Nashvillerock.net
Article #2
John McGlasson
o.i.e.Records,Ltd.
www.oierecords.com
03/15/07
Metal…what’s next?
If you look at the bands I have on my label, and if you read my review of Adrenaline Theory, you might think I’m not a fan of heavy music, but the truth is, it took me years to appreciate anything but hard rock/metal. I guess I grew up. But when I go back and listen to my old cds, and pull out my favorites, I get excited all over again. So here’s my TOP 10 metal albums of all time;
1)Megadeth-Peace Sells, But Who’s Buying?
2)Testament-The New Order
3)Exodus-Pleasures of the Flesh
4)Metallica-Master of Puppets
5)Slayer-South of Heaven
6)Slayer-Reign in Blood
7)Megadeth-Rust in Peace
8)Anthrax-Among the Living
9)Korn-self-titled
10)Deftones-Adrenaline
I could’ve probably made a top 20, but those sum it up pretty well…
I was there when metal was new, I watched it evolve, I watched it become more “mainstream” with Metallica’s black album, which was rammed down our throats via mainstream top 40 radio for months, and I knew that metal had become Jock Rock. It was EVERYWHERE, and it SUCKED.
I’m not one of those people that hates something once it becomes popular or sells in big numbers, Master of Puppets is a great example, but when Tool came along and hit it big, they became the most imitated band since Pearl Jam, and heavy music suffered.
At some point, it became really cool to suck. I’ve written other articles pointing the blame directly at Kurt Cobain, producer Steve Albini, and whatever label forced Teen Spirit on the unsuspecting public. Their philosophy made it’s way into metal after Korn came along, kids everywhere got the impression that all they needed to know was a barchord to be a big rockstar, and they were right.
So now we’ve got “the re-birth of the guitar solo” with bands like Dragon-something and another band that was on the cover of Guitar Player a few months ago but who’s name escapes me, other than the fact that one of the guitarists was named “Zacky Vengeance” and had a shitload of eye makeup on…I remember hearing a song by them on the radio one day, and I thought it was a new Megadeth song! The vocals were identical, the style, and then I hear a bunch of sweeping guitar riffs and fast picking, and I thought Megadeth had a new guitarist, but it was some little hacks who’ve studied old albums and written a bunch of what amounts to Grand Theft!
I don’t know what happened specifically that made kids who were starting to play guitar around 1990 to think that it was ok to be a hack, to never strive for a style of your own? I know when I was reading the guitar mags as a kid, every guitarist I admired made that their number one point, DON’T SOUND LIKE ME. DO SOMETHING NEW!
I WANT to have a metal band on my label! I seek the globe for something new, and I swear I can’t find it! And I don’t see it in the near future, as long as metal continues to live in the past.