Heavy Metal Music Sucks

[ABlairican Pie]

1991 (continued)

The year's most significant breakthrough, grunge, became one of the most important events to ever happen to metal, in the fact that it sounded the death knell for metal--at least as a commercial force. Metal would go on, though it would be a long, hard struggle. Other performers, however, would not, as we shall see.

The rock world lost one of its own in the fall of that year when Queen vocalist Freddie Mercury died of AIDS on November 24 at the age of 45. His illness had long been a matter of speculation for a number of years, and in his remaining months he had kept his condition a private matter, as well as his appearance, which was astonishingly gaunt and withered. He later made a public statement about his having contracted AIDS a few days before his death. He was the most well-known figure in rock and popular music to have died of the disease, and his condition prevented Queen from continuing as a band--at least for that time. Queen had been on the verge of making a comback with new albums such as 'Innuendo' after having spent the past decade of more pop-friendly records that failed to match their 70's reign of glory. Queen was not technically a "metal" band, but would have a significant impact on many metal artists, including Andrew Wood of Seattle alternative act Mother Love Bone. Queen's sound was huge and majestic, and Brian May's guitar playing was massive and symphonic, and Mercury's stage presence was stunning. In addition to the illness which he kept secret, another little-known fact about him was that the British musician was born on the African island of Zanzibar, now Tanzania, and that his real name was Farrokh Bulsara, born of Parsi Indian parents, his father having worked for the British Colonial office. It was understandable that his AIDS status might bring condemnation and ostracism from the music community, but it was even stranger that he did not mention much about his East Indian heritage. He therefore became one of the biggest Asian musicians of popular music. His identity as a bisexual, however, was well-known. He suffered no backlash when his disease and death became public, in fact, musicians would gather to celebrate his life and impact on rock.

One of the biggest entertainment events to revive the popularity of Queen was the 1991 movie 'Wayne's World', a comedy based on the Saturday Night Live characters Wayne and Garth, played by Mike Myers and Dana Carvey, about two young rocker dudes who hosted a public access program from a home in Aurora, Illinois. The theme song would go, "It's Wayne's World! Wayne's World! Party time! Excellent!" with the two dudes jamming on guitar and drum sticks while inviting guests to appear and be subject to their vulgar pranks. In the movie, they found out that their show was about to be carried by a major network, which they found out was not to be according to their dreams as they thought. During this time they promoted a young female singer, Tia Carerre, whose career they hoped to launch, as well as meeting their idol, Alice Cooper, at a concert. After Alice gave them a history lesson on the city of Milwaukee, the two dudes bowed, crying out, "We're not worthy!! We're not worthy!!" In addition to this and other new pop culture references, such as "hurl", the dudes' singalong to the Queen hit "Bohemian Rhapsody" and their subsequent headbanging to the rocking section of the song were one of the most memorable scenes of the film. The movie also featured a new song by Black Sabbath featuring Ronnie James Dio on the soundtrack, titled "Time Machine".

On the same day of Mercury's passing, another musician more tied in with the metal scene, KISS drummer Eric Carr, who replaced original drummer Peter Criss, died of cancert at the age of 41. Carr, whose real name was Paul Charles Caravello, became known as "The Fox" of the band after Criss' departure in the early 80's. The "cat" makeup was not replaced now that the band's "Catman" had left the band, so a new persona was chosen for a new member during the latter years of KISS' makeup phase. Caravello was working on stoves and playing in several bands during the time he auditioned for KISS, and while not expecting to be chosen for the band, asked for autographs from the band anyway. To his surprise, he passed the audition, and completed the 80's with the band through their "non-makeup" era. Since there were two members of KISS named Paul (Stanley and Paul "Ace" Frehley), the band urged him to think of a proper stage name to avoid confusion, and he chose Eric Carr, as an abbreviation of his last name. At first the band chose his persona as "The Hawk", but he was unsatified with it, so "The Fox" seemed better to him. In addition to being a better, more professional drummer than Criss, he even recorded an updated version of "Beth", Peter Criss' signature song, with Carr himself on vocals. After the band's 1989 album 'Hot In the Shade', a doctor's visit revealed that he had a cancerous tumor on one chamber of his heart which soon spread to his lungs. He spent time trying to recover which meant he needed to be replaced in the band for the next album. Unfortunately he passed away, and the remaining members of KISS were not only devastated, but disgusted that Rolling Stone and other publications paid no attention to his passing. He was replaced by drummer Eric Singer, and his girlfriend Carrie Stevens became a future Playboy model.
Carr's contribution to the band was that his drumming carried KISS through lean times in the 80's and pushed the band to the next level of proficiency in their careers, saving them from certain stagnation after Criss' defection. While KISS were toning down their 70's theatrics, Carr's musicianship propelled the band to continue to be a top concert draw.

The year brought about a devastating reversal of fortune for former Cacaphony guitarist and Marty Friedman bandmate Jason Becker, who was about to go out on the road playing in his new gig with David Lee Roth for the 'A Little Ain't Enough' album after replacing Steve Vai. He noticed what he felt was a "lazy limp" in his leg, and a doctor looked at it, he learned it was the worst news he could ever hear: He had acquired ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, after the famed baseball player who suffered from the same condition. The disease, a degenerative muscle condition, soon began to wither his ability to play, and soon to even speak. Becker attempted to finish the album, but time was running short. Doctors predicted that he had only three years to live, but remarkably he survived, though his ability to play was severely crippled as well as his speech. Miraculously, he managed to make music by guitar with computer and began to communicate with his eyes. His friends in the music industry put on a benefit concert which would help the costs of his new equipment to assist him in his new living as well as for medical treatment. To this day he survives, though with severely limited capacity, but his mind and heart remain strong.

1991 was also a year of major change in metal when it was announced that Rob Halford of Judas Priest was leaving the band he had fronted for nearly twenty years. While no explanation was given for his departure, it was speculated that certain "personal lifestyle choices" or musical or creative differences were behind his exit. It was then later revealed that his decision to leave was in fact due to the final concert of the 'Painkiller' tour in Canada, when as an encore he would ride his Harley Davidson motorcycle out onto the stage, as he had done countless times before. This night, he crashed and suffered minor injuries from the mishap. This incident appears to have made him reassess his role as the reigning Metal God, and soon afterward, he decided to take his leave and find a new band to form. It was a disappointing decision not only for him and the band, but for all of metal, he later realized, since the other reigning kings of heavy rock, Metallica, were in the midst of a career turnaround at a time when metal needed as much support as it could get. Halford felt that if he had stayed with the band, there was the possibility that metal could have remained strong through the anti-80's, anti-metal backlash gripping the musical landscape of the new decade. All around, fortunes were fading for former titans of metal, but would metal remain strong had Halford remained at the helm?

Interestingly, on the subject of movies and metal, the hit comedy 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective", had a fan of extreme metal band Cannibal Corpse in zany comic actor Jim Carrey, who starred in the title role. The controversial death metal band was featured in one segment in the movie playing "Hammer Smashed Face" live. The band would not expect such mainstream noteriety for the next five years, through other kinds of "fans", one which few would expect to make the Florida gore-thrashers into household names (gore was the operative word here).

Brazilian thrash combo Sepultura finally based itself in Arizona, a little closer to the mainstream than from their former location south of the border when they released their 1991 album 'Arise'. The album brought a number of fans to embrace their unrelenting metal while the rest of the country licked at the current grunge flavors of the month. In many quarters, thrash was not about to be replaced by current trends, and this album delivered the goods, becoming another classic in the annals of faster-than-life-itself rock. The socially conscious album featured such popular tracks as "Dead Embryonic Cells", "Desperate Cry", "Murder", "Altered State", "Third World Posse", "Under Siege (Regnum Irac)", and the title track. One song, "C.I.U. (Criminals In Uniform)", was a statement about the corrupt police force in their native Brazil which became under fire for killing homeless children in the streets of one major city. Few "civilized" countries reflected the rise of lawlessness and decay as did Brazil, one of the biggest nations in the Western Hemisphere as well as the world, and Sepultura provided the soundtrack to the impending cultural apocalypse facing the end of the century.


Freddie Mercury;
Wayne's World;
Eric "the Fox" Carr;
Jason Becker;
Rob Halford;
Cannibal Corpse performance on Ace Ventura;
Sepultura 'Arise':

[Dr. Thong]

Hate to nitpick (well, actually I don't;)), but the Wayne's World movie was released in February of 1992. They released Tia Carrere's remake of Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz" as a single and video, but it was the re-release of "Bohemian Rhapsody" that charted in the Billboard top 10 in the spring of 1992.

In fact, it charted higher (I forget the exact ranking) than it did back in 1975. I liked the fact that kids were discovering Queen because of its inclusion in the movie and it gave Queen a new, young audience in the wake of Freddie Mercury's passing. I think Freddie probably would have appreciated the humor of the sequence when Wayne and Garth and their friends were lip-synching and headbanging to "Bo Rap."

Certainly better than Vanilla Ice ripping off "Under Pressure" with his single "Ice Ice Baby," that's for sure!:rolleyes:

[ABlairican Pie]

Hate to nitpick (well, actually I don't;)), but the Wayne's World movie was released in February of 1992. They released Tia Carrere's remake of Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz" as a single and video, but it was the re-release of "Bohemian Rhapsody" that charted in the Billboard top 10 in the spring of 1992.

In fact, it charted higher (I forget the exact ranking) than it did back in 1975. I liked the fact that kids were discovering Queen because of its inclusion in the movie and it gave Queen a new, young audience in the wake of Freddie Mercury's passing. I think Freddie probably would have appreciated the humor of the sequence when Wayne and Garth and their friends were lip-synching and headbanging to "Bo Rap."

Certainly better than Vanilla Ice ripping off "Under Pressure" with his single "Ice Ice Baby," that's for sure!:rolleyes::doh: Now where did I get the idea that Wayne's World was released in the fall of 1991?
:confused: Oh well, I think I might have put it in there because it seemed to perfectly tie in with Freddie Mercury's passing. And there's even more about Freddie Mercury that I'm about to get to in the next year!! :cool:

Feel free to nitpick, I do it all the time as well!!:D


Vanilla Ice = puke:

[Dr. Thong]

:doh: Now where did I get the idea that Wayne's World was released in the fall of 1991?
:confused: Oh well, I think I might have put it in there because it seemed to perfectly tie in with Freddie Mercury's passing. And there's even more about Freddie Mercury that I'm about to get to in the next year!! :cool:

Feel free to nitpick, I do it all the time as well!!:D


Vanilla Ice = puke:

In late 1990, I was at a party where they were playing a dance music station. All of a sudden, I hear the bass riff to "Under Pressure" and I'm thinking why is this station playing Queen?

Then old Robbie Van Winkle started doing his suburban white boy rap shtick and I just went..."Oh, no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!":eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

True story.

[ABlairican Pie]

In late 1990, I was at a party where they were playing a dance music station. All of a sudden, I hear the bass riff to "Under Pressure" and I'm thinking why is this station playing Queen?

Then old Robbie Van Winkle started doing his suburban white boy rap shtick and I just went..."Oh, no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!":eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

True story.:lol: Didn't you wish ol' Rob could have just slept for forty years?? ;) :sleep2: :sleep2: :sleep2:

It's like when at work we were hearing "Under Pressure" on a classic Top 40 station in Seattle and they hit that high wailing vocal part in the middle, we were going, "yeah, Ice, sing it!" :lol:

[ABlairican Pie]

1991 (continued)

The Cult released their next album 'Ceremony' at the advent of grunge, and what seemed to be a perfect time for Britain's leading retro-metal revivalists soon found themselves awash in legal and personal turmoil as well as widespread disinterest. First of all, vocalist Ian Astbury's father had died of cancer in 1990, causing cancellations of concerts into the new year. The band touched on themes of Native American culture and spirituality, similar to The Doors' Jim Morrison's alleged shamanism (Astbury apparently was inspired by him and emulated him), on the new album. However, controversy gripped the band when the photo of the Native American boy on the cover, was tossed into a fire for the band's video for "Wild Hearted Son". Due to the tribal belief that photographs took a person's soul, the burning of the photo was extremely traumatic for the child, and the band was sued for a staggering $61 million dollars for the pain, emotional distress, and exploitation by the boy's parents. Was the band having it both ways, to embrace part of their indigenous culture on one hand for the album's music while ignoring cultural sensitivities of the same? On top of dealing with the lawsuit, relations between Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy had disintegrated to the point where neither could work with each other in the same studio. To add insult to injury, the public's newfound fascination with grunge rendered anything "80's" and "metal" (with which the Cult were loosely tied in) as completely obsolete. Regardless, songs such as "Wild Hearted Son" and "Heart Of Soul" were solid rock tracks that truly defined the Cult at their best. Other tracks included "White", "If", and "Sweet Salvation". Unfortunately, the problems with the lawsuit hampered the release of the album far into 1992 in many countries.

On a lighter note, one band that could not be topped for definite "retro" factor was Dread Zeppelin. The band was an intriguing combination of musicians playing reggae-style Led Zeppelin covers, and this was not enough, the band was fronted by an Elvis impersonator named Tortelvis. Their rotund singer was inspired to become Tortelvis when he was driving a van which crashed in a collision. As he lie there awaiting help, he received his vision to become the band's lead singer, and from there the world became his oyster. The band released their first album, the hugely successful 'Un-LED-Ed' in 1990, which featured their first big song, "Heartbreaker (At the End Of Lonely Street)", an obvious combination of the Zeppelin classic and words from one of the King's first major hits, "Heartbreak Hotel". Other reggae-ized Zep classics included "Black Dog", "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)", "Whole Lotta Love", and "The Immigrant Song". In 1991, the band returned with the album '5,000,000' as in "5,000,000 Tortelvis Fans Can't Be Wrong". The album featured not only another batch of reggae-style Zeppelin covers, but a few Bob Marley covers as well. The songs on the second album included "The Song Remains the Same", "Misty Mountain Hop", "Stairway To Heaven", and
"Nobody's Fault But Mine". Even Robert Plant was a huge fan of the band, as the story goes that for the success of "Stairway To Heaven", he in fact hated the song, and wanted to sing it reggae-style instead.(Not seen yet if Dread Zeppelin covered 'D'yer Maker'). The Elvis Presley estate urged the band to either black out the face of the King on the album cover, whose image was a registered trademark (in spite of it being actually Tortelvis), or change it under threat of legal action. Other covers featured either a blacked-out Tortelvis or one with him in Rasta dreads.

Going back to true metal, Iced Earth was one thrash/power metal band from Florida via Indiana which had the distinction of using an identical name, debut album title, and song title, as did Black Sabbath, Bad Company, and Iron Maiden. Though the band would go through various lineup changes over the years, the band's constant member was founding guitarist Jon Schaffer. The album's songs included "Written On the Walls", "Curse the Sky", "The Funeral", "When the Night Falls", and the title track.

Infectious Grooves was one spinoff band fronted by Suicidal Tendencies lead singer Mike Muir and ST bassist and guitarist Robert Trujillo and Rocky George, as well as Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins Like many metal bands of the early 90's, they explored other musical styles and genres than the ones they were most acquainted with, in this case, they helped form what was known as funk metal. In fact, one of their most popular songs from their debut, 'The Plague That Makes Your Booty Move...It's the Infectious Grooves' featured none other than Ozzy Osbourne on guest vocals. It was an interesting time for metal, to say the least, although for many, it was a disappointing sign that traditions were dying and metal was entering a phase of hybridization and experimentation. Some welcomed the trend which seemed to add fresh air to a "stagnating" genre while others smelled disaster in the wind. Could metal remain metal in these days?

Savatage released another album reflecting their prog metal leanings, 'Streets: A Rock Opera'. Prog metal was certainly not a direction which disappointed many metal fans, due to the success of such bands as Queensryche, however the actual album sold poorly, thanks to the grunge explosion. The band had toiled for a year on the record, dealing with stress between members and backbreaking struggle to complete it, only to find most fairweather metal fans had jumped ship for a new fleet with the flannel and plaid Jolly Roger. The actual story line to the album, however, was interesting: the tale was based on an unpublished novel by author/songwriter Paul O'Neill which focused on a down and out character by the name of DT Jesus, a former rock star-turned-drug dealer in the red light section of New York City who finds a chance at fame, fortune, and a future fall. Vocalist Jon Oliva found the story resembling his own from over ten years before and decided to compose a concept album with its characters and plot. One of the standout tracks from the album was "Gutter Ballet" as well as "Jesus Saves", which became a video.

Rush continued their foray back into more guitar-driven rock with their 1991 album 'Roll the Bones', whose title track incorporated a new sound, a bit of hip hop and a rap vocal section, which may have put off a few listeners, but not to worry, the band was hardly going in the rap-metal direction of Anthrax or other bands. The band was prog enough to explore other styles, but be taken over by them. Alex Lifeson's guitar work on Paul Reed Smith instruments featured a little cleaner, leaner tone while Geddy Lee's Wal bass had a funkier, jazzier sound. Other standout tracks contain the opening song "Dreamline", one of their most popular songs, as well as "Bravado", "Face Up","Ghost Of a Chance", "Big Wheel", "Heresy", about the breakdown of the Soviet Bloc, and their first instrumental in ten years, "Where's My Thing?, Pt. 4: Gangster of Boats Trilogy". Keyboards were taking on a more supplemental role on this album. The new release in fact became Rush's first Top 5 album on the charts since 'Moving Pictures', topping at #3. The band's lack of "metal-ness" did not deter fans from flocking to their shows in 1992, which featured not only some of their greatest performances of their career at that point, but also opened with alternative band Primus, the quirky Bay Area trio whose frontman Les Claypool was an admittedly huge Rush fan. As previous albums touched on various themes (Power Windows with power, Hold Your Fire with time, and Presto with vision), the new album dealt with the theme of chance, as in "rolling the bones", a slang term for casting dice.

Speaking of Primus, the rising alternative three-piece released their major label debut, the commercially successful "Sailing the Seas Of Cheese", an musically upbeat album whose lyrics often touched on social commentary. Though the band was not a metal band, they did have connections to many metal acts in the 80's in the Bay Area: Les Claypool was a high school friend of Metallica's Kirk Hammett, auditioned for the band after the death of Cliff Burton (though he was turned down after asking if the band wanted to jam on some Isley Brothers), and even played a bass version of "Master Of Puppets" in concert. Guitarist Larry LaLonde was a member of 80's black metal band Possessed, and was also tutored by Hammett's guitar instructor, virtuoso Joe Satriani. Two songs, "Jerry Was a Racecar Driver", which featured Claypool's eccentric bass riff, and "Tommy the Cat" which contained a monologue by singer-songwriter Tom Waits, became popular videos on MTV. Other songs, such as "Sergeant Baker", dealt with military life, "American Life" described poverty, and one standout track, the single "Those Damned Blue Collar Tweakers", sang about crystal meth addiction. Not only did the band open for Rush in 1992, but also hit the road with Anthrax and Public Enemy.

[ABlairican Pie]

35. 1992: There Goes the Neighborhood: Alternative ascends

True or False: The rise of alternative and grunge successfully killed off any remaining vestige of metal forever by 1992.

Answer: FALSE. In spite of metal commercially being severely curtailed during that year, it was not at all completely "killed off", as much as the trendy forces of anti-metal wanted the fairweather friends would have us believe.

It was true that many bands felt their appeal would outlast the waves of fashion as the Seattle scene began to take center stage. It was a fad, like anything else. Nothing to be worried about, they told themselves. People would come to their senses and embrace the new crop of albums waiting to be snapped up from everyone's favorites from Tinseltown. Who in their right mind would want to buy albums from those untalented, unkempt slackers from Seattle, anywho? Those guys were ugly, they couldn't get chicks, and they couldn't shred worth a crap. Good luck, people. So the hair metal bands felt their fortunes stall, temporarily, they told themselves. Give it time, they were told. The Seattle dirtbag thing would be over before they knew it. In the meantime, some L.A. bands began to get ideas of their own. The scene was shifting. And so must they. How to remain "relevant"...?

It was true that the careers of most "hair metal" bands were put on thin ice, but contrary to public opinion, it was not necessarily just because the Seattle bands killed business for the Sunset Strip spandex rockers, but because many of these Aqua-Net types decided to jump ship and try to hop on the alternative bandwagon. Their previously successful brand of Top 40 commercial pop-metal no longer seemed worth defending, which disappointed many fans who still stuck up for the tried and true bad-boy brigades from Hollywood. The trendy Seattle thing was just a passing fad and soon would fade away, with straight on rockers heading back in no time. They found they were in for a long wait. When the "hair" dudes decided to cash in on that grunge sound, it soured many on the glam metal bands who no longer believed in the cause. It was easy to want some of the flannel pie when the longstanding bands through the 80's had their jobs taken from them and handed to the upstart Seattle bands who, surprisingly, sneered at the same commercial success that the L.A. bands were enjoying and striving for.

It was equally bad for the minions of thrashers who earlier were expected to make the same breakthrough in the charts as Metallica had. Since all things "Seattle" made anything "80's" practically obsolete, including the cutting edge thrash bands, both speed metal and spandex-metal were dumped in the same cultural bargain bin/trash can, an attitude fostered by the politically correct record companies and radio programmers. "Sexist" attitudes and "violent" lyrics were considered uncouth and passe by the music handlers of Nirvana and Pearl Jam in a new day of "responsibility" and
"respectability". Metal was a complete anachronism, was it not? Regardless, there were a number of metal bands who breathed much life into a supposedly declining scene, proving that metal was far from over. Let the winds of fashion blow elsewhere, there were still enough fans who wanted the real deal, metal-wise.

Pantera became the one major holdout of thrash, yet with a completely updated sound on their sopohomore album 'Vulgar Display Of Power'. While winds of change billowed out trends of fashion, the tempest that was the rising Texas titans flew the metal flag high for disenfranchised moshpit bezerkers who were completely alienated by Metallica's commercial turnabout. If Nirvana caught a collective ear tuned into detached youth of America, Pantera ripped a new collective tailpipe from the backsides of frustrated twentynothings all over with the album's songs such as the metal anthem
"Walk", "Mouth For War", "A New Level" "By Demons Be Driven", "No Good (Attack the Radical" and "Rise". Two songs expressed an intensity and vehemence previously untouched in metal:
"F:censored:ing Hostile", an unrelenting screed against religious moralizing, and "This Love", a dark brooding "anti-love" song directed at a former girlfriend from hell which expressed disturbing sentiments between the lyrics. The band lightened up with a bittersweet ballad, "Hollow", which launched into a powerhouse outro. Axeman Dimebag Darrell, who had renounced the name "Diamond" for a more politically incorrect nickname that he had long used before, shredded on his angular Dean guitar, complete with lightning bolts and KISS stickers, with an astonishing, "brittle" tone emanating from his solid state Randall amps. Combined with Phil Anselmo's wildcat screech, the new album led many critics to believe that it was Pantera, not Nirvana and Seattle, which buried 80's glam metal. Pantera's past as a glam band had long been forgotten. The album went on to become not only the defining moment of 90's metal, but established Pantera as one of the most influential metal bands of all time. Their concerts would be hugely attended through the rest of the decade. Their popularity proved beneficial when they were caught by police for throwing rocks at a stop sign. Having returned from another international rock festival in Moscow, the band explained that they were a band who had just played on behalf of the United States in the former Soviet Union. The arresting officers simply shook their heads and let them go!

Megadeth took a cue from Metallica to slow down its tempos on its next release, 'Countdown To Extinction', which became a disappointment to many critics yet becoming the band's biggest sellers. Many fans and reviewers expecting a repeat of the blistering "Rust In Peace' were put off by the more commercial tone of the album, which featured such tracks as the politically charged "Symphony Of Destruction', "Foreclosure Of a Dream", which sang of bassist Dave Ellefson's loss of his family farm due to governmental policies, Sweating Bullets", a perfect commentary of Dave Mustaine's state of mind, "Skin Of My Teeth", "Architecture Of Aggression", "Captive Honor", about the prison system,
"Ashes In Your Mouth", and the title track, which spoke of the plight of endangered species. Speaking of endangered, while it appeared that Dave Mustaine was on the clean and sober road to recovery from drug addiction, he suffered a relapse and ended up in a hospital emergency room, which prompted him to enter rehab, where he successfully emerged drug-free. On a positive note, socially conscious Dave covered the 1992 Democratic National Convention for MTV News (while Ted Nugent covered the Republican National Convention that year for MTV). It was most likely disconcerting that his political nemesis, Tipper Gore, was a heartbeat away from being First Lady that election year.

Iron Maiden's 'Fear Of the Dark' album released that year brought changes for the veteran band. It was the first album not to feature cover art by long-time illustrator Derek Riggs of their ghoulish mascot Eddy, who was painted by a different artist, as well the first to feature no song collaboration between Bruce Dickinson and chief songwriter Steve Harris. The album not only contained two of their most popular tunes in concert, the title track, the anti-war anthem "Afraid To Shoot Strangers", and the socially biting thrasher, "Be Quick Or Be Dead", but it was their first to include a power ballad,
"Wasting Love". "Afraid To Shoot Strangers" was written in response to the Persian Gulf War the year before, and remained one of their most powerful political songs. The album was considerably longer in that it was the first to be released entirely on CD. While the album was the first to feature music written by new member Janick Gers, it was the last studio album for a long while to feature Bruce Dickinson on vocals. Change was in the wind for the mighty band who were about to suffer inevitable changes in a deteriorating musical climate.

White Zombie would soon become one of the names to watch for in the 90's, as the theatrical shock-rock band, fronted by lead vocalist Rob Zombie (real name Robert Cummings), sprang out of the New York underground scene after several years of thriving on the noise rock circuit, releasing several indie albums through the 80's. They brought a colorful mixture of horror, kitsch culture, sleaze, porn, and trash to their brand of alternative metal. The band, which featured female bassist Sean Yseult, guitarist J., and Ivan de Prume on drums, named their band after a classic horror film from 1932 starring Bela Lugosi. Their major label debut, 'La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol. 1', contained the popular tracks, "Thunderkiss '65", which was accompanied by a hugely successful video, "Black Sunshine", where Iggy Pop made a spoken word performance, and the opening track "Welcome To Planet Motherf:censored:er/Psychoholic Slag". Throughout the album, audio samples of sermons, B-movie samples, an old episode of 'Batman', and even conservative shock-jock Rush Limbaugh, all made appearances in a zany sonic collage. The album was metal, but contained a heavy dance-groove feel with it as well. Rob Zombie was quite experienced in multi-media as well, designing the bizarre cover art and inner illustrations. Their videos were a huge hit on MTV.

Testament released 'The Ritual', an album felt by many to be a disappointment in comparison to such as albums as 'Practice What You Preach" from a few years back. Though the album featured such popular tracks as "Sign Of Chaos/Electric Crown", "So Many Lies", attacking t.v. preachers, and their huge ballad "Return To Serenity", the album was more polished with tapered-down tempos, as Metallica, and now even Megadeth were doing. Was this the end of the once-vibrant thrash scene? Was everyone going "corporate"? Where was the energy, the rawness? Well, as a matter of fact, even the thrashers were coming of age. It was not the same as it was only ten years before. In fact, there was a little defection in the works, as guitarist Alex Skolnick decided he had had enough of thrash. When he announced that he wanted to do something more melodic on the next album, they interpreted it melodic as meaning "not heavy", and turned off to his suggestions. He was growing frustrated with being in the band, wanting instead to pursue his true love, jazz. When co-guitarist Eric Peterson simply asked for guitar playing tips, Alex would snap back impatiently at him. Things were not going well for one of the biggest, most talented names in Bay Area thrash. By next year, it would be an entirely different picture for the band.

Body Count was the name of the metal band featuring rapper Ice-T on vocals, stepping away from his more familiar style of music and crossing over to the rising rap-metal scene. Thanks to Anthrax and its novelty track "I'm the Man" and their collaboration with Public Enemy on "Bring the Noise", as well as the followup tour with PE and Primus, Ice-T also decided to give rockers something new to chew on. With guitarist Ernie C, Mooseman on bass, Beatmaster V on drums and D-Roc on rhythm guitar, Ice-T brought his high school friends under the moniker Body Count after watching the evening news each night and noticing how many young urban youths had died in incidents of violence. He thought, "Is that all I am, a body count?" The band first appeared on Ice-T's 'Original Gangster' album performing a self-titled rock track in 1991, then appeared on the first Lollapalooza tour that summer, the first of its kind to feature alternative acts in a festival setting. Many felt the band, with its incendiary social lyrics and attitude, was the highlight of the tour. Other persons of color felt that Ice-T had "sold out" by incorporating "white" rock into rap, but he defended his actions, pointing out that rock and roll was originally created by blacks such as Chuck Berry and Little Richard. He was simply continuing on in that tradition. The minor controversy of "selling out" was nothing compared to the resulting conundrum upon the release of the self-titled debut album in 1992: the closing song "Cop Killer" brought a hailstorm of condemnation by corporate and political figures for allegedly endorsing the murder of law enforcement officials. However, Ice-T defended what he did by saying that this song was part of a storyline on the album, where a bad cop met his comeuppance and just desserts for his corrupt activities. Due to the public outcry, pressure was put on the group's label, Time-Warner to remove the song as a result of the backlash. The song was dropped from the album, though it served as a fitting reminder that things were not so peachy and pleasant in the spring of 1992: the acquittal of four officers in the brutal beating of black motorist Rodney King in Los Angeles resulted in massive riots and widespread acts of lawlessness, anarchy and arson throughout the San Fernando Valley and elsewhere in retaliation. Though another song, "There Goes the Neighborhood", which championed black musicians playing metal to the chagrin of close-minded whites, made its way on radio and MTV, the Body Count debut had made its point by touching a nerve by what it was not permitted to say. Censorship, suppression of voices of color, and blind eyes toward pleas for social justice was still an ugly reality in the America of George H.W. Bush in 1992.

Aggro-industrial band Ministry released 'Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs', the band's most metalized release, which featured riveting tracks such as "Jesus Built My Hot Rod", with the Butthole Surfers' Gabby Haynes on guest vocals, and the song "N.W.O. (New World Order)", a powerful biting commentary on the post-Cold War world under George H.W. Bush and the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War. Was the world safer after the fall of communism? Hardly, as the band had pointed out in their song and video, which contained clips of Bush Sr.'s speeches belying the reality of the state of affairs in the early 90's. The actual title of the album was ΚΕΦΑΛΗ ΞΘ (a Greek word roughly pronounced as "ke-fa-lay," meaning "head" or "leader", and the number 69 in Greek numerals), though Psalm 69 is used for the sake of simplicity. Some of the band's videos alluded to drug addiction, in particular heroin usage, as lead vocalist/guitarist Al Jourgensen dealt with a crippling habit which resulted in the surgical loss of a toe due to infection from a needle he accidentally stepped on. The synth-pop version of Ministry from the early 80's, something that Jourgensen participated in under record label duress, was long over.

[Family Fan]

I can't stand heavy metal music. The artists dress like fa*s and wear makeup. The music ain't nothing but a lot of yelling and loud guitars. White people have the nerve to diss rap music. At least rappers don't have album covers of weird sadistic stuff.

'White' people aren't the only ones who are against Rap, for a myriad of reasons. Still, at least heavy Metal is music, unlike the thug poetry with a beat.

[ABlairican Pie]

1992 (continued)

Alice In Chains released their followup album, 'Dirt', which surpassed the popularity of its predecessor in 1992. Fans who received a jolt to the system with the "dark glam band from Seattle" were in for even more of a shock when
the band's confessional lyrics offered a glimpse into the troubled, heroin-hazed mind of lead singer Layne Staley. Songs such as "Them Bones", "Dam That River", "Rain When I Die", "Sickman", "Junkhead", "Hate To Feel", and "Godsmack" were bleak depictions of life under the needle of addiction, while the title track stunned listeners with its brazen, harrowing pleas for suicide. "Angry Chair" dropped the listener into even further depths of morbid, tortured thoughts, while one final ballad-like song, "Down In a Hole", played on both the imagery of a hole in one's skin from puncturing syringes as well as an open hole of a grave. The concluding song, "Would?", from the 'Singles' soundtrack, was dedicated to the memory of Mother Love Bone singer Andrew Wood, who died a few years earlier from a heroin overdose. The album was a telling document on one living musician's battle with the deadly narcotic which was becoming a scourge on Seattle's very visible music scene. But not all songs touched on the devastating drug addiction; one song, "Rooster", sang of guitarist Jerry Cantrell's father and his tour of duty in Vietnam in the late 60's. The American eagle on his father's army insignia was called a "rooster" by the Vietnamese. The video was so disturbing that MTV pulled it after showing it very briefly. Alice In Chains was becoming a band so dark that they were quickly achieving status as the Black Sabbath of the 90's, not only in sound but in lyrical themes. Their concerts became a big draw, and though the band gave astounding performances, they soon were subject to cancellations due to Staley's descent into opiation. The band's Lollapalooza tour the following year was the last one to feature Staley.

"Alternative metal" band Faith No More got even more experimental on the 1992 album 'Angel Dust', which featured the popular song "Midlife Crisis", "A Small Victory", and a cover of the Commodores' "Easy", as well as "Land Of Sunshine", "Everything's Ruined", "Caffeine", "Midnight Cowboy", and "Crack Hitler". The album, while not as big a seller as 'The Real Thing' in America, became a rather big hit in other parts of the world. Many magazines named it as one of the most influential albums of the '90's, though it was not as commercial as its predecessor. The band was willing to take creative risks in order to remain true to its musical vision, and many critics and fans were simply bewildered yet delighted at how daring their output now sounded. The band began to open for the tumultuous Metallica/Guns N' Roses summer stadium tour that year, but by that fall, guitarist Jim Martin was out of the band, fired due to creative differences and alleged emphasis placed on Mike Patton's vocals over the guitar work. Martin went off to settle in Northern California to raise giant pumpkins and continue sporadically in music following the death of his father. He later won a prize for one of the fruits of his field being one of the biggest on record.

Kyuss was a band from the desert of Southern California who were pioneers in the formation of "stoner rock", a drone-y, bass-heavy hybrid form of psychedelic rock and metal, almost a Southwestern version of grunge, helped with a copious amount of illicit mind-altering substances. Forming as The Sons Of Kyuss after a creature in the popular Dungeons And Dragons game, the band became a major independent draw playing at parties, keggers, and get-togethers in the desert. Guitarist Josh Homme commented, Homme commented that playing in the desert "was the shaping factor for the band" noting that "there's no clubs here, so you can only play for free. If people don't like you, they'll tell you. You can't suck." After the band recruited bassist Nick Oliveri, they shortened the name to simply Kyuss, and released their debut album, 'Wretch' in 1991. The album was met with slow sales, though their live shows were a substantial draw. In 1992, the band released "Blues For the Red Sun', a musical improvement which not only became the primier album heralding the advent of stoner rock, but saw Homme adopt the practice of playing his guitars through bass amps, for a more bass-heavy sound. The album featured songs such as "Thumb", "Green Machine", "Freedom Run", and "Mondo Generator". The band opened for Metallica during their tour in Australia that year.

Ironically, though Seattle grunge was the runaway breakthrough success in 1992, one of the genre's founders, Mudhoney, was lost in the shuffle and severely overlooked in the flannel frenzy. The band released their album,
'Piece Of Cake' that year, which featured the songs "Acetone", "Suck You Dry", and "Blinding Sun". It was hoped that their switch to a major label, as well as their song for the 'Singles' soundtrack, "Overblown", would launch the band into further success, but it was not to be. The band's previous Sub Pop album, 'Every Boy Deserves Fudge', was promising, with such songs as "Into the Drink", "Generation Genocide", "Something So Clear" and "Good Enough", but the hope did not carry over to the Reprise label, a subsidiary of Warner Brothers. The band pretty much preferred it that way. On their song "Overblown", they criticized the whole Seattle scene hype as
"overblown", out of control and something trendy for the masses. This did not stop the record buyers with plenty of disposable income from purchasing albums from their peers in Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Most trendoid fans most likely did not know who Mudhoney were, who at that time had become more of a straight-on garage rock band than a drone-y, "Seattle sound" grunge group.

Suicidal Tendencies shifted their musical gears on their 1992 album 'The Art Of Rebellion', which surprised many fans by being less hardcore and more experimental and melodic, more commercially accessible, than their previous releases. The album featured a number of popular songs such as the ballad "Nobody Hears", "Asleep At the Wheel", and "I'll Hate You Better". The band replaced drummer R.J. Herrera with Josh Freese, who was then replaced by former White Lion drummer Jimmy DeGrasso for the tour. The band also opened up for Megadeth on the 'Countdown To Extinction' tour that fall, in spite of vocalist Mike Muir having a physical altercation with Mustaine during the Clash Of the Titans tour the year before.

Kings X had a very successful year in 1991 when they opened for AC/DC and Living Colour, put the song "Jr.'s Gone Wild" on the soundtrack to 'Bill And Ted's Bogus Journey", and were on the verge of a breakthrough in 1992 with the release of their self-titled album. However, the band's fortunes had not improved throughout the year, in spite of the tremendous buzz about the band, whom Pearl Jam described as the "true" inventors of grunge with the popularizing of dropped-D tuning. The album, which almost was about to be titled 'Since Hector Was a Pup', featured strong material such as the popular track "Black Flag", "Lost In Germany", which documented the band's travails while touring in Europe where they found themselves rather unpopular in Deutschland, "Prisoner", "The World Around Me", and "The Big Picture". Lead vocalist Doug Pinnick was dealing with personal tensions at the time, which led the band to write about more turbulent, darker themes than their previous
happy, "love-themed" predecessor. The band, which had a wide audience with Christians due to their stated identity as believers personally, found themselves not accepted much either with this album--primarily because the band did not want to be known as a "Christian" band. The band also had undergone a rather acrimonious split with their manager Sam Taylor, the one-tme "fourth" member of King's X, and sought to go in an even more different direction on their next outing and further distance themselves from the positive "undercover Christian" moniker that had been thrust upon them in the past.

Vio-lence was a Bay Area band who began in 1985 after the thrash scene had exploded and groups such as Metallica, Exodus, and others had headed for the major labels. Now that thrash had become the rage and bands such as them and Forbidden were getting noticed, the group, featuring Rob Flynn on guitar, released 'Eternal Nightmare' in 1988, which unfortunately tanked commercially in spite of positive reviews by metal critics. In 1990, the band released their first album for the Megaforce label, 'Oppressing the Masses', which sold successfully with better distribution and promotion. A video for "World In a World" appeared on MTV. Other songs included
"Engulfed By Flames", "Mentally Afflicted", and the title track. The band followed up with the EP 'Torture Tactics' the following year, however, Flynn left the band after a run-in with thugs who threatened his life. Knowing of his visibility by performing with Vio-lence, they sought to hunt him down at his next show, which prompted him to leave the band abruptly to maintain a low profile. He would resurface in 1992 with a new band which also became very popular, as we shall see.

[rabbit561]

I'd love it if you would post a source for the information about The Cult's lawsuit over the photograph for Ceremony, and also the source of information regarding the tribal beliefs about photographs taking the soul. Any articles I found on this up to now were just vague.

[ABlairican Pie]

I'd love it if you would post a source for the information about The Cult's lawsuit over the photograph for Ceremony, and also the source of information regarding the tribal beliefs about photographs taking the soul. Any articles I found on this up to now were just vague.
I'm trying to find sources on that as well. I looked up on Wikipedia, which contained no footnotes, either. I did hear about it on MTV back when it happened in 1991 that they were being sued for inflicting "emotional distress"
on the youngster when they burned the photo. I'll keep checking on that.

[ABlairican Pie]

36. End Of an Era: "No More Tours" For Ozzy

In 1992, Ozzy Osbourne announced that he had grown tired of touring and performing, much to the disappointment of his fans. But he promised that he would be going out with a bang--on his 'No More Tours' farewell tour, a play on words of his then-current album title. It had been a long, hard road for the Ozzman, full of fun but wearisome, and now in his early 40's, he decide it was time to relax and retire at his Beverly Hills mansion.

Meanwhile, as the Ozzy era was winding down, a new chapter in his original band, Black Sabbath, was in the works as a reunion of sorts occurred. The members of the veteran band had crossed paths with Ozzy's followup vocalist Ronnie James Dio. That second lineup had splintered ten years before due to accusations over "doctoring" the production of their 'Live Evil' album. The band and horns-throwing vocalist beacme re-acquainted with each other, re-assessing their relationship and their willingness to work with each other once more. Fortunately, they found that the old magic was still intact. The band, then consisting of guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler, veteran drummer Cozy Powell, as well as Dio, released their "reunion" album 'Dehumanizer', which featured such songs as the 'Wayne's World' track "Time Machine", "Computer God", "I", and "T.V. Crimes", about the scourge of tawdry televangelists. The album sold very respectably as the band went on tour in support of it. However, the tour, and the reunion, ran into more than a small hitch.

Ozzy's tour featured opening bands such as newcomers Ugly Kid Joe, whose fratboy buffoonery brought a tepid crowd response until their hit "I Hate Everything About You". Late 80's pretty-boy hair-metal band Slaughter, currently enjoying their last big moment of stud-metal stardom before the grunge scene shut them out, wowed the crowd with tracks from their new album 'The Wild Life', which featured such songs as "Reach For the Sky", "Real Love", "Days Gone By", "Times They Change", and the title track, which explosively opened their set. The band also played their Bic-raising ballad "Fly To the Angels", from their previous album, during which the girls swooned. Metal "purist" dudes may have fumed, not realizing that the members of Slaughter had an historical connection with Ozzy: It was bassist Dana Strum who had introduced the late guitarist Randy Rhoads to the Ozzman after his departure from Sabbath in 1979.

The end of the Ozzy's headlining concert days were near. Roman orgies of rock and roll revelry occurred nightly: Girls bared their breasts to the adoration of all, mosh pits of frantic youth, and Ozzy himself dousing the crowd with buckets of water. For a man facing retirement, he seemed rather fit and invigorated as he hopped about maniacally, mooning the crowd and shouting for the crowd to go "f***ing crazy!" It would be the last time crowds would be hearing "Crazy Train", "Bark At the Moon", "No More Tears", and "War Pigs". Guitarist Zakk Wylde, in bell-bottoms, played a solo complete with his own brand of country-metal licks.

The tour wrapped up in Costa Mesa, California, with a surprise opener--his bandmates in Black Sabbath, including drummer Bill Ward, who had been MIA for the past few years. The band had gathered to send Ozzy off into retirement on a positive note, to wish him well and to bury the hatchet over past grievances which had separated them over a decade before. The only person missing from the lineup was Dio. He refused to have the mighty Sabbath reduced to a mere opening act for the man who was fired from the band in disgrace. He left the tour, as well as the band, not out of a minor huff as production knob-twiddling, but out of a matter of dignity. Black Sabbath was the most powerful band on the planet, a band who sounded like "Godzilla coming to town", in his words. Why were they playing second fiddle to an ex-member? They should be the headliners! Their was another reason for his abandonment--wasn't the brief farewell set to be the start of an eventual reunion of the original classic lineup? Wasn't that the plan?

On November 15, 1992, with Dio having jumped ship and the show about to start, former Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford leapt into the fray to perform in his stead, having to kneel down to sing and read the lyrics from handwritten sheets on the floor. The audience was thrilled, and even more ecstatic when Sabbath joined Ozzy for encores including "Fairies Wear Boots" and "Black Sabbath", the band's self-titled signature song. Ozzy was moved to be reunited with his former bandmates for one last parting gesture, and hugged them all.

Black Sabbath would head into the revolving-door lineup, Halford and Dio would venture into their respective post-Priest and Sabbath careers, and Ozzy would hunker down at home in the San Fernando Valley to watch t.v. and doodle on art projects. It was the end of an era. Metal at last had settled down for a long sleep with its legendary frontman having hung up his rock and roll shoes in exchange for comfortable slippers. Good night, Costa Mesa, good night, rock and roll. I love you all. Thank you, good night.


But, as they say, it is always darkest before the dawn.


Ozzy's 'Don't Blame Me' DVD, where old clips of him with Sabbath and his solo career are aired, along with interviews with him and fellow musicians. The title comes from the response to his critics who attempted to sue him and fault him for wreaking havoc and evil on the world:

'Dehumanizer':

Slaughter 'The Wild Life':

Rob Halford with Tony Iommi, at the Costa Mesa show:

Sabbath reunites with Ozzy in Costa Mesa:

Ronnie James Dio, during his Sabbath days in 1992:

Sabbath band pic featuring original lineup, 1992:

[Race's Girl]

Well, I guess I was wrong about heavy metal after all there. It kicks ass

[ABlairican Pie]

Well, I guess I was wrong about heavy metal after all there. It kicks ass:rock: :rock: :rock: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

1992 (continued)

Biohazard was a New York band whose first two albums focused on urban themes of crime, gangs, and violence. The band was labelled a hardcore metal band, though they never considered themselves as such, though they did gain much attention with playing in the hardcore scene. The band initially began in controversy in the late 80's with many songs being interpreted as being racist and white supremacist, though their lead singer Evan Seinfeld was Jewish. The band vigorously denied being racist or in any way anti-social. The group was banned from many venues due to fears over violence between metal fans and hardcore audiences, though the band had begun preaching a message of tolerance and acceptance of different ethnicities. Their debut album in 1990 was poorly promoted and sold in meager amounts. Their 1992 followup, 'Urban Discipline', became a huge seller, with the video for the song "Punishment" becoming the most-played song on MTV's 'Headbanger's Ball'. The band became huge supporters of fellow act Mucky Pup as well as contributing to the growing rap-metal scene, their collaboration with members of the rap group Onyx, with the song "Slam".

Theatrical Antarctican shock-metal warriors GWAR returned with 'America Must Be Destroyed', whose songs were based on an actual incident involving Oderus Urungus being arrested for "obscenity" for wearing his prosthetic penis, dubbed "Cuttlefish of Cthulu", at a concert in North Carolina, resulting in the subsequent banning of the band in that state. The band was so disgusted and outraged at this pathetic act of censorship and prosecution of legitimate artistic expression that they decided to write a set of songs about their battles with the "Morality Squad". Down in their lair in Antarctica, they devised a plan to wreak vengeance on the sanctimonious, prudish and puritanical American guardians by shooting up a dinosaur egg with crack cocaine. The results were the horrific hatching of Gor-gor, a baby Tyrannosaurus Rex which grew to a colossal height and began its fearsome attack on America! The band also released a series of live videos, including "Phallus In Wonderland" and "The Road Behind". Concertgoers were fortunate enough to witness their explosive show, full of flying blood, severed limbs, and other projectile bodily fluids, while wearing a good raincoat.

If the shocking stage antics of a Gwar performance/orgy of violence were a little too X-rated for most, the next best thing, the more family-friendly Green Jellÿ was available. The band began in the early 80's with the intent of becoming "world's worst band", and accomplished with an act similar to Gwar's, but with using papier-mache masks and other props. The band, which featured such colorful individuals as vocalist Moronic Dictator, drummer Ozzy Osmond, and guitarist Marshall Stack, as well as a long revolving door lineup, called themselves Green Jello after wanting to be named after one of the world's worst edible foods, lime-green Jell-O gelatin though unfortunately, the General Foods company threatened them with legal action for infringing on their famous trademarked product, so they changed their name. Their shows throughout the 80's were chaotic, with the band being banned from many venues for destroying t.v. sets with a sledgehammer, and having fans throw mountains of green gelatin and other slimy foodstuffs on them during their shows. This earned them even the scorn of The Ramones, who had the misfortune of allowing them open for the legendary punk band and having even their gear gobbed by food intended for the "worst opening act" in the world. To be dubbed the "worst" band in the world was high praise indeed. The band even mimicked W.A.S.P.'s notorious theatrical (fake) violence of sadomasochistically torturing of women, and even appeared on The Gong Show in 1987, where their being "gonged" was a high point in their early career. As their visiblity grew, they met the members of GWAR who insisted they use latex for their costumes. In 1992, the band, promoting themselves as "the first video only band", and came out with the 'Cereal Killer' "video album". When the band then released the album as a CD (minus the videos), they then claimed that "not only were not only the worst band in the world, but we're hypocrites as well!" Seattle rock station KXRX picked up on their novelty song "Three Little Pigs", and instantly it became a huge hit as well as their most well-known song, a metal retelling of the classic children's tale, with a few surprises thrown in. The Claymation video became a huge hit on MTV as well. Other songs from the album included "Obey the Cowgod", "Anarchy In Bedrock", and the title track, whose main character Toucan Son Of Sam, earned them a lawsuit for infringing on their trademark breakfast cereal mascot. The band could not keep itself from landing in controversy and legal entanglements.


Now that 70's bands such as Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin were being freely cited as alternative metal influences, Chicago doom metal band Trouble wore their classic metal and 60's psychedelic influences on their sleeves. Not only did the band gain noteriety from sounding very suspiciously close to Sabbath, but they also received much attention for being a "white metal" band--a band that expressed their Christian faith in their lyrics, as opposed to the more Satanically-leaning black metal groups stealing the limelight. Now that Stryper had broken up, Trouble had forgone the customary bumblebee outfits of their born again predecessors and played a more "retro" heavy sound. The band began in the late 70's and weathered a string of lineup changes and lack of commercial success until they were rescued by Def American producer Rick Rubin, who manned the boards for their 1990 self-titled release, which featured the popular track "End Of Our Daze'. The band toured behind the album before getting together to record and release their 1992 followup, 'Manic Frustration', an album which dove into a more "hippie-esque" sound and lyrics and contained one of their most familiar tracks, "'Scuse Me". But whatever notice the band received at this time was quickly crushed by the all-consuming Seattle grunge and alternative scene, which had made anything metal into bad world. It seemed that Trouble would never find its true moment in the limelight.

Before anyone could think that the idea of Christian metal was all about yellow n' black tight spandex attacks and "hippie-dippy" retro-Sabbath riffs, a new extreme metal band from Australia roared to the forefront of Christian rock: Mortification, a thrashing outfit with fast tempos and even grinding, grunting death-metal vocals. The band was formed by bassist and vocalist Steve Rowe who wanted to express his Christian faith in a new way, one which would open up minds and ears in metal who missed out on the positive message of the Bible. The band, whose name is a reference to the Christian belief in "deadening" of one's sinful nature to embrace God, gained much attention in the death-metal world with 'Scrolls Of the Megilloth', an album that was considered their crowning achievement. Many critics praised the album as having "some of the most frightening vocals ever recorded." The record featured such tracks as "Terminate Damnation", "Eternal Lamentation", "Necromanicide", which warned of the occultic communicating with spirits in seances, "Lymphosarcoma", and the title track. The lyrical themes touched on topics as death, violence, hell, and spiritual warfare, a far cry from familiar images of sweetness and light one had become accustomed to in Christian pop. Rowe had succeeded in proving that Christian themes and metal could not only co-exist, but that Christian themes were in fact very metal, as they both touched on topics very familiar to many in a broken, chaotic world. The title "Scrolls of the Megilloth" is a term in the Old Testament that means The Five Scrolls (Five Megillot): Ruth, Esther, Song of Solomon, Lamentations, and Ecclesiastes, five books in the middle of the Old Testament which were read often at Jewish feasts. Rowe explained their current significance was that even "dead" and forgotten pieces of Scripture were important to the life of the believer. He had picked up on this idea after attended Bible college the year before the album was released. Unfortunately, there were a number of bands in the extreme metal genre who did not take kindly to his promoting of his beliefs in his music, as we shall see.

Also continuing the new trend in reviving Sabbath riffs and retro sensibilities in metal, San Jose band Sleep made a wave with the release of their debut album, 'Volume One', which featured a painting by surrealist artist Salvador Dali on the cover, "Soft Self-Portrait with Fried Bacon." The band's sound was considered "doom metal", very sludgy and dark, but soon would be labeled "stoner rock" with their drone-y sound and drawn-out jams by an impressive guitarist by the name of Matt Pike. Unfortunately, the band's other guitarist, Justin Marler, decided to leave the band at this point and pursue studying to become an Orthodox monk. The band became a power trio at this point, which focused on Pike's guitar leads--and any connection to psychedelics and other drugs was not circumstantial: Pike previously had a severe drug habit before joining the band, and had committed crimes such as stealing car stereos to support his dependency. He started the band under the name Asbestosdeath before changing it to Sleep. 'Volume 1' featured such tracks as "Stillborn", "The Suffering", "Catatonic", and "Nebuchadnezzar's Dream". The band even released a live cover of Black Sabbath's "Lord Of This World".

Another band which borrowed from the past, though in a different way, were Chicago's own Dream Theater, who played progressive rock and metal on their 1992 major label debut, 'Images and Words'. The band, who claimed 70's prog titans Rush's epic 'Hemispheres' as the album that made them want to play, featured virtuosic guitarist John Petrucci, vocalist Charlie Dominici, bassist John Myung, drummer Mike Portnoy, and keyboardist Kevin Moore, all very accomplished musicians. Petrucci and Myung met at the Berklee College of Music and decided to form a band in the mid-80's. When the band first met, they named themselves Majesty, due to the ending of Rush's song "Bastille Day" sounding "majestic", before settling on Dream Theater. The band released their first independent album 'When Dream and Day Unite' in 1989, which was met with little success. Dominici was fired from the band due to personal and artistic differences within the band, and was replaced by new vocalist James LaBrie. The band soon scored a major label signing and
released 'Images and Words' in 1992, which gained them a strong following with the video and airplay of the popular track "Pull Me Under", which was helped by LaBrie wearing a Napalm Death video--though neither band are musically similar. Other notable tracks on the album include "Take the Time", "Another Day", and "Metropolis Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper". The album was hailed as a prog masterpiece and Dream Theater were applauded for their excellent musicianship and bold concepts. However, many felt that Dream Theater was nearly as "bloated" and "pompous" as the 70's prog bands they emulated, such as Yes and others, with their sprawling song suites and "pointless" guitar shredding displays. This was the 90's, and the idea of the guitar hero was an antiquated idea in the age of musical minimalism. Regardless, Dream Theater remained to themselves and their fans.

[phoebe7165]

1992 (continued)

Another band which borrowed from the past, though in a different way, were Chicago's own Dream Theater, who played progressive rock and metal on their 1992 major label debut, 'Images and Words'. The band, who claimed 70's prog titans Rush's epic 'Hemispheres' as the album that made them want to play, featured virtuosic guitarist John Petrucci, vocalist Charlie Dominici, bassist John Myung, drummer Mike Portnoy, and keyboardist Kevin Moore, all very accomplished musicians. Petrucci and Myung met at the Berklee College of Music and decided to form a band in the mid-80's. When the band first met, they named themselves Majesty, due to the ending of Rush's song "Bastille Day" sounding "majestic", before settling on Dream Theater. The band released their first independent album 'When Dream and Day Unite' in 1989, which was met with little success. Dominici was fired from the band due to personal and artistic differences within the band, and was replaced by new vocalist James LaBrie. The band soon scored a major label signing and
released 'Images and Words' in 1992, which gained them a strong following with the video and airplay of the popular track "Pull Me Under", which was helped by LaBrie wearing a Napalm Death video--though neither band are musically similar. Other notable tracks on the album include "Take the Time", "Another Day", and "Metropolis Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper". The album was hailed as a prog masterpiece and Dream Theater were applauded for their excellent musicianship and bold concepts. However, many felt that Dream Theater was nearly as "bloated" and "pompous" as the 70's prog bands they emulated, such as Yes and others, with their sprawling song suites and "pointless" guitar shredding displays. This was the 90's, and the idea of the guitar hero was an antiquated idea in the age of musical minimalism. Regardless, Dream Theater remained to themselves and their fans.

I realy, really hate to be picky, because I love reading your posts and I am truly in awe of your musical knowledge but I feel I have to make some corrections on my favorite band, Dream Theater.

First, they aren't from Chicago, but from Long Island, except for LaBrie, who is from Canada.

Petrucci & Myung didn't meet at Berklee, they knew each other before. Not sure exactly when they met but from my understanding, they pretty much grew up together, had the same tastes in music and as Petrucci said "we always knew that we would be doing something together musically". It was then they decided to go to Berklee together, where they met Portnoy that
1st week of school. Something just clicked and they decided to get a band together.

They had to change their name from Majesty because apparently there was another band named Majesty and that band was going to sue them. After going through some really silly band name suggestions, it was Portnoy's dad who came up with Dream Theater, the name of a now-demolished theater in Monterey, CA, where Mike's dad used to take him to see movies when he was a kid.

The one part about them being "bloated" & "pompous", I never heard that but I don't know why I found that funny.:D

[ABlairican Pie]

I realy, really hate to be picky, because I love reading your posts and I am truly in awe of your musical knowledge but I feel I have to make some corrections on my favorite band, Dream Theater.

First, they aren't from Chicago, but from Long Island, except for LaBrie, who is from Canada.

Petrucci & Myung didn't meet at Berklee, they knew each other before. Not sure exactly when they met but from my understanding, they pretty much grew up together, had the same tastes in music and as Petrucci said "we always knew that we would be doing something together musically". It was then they decided to go to Berklee together, where they met Portnoy that
1st week of school. Something just clicked and they decided to get a band together.

They had to change their name from Majesty because apparently there was another band named Majesty and that band was going to sue them. After going through some really silly band name suggestions, it was Portnoy's dad who came up with Dream Theater, the name of a now-demolished theater in Monterey, CA, where Mike's dad used to take him to see movies when he was a kid.

The one part about them being "bloated" & "pompous", I never heard that but I don't know why I found that funny.:DYeah, I think I was in a hurry to write it all down and still remain brief, but I had a feeling, wait, that's not what the Wikipedia thing says! :doh: I tried to make corrections and remain accurate, so I'll have to add what you just said to my previous post to make it clear.

I remember reading over the years some articles in guitar magazines how there was either a love/hate affair with Dream Theater, one either thought they were great and super-talented, or one thought they were "pretentious" and "highbrow". I think a lot of bands didn't think highly of them, Dimebag Darrell of Pantera, as I recall reading, didn't get into their playing, but some guitarists were downright vicious: Alexi Laiho of Children Of Bodom thought what John Petrucci was doing was "sports" on guitar, just all "athletics" and no real expression, "that's not music!" Laiho brought a whole firestorm of controversy and outrage on himself in Guitar World from people who strongly
opposed his opinions, until he more or less apologized for it. Megadeth was about to bring both bands on the road for Gigantour in 2005, but Dave Mustaine decided not to, feeling both bands might have a few tense moments. One of the guys of Mastodon, Brent Hinds, I believe, called Dream Theater a "gay" band because they seemed to be a little too effeminate for their tastes. Many bands feel Dream Theater is just not "street" enough for them. I really like them, though, and while I can see how people might not like them, I think they're great, and I wanted to see them last month in Seattle with Opeth co-headlining, but I couldn't get time off from work... Oh well, maybe next time!

[BarneyFife]

I liked some of it when i was younger, but as you get older your taste of music starts to change. I will always love Classic Rock though.

[phoebe7165]

Yeah, I think I was in a hurry to write it all down and still remain brief, but I had a feeling, wait, that's not what the Wikipedia thing says! :doh: I tried to make corrections and remain accurate, so I'll have to add what you just said to my previous post to make it clear.

I remember reading over the years some articles in guitar magazines how there was either a love/hate affair with Dream Theater, one either thought they were great and super-talented, or one thought they were "pretentious" and "highbrow". I think a lot of bands didn't think highly of them, Dimebag Darrell of Pantera, as I recall reading, didn't get into their playing, but some guitarists were downright vicious: Alexi Laiho of Children Of Bodom thought what John Petrucci was doing was "sports" on guitar, just all "athletics" and no real expression, "that's not music!" Laiho brought a whole firestorm of controversy and outrage on himself in Guitar World from people who strongly
opposed his opinions, until he more or less apologized for it. Megadeth was about to bring both bands on the road for Gigantour in 2005, but Dave Mustaine decided not to, feeling both bands might have a few tense moments. One of the guys of Mastodon, Brent Hinds, I believe, called Dream Theater a "gay" band because they seemed to be a little too effeminate for their tastes. Many bands feel Dream Theater is just not "street" enough for them. I really like them, though, and while I can see how people might not like them, I think they're great, and I wanted to see them last month in Seattle with Opeth co-headlining, but I couldn't get time off from work... Oh well, maybe next time!

Thanks for understanding, I didn't want to seem critical, but I do love this band. Even I have to say they do go a little over the top, but I think alot of their music is absolutely beautiful. Call me crazy but some of JP's slower solos are so awesome, I've started making up my own lyrics and singing along to his playing!!:crazy: :lol:

That's strange about what Dimebag said though, he may not have liked them musically but he & Portnoy were really good friends. In fact, Mike was devastated over Dimebag's death.

[phoebe7165]

I liked some of it when i was younger, but as you get older your taste of music starts to change. I will always love Classic Rock though.

I will always love Classic Rock, too. I mean it says it in the title "Classic". All the classic rock bands & acts that are still around and touring, if they decide to tour on a new CD, does the crowd want to hear the new stuff? NO!! The audience wants to hear all the older songs.

[ABlairican Pie]

37. As the churches burn: Black metal erupts in Norway!

Meanwhile, as America was fawning over the latest trendy grunge and alternative bands that were quickly displacing all things hard and heavy, metal was still very much alive and making headlines over in Scandinavia--though it was entering its most shocking and controversial phase in ways of which the vast majority of Americans were completely unaware. In Norway, groups of black metal bands, whose lyrics, often completely in Norwegian, sang about Satanism and anti-Christian themes. And these bands were doing much more than merely singing about it: throughout 1992, reports of fires breaking out at Norway's historic stave churches (stavkirke in Norwegian), which were regarded as cultural landmarks, which were learned to have been started by roves of black metal bands. What was the reason for this? According to these bands, they were attempting to route out Christianity, a
"foreign" religion, which was ruthlessly and forcefully imposed on Norway over 1000 years before by King Olaf in late 900's. Christianity was seen as a negative force which disrupted the stable spiritual life of the people in Norway back around the turn of the First Millenium, and hopefully, by the end of the Second Millenium in eight years, Christianity would be forced out with the same vicious intensity it came in. Christianity had a few truly committed members in that country, and many Christians there were accused of forcing the rest of society to abide by religious rules that were no longer relevant in a
progressive culture.

Norwegian black metal was a definite statement about young metal musicians being proud of their Nordic heritage, their Viking ancestry where Christianity was the violent foreign usurper. The ancient ways of hardy Norsemen were inspiring and gave many a sense of power over the weaker Europeans. But what of the Satanic themes in their brand of metal? Well, since the concept of Satan as a rebellious archangel and sworn enemy of God was in fact a Christian concept which the black metal bands rejected, a new definition was given as to what Satanism was to them: a Nietzchean worship of self, the concept of the Ubermann, a powerful, fully realized ideal man who did not stoop
to the concerns and whims of mere inferior individuals. This ideal man was not shackled by the constraints of religion or authority. This is what Satan truly represented, a rejection of external restraints, to become one's own man, or god, even. This mindset would lead to other bizarre, gruesome acts in addition to the torching of Norway's beloved church landmarks.

The one noticeable trait among many Norwegian black metal bands was that, in addition to the garish corpsepaint makeup and macabre wristbands, etc., was their elitist idea of making their brand of extreme metal not easily accessible by the mainstream. Commercial success was not their goal, remaining true to their goal of having raw, unpolished music in the vein of the genre's pioneers Venom was the ultimate priority. Having more professionally sounding music was a sign of "selling out" to the corporate industry. Norwegian black metal musicians enjoyed their underground status as being avant-garde musicians, of sorts.

Mayhem was one of the most controversial bands of that era, part of the alleged Black Metal "Inner Circle", which had many disturbing incidents surrounding their rise to infamy. One involved the suicide of vocalist Per Yngve Ohlin (aka 'Dead'), a rather introverted singer who not only cut himself onstage but also, as a part of the act, inhaled from a bag which contained a dead crow! :eek: puke: He buried his stage clothes in a graveyard to give some sort of morbid ambience. He was obsessed with death, fancying himself as a sort of "crossover" being from the netherworld who had ice flowing in his veins. Guitarist Øystein Aarseth found him dead from a shotgun and wrist cuttings by with a note reading, "Excuse all the blood", in the band's home. Rumors surfaced that the band even made a stew out of his brain and ate it up! :eek2: That rumor was not true, though the story that they made jewelry out of his skull was. To top that off, many Mayhem shows featured severed animal heads impaled on microphone stands! :eek:

To add further to the horrific story of Mayhem, Aarseth, whose stage name was Euronymous, was murdered on August 10, 1993 by by rival black metal musician Varg Vikernes, aka Count Grishnackh, allegedly over issues relating to money and living a lifestyle incompatible with the black metal scene (Aarseth was a "fat communist"). Though Vikernes claimed the murder by multiple stabbings was in self-defense, he was arrested and sentenced to 21 years for the murder. Now having achieved the distinction of being the most notorious figure in heavy metal, he did not have the pleasure of being a martyr for his cause. Vikernes eventually went on the produce dark, ambient music in prison and severed his ties with the black metal scene.

Burzum was Vikernes' one-man-band project, where he played all the instruments by himself. Like most black metal bands of that time, he used very low production values in his music, prefering the unpolished touch in his sound. Most of the lyrics on the albums, including 'Burzum', 'Det Som Engang Var', "Aske' ("Ashes"), and 'Hvis Lyset Tar Oss', all released between 1992 to 1994, all featured lyrics based on Norse mythology often resembling themes from Tolkien's "Lord Of the Rings" Saga. When Vikernes entered prison, he was denied guitars, bass, and drums, and instead was only allowed to use a synthesizer where he continued to make music. In interviews, Vikernes admitted that his father worked developing computer software for Saddam Hussein in Baghdad, Iraq, and that his parents were rather racist as well. There appears to be a lingering embracing of fascism and white supremacy in much European black metal.

Churches burned, including Fantoft in the larger picture:

Mayhem:

Per Yngve Ohlin, aka "Dead":

Euronymous:

Varg Vikernes:

Burzum album 'Aske':

[ABlairican Pie]

1992 (continued)

Immortal was one band whose over-the-top corpsepaint appearance came to characterize Norwegian black metal. Though they were not involved in the church burnings of the early 90's and distanced themselves from these activities, some former members were in fact tied in with the arsons. The band members were not "satanists", in spite of what Norwegian television shows attempted of depicted them as being, though the band was immersed in the occult and mysticism, and wrote their lyrics along those lines. The band was fronted by guitarist Abbath Doom Occulta and his partner Demonaz Doom Occulta, also on guitar. Unfortunately, Demonaz suffered from tendonitis in 1997, and was no longer able to fully able to play guitar, though he does add some guitar and remains the band's chief lyricist. The band released 'Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism' in 1992, with such songs as "The Call Of The Wintermoon", "Unholy Forces Of Evil", "Cryptic Winterstorms", "Cold Winds Of Funeral Dust", and "A Perfect Vision Of The Rising Northland". In addition to Norwegian black metal of their peers, the band was also influenced
by German thrash.

While Immortal was achieving notoriety more likely due to their zany makeup, Emperor were yet another Norwegian band claiming infamy due to a well-publicised murder and acts of Bible-burning. Band member Faust was convicted of killing a homosexual in 1992 when the gay man began to make unwelcome advances toward him near the Olympic park in Lillehammer. Faust stabbed him to death, and was convicted a year later. He and Euronymous also participated in the burning of Bibles near the ski-jump there as well. Co-founding member Samoth was convicted of a church burning and served time. He has opposed Christianity and religion in general while endorsing Norse paganism. Founding member Ihsahn has continued to play in music in various bands, including his own self-named band, to this day. Currently, he endorses Ibanez guitars and promotes their new 8-string guitar. In 1992, the band both released their debut, 'Wrath Of the Tyrant', a disturbing album whose low production values and detuning turned off many fans of the genre. The album featured such tracks as "My Empire's Doom", "Night of the Graveless Souls", "Witches Sabbath", and the title track. The band followed up with their 1993 self-titled EP, which featured not only two songs from the previous release, but "I Am the Black Wizards", and "Cosmic Keys to My Creations and Times".

Though Swedish band Bathory and its founder Quorthon considered pioneers of the rising Viking metal scene, his roots are deep in the Norwegian black metal scene since the mid-80's. In addition to the black metal offerings of albums such as the self-titled 1984 debut, 1985's 'The Return Of Darkness And Evil', and 'Under the Sign of the Black Mark' from 1988, one song from the 'Hammerheart' album underscored Norwegian black metal's contempt for the historical militant Christianity imposed on Norway in the medieval era: "One Rode to Asa Bay". The epic song was made into a poorly edited video which did introduce viewers to the band on MTV's Headbanger's Ball in America. Bathory released 'Twlight Of the Gods', a Viking metal album in 1991.

Immortal:

Abbath Doom Occulta of Immortal:

Emperor:

Samoth:

Ihsahn, in a more recent picture:

Bathory's Quorthon:

Immortal's Abbath and Demonaz Doom Occulta:

[Hollow]

:lol: i still find the irony of this thread funny.

per yngve ohlin is my idol.

[MusicJunkie]

I will always love Classic Rock, too. I mean it says it in the title "Classic". All the classic rock bands & acts that are still around and touring, if they decide to tour on a new CD, does the crowd want to hear the new stuff? NO!! The audience wants to hear all the older songs.
I have to admit I hate that in certain cases. Its true that a lot of bands that were "of their time" have no need for new material, but I think a great majority of the legendary artists who are still recording still have gems on their latter albums and it sucks that people are so stuck living in the past to accept music from the past 15-20 years. People like McCartney, Elton, Prince, REM, Donna Summer, Cyndi Lauper, B-52's, John Mellencamp, Tom Petty, Depeche Mode, etc... are just a handful of examples of vets who are now 25+ years into their career and at least a decade away from the last time their new material got heavy MTV/radio airplay, but while a lot of drunks at their concerts demand the golden oldies, anyone who is willing to look past the charts and give the newer cds a spin would see that they never stopped making good music.

It reminds me when I saw the B-52's a few months ago, myself and two guys who were next to me in the front were the only people who obviously had even heard the Funplex album and Kate Pierson even smiled and pointed at us that it made her glad that at least a few people knew the words to the new songs... instead of sitting like a lame duck until Roam, Love Shack and Rock Lobster would be played. Funplex is probably their best album since Whammy (and yes, I know I said Whammy, not Cosmic Thing) but they're an "old" group so radio and MTV aren't going to promote the new songs even if they're good.

Okay, totally off topic and apologies to Ablairican Pie, just needed to add my two cents to the people who go to see a veteran act only to hear the old songs without giving the new music a shot.

[ABlairican Pie]

I have to admit I hate that in certain cases. Its true that a lot of bands that were "of their time" have no need for new material, but I think a great majority of the legendary artists who are still recording still have gems on their latter albums and it sucks that people are so stuck living in the past to accept music from the past 15-20 years. People like McCartney, Elton, Prince, REM, Donna Summer, Cyndi Lauper, B-52's, John Mellencamp, Tom Petty, Depeche Mode, etc... are just a handful of examples of vets who are now 25+ years into their career and at least a decade away from the last time their new material got heavy MTV/radio airplay, but while a lot of drunks at their concerts demand the golden oldies, anyone who is willing to look past the charts and give the newer cds a spin would see that they never stopped making good music.

It reminds me when I saw the B-52's a few months ago, myself and two guys who were next to me in the front were the only people who obviously had even heard the Funplex album and Kate Pierson even smiled and pointed at us that it made her glad that at least a few people knew the words to the new songs... instead of sitting like a lame duck until Roam, Love Shack and Rock Lobster would be played. Funplex is probably their best album since Whammy (and yes, I know I said Whammy, not Cosmic Thing) but they're an "old" group so radio and MTV aren't going to promote the new songs even if they're good.

Okay, totally off topic and apologies to Ablairican Pie, just needed to add my two cents to the people who go to see a veteran act only to hear the old songs without giving the new music a shot.I agree. That's the problem with so many people, they only think of the songs they did way back when that put the band on the map as the only "good" songs. Like when I saw Iron Maiden in Irvine, California, two years ago playing their entire 'A Matter Of Life And Death' album, which had just come out and got in the Top Ten, someone in the crowd yelled, "Play some old s:censored:!"

Now I'm hearing "Persecution" by Judas Priest, from their new album 'Nostradamus', which barely hit the Top Ten. I want to get that album next. :cool: Some people act like that album isn't good because it doesn't sound like "from way back when". ohno:

[ABlairican Pie]

:lol: i still find the irony of this thread funny.

per yngve ohlin is my idol.:yeahthat: Let's see Avril Lavigne do some of the some of the fun stuff that Per did. The only time she's probably ever huffed a bird in a bag was from Shake N' Bake. :lol:

[floyd2006]

I cant stand that screaming metal either but there's a few metal bands I do enjoy.

Black Sabbath
Metallica
Motorhead
Black Label Society

[MusicJunkie]

I agree. That's the problem with so many people, they only think of the songs they did way back when that put the band on the map as the only "good" songs. Like when I saw Iron Maiden in Irvine, California, two years ago playing their entire 'A Matter Of Life And Death' album, which had just come out and got in the Top Ten, someone in the crowd yelled, "Play some old s:censored:!"

Now I'm hearing "Persecution" by Judas Priest, from their new album 'Nostradamus', which barely hit the Top Ten. I want to get that album next. :cool: Some people act like that album isn't good because it doesn't sound like "from way back when". ohno:
I think it's sad. I can understand if you're going to one of those oldies circuit shows with four or five stars from the 60's, 70's or 80's, but if one is a headliner still and can still fill up an arena, fans should at least try to give the new music a chance instead of living in a time warp and thinking only the music that was out when they were teenagers was good. I actually felt bad when I saw the Stones a few years ago and they only performed two or three tracks post-Tattoo You, all from the latest album (even tho there were plenty of Steel Wheels and Voodoo Lounge tracks that deserved another listen) and those were all the songs where people went to the bathroom. But to be honest, The Stones are a band where the best music really is decades behind them and you could make a half-decent EP of the great songs from 1983-onward, whereas people like McCartney, Bowie, Elton, etc... are still making good music even if they haven't had a top 40 hit in a very long time.

[ABlairican Pie]

I think it's sad. I can understand if you're going to one of those oldies circuit shows with four or five stars from the 60's, 70's or 80's, but if one is a headliner still and can still fill up an arena, fans should at least try to give the new music a chance instead of living in a time warp and thinking only the music that was out when they were teenagers was good. I actually felt bad when I saw the Stones a few years ago and they only performed two or three tracks post-Tattoo You, all from the latest album (even tho there were plenty of Steel Wheels and Voodoo Lounge tracks that deserved another listen) and those were all the songs where people went to the bathroom. But to be honest, The Stones are a band where the best music really is decades behind them and you could make a half-decent EP of the great songs from 1983-onward, whereas people like McCartney, Bowie, Elton, etc... are still making good music even if they haven't had a top 40 hit in a very long time.Yeah, that's true, except for one thing: Iron Maiden and Judas Priest are NOT "oldies" bands. They are bands who have tons of great current music going on because they are still evolving and very much active. 'A Matter Of Life And Death' is a great album by Maiden, and the concert by Priest in Seattle this summer had me very interested in the new 'Nostradamus' album. Both bands have come out with some of the best albums of their careers.

[MusicJunkie]

Yeah, that's true, except for one thing: Iron Maiden and Judas Priest are NOT "oldies" bands. They are bands who have tons of great current music going on because they are still evolving and very much active. 'A Matter Of Life And Death' is a great album by Maiden, and the concert by Priest in Seattle this summer had me very interested in the new 'Nostradamus' album. Both bands have come out with some of the best albums of their careers.
With all due respect, where did I ever allude to Judas or Maiden being "oldies touring acts"? Metal may not be my preferred genre of music but I'm not a total nincompoop. My sn says music junkie... if I didn't know that Maiden and Priest were still around, I'd have to relinquish that sn. Just because metal isn't my favorite genre doesn't automatically mean that I'm a total idiot in terms of knowledge about the artists. :rolleyes:

When I was referring the package oldies touring groups, I'm talking about those state fair concerts you get with Gary Lewis And The Playboys and Mark Lindsey and the sort. Sorry, but I don't think there's room for them to focus on new material when they're doing the nostalgia circuit when they're meant to be focusing on the 60's. There's a totally different atmosphere in terms of four or five groups from a certain era touring together, and artists like the Stones, Elton, McCartney and so many others (and yes, that includes Judas and Iron Maiden... it's not like Mark Lindsey albums still can make the top 10) who can still fill up a place on their own. In those scenarios, you should be well versed on the entire discography before going to see them and not just going for a nostalgia trip and not showing the artist any respect when they feel like playing something newer than 20-30 years old. Can't you see the difference between those artists and the oldies circuit tours with four or five artists?

[ABlairican Pie]

With all due respect, where did I ever allude to Judas or Maiden being "oldies touring acts"? Metal may not be my preferred genre of music but I'm not a total nincompoop. My sn says music junkie... if I didn't know that Maiden and Priest were still around, I'd have to relinquish that sn. Just because metal isn't my favorite genre doesn't automatically mean that I'm a total idiot in terms of knowledge about the artists. :rolleyes:

When I was referring the package oldies touring groups, I'm talking about those state fair concerts you get with Gary Lewis And The Playboys and Mark Lindsey and the sort. Sorry, but I don't think there's room for them to focus on new material when they're doing the nostalgia circuit when they're meant to be focusing on the 60's. There's a totally different atmosphere in terms of four or five groups from a certain era touring together, and artists like the Stones, Elton, McCartney and so many others (and yes, that includes Judas and Iron Maiden... it's not like Mark Lindsey albums still can make the top 10) who can still fill up a place on their own. In those scenarios, you should be well versed on the entire discography before going to see them and not just going for a nostalgia trip and not showing the artist any respect when they feel like playing something newer than 20-30 years old. Can't you see the difference between those artists and the oldies circuit tours with four or five artists?Sorry, my mistake, I saw the term in quotes, "oldies touring circuit", and immediately made a false assumption. I guess it was since this was a thread about metal, and people think of metal's best days as being "behind them", I was thinking that your comment was about the
"nostalgia act" phenomenon, that bands had to focus on the past in order to be thought of as good. I should have read the comment more fully.


Hey, wow, cool, "Lady Evil" by Black Sabbath is on the radio now!! :cool: :rock:

[ABlairican Pie]

1992 (continued)

Def Leppard released 'Adrenalize' in the spring of 1992, with Phil Collen performing both the rhythm and lead guitar parts now that Steve Clark was no longer with them. The album featured hits such as the pop-oriented 'Let's Get Rocked', an ironic title since the rhythm of the song owed more to hip-hop than their classic radio-friendly metal sound. The video depicted a CGI cartoon rocker character blowing off his girlfriend's interest in stuffy classical music. Other songs included the ballad "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad" and "Make Love Like a Man". The album fit more of the style of
'Hysteria' due to drummer Rick Allen's limitations with the electronic drumkit used to compensate for his missing arm. Fortunately, the album became another success for the band. Also that spring, former Dio/Whitesnake guitarist Vivian Campbell became the band's new guitarist.


KISS returned in 1992 with 'Revenge', a surprising return to form with songs such as the excellent, diabolical-sounding single, "Unholy", as well as "Domino", "I Just Wanna", "Every Time I Look At You", and the cover of Argent's "God Gave Rock and Roll II". The album marked not only the return of former producer Bob Ezrin, who produced classic KISS albums in the 70's, but also the return of guitarist Vinnie Vincent on songwriting. He had been fired from KISS in 1983 for "unethical behavior", as Gene Simmons explained, but was given a second chance to work with the band on new songs. Old problems resurfaced with Vincent's personality clashes, and the guitarist was once again dismissed permanently. In the place of the departed drummer Eric Carr, who had died the previous year from cancer, the band hired new drummer Eric Singer, who had briefly joined Black Sabbath and Badlands several years before. For many fans, the familiar "old-school" KISS sound on the album was a breath of fresh air for many who had tired of the pop-rock sound of the past few years.


WASP also released an album that year which was originally intended to become frontman Blackie Lawless' solo album, but remained under the W.A.S.P. name due to pressure from both the record label and fans: The Crimson Idol. The new release, which was in fact a concept album, actually turned out to be critically praised. The album featured a tragic story about a rising rock star named Jonathan Steele who, feeling he is a failure in the eyes of his parents, struggles to become a rock god and seek their love and respect. The story chronicles his battles to rise above obscurity and becoming a star, tasting the pleasures and pitfalls of stardom while becoming a lost "prodigal son". The world tour behind the album began in 2007, a decade and a half after its release, to commemorate the album's fifteenth anniversary. Songs on the album included "The Invisible Boy", "Arena Of Pleasure", "Chainsaw Charlie (Murders In the New Morgue", "Doctor Rockter", and "The Idol".


Jackyl was one of the last of the straight-on "rawk" bands along the lines of Tesla, Skid Row, and others indirectly tied in to "hair" metal that were to gain popularity in the ascending age of grunge and alternative. The Georgia-based band were not at all a "hair" band, but simply a group with tons of Southern-fried sound and bad-boy attitude many meat-and-potatoes rock fans were craving in time of shifting trends and styles. The band's self-titled debut went platinum with tracks such as "I Stand Alone", "Down On Me", and "The Lumberjack Song", an amusing piece with lead singer/guitarist Jesse James Dupree "playing" a revved-up chainsaw. Live onstage, he would slice up a chair or stool onstage with his buzzing power tool and throw the severed pieces to the crowd. He once had been asked, "How the hell can you play a chainsaw?," and he responded "How the hell can you not play a chainsaw?" The band ran into controversy when K-Mart refused to sell their
album due to title of the closing track, "She Loves My C:censored:k.". The band retaliated by playing a live show in a K-Mart parking lot for their video for "I Stand Alone". The "clean" version of the album omitted "She Loves...", while on the cover art of edited versions, the "Parental Advisory" logo in the background is altered to say "Meaty bones beware of Jackyl."


AC/DC released a new concert album, simply called 'Live', also in 1992, their first since 1978's 'If You Want Blood, You've Got It'. The album first came out as a two-disc set loaded with many tracks, but was later edited to a single disc with fewer songs. The full version track listing was more like a best-of collection of AC/DC songs, with live renditions of tracks including "Thunderstruck", "Shoot To Thrill", "Back In Black", "Who Made Who", "Hell's Bells", and others. Thefi album, recorded during their tour in support of 'The Razor's Edge' album, met with average critical reviews, many not finding much different than what one expected from an AC/DC performance. But the band preferred to stick to its "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach to songs and playing. The band was certainly not suffering from a backlash in the era of alternative and grunge taking over real rock and roll.


Skid Row, who were still at the top of their game, took an extended break after their tour behind
'Slave To the Grind', and released a mini-album of covers of songs which influenced them. The EP, titled 'B-Side Ourselves', featured their own versions of songs such as The Ramones' "Psycho Therapy", which featured guest vocals by Taime Downe of Faster Pussycat, "C'Mon and Love Me"
by Kiss, "Delivering the Goods" by Judas Priest, which featured an appearance by Priest vocalist Rob Halford, "What You're Doing" by Rush, and "Little Wing" by Jimi Hendrix. Unfortunately, the band's hiatus was about to take longer than they expected, since when they were to return, they would find the musical climate very different than when they left. Lead vocalist Sebastian Bach's hateful and insensitve t-shirt message reading "AIDS Kills F:censored:gs Dead" prompted a backlash against the band earlier. He apologized for the shirt and publicly made amends, but to the new politically correct masses in the 90's, the fact that a rock star could think he could get away with such a message meant that such homophobic performers' time had come to give up and go away. Real "rawk" was a racist, sexist, gay-bashing boys' club, and it was time for the touchy-feely, sensitivity-enhanced alternative bands and fans to take over. Was it time for Skid Row to go back to playing those same covers in some forgotten club in West Palookaville, New Jersey?


If bands such as Jackyl and Skid Row found criticism for their politically incorrect sentiments, Damn Yankees, the hard rock supergroup featuring Ted Nugent, guitarist Tommy Shaw of Styx, and bassist Jack Blades of Night Ranger, reveled in their notoriety, in particular, "Terrible Ted". The band followed up their 1989 self-titled debut, which featured "Coming Of Age" and "High Enough", with 1992's 'Don't Tread', which featured the ballad "Where You Going Now" and title track. Meanwhile, Nugent was making a name for himself more for his uber-conservative exploits and exaggerated displays of patriotism than for his actual music. During the Persian Gulf War the year before, Nugent ran into hot water with local authorities when he shot an arrow into an effigy of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein during a Colorado concert. During the Republican National Convention in 1992, he served as MTV Republican spokesman covering the event, exchanged a war of words with ABC-News anchor Ted Koppel, and urged voters to oppose Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton. During the Damn Yankees' tour, however, the band received unwelcome threats by animal rights groups appalled at Nugent's "glorification" of hunting and use of crossbows. Nugent was undeterred in his position. The title song of the album, sung by Blades, enjoyed extensive coverage at the Barcelona Olympic Games that summer.


KISS, in 1992, with new drummer, blonde-haired Eric Singer. KISS had never had a blonde member of the band before:

[ABlairican Pie]

1992 (continued)

Meanwhile, the metal underground raged on, unhindered by the vascillating tastes of fairweather fans of fashion.
Not only was death metal the true current music of choice, but other forms of metal, such as power metal, were
still extremely popular and flourishing in Europe.

Florida death metal merchants Obituary released 'The End Complete' in 1992, another fine offering which featured
such tracks as "I'm In Pain", "Dead Silence", "In the End Of Life", "Sickness", and the title track. The album, which
featured John Tardy's distinctive shrieking, growling vocals, further solidified the band's reputation as one of the
leaders in extreme metal in the seemingly iron-deficient, anemic 90's. The band also focused a little more on writing l
yrics that actually rhymed rather than were merely verbally spewed out, but no less heavy.

Deicide were one death metal band receiving much press for lead vocalist/bassist Glen Benton's branding an inverted
cross on his forehead in a deliberate attempt to appear as anti-Christian as possible. Meanwhile, their second album,
'Legion', became a fan favorite and is regarded as their finest, with technical melodies and elaborate playing. The band,
however, found the songs more difficult to play and recreate in concert. The album featured such tracks as "Satan
Spawn, the Caco-Daemon", "Repent To Die", "Trifixion", "Behead the Prophet (No Lord Shall Live)" "Holy Deception",
and "In Hell I Burn". Though the time for metal's ability to shock and cause controversy supposedly had waned, Glen
Benton and Deicide were there to cause headaches for many religious types and musical tastemakers.

Britain's grindcore champions Carcass released an EP in 1992, 'Tools Of the Trade', which featured songs such as
"Incarnated Solvent Abuse","Pyosisified (Still Rotten to the Gore)", "Hepatic Tissue Fermentation II", as well as the
title track. The band participated in the Gods Of Grind tour with Entombed, Cathedral, and Confessor. Grindcore was
a little more extreme than death metal in that it incorporated fast hardcore punk rhythms into thrash with growling
vocals and heavily distorted, detuned guitars. Both death metal, with which Carcass has been associated, and
grindcore share many similarities, with a few minor distinct differences.

Britain's originators of grindcore, Napalm Death, released 'Utopia Banished' in 1992. The album became their biggest
charting success, hitting #58 in the UK. The band had gone through a few lineup changes, with drummer Mick Harris
leaving the band over musical direction, and was replaced by Danny Hererra. The album was a return to their late-80's
grindcore roots, with songs such as "Discordance", "I Abstain", "Dementia Access", "Christianization Of the Blind", and
"Judicial Slime". The songs were very short, on the average of about two and a half minutes in length.

A band a little less extreme was Germany's Blind Guardian, a power metal group who released 'Somewhere Far
Beyond' in 1992. Power metal was a genre which retained many of the themes and styles of classic 80's metal, with
lyrics revolving around fantasy and mythology, and often medieval imagery to the point that often it was called
"Dungeons and Dragons metal". The album, which featured such tracks as "Time What Is Time", "Journey Through
the Dark", "Ashes To Ashes", "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" and "The Bard's Song (The Hobbit)", "The Piper's Calling",
and the title track, was so successul that the band were able to tour outside their native country and even played for
the first time in Japan. Power metal was a complete shift from such lurid themes of gore, Satanism, and "real life" social
commentary in that it offered listeners escapism and a chance to use a little imagination in their metal.

Stratovarius was a power metal band from Finland which had formed in the early 80's and had performed for a
number of years before releasing their first album. Their lead guitarist Timo Tolkki became the focal point of the band,
not only singing for them but also for his amazing shredding neo-classical playing style. The band was signed to CBS
Finland in the late 80's and released their debut and a few singles before being dropped. They recorded their second
album on another label, which was re-released under the title 'Twilight Time'. The album featured the single "Break
the Ice", as well as "The Hands Of Time", "Madness Strikes At Midnight", "Metal Frenzy", and the title track.

80's American power metal legends Manowar continued undaunted through metal's alleged decline with 1992's
'The Triumph Of Steel', an album which continued to sing the mighty praises of metal as well as explore epic themes
on tracks such as "Achilles, Agony and Ecstasy in Eight Parts", a song series about the Greek myth of the famed hero,
a tale retold by the band in meticulous faithfulness to the original story from the Iliad. The song even received attention
from many scholars of classical Greek literature and drawing praise for its serious rendering. Other songs included "Metal Warriors", "Ride the Dragon", "Spirit Horse of the Cherokee", "The Power Of Thy Sword", and "Master Of the Wind". Manowar
had built their career throughout the 80's of portraying themselves as the ultimate masculine metal band, depicting themselves
as defenders of a worthy cause--the exaltation of metal, manly metal from manly men. It was to metal's credit that the
powerful music could finally earn the respect of academia for its willingness to touch on historical and literary topics.