Editorials – Music Bank

What’s With the Metalcore Hate?

As we know I tend to be late to the party. It’s a problem I know, and I get reminded about this all the time by my metal loving friends. Seems like every time I find a new band to obsess over my friends are like, “yeah I listened to that about 10 years ago”. I get it, I live in a seriously messed up time slip.

A good example of that was when I started listening to Asking Alexandria. I hadn’t heard of them and I stumbled upon them while I was deep diving through one of Spotify’s song radio options for some other band. Another band I was late to the party on was Trivium, now one of my favorite bands. So you get what I’m saying about missing the mark.

But here’s the thing, now that I’m expanding on what I listen to I’ve realized that these new music obsessions I have going on are apparently lame. I’m not sure why or how it is I constantly feel the need to apologize for my musical choices but here we are.

A quick check on Spotify lists bands like In This Moment, Falling In Reverse (yeah, I know people have issues with Ronnie, but whatever), Ice Nine Kills, and From Ashes to New. And really, isn’t FATN actually NuMetal but I digress.

These bands are all amazing! What is it about Metalcore that makes people so ready to fight? Is wanting harmony and melody in your music really such a crime against humanity?

I was just watching a Nik Nocuturnal video where he was talking about the upcoming Trivium/Bullet tour and was almost apologizing for liking Metalcore. He’s not the only person I’ve seen either come really close if not actually apologize for liking that genre. So my question is why? What it is about Metalcore that makes it the redheaded step child of Metal?

Far Beyond Driven – A deeply Personal Dive into Pantera’s Third Album

I came of age in the suburbs during the late 80’s early 90’s. Where I lived could have easily been called Pop country. No one I went to school with listened to anything other the “mainstream” stations and MTV was still in its infancy. I had yet to learn the joys of Metal and at that point I hadn’t even hear of Pantera.

Sure, I had a couple of friends that moved in from places like California that were happy to offer up some lessons on what they considered “real” music. It was then that I learned about bands like Anthrax. However, being young and focused on school I didn’t have the pocket money to follow up on these bands. I hadn’t learned about Headbangers Ball yet.

1992 ended up being a big year for me. I turned 19, had a job and some spending cash. I had time to kill watching TV and that is when I started watching Headbangers ball and was first introduced to Pantera. I was a huge fan from the opening riffs, but I still had no real idea how good this new music could be. I would learn in just a few short years.

Far Beyond Driven was a revelation to me. There was something going on here that I still didn’t quite understand but I knew I wanted to. So, I took what little cash I had, and I bought the CD. Nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to hear and feel. From the first song to the last one I was entranced.

These songs matched what I was feeling at that point in my life to an absolute T. Listening to 5 Minutes Alone made me reflect on my parents and how I was trying to live my life on my own terms while they were still very much trying to exert control over what I did, how I did it and who I did it with. I really did just want 5 minutes alone. At the same time there was some turmoil in the family, and I felt like an extremely broken human being in an extremely broken family. Enter I’m Broken, another track that I felt spoke to my anger, frustration, and disillusionment with life. I won’t even go into 25 Years, somethings are just too painful to relive, but safe to say this song resonated with me on some levels that I thought I had fixed. Even today as I listed to I realize there are some wounds that never fully heal.

It was also the same year I learned about the movie Heavy Metal. Planet Caravan became a go to song for me (along with Sammy Hagar’s Heavy Metal). I’ve long been a fan of what I call “floaty” music and I think this may be the best example of what I’m talking about. There is something about the song that reaches me in ways that defy explanation. I just know that it’s a part of me, then, now and forever.

If you haven’t listed to Far Beyond Driven and you are down for some heavy shit, I can’t recommend this album highly enough. But be warned, this album may well bring some things up for you but it may also help you cope.

Deep Dive #1 – Device’s Cover of Wish by NIN

I’m setting here working on the website, beating my head against a wall over a plugin when this song pops up on my Spotify list. I’ve listened to this song probably a thousand times both by Nine Inch Nails and Disturbed, I always feel the same way. While the Nine Inch Nails original is amazing and all that the Disturbed version is what I think this song always wanted to be.

Let’s break down Device’s cover first. There is such a frenetic energy to the way Wish played this one that is hard to quantify. I don’t think it’s any faster or louder But I think it’s more angry than NIN’s version. Draiman has that gravely quality to his vocals that is an extra little something for listeners of this song. I even like the Uh! Uh’s! David is famous for being peppered in through the ending of the song. I feel like his vocals are far more angry than Reznor’s original vocals were. Another thing I noticed about this cover is the music. While it’s a pretty straight forward cover with out any real noticeable changes in the arrangement the music is a lot more present in this version than the original. I’m not sure that this is a detraction from the playability of this song by any means. I think it was just a good way for Device to take this cover and morph it slightly into a cover with their own flavor. As far as the music, the guitar work is solid and on fire! It’s got a grungy quality to it that moves this track from industrial metal to heavy metal. The drums and bass worked in concert to keep this fast paced track moving forward.

NIN’s original is heavily steeped in industrial metal goodness. In truth this is probably one of my favorite industrial metal track of the era. There is the pulse racing pace of this song that get’s your blood pumping. It’s almost impossible to move that head while listening to it. Reznor’s put something really special together for fans of the genre with this track. This song is like a marathon for all players, I can’t imagine having to try to play this live. Reznor’s vocals come across in a frenzied, desperate plea. Not in a sad way as much as a pissed off, emotionally dark way. The movement of the music from soft to screaming in your ears is perfectly executed. I feel like the crunchy guitar being thrown in your face in such a staccato manor keeps you interested during the song. Then, there is something about that ticking drum in background that gives you a sense of urgency punctuated by the guitar and bass lines kicking in.

Overall I really love both of these versions. What is your favorite one, Device or Nine Inch Nails.