The new new music thread

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 6:26

I'm listening to it again now. It gets better every time I hear it. I can understand what you mean about it having a sort of transformative quality. I'd love to hear your recommendations on other good BM groups.

Paramultart wrote:Most metal snobs are no fun to talk to because they think Burzum, Mayhem, Darkthrone and the likes are too "clichÃƒÂ©" or "mainstream" now to even be worth acknowledging, but that doesn't change the fact that it's good music. I think it's a good idea to avoid talking to those people, anyway, because the "obscure" stuff they pride themselves listening to is generally the worst crap you can imagine.

...which is stupid because, apart from that alone being a dumb reason to spurn anything outright, there's really nothing "mainstream" about music like this to begin with. I like a lot of metal myself but I feel like a lot of the metalhead crowd is far too elitist, and has horizons narrow to the point that Burzum becomes mainstream music.

Paramultart · Post by **Paramultart** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 7:56

StupidBunny wrote: ...which is stupid because, apart from that alone being a dumb reason to spurn anything outright, there's really nothing "mainstream" about music like this to begin with. I like a lot of metal myself but I feel like a lot of the metalhead crowd is far too elitist, and has horizons narrow to the point that Burzum becomes mainstream music.

You put it more eloquently than I would have.
If there ever were a "hipster" archetype, it would be these guys... because yeah, obviously Burzum isn't "mainstream" just because it has a solid cult fan base.

I'm personally looking forward to playing that RPG game he developed in prison that he just recently finished.

Roll one D20 to perform "Burn church"

troublesomekeen · Post by **troublesomekeen** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 19:08

Well... I'm slightly embarrassed but I feel I must report it.
Coming Home by Esquire (1997)

Paramultart · Post by **Paramultart** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 21:05

@StupidBunny, @Tulip & @Keening_Productwill
What do you think of the Eels album "Electro-Shock Blues"?
Personally, it is my favorite album of all time...
Favorite tracks:
My Descent Into Madness:
http://youtu.be/IQ8PxgNRtmQ
3 Speed
Climbing to The Moon:
http://youtu.be/vPfz_bCwhYo
The Medication is Wearing Off:
http://youtu.be/l9PJzuzChYM
P.S. You Rock My World:
http://youtu.be/vDpuuT6YsJg

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Thu Oct 03, 2013 23:38

I haven't heard it. If it's that good/memorable/moving/awesome I may have to.

On that note, here's an artist that Paramultart did (very indirectly) get me into...

Cult of Luna - Somewhere Along The Highway: Wow this was cool. Very powerful stuff...heavy but surprisingly flowing. I've got a couple more shipping on their way.

Pantera - Power Metal: The last and by most accounts least crappy of the elusive Glamtera albums. It's a lot less bad than the cover art would suggest, sort of part Judas Priest (cool), part Metallica (cool), and part Dokken (decidedly less cool).

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Sat Oct 12, 2013 2:57

Dooooouuuuuble post

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell: Lots of purists in the metal community hate Pantera post-"Power Metal" on the claim that they turned into a crappy nu-metal band after that. While I don't really like nu-metal either, I'd say this album at least doesn't count as that at all; it's a transitional album, incorporating elements of thrash, NWOBHM, and of course the "groove" metal that Pantera would become known for. It's a lot of fun, and Dimebag of course is a kickass guitarist, and Phil Anselmo is still willing to show off his vocal range, so I'd call this one a success.

Dokken - Tooth and Nail: Kind of disappointed by this one. I don't expect Dokken to be super varied in their songwriting, but most of these really sound too similar to one another. As a result, most of the album is good, but nothing stands out.

Cult of Luna - Salvation: It's hard to compare this to "Somewhere Along the Highway" because I haven't listened to either one enough times, but it's similarly hypnotic and absorbing. I've never been a huge fan of these sort of screaming vocals, but I think they make it work well.

Tool - Ãƒâ€ nima: There's some pretty neat use/layering of instrumentals on this one. There's a fair bit of profanity in some of the songs, which is another thing I don't like...it comes off as childish, lazy and unnecessary in most cases it's used in music. That weakness aside, I enjoyed this.

Darkthrone - A Blaze in the Northern Sky: Somebody botched the printing on this one and accidentally put the commentary on disc 1 instead of 2, which is annoying. That aside, this is another amazing piece of black metal...not as haunting or moving as Filosofem, but darkly atmospheric nonetheless.

Aerosmith - Rocks: Another classic I never listened to before. Not much to say, except that I love it. Good boogie rock.

Van Halen - Van Halen: Something about these songs doesn't quite click with me, though some of them are quite catchy and it's obvious Eddie is a ridiculously good guitarist.

Paramultart · Post by **Paramultart** » Sat Oct 12, 2013 13:16

Cult of Luna is one of those underrated bands that seems like it should have been the "Tool" of post-rock. I've been listening to 40 Watt Sun a lot lately. Carry Me Home is one of my favorite songs now, and it makes me weep like a meepo shmy-shmy.

Post by **Levellass** » Sun Oct 13, 2013 7:36

I wanted to listen to 40 Watt Sun, but they only came in bayonet so I had to stay with my usual screw-in.

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 23:14

300.000 V.K. - Hard Drive: This is by a subgroup of Laibach. It's a weird album, based conceptually around computers and the tech industry but with Bill Gates especially in mind (it was recorded in 1998, you see.) Supposedly a sequel to a previous album of theirs about the pope, I guess making Gates the "pope" of computers or something. The music is extremely mechanized and repetitive, and much of it is pretty ominous although a bit mind-numbing for just a listen (it actually sounds right at home in something like Wolf3D, or Duke3D or Hocus Pocus or something.)

I don't know 40 Watt Sun, but I looked them up and they sound cool.

Post by **Fleexy** » Sat Oct 19, 2013 2:27

I have discovered that I love K-POP.

BIGBANG - Fantastic, Baby is unfathomably hilarious and awesome.

Nospike · Post by **Nospike** » Sat Oct 19, 2013 9:59

AC/DC - Flick of the Switch
Haven't stumbled upon this one until recently, and I must say it really is an underrated beast of an album. Angus' and Malcolm's attempt to return to the more aggresive roaring sound they used to rock in the 70s was largely successful. The album starts out with the absolutely rocking Rising Power and Flick of the Switch to show off their awesome new (old?

) sound before moving on to somewhat calmer tracks like Nervous Shakedown and others. One thing I don't like about this album is Brian's vocals becoming quieter and the lyrics aren't as interesting. This sad trend continued throughout AC/DC's 80s work and only stopped in 1990 with Razors Edge, and I believe that's one of the reasons for the poor sales during the 80s.
Overall, I really like this album. It has a bit of everything, and while a few songs are just plain uninteresting, the others are so great that you end up not giving a damn.

Nospike's Rating:
8/10

Post by **Keening_Product** » Sat Oct 19, 2013 15:43

Olivia Tremor Control is pretty grand.

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Thu Oct 24, 2013 18:56

Nospike: I'm always nervous about expanding into AC/DC's post-BiB material, for that exact reason. But I guess one impression I get from the band is that they do their thing--and nothing else--very consistently and generally very well, and I always have fun with it.

Burzum - Hvis lyset tar oss: OH MY GOD this was beautiful. I took a nice moonlit walk listening to this, and was amazed at all the moods it took me through, at times terrifying, at others strangely placating. Definitely captures Varg's "In darkness there is light" perfectly, especially progressing through the last track.

MÃƒÂ¶tley CrÃƒÂ¼e - Shout At the Devil: ...not so artful as the above, needless to say, but fun as hell.

Slayer - Hell Awaits: I couldn't hum a single riff or melody from this album, unlike the other ones I've listened to, but it's still pretty amazing at times. If Burzum evokes cold and isolation then this album evokes fire and torment, especially with that war drumming Slayer does so well.

Kraftwerk - Computer World: Great music to study to.

Van Halen - 1984: Like the last Van Halen album I got, this just didn't click with me somehow. I guess I don't "get" Van Halen, or something. Still some amazing guitar work from Eddie though.

Laibach - S: An EP they released for a limited period on their website to promote their new album, which comes out in February of next year. It sounds nice, but I'm not sure I like how explicitly political Laibach is becoming. They were always more fun when they mocked political systems by aping and subverting their structures and rhetoric, rather than attacking them head-on. Oh well.

Nospike · Post by **Nospike** » Thu Oct 24, 2013 19:39

Not everything post-BiB is bad. Honestly the only album that I'd call boring was Fly on the Wall, and that was a one-time slip up. Other than that, every one has its gems. Heatseeker and That's the Way I Wanna Rock'N'Roll on Blow Up Your Video, Satellite Blues on Stiff Upper Lip and pretty much everything except Breaking the Rules on For Those About To Rock. That's one of my fave albums, it has a really kickass guitar sound and cool riffs. (I tried to resist playing C.O.D. everytime I pick up the guitar. I failed)
I'm not saying they're the best of their work or that you need to listen to them above anything else, but don't be afraid to give them a shot just because they're so underrated, whatever the reason is.

StupidBunny · Post by **StupidBunny** » Thu Nov 28, 2013 22:19

Quiet Riot - Metal Health: More stupid hairy fun. As always, the quality is weighted heavily towards the first half of the album.

Def Leppard - High 'n' Dry: The most "metal" Leppard album I've heard. Metal snobs accuse them of "selling out" after this one, which I guess is kind of true although I wouldn't say this is exactly an album either, sounding more like a tinnier version of AC/DC. Really addictive.

MotÃƒÂ¶rhead - Ace of Spades: My first experience with MotÃƒÂ¶rhead. Lemmy's gravelly voice takes some getting used to, but once you do this is lots of fun. Up-tempo and keeps itself simple.

St. Vitus - Born Too Late: The vocals and lyrics aren't that impressive, but it's more than made up for by some plodding, brooding instrumental sections and some surprisingly catchy riffs. Good one to get high to.

Aerosmith - Toys in the Attic: Another classic. More boogie-oriented than Rocks for the most part.

KISS - Alive! and Destroyer: I'm going to lump these together because they sound pretty similar to me. Pretty unimpressed for the most part, there are some catchy numbers but lots of repetitive/annoying filler in between.

QueensrÃƒÂ¿che - QueensrÃƒÂ¿che (2013): Actually pretty cool. I guess without Geoff Tate around to mong things up they were able to make something decent again. One of the rare cases where I wish an album was longer.

Gary Clark, Jr. - Blak and Blu: One of those up-and-comers everybody keeps raving about, and one of the few that managed to catch my attention. Interesting mix of blues rock, which he does awesomely, and pop/R&B which are more of a mixed bag (or at least, less to my taste.) I do see promise here.

Angel Witch - Angel Witch: Kind of like Iron Maiden with a more gothic influence and an awesome cockney accent.

Slayer - Haunting the Chapel: It's an EP so there's only 3 tracks on here (plus a bonus one). They're all good, though Chemical Warfare is the only one that really sticks in my mind.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Axis: Bold as Love: Awesome, a little more psychedelic-oriented than his previous one.

The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground & Nico: I guess it's not entirely a coincidence I picked this up after Lou Reed died, though I've been interested in seeing if I like this band for a while. Turns out I do...

Darkthrone - Transilvanian Hunger: I think this is actually better than A Blaze in the Northern Sky, as it's somehow both more succinct and more atmospheric.