock.
I almost gave up on metal after 2004. There didn’t seem like a lot going on until I started digging again. I almost forgot that the “Underground” held so much great metal music and that the mainstream was only a sliver of talent being thrown in our faces. In the last year I’ve gone to more metal shows than I have in my entire life and I appreciate metal musicians and their dedication for their art and I try to support the bands as much as I possibly can, easily dropping 100 bucks at almost every show I go to.
I never really played an instrument. i tried guitar but never really had the determination. i don’t really care about guitar solos, when i listen to a band like dream theater i seem to be way more impressed by a Jordan Rudess keyboard solo than a John Petrucci guitar solo.
I’ve found it interesting every time I take up a new instrument and I’m at a live show I focus on that particular band member whether it be bass, keyboard or drums. I watch them carefully and watch how they play their instrument. I take in as much as I can and try to put it to good use when I practice. keyboard is one of the toughest because it’s harder to see what a keyboard player is actually doing as opposed to a guitar player or drummer. Taking on any instrument takes a lot of determination and if you don’t have the motivation or the drive, it’s really tough to maintain interest.
Eyal,
Fascinating question! I too wonder how many straight-up fans there are in comparison to musicians in the metal community. And yes, it’s difficult to approach listening to music when one is a musician oneself. For “breathers” I tend to engage other styles of music for a window of time and then return to metal with fresh ears to remind myself of the various appeals it has.
Anyhow, can you please get in touch so I can interview DAATH for MetalManiacs.com? I can’t find your email address or phone number anywhere. I know I had these on hand when I did the art for your first CD, but I must’ve cleaned out my emails awhile back. If you have my contact info., please get in touch…if not, you can ask Ben. Thanks!
- Mike Riddick
As a drummer, if I hear sloppy or uneven drumming in a song, i notice it, and get turned oof. But the same goes for sterile, over triggered recordings,[ unfortunately, thats the way a lot of bands sound nowadays...]
but I DO think theis genre is made up od people who play instruments. Notice how I dont say “musicians”. hehe…Ive met many a metalhead who “plays guitar” or “drums” aka ” i want to try and blast beat and play double bass at 3000bpm before I can do a simple groove rhythm” and yes, i have a band.
Well, as a musician, I can sympathize with you. I was always a musicina…I think… My first memories were of music. I got pics of me playing drums on my Lincoln log and tinker toy canisters. And I believe music is infectious and I also believe actually hearing the music can be infectious too, if you have an ear. Many people that dont play anything but the radio just hear music as a wall of sound ( I think) They cant hear the individual notes or instruments. It is like a single being and not a group playing as one. Like the billions of cells in my body working together to make one whole me.
I will say that I have taught my ex-wife to hear music for the parts and the whole. and now she cannot stop analizing the music and sometimes she hates me for it… mostly because she cant just enjoy the music anymore. But more often she praises me for showing her how it works in her ears to make it sound the way it does.
I will also say I have one claim to fame with your band. I used to play with Kevin Talley when he was 15. We did nothing but originals and he kicked ass back then! But he was nothing like he is today. His drummer idol was Lars Ulrich at the time and I had to show him Gene Hoglan and Dave Lombardo and Sean Reinert. I knew he was a special guy but I never figured he would achieve what he has with Chimaira and Daath. I am proud of Kevin Jr. ( me and Kevin played with my other buddy Kevin… and since me and Kevin were both 23 and Talley was 15, he was Kevin Jr. Ask him!! He even has a picture I sent of him holding my BC Rich Mockingbird..
Anyways, this is a great question and I wish I could hear music with an Innocent ear. but I have been infected with the musician bug since I was a toddler. I dont think I ever heard music the way some people listen to it but I have adapted the ways I hear music as I see in my head how it is played.
Cheers!
Aaron
Three13
I am not a musician. I cannot play instruments for crap. However, I do enjoy jamming on bongo drums every once and a while ;)
I don’t listen to music from a musician’s perspective (obviously because I am not a musician). I’m not really that good at analyzing music either. That brings me to a question:
How can you spot a guitar solo? People tell me that it is when the guitar is the only instrument being played. I’ve heard songs with guitar solos and I could swear that during the solo I can hear drums, too?
I’ve got one other question. How do you meet musicians at metal shows? I haven’t been to many metal shows so I apologize for the dimwitted question.
when you go to a local show… go up to the guy you just saw playing and say “hey you sounded great.” And they will say thanks and they will either ignore you after that or they will talk to you all about themselves LOL.
Sometimes you can meet your metal gods before the shows hanging out by their tour buses, or afterwards, if you stand aroung near the exits or where the equipment is being loaded up. I met the guys from In Flames and Children of Bodom before a show in Long Beach last year when they were outside their tour buses before the show, and met Jess Margera in Hollywood after a cky show in those ways.
Some silly girl borrowed my sharpie to have some members of Bodom sign her titties, but I had all of them sign my copy of Blooddrunk, because sharpie will wear off of your titties, but a signed copy of Blooddrunk is forever. (And I got In Flames to sign my old copy of Reroute to Remain, also!) All of them are very nice guys. Roope in particular is very interactive with fans.
Used to do vocals. Then i got a tonsil infection that I’m finally treating. Hooray for surgery!
Easy question (why there’s so many “musicians” in metal) apart from jazz which is hardly relevant anymore (Love jazz but there’s no new coltrane’s or mingus’ out there. However if you want to hear an awesome jazz/electro/rock band check out jaga jazzist from sweden) metal (also prog which is even less accessible than metal) is one of the few genre’s that are working towards expanding the conventions of music. And learning music (any instrument) is a labour of love. In other words for the most part you have to work really hard to get even halfway decent. I remember when I got the main riff to MoP right the first time. So stoked. Anyway chances are if your being inspired by bands like green day and whatever the hell else is pop you’re looking more towards the attitude of being in a band as opposed to making music. Ok look at it another way, think of all the one man metal bands (dorks that log countless hours on protools or cubase just to write some shit that most likely no one will hear myself included) to say some punk rock or alternative or whatever one man thing. Much more rare. Basically in my eyes, metal is one of those genres where its damn near required to have chops but you can’t always show off your shit or be the center of attention everyone has their place in the mix (besides bass players haha half kidding) more than anyother genre I think metal is the best example of musicians that work as a team.
The question is do you want to be a rockstar or a musician?
Most real metalheads will say musician.
A good contemporary jazz musician (well sort of contemporary) is pat metheny, should check him out dude.
I’m gonna repeat myself cos, well, I’m vain. I’ve been playing guitar since I was 5, but only really started enjoying it after discovering metal and developing my taste. I play in like 12 bands, literally, but most of em are jokes. However, I play in a hardcore punk (in the vein of Gallows) band called Prey With Me that gets the occasional gig (we’re based in Shanghai), doing covers (Gallows, Fucked Up, Doomriders, Minor Threat etc.) and original stuff.
My ‘other’ main band is a three-piece called Scavenger’s Daughter, which is more straightforward rock. I play guitar and sing, here. We’ve written about 6 original tracks, but we do covers too (Iggy Pop, Joy Division). It’s less serious, we mainly play ‘gigs’ at school.
I am what I would call a semi-musician. I used to play in a band called Ella, back when I was more of a scenester, but we were actually a pretty decent cross between post-rock instrumental and alt-emo/punk (similar to Moneen, who if any of you haven’t checked out, should). It was a fun time, but I still would like to fulfill my dream of playing in a post-metal band.
But about listening… I’m a bassist, so I focus very heavily on the low end and rhythm section… Which is probably why I’m so into sludge and post-metal… but it’s also how I fell in love with Lemmy Kilmeister and Steve Harris. Those guys are my heroes… true metal bass pioneers who spearheaded a way to slam down the low end, and sometimes make a solo out of it.
i’m a musician. i’ve been studying classical saxophone since i was 10 and i also plan on majoring in music next year at college. for me, i think being a musician is both an advantage and a disadvantage when it comes to listening to music. for example, when i listen to music, i’ll imagine that i’m playing the song/piece myself. this helps me to feel the emotion and excitement of the music a lot more. however, a lot of the time, i won’t get full enjoyment out of a song or piece because of the fact that i’ll try to figure out the meter (whether it would be considered 2/4 or 6/8) or i’ll try to figure out what each note is or what key it’s in, which totally diverts my attention away from the most essential part of the music- emotion and mood.
I’m a complete non-musician. I’ve never had any interest in playing guitar or drums or bass or anything. Because of this, while I can certainly appreciate the skill and difficulty necessary to play certain riffs and solos, it all comes down to riff writing and song writing for me.
I do care about guitar solos; they need to be memorable and feel like a solo, not a tricky rhythm riff. My favorite guitarists are Adam Jones, Marty Friedman, and Dave Mustaine. My favorite drummers are Brann Dailor and Danny Carey. My favorite bassists are Les Claypool and David Ellefson.
Honestly, I think because I don’t play an instrument, songs hit me as a whole, rather than just the guitars which is what would happen if I did play guitar. I don’t have to sit around thinking of how difficult it’d be to play a certain riff or wondering if I could do it or which chords it’s on; I’m not strapped down by that thought process because I don’t play anything. Instead, it’s about how something sounds, not how it’s done.
Have to totally agree with you, Eyal, about the non-musician approach to music. I myself play music since the age of 13, and playing guitar prog-death in a band for 5 years now, writing the major part of the material (In case you want to hear what I play http://myspace.com/neuromist). And I can almost never listen to the music without paying attention to its elements, something like “the bass is too low, here the guitars are playing within a quart range, the groove is in the 3/4 and the hats are in 4/4 and so on” And it really sometimes fucks up the whole experience. One last time I was able to listen to the music in general was on a show where the mighty Cynic played. I had travel about 800 miles just to see them, and was so fucking exhausted and hyped (yay, Cynic live!) that the overall experience was just mind-blowing… they’ve played the set on the sea shore, about 70 feet from water, it was about 1 am, and it was magical…
And about the solos – even as a musician I can say fuck ‘em. I mean, it’s cool to shred off on guitar and stuff, but 99% of cases it sounds like sonic masturbation and technical show off. A solo should enter your guts and make your hair raise… and the last time I felt like that when listening to Fredrik Thordendal’s solo record or King Crimson’s Fracture off their Larks Tongues in Aspic album. Robert Fripp in general is a genius when it comes to solos – yes, he can outshred any living guitar player but why the fuck would he do that? Instead he’ll just hit the right notes at the right time to create the right mood that will definitely enter your guts… hope you know what I mean
And the question of music being heard by musicians in general can be referenced to “professional deformation”, which is already a psychiatric term. I mean, I’m doing photography too for a couple of years, and I started to observe that it’s the details I’m paying much attention and not the image in general. You can see a beautiful landscape with clouds floating over an epic mountain, and I would see the 5 f-stop difference between two portions of the image and poorly rendered colors on the foreground. Man, it’s like being a cop for 20 years and then seeing everyone as a potential criminal, you know what I mean?
Eyal, Name’s Paul ive been playin guitar since 98′ or so. Im not gonna say im the next Yngwie or Van Halen, im not- unfortunately my Job (Army) keeps me from practicing as much as i can. Ive got a ESP Viper w/ GFS Hot rails in the neck, Seymour Duncan Jazz in the neck- into a Marshall 800 Half. Nothin but an overdrive and wah to boost the signal a bit.I have a bad tendency to revert to playin sloppy blues licks when i should be playin harmonic minor…. Love some Death metal, thrash, AIC, sixties blues stuff. Ummm thats all i got…..
Drink beer.
Listen to DEATH.
GFS Hot rails inthe bridge…sorry.
Hi, I’m somewhere in between a non musician and a musician. I have never played an instrument seriously until about one year ago when I said “FUCK IT” and decided to play electric guitar. The reason I never had (by the way I’m 21) before was because I’m missing the entirety of the pointy finger tip on my left hand and thought it’d be impossible, it was hard at first but now I can pplay angel of death, fight fire with fire, etc without much problem, big chords though are very difficult, especially bar, which sucks because I love bar chords. BUT ANYWAY. The reason I was so desperate to try to play an instrument is because I never really liked music besides music in VIDEO GAMES
While growing up, Mario and sonic the hedgehog music, megaman, I loved that shit, but never really loved music on the radio untill I heard metal for the first time, which was in 6th grade, and that was In Flames’ clayman someone burnt me. I was blown away, I didnt know such a music even existed, and then a few years later in highschool I heard RAINING BLOOD for the first time, while I was a senior, and that blew my mind even further. So since 6th grade I’ve been obsessed with metal, trying to find as much as possible, loving music and the way it makes me feel.
I think because I had 20 years not playing music and 8 of being completely obsessed with listening to it, maybe I hear it differently than you do, Eyal. Although I’ve been learning music theory, intervals, aural training, taking classes now for music to learn how to make it, it DOES seem a little different. Now I’m trying to figure out how to play the songs I hear or what pitches I hear most of the time, but I still know how to just give up (haha) and sit back and be filled with energy and rage by the metal, or excitement with great pagan-y acoustic pieces, great orchestra or whatever. So yeah, we probably hear music very differently but I think if you just say “Fuck it.” and sit back and just not really LISTEN but FEEL the music, dont try to analyze it, you will hear it like non-musicians. Or just get REALLY high.
I’ve been playing Bass for 11 years, Guitar for 8 years and Drums for 6 years. Though bass is the only instrument I play in bands now, I’ve played drums for punk bands in the past. I’ve toured around the southwest region, recorded 2 albums and generally whored myself to the metal scene with one band, called Red Tear Memory. I also record an album and an ep with another band, Trail of Gore. Recently, I’ve started a new project, also in the vein of death metal and we’re are getting ready to head into the studio to record some demos next month.
I have the musician’s curse of judging almost everything I hear based on musicianship. I’m not as bad as some, but I’m worse than most. I think guitar solos are awesome to the point of being a necessary component of a great song. I enjoy hyperspeed double kick drums and blastbeats. I find balance though, in feeling and groove. A well written song is a well written song, and I can always enjoy that. All things considered, I enjoy metal (ie guitar solos, blastbeats) more than anything else.
I actively stride not to be a music snob or elitist, but just like everyone else, if I don’t like something, I don’t like it. I love metal, but I don’t like Power Metal, Black Metal, Doom Metal or Folk Metal. I mean, there’s a couple bands in each genre that stand out because of their awesome ability to write good songs (a well written song…), but for the most part I dislike those genres with a furious passion. In the same turn, I detest radio rap, but I love some hip/hop like Wu-Tang, Tech N9ne, Sage Francis, ect.
So, as far as listening goes, I can listen to anything and usually find some positive points about a given song. It is possible to listen objectively and with a musical, but still able get lost in a great song and just jam the fuck out. More often than not, though, I’m judging musicianship.
As I believe I mentioned previously, I play saxophone, and am probably one of the very few on this site that do. I had a ska band going on, but that got all kinds of fucked up. Personally I’d like to get something going like the band Jersey Band (check out their MySpace, they’re like Meshuggah, but with a horn section).
I fuck around with guitar, but it’s nothing formal. I’d really like to play bass.
Personally, I think music just gets better when you become a musician, and learn about music. I remember when I was younger, and my dad would listen to Classic Rock on the radio, it really wasn’t anything special to me. It was decent, but just ‘meh’. But now, in terms of classic rock, one of the bands I highly enjoy is Pink Floyd. I mean, there’s just so much about them, though particularly, I love in Shine On You Crazy Diamond pts 1-5, there’s a Baritone sax solo, after the guitar I believe, and then it goes into double time feel, from 6/8 to 12/8, or I believe 12/16 I read somewhere, and he switches to tenor sax. That’s something you really can appreciate (especially a saxophonist) when you’re a musician.
Though I find myself able to take myself out of all that, for example, when listening to Dream Theater. They are a band you can appreciate, once again, both ways. All the band members are pretty amazing, and even being a musician, you can appreciate and be in awe of the technicality of it all. I mean, I know they’re not the most technical band, but you can really appreciate it.
I mean, I don’t know if it’s the exact same thing as a non-musician feels and hears, but I think it would be even better.
I’m a straight up music fan who also plays music. After reading your blog, I realized that I don’t really listen to the music I listen to in quite the same context that you describe.
Anyway…
As I said in the other comments, I’m 28. Started playing guitar late in the grand scheme of things. When I was about 18. I really wish I’d started sooner but, can’t change the past. So, at 28, I’ve got a friend who plays drums and we’ve got the intention of getting SOMETHING going. I have inclinations toward industrial. He’s game for that. It would help if I had some cash to replace my amp that got stolen a couple months ago. I have full realization that, at 28, it’s kind of ridiculous to have “rock star” dreams. I don’t. I really would be happy getting up and running at a local level and just causing a bunch of cathartic havoc and in the course of releasing some artistic energy.
This is kind of a double edged sword because nothing lately has made me feel as old as I do when I consider this possibility in some kind of “time frame” mentality that borders on realistic. But… again… you can’t change the past.
As for what I play. I’m lefty. So, I’ve always gotten the shit end of the stick when it comes to guitar selection. Then, last year I discovered Agiles, bought a baritone, and fell in love. I just got an Intrepid 8 string a couple weeks ago and the thing is a fucking beast. Now, I just need to do something about that amp problem.
Hello my name is Chad Krueger i am currently the road manager for an up and coming metal act out of Michigan called Last Encore and i was previously in a band called Bella Lugosi’s Dead and i was a vocalist in that band .
As of a year ago i have dedicated my life to helping and building this group up to a level where we can now tour and make some legit money on the road and from E.P. sales and merch and etc.
I was a performer now im in the business aspect of music and now being on the other side i see how important people like me and the people who book tours and show are to bands success. As a naive kid i thought that talent got you through to the big time but over the years and with my experience on the road will indicate that you need many other factors on a successful show and touring career needs the first is continuity , if all the members in the band are on the same page and have the same goals that saves allot of time and effort .
Secondly you need your own unique sound , right now we are in a cookie cutter time in metal music and i think it is time for the real fans and the real musicians to step up and revolt against this corporate model of what metal music is . I think that the watering down of the music and the over production and the trend blowing majority need to be wiped out . This 3 minute break down shit is killing metal because kids actually thin this is metal when it is so far from metal people dont even see it . Metal is nerdy and intellecutual and smart people are listening to it and its insulting to me to think that Winds Of Plague and Born Of Osiris is considered real metal because to me that is trend fucking stuff and this is what is killing music.
So please explore Death , Atheist , The Faceless , Primus , Iron Maiden , Megadeth and give your self and education on what metal really is .. Please for the sake of the scene and the state of the music ..
I play violin on occasion and take lessons in singing and guitar, however, I am not a musician in any professional sense, and regard myself as entirely amateur. I have a preliminary education in classical music too, but even with my (not exactly extensive) reasonable musical education, I tend to leave aside analysis of the music I listen to and just let the whole sound overwhelm me. If I do analyse, I tend to analyse the vocals, because that’s what I do best and what really makes a lot of music for me.
Eyal, im just curious- what are your influences? and what type of gear do you prefer guitar wise, amp wise? Effects? Id love to know, without sounding like to much of a fanboy.
Influences are too vast to really get into but I did write about some of the key ones in this blog- http://www.metalsucks.net/2009/08/11/jumping-darkness-parade-daaths-eyal-levi-on-his-most-influential-metal-records-of-all-time-the-early-days/
And some of my non metal ones in this blog – http://www.metalsucks.net/2009/08/10/jumping-darkness-parade-daaths-eyal-levi-on-listening-to-non-metal-music/
As far as gear goes my attitude is that its just a set of tools. Whatever gets the job done. These days in DAATH i’m rocking a Mesa Dual Rec, Pod Xt Pro, Noisegate, Tube Screamer, and wireless system.
I’ve been playing guitar for 9 years now, the band that inspired me to pick guitar up was believe it or not Def Leppard. I saw their documentary movie on VH1 when I was about 10, went to their show about 2 months later, saw my first live guitar solo and was instantly changed. Say what you want about the band, but their live show is absolutely incredible and I still see them live every year to this day. After listening to them I baught a guitar and started taking lessons from a guy I met in a record store (who is now the bass player in the Lauren Harris band, Randy). After a year of lessons from him he said that he wanted to pass me on to his friend who taught shred, so I went to him. I took lessons from him for a few years, honed in my shred chops and then stopped taking lessons because I wanted to move on and start to learn things on my own being that I could now shred and know a lot of theory. I have been in and out of private advanced lessons for the past 2 years, going to a teacher when I hit a wall with something, but I have been maintaining my self taught status now. My favorite players are Steve Vai, Randy Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, Paul Gilbert, Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Buckethead, Eric Johnson, Prince (hes a fucking HELLA good guitarist), Robin Trower, Marc Rizzo, Yngwie Malmsteen, Dave Mustaine, Vivian Campbell, Jason Becker, Marty Friedman, Guithre Govan, and of course still Phil Collen + Steve Clark of Def Leppard. I own over 20 guitars now, about 4 stacks, and I can’t live a day without playing. Metal is the only music that I can listen to besides just a stand alone solo guitarist ripping away. Metal is the most technically pleasing music, and I love technical guitar playing and bands so I guess that’s why I’m so addicted to metal lol
Oh and I’ve been in and out of bands for the past like 5 years, looking for a serious one now though!
I have hands growing out of my ass, therefore I don’t play any instruments. But I really do envy everyone who is able to play an instrument, be it whatever. But I do my part in the drawing/digital designing area, so it’s all good. Music is the highest form of inspiration for me.
Well…
At one point, I played guitar for about a year. I tried it, but the teacher I had was atrocious, and I kind of just gave up on it. And that was at least 6 years ago, before I even really started to listen to metal at all. So whether that would make me a musician or not, I feel, is certainly debatable. But moreso leaning towards me not being one.
There’s a lot of different feelings that have stirred up with me with music. And I’m not a druggie, or anything like that. Just love booze. But even so, I REALLY started to head the way I now am as far as tastes in music beginning with TooL. To me, it seemed like the most intricate sound I’ve heard. It seemed almost unreal the way that sounds could be made with the guitars, and more importantly, how songs could actually alter the way I felt emotionally.
Sounds kind of gay, but it helped me realize that I would definitely begin to appreciate this style of music. From TooL, I ventured off into Death metal. First band ever was Opeth. They blew me away. I never thought metal could be entwined with melodies in such a way. It opened my perspectives on so much musically. I ventured off further finding anything I could.
Now, mainly, I don’t just enjoy listening to the music, but with the bands that I like, I’ve learned to create a deep appreciation for the band itself. I respect the paths that these musicians chose to play. Extreme metal is NOT easy. At ALL. The best example I could use is The Faceless. A fairly popular band, as far as The Metal Community. But they play fast and are musicianly brilliant. It makes me respect the music. Because it is BY FAR, nothing I can do. I’m sure thousands of people can, but what I listen to has nothing to do with anyone else. It’s what I appreciate. What I like.
For example, I can’t play instruments for shit. BUT, I like musicians like Tomas Haake. His polyrhythms on his drums are just sublime. Double-bass pedaling is one of my favorite things in metal altogether. A huge reason why I love Decapitated. I thought Vitek was an absolutely outstanding drummer, may he rest in peace. I’m no big fan of Morbid Angel, but I RESPECT how insanely fast Trey Azagnoth can play. It’s almost uncanny at times. I love the way Brandon Giffin played his bass in the album Planetary Duality from The Faceless. And as far as guitar solos, there HAS to be guitar solos. And good ones, at that! Not half-assed ones. The real intricate solos stick out to me. Not any half-assed ones. And if I find one that sounds amazing, hell.. I’ll look online to find out just how intricate it truly is. Solos help me rate guitarists, as I would assume it would for any other metalhead. It helps me figure out which guitarists are truly musically-inclined, or if perhaps they aren’t as talented as I’ve come to realize.
So even if I’m no musician, I can’t express how much respect I have for the music altogether. I dislike all Black Metal, but I still respect it. With the bands I like, and the music or songs that I REALLY like, I honestly don’t think I could ever be able to explain to you in full why I like these styles of extreme metal. Everyone has different experience with their tastes. When I listen to a band, and I actually get goosebumps from a certain song, I know then that this is going to be a favorite band. And it allows me to dwelve further into the band itself. What possible drama has happened with the band, how long the guitarists and drummers have been playing, etc. etc.
Anywho, I hope this gives some sort of insight to your questions. It’s all about respect for me. And when it comes to metal, I don’t think it gets enough.
i play lead guitar in a 4-piece rock band called five minute sin. i call it rock because the vocals are audible and we have long solos. we have been giggin for five years. We are working on a second album. Some people confuse my style with shredding, but people who know guitar will tell you it’s just really fast blues licks that i play. “we shall never surrender!..”
Music is a personal thing that is experienced individually and differently from person to person. Though people tend to gravitate toward a certain genre, etc., musical preference or experience is not a tangible or set thing. You cannot touch it, cannot put it in a box or file it in any way. This is, at least, my experience. If I am drawn toward a particular song, my reasoning is something I cannot put into words. I simply dig it, I guess. Not because it sounded like this or that, or fit into a certain category. The musicians just connected with me in a way that I cannot explain. That is when you know you have found something great. Because there are no words to accurately describe it.
Oh and I think MetalSucks.net should interview the following:
Seth Putnam – Anal Cunt
That guy from the Meatshits
That dude from 7000 Dying Rats
Scott Hull and ask him why he is a such a “Nerd Faggot” according to AC hahaha
Chris Barnes for comical reasons, and ask him why he backed down from Seth Putnam
and a few others.
I play guitar and bass mainly. I also can play the drums and keys etc. I’ve played in a lot of local bands and started a my fair share of them too. I’m 32 and I started playing when I was about 10. So yeah now you guys can skew your marketing figures even more. I play ESP guitars, so lets see some fucking advertising banners mutha fuckas! Hey Fuck Yeah MetalSucks is the Shit!
I’m a non-musician, but since my father was a professional guitar player for most of my adolescence, I grew up around music. I was getting into metal around the time he got me into Eric Johnson, Buddy Guy, Satriani (insert Chickenfoot joke here), and some other good shit. That balanced me out.
I used to be impressed by double-bass speed, but now it’s all triggers anyway. The feel of a good double-bass pattern matters more. Oh, and guitar solos? As long as it’s not Black Label Society (one hour-long solo), I dig ‘em. I especially dig the talented atonal stuff from people like Fredrik Thordendal. I say ‘talented atonal’ because incessantly wailing on your whammy bar like Rick Rozz or Kerry King does not make for good solos.
While I cannot say with 100% assurance that all my friends qualify as musicians, I will say all my friends that do listen to metal are artists at the very least. Each one of them sculpts their own idea of music and when we listen to music of any kind there is more analysis going on than in the whole Yale lit. department I would imagine.
Metal is not just music to many -Its a way of life.
lml
Wow, a lot of musicians. I cant say I just hear music. It is definitely a feeling. I would guess the majority of people inspire to play an instrument because – I think it would be amazing to be able to give that feeling to people. I’m sure a lot have their rockstar reasons for picking up a guitar or what have you. But I would bet the majority just enjoy the feeling music gives them and they want to create that themselves. It is definitely a gift to be a musician who can do that. But I can also see the side of it where you would eternally break down songs, rip them to technical pieces, and be left with chords and time signatures running rampid through your mind rather than what I’m hearing.
To a point, I will take a song apart if it is THAT good. If I want to exam every single part of a song I am stuck listening to all day and cant get enough of – I want to know every single beat, riff, rhythm. Did I like that solo, the vocals there are insane, oooh that drum beat is rediculous! etc etc.
I think back to being a really young kid. The innocent age where we didnt understand anything and acted purely on emotion. I can remember hearing a song come on, and feeling sooooo excited that this song is on – squealing and running to turn it up so I could rock my ass off to satisfy that feeling I had.
Thats how I hear music. And I am grateful every fucking day of my life for people who are Blessed Through Misery of not being able to hear it the same way I do – but create it, for the rest of the world to enjoy it. :-)
some could argue that being a musician is simply the want, talent and ability to make music.. harmonized sound. everything from tribal drums to searing guitar solos.. simple instruments that on their own are meager, but in an orchestra are integral like a triangle. if that is your definition, you are a musician, and anybody that taps their foot in time with a sound is a musician.
that is not my definition. i could not (at my current level of apptitude) produce the sounds you guys in daath produce.. i dont have the grandeur of thought, the depth of mind.
i can tell you when something appeals to me though. i can tell you how good an intro is, or whether a particular drum beat is unique with the sound. i can hear the aesthetic in it, and what i hear usually is synonomous with what other people like.
im no vocalist, but ive always said if i was in a band i would sing.. no classical training, no lessions.. just me sitting in my car screaming my head off and learning what works and what doesnt to get that guteral sound that a lot of metal vocalists have. thats where my passion lies. im not in a band and i have no huge ambition to be, rather it is something i would enjoy if the opporotunity presented itself.
my take on how i listen to music is from that of a fan. i dont disassemble the sound and figure out what notes are being played.. it detracts from the body of the sound if i do that, so i listen to it on a whole. where that first spine tingling scream is to elicit the right mood.. where a slower guitar riff is placed to pull someone down from the balls out heavy portion of a song.. i listen from the perspective that i do not posses the skill to create this sound, so i listen with a reverence of that talent and also i use the music to shape my mood.
i will grab a specific CD/song, with a specific lyric or drum segment to simply point me in the right direction for a mood, and i will switch it out to something else that evolves that mood or stabilizes it.. maybe i just want to ‘practice’ my own vocals, so i go after something that i can get into and that i know. other times i just want to listen so i grab something technical and appreciate the complexity of it.
am i a musician? i wouldnt say i am.
am i in a band? not at the moment.
do i play an instrument? no, but i do try and sing
how do i listen to the music? with the whole of myself, focusing on different aspects as my mood would dictate. never stripping the music into parts, drums, guitar, bass.. vocals.. always enjoying it as it was mixed and produced, one big orchestration with lots of complexity.
I don’t play any instruments, but metal is just about the only passion I truly have.
I think one of the main reasons I don’t play an instrument (besides not having a lot of down time) is the fact that there are SOOOO many people who play or are in a band and there are a million metal bands and most of them sound like they are copying someone else.
I think that influence is a double edged sword when it comes to metal, it can be a persons inspiration but it can also stagnate creativity, boxing you in to what you are influenced by….if that makes any sense.
I’ve been playing bass for five years. Three years ago I started fucking around with vocals and started a band that lasted about two years. Most of the other guys weren’t motivated and getting everyone to practice was damn near impossible, so I said fuck it. Since then I have filled three and a half notebooks with lyrical ideas and continued playing bass. Recently I made the switch to guitar because everything I was writing on bass was just emulating how I would want the guitar to sound anyway. The other reason I switched to guitar, besides purely for the enjoyment of it, is because even though I’ve searched and searched, there is NO ONE to play metal with in my area that can play their instrument worth a shit and has any motivation, so I’ve decided to write my own music instead of waiting around to find someone else who can write something for me to sing over.
So here’s my question for you, Eyal (or anyone who feels like answering it, really): Would moving to a bigger city, possibly on one of the coasts, be my best option at this point, or is it this hard to get a metal band started everywhere? Are there areas of the country where metal is much bigger than others?
The more people there are around you the more likely it is that you’ll find band members however I know quite a few awesome projects that are trying to become bands in big cities that can’t find (worthy) band members to save their lives.
Two places in the country where there seems to be an abundance of metal musicians would be North Carolina and the Massachusetts area.
Thanks for the advice!
phoenix arizona also has a fair number of metal musicians.. i dont have another city for a comparison, but at most of the shows the number of people you hear talking about their band, or their music or whatever that would indicate musicianship is staggering.
I, too, have to confess that I play in a metal band. Well, actually, depending on the week, I could be in about, 3, aside from just random solo shit i record. I’m a Bassist primarily, and yes I play the type of bass most metalheads aren’t down with (lots of flourishes and runs, but I always make a point to be solid enough to pull it off) I am also more than competent on Guitar & drums…and backing vocals. Ok, i’m not bragging, sorry if I sound like it. To my point : In this time, i’ve also learned how to record and mix. And that’s done the most damage to my “just a listener” P.O.V of music. Being good on an instrument, or being in a metal band will never do as much damage to your ability to just listen to music from a non-playing fan p.o.v as being a “producer” will. You get way to anal about the whole thing if you get too deeply involved. I’ve had to lay off it before, cause I couldn’t enjoy my favorite records the same. Now that i’ve done that, I honestly have no problem. But it is nice, cause being a musician gives you a new dimension of appreciation for the labor of the musicians on you favorite albums. Never, EVER, underestimate musicians…..especilly metal bassists :p
I’ve been playing Bass since I was 15 and I’m 33 now…I’ve been in 5 different bands…at the clubs around the scene where I’m from, most of the fans are in other bands…and a lot of national acts such as you guys come thru and we get to meet some really cool people and fellow musicians…I just think that heavy music is more interesting and a little more complicated than other forms of music and I think a lot of musicians are naturally drawn to that…even in my band, where we all have different tastes…but we get a huge rush out of hearing some badass fuckin’ metal…and we are constantly turning each other on to different bands…especially some of the local bands in our scene. I think with the music business the way it is today…it’s good that so many musicians support each other and care so much about the state of metal and it’s future…keep this shit from wilting on the vine – tp
Jesus H. Christ, people have written a book’s worth of comments based on the prompt of this blog. Kudos, Mr. Levi.
Allow me to add a chapter in the form of answering the questions, though:
Yes, I have tried to play various instruments. Alas, I cannot…
As far as how I, a non-musician, experiences music, it’s like this…
When I was younger, I was mainly exposed to music through the radio and MTV, as the internet was not quite as readily available and accessible as it is today. As a result, most of my tastes were limited to what was force fed to the masses in the late 80’s and early 90’s, i.e. Guns n’ Roses, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Floyd, Zeppelin, etc.
I remember when I was younger I took the supposed meaning of the songs much more literally than I do today. In other words, take Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar on Me” for example. I would imagine some guy pouring a bag of Domino Sugar all over himself. It made no sense to me at the time, but I did not give it much thought and just took it at face value.( I now realize that he had no intention of covering himself in sucrose, and was referring to “other” means of sweet pleasure.)
However, as I’ve become older I feel as though I experience music differently than how I did when I was younger. As a writer and student of essays and poetry, I tend to analyze lyrics carefully in order to gain insight as to what the song’s meaning is, or if there is any meaning whatsoever. I find that only a few modern lyricists can actually impress me. (Granted, I’m not going to name who I feel are impressive lyricists as I know that some people take great pleasure on this site blasting one other’s musical tastes… You know who you are!) I also try to take into consideration how the lyrics fit with the music, and vice-versa.
This obsession with lyrical meaning has actually bolstered my appreciation of metal. In most cases, it is quite difficult to decipher the lyrics without looking at a lyric sheet! It is quite a relief to not know what an artist is trying to say through his or her words. Instead, I try to lose myself in the aspect of music that I do not understand, which is the arrangement and instrumentation. It is this intangible element of music that allows me to feel or experience music, as opposed to just critiquing the meaning of the lyrics. I assume this is similar to the dilemma musicians face when they try to listen to music.
Energy. There is no genre of music that’s got anywhere near the same amount of energy as metal. You go to a rap show and you see guys actin’ like they’re pushin’ the air and shit. Country shows, I don’t really know much about, I guess it’s just screamin’ and occasionally jumpin’. As for metal, you got moshin’, headbangin’, and hardcore-dancing with the shittier bands. All of which is more energy than all other genres of music. That is why I listen to metal. I go to shows just to let out the energy that’s been building up in my truck and at my computer.
I would consider myself to be in the fan only category. For the fact that I can never find time to play. I have had a bass guitar sitting the corner for 5 years. And I just got another one. Maybe having more equipment will make me play it. Then again, I think my amp is busted. Maybe instead of reading metal blogs (and writing a metal blog) I could play again.
Although I don’t play, I still see music from musicians POV. But I can turn it on and off. I can sit back and just listen, but then the next time I will “listen”. I think one of the things that I like most about metal is the musicianship. You can’t be great at metal without being a serious musician. Punk? sure, but not metal.
I get blinded by bands that I love. Like Clutch, I don’t look at them from the musician POV. Just a fan. I don’t analyze them.
I don’t like bands just because they are great musicians though. I need an element, a feel to draw me in. You can be the greatest musician in the world but if you can’t write songs, who cares?
I certainly appreciate what it takes to write songs. Everything I’ve tried to write doesn’t live up to my own standards. and they aren’t very high.
I love going into the cd closet and pulling out something I haven’t listened to in forever and remembering what I was doing the first time I heard it. Or where I was when I was into them. Like the other day, I pulled out Physicist by Devin Townsend. It made me think of old friends I used to work with at a record store. Music has that power. It forms connections in your mind. I think of my mom’s basement whenever I hear Aerosmith. I think of Donkey Kong when I hear Econoline Crush. I could go on all day.
Man, are there a lot of comments here… I stopped reading them like 4 comments through. Anyway.
I’ve been playing piano for nearly 11 year, bass for nearly two years, and six-string guitar for nearly a year. I used to play trombone and trumpet for four years, and also have some experience with the saxaphone, clarinet, flute, and cello. I can’t play drums for my life though.
I was brought up in classical music. Here and there I would hear something cool, but my Mom listens to Celine Deon(is that how you spell her name?) and Yanni. And Christian music. I went to private elementary and middle school for 11 years. Now, I respect Yanni as a classical artist, but the rest? It’s all just so… bland. There’s nothing interesting to hear in most of those songs. I’d see names like Linkin Park and Metallica and I’d think “Huh. Rock and roll. It’s not that great, is it?” when I was younger.
I got into The All American Rejects and Linkin Park in around 2006, and they were pretty good, but they weren’t my life. My Chemical Romance was also a frequent listen.
Then, about two years ago, my friend and I were playing guitar hero II. I heard Six by All That Remains. I wanted to beat it so freaking bad. Eventually I could beat it on medium, and my friend actually bought a guitar. Then we started playing it on hard. And then on expert. But then I realized, I couldn’t understand what the hell I was fake-playing. So I went on youtube, and looked up All That Remains. I listened to the first four tracks of The Fall of Ideals. I fell in love with metal August 6th, 2007. I went out and bought The Fall of Ideals that very day, and even started to get said friend into metal. He liked Bullet for my Valentine and ATR, but not much else. He’s into Slipknot too now, but he tends to stick to the rap scene, with a touch of punk. He’s not totally lost.
Then a friend of mine showed me Killswitch Engage. And then I found that the ATR and KsE were brother acts. This made me start looking into metal. There was community? A brotherhood? Is it really a satanic cult like my old school used to say? But I listened to the lyrics. They were freakin’ positive, and more real than the Jesus-freak crap. Now, I am still Christian, but except for As I Lay Dying and Demon Hunter, almost all Christian acts suck transvestite cock.
From there I found so many artists, Metallica, Iced Earth, Gojira, God Forbid, Lamb of God… I don’t remember the order of them, but there’s Atreyu, In Flames, and Slipknot too. Many more I have on my ipod, but I don’t need to rattle it all off. Mostly death metal and metalcore (I don’t get why metalcore is bashed so much… it’s nice to have some melodic elements, otherwise, I don’t consider it music. I’m looking at you Whitechapel. I mean, even fucking Gojira has more melodic stuff than you.) I eventually started listening to music as much as I could, and eventually, I realized in the car, those little white lines on the road would sometimes pass by to the beat of the music. From then on the analytical part of my brain became obsessed. Music was no longer a chore of practicing piano. It was a passion. Sometimes, if I’m focussing on something else, I can just hear the music for what it is. But that’s rare. Eventually I learn every song I hear part by part, and if it’s played differently at all, I’ll notice.
So yeah, as a musician for more than two-thirds of my life, I can say that metal is what I got into because it was different, and it was beyond anything I’d heard from anyone ever before. Metal is more than just for musicians, but I think a lot of musicians find it because they’re tired of hearing the same stuff they here from everywhere else. Musicians want to play something different and original. So with metal being one of the smaller (but strongest) pillars in the music industry, it’s going to grow as more and more musicians turn to it. Of course, pop and rock, and rap will all lose and gain their artists too. But metal (Except for Iced Earth and Gojira, it seems) really isn’t hard to find in stores anymore. Metal is the most advanced, most provocative, and most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard. And that’s because it doesn’t follow rules outside of its own. :)
Touche.
Guitarist here, 10 years in, did a music tech course for 3 years – Listening to music for me is about total scrutiny. Find it way easier to enjoy when I’m high or something not paying attention to song structures, note choices & gear sonics. Still love it. Being in bands most of my friends are in bands, I’d say about 2/10 are non-musician metalheads, one of them is oddly more passionate about bands & their gear than the musicians. Metal is definitely a community of musicians, the more extreme you go the bigger difference in the ratio of Muso:non muso, as Eyal said.
Solo’s are a mixed bag, more of a fan of leads – for me a solo is an elaborated lead for the guitarist to wank off for mainly other guitarists interests. Solo’s to the bands in this area means sweeping the same pattern for 16 bars possibly moving the pattern up, bam, solo done – fuckin lame. Technicality, Restraint, full taste, no fat – thats a solo.
My favorite musicians are the ones who put the time & effort in to put out the whole band package – things like blasting bpm & number of bars swept are getting out of control & are no measure of awesomeness. Personally I love tech death – but I dont enjoy watching a dude standing on stage doing fretboard gymnastics standing perfectly still (though I never get tired of watching drummers blast like motherfuckers). There has to be a trade-off between awesome on CD & awesome on stage, with as little compromise as possible. The whole band package, from writing the riffs to talking to fans after the show to living the “dream” with a brave face – they are the best bands. For the record – Instrument proficiency comes completely second to great personality – eg I’ve got infinte more respect for Daath due to Eyal’s posts (you guys are well proficient tho, don’t get me wrong – keen to see you guys tour Australia).
As for me, I’m still chasing the dream of being in an awesome band with killer material, getting on metalsucks then getting ragged the fuck out in the comments. I do my part, its no cakewalk as most people doing it knows – not working out exactly as I hoped but if I wasn’t doing this I’d be dead. Being a touring musician in Australia is a pipe dream, I’ve seen bands that toured here endlessly with awesome material then venture overseas with relative success (Psycroptic) & I’ve seen bands do the exact same thing but shit the bed entirely (Devolved). Its breaking my heart atm to realise the band I’m in has very little chance of getting to the next level mainly due to Spinal Tap bullshit. The hard part is they’re great dudes, great personalities & well proficient enough, but as said its like we’ve shit the bed before even getting sleepy. Try again, do better next time, thanks for playing. Currently onto something exciting with a like-minded guitarist, its slow goings atm but its like falling in love all over again – except not gay. Ok, gay. But well fun. Ever jammed with someone & you get butterflies in your stomach? Thats whats happening, full excitement. Few steps back, One step forward to getting shit canned on metalsucks – can’t wait.
I personally dont play any insturment but that is beside the point the reason why i listen to music is be cause it lets me know that there are others out there with the same point of views that i have i have a lot of different music that i listen to but my fave is metal because it has an uplifting sense to me if that makes sense i started listening to metal whn i was about 13 and there is no other music that i can think of that is as well put together
Well, … just for the record ………..I cant play any instrument for shit.
Drums for about 10 years, in a band. It’s because I started playing drums that I got into more extreme types of metal, because it just blew my mind how sick some of the drummers were. Kevin Talley was one of them, back in his Dying Fetus/Misery Index days.
As for hearing music outside of a musician’s mindset, yeah the acid is good. But it was when I went away to college and could hardly practice in that first year that I started to be able to step back and appreciate the music solely based on the vibe, without thinking about the musicianship. That perspective definitely helped my playing become more tasteful and textured when I got the chance to play more often and start a band.
When I listen to ANY music–and this is why I enjoy metal so much–I like to be impressed, technically, creatively or emotionally. Knowledge of the guitar ramps up what it takes for me to be impressed, and experience writing and general fucking around allows me to appreciate true creativity, regardless of the finished product.
I don’t have a favorite band, or a favorite shredder, etc…I think everyone needs room to grow…or deteriorate…nothing remains the same over a period of time…
On a serious note, I grew up in Libya…numero uno terroristas state, back in the late 80s and 90s….metal music was my main escapism from the bullshit reality surrounding me at the time…I would like to consider myself a musician…definitely not a professional one, although I’ve been trying to make some money off playing guitar since junior high, it was never a lot or enough. I grew up listening to thrash and old school death metal in the mid 80s, adding alternative rock in the 90s, eventually progressing into heavier genres at the turn of the century, but I still don’t feel like I’ve sunk my teeth deep enough into the metal….I feel that there’s always a new spin on the old wheel, so I don’t get impressed easily, especially by the myriad of copycats, and trend followers out there today, but I definitely do appreciate the variety and quality of production much more than back in the day.
I just feel that I missed out on one thing that the majority of the people that live or grew up in North America or Europe have been spoiled with,,,live shows…although lately I have been spending more time in the studio, I think that it’s concerts where most of the fun happens…
Also, I just want you to know Mr. Levi….It took several listens,,,two albums to be precise, before I got into Daath…a solid band, that grows with every listen. Thanks for your time.
xTx
p.s. check out my band BRUTUS [www.myspace.com/brutusegypt] we’re just finishing off our demo, we got one rough cut up on the player…please, let me know what you think, ALL criticism appreciated.
SNAP!!! I started off on violin , and now i play brass, euphonium mostly –
I love metal but play classical and jazz so i can enjoy metal more from a fans position and less from a musicians position because my instruments are rarely used in metal but when brass is used in folk/battle metal i always think about playing it and try to figure out the pattern etc. so i know where your coming from eyal
I think playing in an orchestra or band and listening to the musicians around you form the sound and then to simulatenously be a part of it is truly amazing feeling – and in a metal concert the energy form an audience is really important as everyone knows – so being part of a metal crowd gives me a similar kick
Anyone else find this to be true?
FUCK YOURSELF WITH A SANDPAER DILDO,LMMMMMMMMMMMMFFFFFFFFFFAAAAAAAAAAO
I guess I’m the rare non-musician music fan.
My total experience of playing music was being in a school band playing trumpet when I was a kid. But I didn’t stick with it, or pick up another instrument.
But I really love music, especially metal. I don’t know if I appreciate it or enjoy it more than a musician. I can see what you’re saying about the “analytical” side of things. Perhaps being a musician makes you slightly jaded in a way that you might not to be able to enjoy the music as … innocently? … as a non musician. Not sure about that though.
I have to say that sometimes when I’m really into a album, it makes me WANT to pick up a guitar because of some sort of inspiration. But then I realize that I could probably never be as good as that guy unless I started playing when I was eight or something, and don’t bother. Still though, I keep thinking I should pick up a guitar just for the enjoyment of playing it and learning it. I’d be happy just being able to play along with my favorite songs. :)
I love rock. However, I am not a musician. I just love music.
late to post a comment but i love music all together. since the 1st grade when i heard korn on the radio. i never stopped listening to metal after. it became my passion and life. jonathan davis was my idol and by the time i was in 5th grade, i knew what i wanted to do with my life. i wanted to be the singer of a metal band. i wanted to tour around the world with a band of my friends. i wanted to release records. i realized i couldnt play any instrument for shit, but that didn’t bother me, because what i really wanted to be was a singer, nothing more. i started practicing singing by singing along to stuff, and singling along heavier. i learned to sing most metal songs and do some good screams by the end of middle school. then i got into heavier stuff, and more deathmetal and deathcore. now that i graduated high school, im going to college in my 1st semester for music majoring in vocals. then my friend not long ago heard me sing to stuff like suicide silence and lots of other bands while i was drunk and stoned outta my mind, and he thought it was kickass, brutal, and pro as hell with great high pitched screams and krazy gutturals.. and since then, we’ve been trying to get a full band together, me on vocals, and him on guitar, and us making the music while making up for the lack of members and using drum machines and such. though we’re making it virtually nowhere as of now, its still fun as hell and i love it. i love everything about metal and every type of metal that possibly exists.
~PEACE~
NOTE: First and foremost, I apologize for not knowing of DAATH’s awesomeness until relatively recently in which you lovely gents sent a myspace friend request. I am very sorry about that. I immensely enjoy your music. I hope to see you guys in the future. Again, my apologies (this explains the awkward timing of this comment).
In response to this blog:
I am one of those musician fans of metal. I sung as an alto vocalist from 9yrs. old to 14 yrs. old. I haven’t sung publicly since. I have been playing alto sax since I was 10 yrs. old. I’m not in a performance group at this time. I listen to mostly metal and other rock genres, but I do listen to any folk, blues (yay Chicago!), marches/fight songs, classical, baroque, any latin music, swing, etc. Singing and playing a woodwind has had an effect on how I listen to music. I enjoy higher volumes, but I adore anyone who could pull off the “more sound, less volume” technique. Also, I tend to over analyze melody, countermelody, and harmony a lot. I don’t remember what it’s like to just listen.
~Rachel