Rock music sucks now days

[Drezzy]

Sorry, I just don't see how anybody can say that dark, bassy, angry growling doesn't fit dark, bassy, angry music. If a death band, like say Murder Squad, were to have clean vocals, I don't think it would work nearly as well. The music is distorted, "mucky" (best word I could think of for it), aggressive, and dark. Having a singer that sounds like he's singing showtunes wouldn't fit it at all (although I do think it would be a nice contrast).

Freep, have you ever heard Shadows Fall? Check 'em out. The guitarists do a nice balance of hardcore metal riffing with classical pieces.

[superdude]

I used to hate the growls until I heard Opeth, which does both singing and growling. It's hard to do the growling thing concert after concert, theres a technique to keep your throat from bleeding. Cannibal Corpse is a medicore death metal band so I know people would hate them.

Shadows Fall is good at balancing music, their last album was even called "Art of Balance"

[ErikJ]

I hear everybody bash the growling of a lot of metal bands now I can't stand the constant growl but as mentioned before if they combine some great singing with it.

One band I absolutely love that does this is Mudvayne. Not only to the combine the growl and singing but they have real musical talent. Not to take anything away from the other bands but listen to the songs Prod, Death Blooms or even Nothing to Gain. And tell me if you can follow the directions they are taking the songs.

[Fearless Freep]

Sorry, I just don't see how anybody can say that dark, bassy, angry growling doesn't fit dark, bassy, angry music.

Probably for the same reason that crashing garbage can lids doesn't fit "Night On Bald Mountain" :)  You can do dark angry  music and still keep it musical.

 It also helps to have a contrast where each instrument fills a role in the total tonal spectrum.  Bass guitar and drums and electric guitar and voice normally don't sit in the same frequency range.  Or conversely, you get a better overall tonal blend if each instrument sits in it's own tonal space.  If the bass and the guitar are in the same frequency range, it gets muddy and you lose clarity.  If you can have the bass in one range and the guitar up higher, the bass has more power and the guitar has more cut.   Same with vocals.  If you drop the vocals into the electric guitar spectrum too much and they are both taking the same approach (same general frequency range and same broken up tone) then the loose distinction, and more importantly, you miss out on how much the voice can really add to the whole musical sound.

Just like in a movie, timing and characters matter.  The action makes more impacvt of you build to it and then let it down.   The "band of marines" is boring if the don't have their own personality and character and contributions.

have you ever heard Shadows Fall? Check 'em out.

I did...tried out "Thoughts Without Words" and "Destroyer Of Senses". They sounded a lot better when the added vocal melody in parts of the songs.  Didn't really here any classical flavors, but it was decent metal

[Brother Ragnarok]

Well, Captain Coffeehouse, you've obviously been listening to the s**t that MTV tries to pass off as metal these days, like Staind and Linkin Park.  Before you get all snooty you should listen to some REAL metal.  Then, after listening to it a couple of times, try to play it.  If you and one of your stuck-up jazz buddies can master the dual guitar harmonies of Shadows Fall or handle keeping up with the 2000bpm drum machines of Agoraphobic Nosebleed, then come back and be a dick some more.

Brother R

[NiGHTS]

May I just pop in for one more defense of DIllinger?  If not, I'm going to anyway.  Neagh.  Dillinger is anti-hook.  A DIllinger song is not meant to be fun to listen to, it's not meant to sound good.  It is, for lack ofa better term, controlled chaos.  That is all. :)

[superdude]

Dillinger Escape Plan songs are for going crazy, at their concerts lots of fans start fights.

About Mudvayne, I wouldn't say they have death growls, they're really just alternative metal aka nu-metal but they're a lot better than a lot of other nu-metla bands. I have their LD 50 album, it's good.

Best Shadows Falls song is "Somber Angel". They do have one song with the best solo I've ever heard on their Of One Blood album, I forget the name of it.

[Bob Narden]

I agree with the person that said they liked John Mayer. A lot of people are ignoring him because of "Your Body is a Wonderland", but if you dig deeper, you'll find that he is quite the blues guitarist. I watched a friends copy of his dvd, and it was amazing. My favorite song? Covered in Rain. A great blues song.

[Mr. Hockstatter]

I haven't listened to the radio in years.  I turn it on, give it about 5 seconds, then slip in a CD.  I'm mostly into the hair-metal stuff form the '80s - Dokken, Whitesnake, Def Leppard, etc.  Also like Pat Benatar, The Cars, and all that.  New Wave music is cool too, like they played on the radio when I was in high school in the early '80s.  And there's always the classic stuff, Zeppelin, Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath.

I mostly like stuff I grew up with.  Let the kids these days grow up with their crap - I've already got my music :)

[jmc]

I mainly listen to film soundtracks and exotica/lounge type stuff, and other old music, especially classic country music.   Over the last few years I've noticed that I've become less and less interested in rock music or most modern music.   It just does nothing for me, not even most of the stuff I used to like.  Sometimes I'll listen to it for nostalgia value but that's about it.  There are a couple of rock/pop CDs I still listen to occasionally but it's not really what I'm interested in most of the time.
I listen to some stuff on the radio and it's okay but not something I would want to have in my collection.

However, I do know at least a few people my age or older who are really unhappy with the decline in popularity of guitar-oriented rock.

[Kristy]

Amen, brother - MODEST MOUSE.

But I have to say my ears belong to Radiohead, who have become the most talented and original group to come out of the 90's. They aren't afraid to change and seem to do all they can to move away from this new scene. Sure, you might say they're not rock anymore, but anyone who could listen to their old stuff will find something in the new stuff worth hearing.

[Cricket21a]

Ever since Rap has become part of Rock music stations I have not been able to listen to them any more.  Maybe I'm just becoming a fuddy duddy but I would rather listen to country music or the oldies than all the new crap that's out.  I used to like the heavy metal bands but it just seems they lost something over time.  I know exactly what it is.  Most of the music that metal is today relies too much on the "Dark" side of life.  Where are the fun songs?  I can listen to it once but to listen to it over and over, forget it.

[Drezzy]

Heavy metal was NEVER about the "fun" side of life. What you're referring to is known as "glam rock," or "cock rock." Hell, Black Sabbath was the first metal band, and they're known as an EXTREMELY depressing band. Metal's always been about focusing on the negative aspects of life, and anybody that tells you otherwise needs a smack offside the head.

Of course, then there's power metal...but most power metallers are flamers, trust me. Anybody that listens to Stratovarius for anything other than the guitar work needs a kick in the head. Although Iron Maiden and Helloween and Onward rule you all!

Ah, Maiden. I love Maiden. Songs about love, death, history, politics, drugs, mythology...whatever. And it's all great. ALL OF IT. I have yet to hear a BAD Maiden song. How many bands can say they don't have any BAD songs?!

[Brother Ragnarok]

If we're talking about kickass power metal bands, don't leave out Nevermore.
And Cricket, all that stuff you're hearing on the radio, ain't metal.  They don't play real metal on the radio anymore.

Brother R

[wickednick]

For me Metal has always been about pumping me up, and getting me ready to kick ass.There is nothing like some All Out War, Fear Factory, SYL or Hate Breed to get your adrinaline pumping.
And as Brother said they don't play real Metal on the radio any more.