Heavy Metal & Hard Rock thread

[kpic]

Reading the 'Old People thread' and the posts by Stryker & Dark Horse got me thinking that we need an official Heavy Metal thread (we can also add in 'Hard Rock' in here as there may be some crossing-over) - Depending on your age, I suppose some Punk cross-over would apply and though it's not really my thing, the Metal variations like Death\Black Metal and Glam if you like...

My introduction to Heavy Metal was through my older sister who took me to my first concert at some point around 1976 (Alice Cooper), I have no memory of the actual music other than being on peoples shoulders so I could watch (I would have been about 8) but I definitely remember the 'show'!

I got more into the music by 1982\1983 when I discovered Manowar, Judas Priest & Iron Maiden, thinking back I suppose that year (1982-1983) was a huge push for Metal with pivotal albums (yes I had the albums) by those bands, throw in Venom that had some wild Punk-Metal cross-over thing happening called 'Black Metal' and some 'new' sound from a band called Metallica.

Thanks to my sister and her friends I had a wide exposure to concert going, later on I had friends more around my age and more importantly driving age so we were able to hit numerous concerts.

I suppose it was helpful that we were in the central NJ area with so many venues around us...

We had NYC for a long haul if needed; L'Amour, Ritz\Studio54 & MSG (I went to CBGB but not for a concert), but Philly & NJ was our main-stay.

In Philly you had the Spectrum for the big shows, the Tower Theater for the mid-range shows\bands and then clubs like The Empire, Theater of the Living Arts (TLA) on South Street (still open!) and some others that I can't recall.

In NJ it was all clubs; the Satellite club was near us so that was our regular spot, City Gardens was in Trenton so not too far away, it was mostly a Punk club but had Metal there at times as well and though at that time there was a clear spilt from Punk to Metal music I had friends in both camps so I didn't care who I went with and who we saw (though oddly the only real Punk band I can recall seeing live was the Cro-Mags) I can't remember any of the others. The thing about City Gardens is that it was smack deep in an African-American neighborhood, the Metal crowd was a bit more subdued but when going with the Punk crowd, they were definitely more confrontational and I can remember several big fights in the parking lot with the locals, after it was over everyone would just go back to what they were doing and we'd head into the club! Oh yeah there was a club in Asbury Park as well but I can't remember what it was called.

Thinking back when I thought about writing this I went through my head thinking about the shows I've seen and yeah, it's a lot but here are some of my favorite memories;

These would be in no particular order but I suppose these first three are my favorite bands given I've seen them most often;

#1 is Manowar - I saw them for the Fighting the World tour, twice for the Kings of Metal tour and twice for the Triumph of Steel tour, but my best memory is during the KOM tour and in Philly (I think it was the Empire club), me and my friends got there early and on the billboard was 'Man-O-War', we saw a guy outside and told him about how it should just be one word and he thanks us and tells us the band is inside rehearsing why don't you just go in early and hang a bit - didn't have to tell us again - we head in and sure enough they are up on stage rehearsing and just some people milling around, afterwards it was very casual and so we went up and talked to Scott & Ross, they were way cool! Joey and Eric were doing their own thing so I never got to meet them but I was a member of their fan-club and on night Joey and Eric called me out of the blue just to say 'hey' and we talked for about 15 minutes, I told them about that story, they thought it was funny but they said they were more interested if I had any pictures of my girlfriend naked that I could mail them. So that connection there will always keep them #1 to me - As far as them being the 'loudest band in the world', yeah they definitely were in my book, I mean we're talking about 2-3 days after the concerts of just hearing a low hum. Now days when my wife when she tells me that my hearing is going bad, I just remind her how many Metal shows I've been to and five of those were Manowar, so yeah, of course it's bad!

#2 is Iron Maiden - Hearing Number of the Beast & Piece of Mind albums back to back (1982\1983), I mean they were just on another level! I saw them first for Piece of Mind tour, then again for Powerslave (this tour became the Live After Death album), Somewhere in Time, No Prayer for Dying and then there were a few co-headlining tours. These were all at the Spectum as expected for a band of their stature except for the last time I saw them in 2005 (maybe 2006?) was in Camden NJ at the Camden Waterfront.

#3 is Judas Priest - British Steel\POE was ok to me (I didn't like any of their earlier rock stuff) but Screaming for Vengeance was like a hit to the head! I wasn't able to see them on that tour but I did see them for Defenders of the Faith, Turbo (and yes I absolutely loved this album I don't care what anyone said at the time), Ram it Down & Painkiller twice + a later tour they were co-headlining with Alice Cooper. As with Maiden these were all at the Spectrum\NYC (MSG) as expected of a band their stature.

The rest of the bands I've seen & enjoyed (there are some I like and I am probably forgetting a lot I saw and not mentioning as I wasn't really there to see them but they were 'there')

Helloween, Armored Saint, Megadeth, Doro, WASP, Metal Church, King Diamond, The Mentors (uh, absolutely hilarious and totally offensive!), oh yeah GWAR too, though I remember more of the show than of the music

Motorhead - Oddly I likely have seen them a lot as they opened for a lot of the bands I listed.

Metallica - I saw them open - yes open - for Raven on the "Kill Em' All for One" tour in 1983 (I was there to see Raven LOL!) but yeah Metallica were noticeably on another level. Never saw them live again (though I did end up seeing Raven again as an opener at a later concert!), I liked RTL and MOP a lot but the next one (And Justice??) I thought lost a lot of the sound I liked on the earlier stuff.

Slayer - Saw them a few times as opener\mid-cards and though I can't say it's really my taste, I do like a few early songs, I will say the crowd was wild for them and they shred for sure!

Venom - I liked their raw cross-over sound (though probably the least talented group on this list) they were outstanding live though, saw them twice in NYC (the Ritz\Studio 54) and once again later in 1990 in Philly with the revamped band line-up.

Hellion - Regrettably I only saw them once, I suppose as they were more an LA band - but my goodness, not only did I like them musically but Ann Boleyn was a total smoke-show, I'll never forget being right up against the stage looking up at her the whole time as she's singing, that's literally the only thing I remember about that night, I was completely ga-ga over her.

A couple I never saw but really wished I had; Exciter (sad, sad face on this one, though shockingly they still tour occasionally so who knows) & Accept\UDO!

[Buddy Rich]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

An often-overlooked but legit great album.

Awesome album

[AdolfOliverBush]

Devin Townsend is another guy who is crazy talented. His music is hit-and-miss with me, but his ability is off the charts.

[lawrenceRaider]

Originally Posted by AdolfOliverBush

Devin Townsend is another guy who is crazy talented. His music is hit-and-miss with me, but his ability is off the charts.

Agreed on that. Some of his music is phenomenal. Other is WTF.

[InChiefsHeaven]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

You need to give extreme metal more of a chance, man. It might shock you to know that a lot of those growlers and squealers can actually SING. Some of the best hardcore and extreme bands have VERY versatile singers, which creates a sort of tension in the songwriting that can be really emotionally impactful.

Look, I appreciate that. I'm just saying, it's not my jam is all. I want to hear real emotion besides ****ing rage. Rage is good, it has it's place, but only every great once in a while...not every song.

And I know, I'm probably not hearing enough of it I guess.

Seriously, I appreciate the music, but the vocalizing is just awful in my ears is all. The screamiest I ever got was Pantera, and that shit got screamy, but I dunno...in an appropriate way. And was hardly ever unintelligible growling.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by InChiefsHeaven

Look, I appreciate that. I'm just saying, it's not my jam is all. I want to hear real emotion besides ****ing rage. Rage is good, it has it's place, but only every great once in a while...not every song.

And I know, I'm probably not hearing enough of it I guess.

Seriously, I appreciate the music, but the vocalizing is just awful in my ears is all. The screamiest I ever got was Pantera, and that shit got screamy, but I dunno...in an appropriate way. And was hardly ever unintelligible growling.

I was much the same way as you even 10 years ago. Then a friend exposed me to some really quality bands. The good ones aren't "all rage". They alternate between heavy and soft, loud and quiet, aggressive and atmospheric. It creates a contrast and tension that isn't found in a lot of other music because the differences are so striking when they go from growing to singing.

Also, the growling isn't unintelligible. In many ways, it's like learning a new language. Once you listen to it enough, you start to understand what they are saying. Also, some of the music is so good that it's worth listening to the growling anyway.

[InChiefsHeaven]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Most of the metalheads here know I'm a massive stoner/doom fan.

My absolute favorite bands are Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and Dio.

After that, it's stuff like Kyuss/QOTSA, Orange Goblin, Mastodon, The Sword, and High on Fire that gets me going. I love Motorhead. I love Ozzy's solo stuff. I also like a bit of metalcore/deathcore - bands like Phinehas and Impending Doom.

As far as controversial or disputable takes:

Megadeth > Metallica
Sabbath Dio > Sabbath Ozzy

Megadeth was my first thrash metal over Metallica. And over the years, I don't think there should be any dispute that Megadeth is superior to Metallica on just about any level...but I also love me some Metallica.

[AdolfOliverBush]

Originally Posted by InChiefsHeaven

Megadeth was my first thrash metal over Metallica. And over the years, I don't think there should be any dispute that Megadeth is superior to Metallica on just about any level...but I also love me some Metallica.

I think "Rust In Peace" is better than any Metallica album, although neither band is exactly getting better with age. Both are nearly unlistenable at this point, imo.

[Imon Yourside]

I went from Led Zeppelin to buying Master of Puppets the day it came out. Wore out the tape completely. I've pretty much gotten away from the Metal thing these days but I occasionally go back and listen. I'm more into the Kyuss stuff now tho tbh.

[Imon Yourside]

Originally Posted by Stryker

QUEENSRYCHE - Take Hold of the Flame



RAVEN - Mind Over Metal

Queensryche I still listen to occasionally and that Raven album is HIGHLY underrated amazing to this day still.

[Imon Yourside]

I'm more into this kind of genre now...

[Imon Yourside]

Originally Posted by AdolfOliverBush

I think "Rust In Peace" is better than any Metallica album, although neither band is exactly getting better with age. Both are nearly unlistenable at this point, imo.

Peace sells is still my favorite album from those guys.

[Chiefnj2]

In 1988 or 1989 I saw Manowar open up for Motorhead at the Ritz.

I would agree that Manowar was the loudest band I've ever seen. Not the best band by far, but the loudest.

[AdolfOliverBush]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

In 1988 or 1989 I saw Manowar open up for Motorhead at the Ritz.

I would agree that Manowar was the loudest band I've ever seen. Not the best band by far, but the loudest.

I saw Metallica at Kemper Arena in 1991. We got there way early, so we were sitting out in the parking lot. The drums were being set up, and we knew that because my rearview mirrors were shaking. In the parking lot.

That concert remains the loudest thing I've ever heard. I couldn't hear right for 3 or 4 days after.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/metal...o-3d6d9f3.html

[InChiefsHeaven]

Originally Posted by Imon Yourside

Peace sells is still my favorite album from those guys.

Yep, front to back it's pretty awesome. That was my first Megadeth album. We had a guitar player back in the day who could thrash and we did a cover of Holy Wars...I ****ing LOVED Rust in Peace.

I checked out of Metallica after the Black Album. Haven't gotten into any of the new album yet.

They're all getting old. The one that kills me the most is Maiden. Holy shit, they've become pretty unlistenable to me, though I didn't hate "The Writing on the Wall" on their latest album.

[InChiefsHeaven]

Originally Posted by AdolfOliverBush

I saw Metallica at Kemper Arena in 1991. We got there way early, so we were sitting out in the parking lot. The drums were being set up, and we knew that because my rearview mirrors were shaking. In the parking lot.

That concert remains the loudest thing I've ever heard. I couldn't hear right for 3 or 4 days after.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/metal...o-3d6d9f3.html

Saw that tour in Omaha at the Civic Auditorium...one of my favorite concerts ever.