When I bought Trivium's Ascendancy album in a local record store (the CD in the upper-right corner within the photo), I wasn't expecting to hear the first track (called The End of Everything) at all. While I do have the album in my iPod, I've been scouring the earth for this album as well as their debut album, From Ember to Inferno, to complete my Trivium collection. Now that I have Ascendancy, From Ember to Inferno is left, but it'll be that much more difficult to find. Anyhow, the reason I never heard the intro track until now was that I never had that song in my iPod in the first place! My younger brother, who had given me a digital copy of this LP years ago, never gave me that song. Maybe he forgot or thought he included it in the digital copy, who knows. So for the past 5 years or so since I've been listening to this LP, I always though Rain (the second track) was the first. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that that wasn't the case. As I'm sure you've heard it already, the intro track is moody, foreboding, but immensly enticing. I'm really glad to have found out that this is the first song in the LP, since it leads into a perfect buildup into Rain.
Over the past few weeks, I've come across familiar faces that don't have an interest in metal (that is, the musical style, not the material itself). Which I can honestly relate since, when I was young (up until 15 or so), I, too, had some disdain for the musical style. For me growing up, I had made the connection that because you were a "metal head" (an aficionado for the music), you were likely to be dumb as a brick and perform miserably in school (and to some extent, life). Of course, this is a terrible overgeneralization and a logical fallacy. Then, when I was finally introduced to the style itself, it was all the screaming//growling and blast beats (the rapid-fire beating of the bass drums) that really turned me off. Now, after all these lengthy years, I'm a fan of the musical style (though, you'll never see me wear the "uniform" of a metal head, curiously enough). So, I thought to show off some of various styles of metal (keep in mind, I try to avoid the traditional elements of metal - I'm hoping to introduce new people to this awesome genre of music, not scare them away!) to those who may not be familiar with the music to begin with. Enjoy (didn't I say I'd choose a more lighthearted topic?)!
1) Blind Guardian (Progressive/Power/Speed/Symphonic Metal) - Journey Through the Dark - These guys are, for the most part, quite consistent over the years. Occasionally, there is a change in the line-up of the band, as well as incorporating (or removing) elements of their music (some are more symphonic and elaborate while other pieces of music are simple and direct).
2) Therion (Symphonic/Power Metal) - Abraxas - They actually started off as a death metal band, but 1995's Theli allowed them to change their musical direction and heavily incorporate symphonic elements (as this song proves). Vovin, Lemuria (from which this song comes from), and Sirius B are, perhaps, their best works.
3) Nightwish (Symphonic/Power Metal)- The Siren - Their musical style becomes more and more elaborate with each forthcoming studio album. Like Therion, they too also incorporate symphonic elements (as well as exotic ones too - in Creek Mary's Blood from Once, the band uses actual Native American chants in their music!). The difference is that they only have the one female lead (where as Therion uses professional alto and soprano singers). With this song, pay extra attention to the electric violin.
4) Trivium (Thrash Metal, Heavy Metal) - Shogun - Although there is some screaming here (sorry, guys!), I'd be a fool not to include one of metal's biggest bands in our modern time. Shogun is just about everybody's favorite from the band. These are a something special - with every new album released, they seem to be getting better and better (compare Ember to Inferno to Ascendancy, their first and second albums, respectively). This song is actually 11 min. long, not 10, but I couldn't find the full song, unfortunately.
5) Megadeth (Speed/Thrash/Heavy Metal) - The Scorpion - Constantly political, occasionally personal or spiritual, and sometimes humorous, Megadeth has stood the test of time (and constant changes in band members). I chose the Scorpion since this is more recent (2004), and the subject matter is the decline of society (which is always fun). Megadeth's 25+ years in the business has shown some of metal's greatest works (Peace Sells, Rust In Peace, and Countdown to Extinction), as well as embarrassments (Risk).
6) Avenged Sevenfold (Thrash/Speed Metal, Metalcore) - The Wicked End - After Waking the Fallen and a subsequent surgery on M. Shadows (the frontman of the group), City of Evil is A7X's critically-acclaimed breakthrough album. The Wicked End is one of the few songs that is different and elaborate when compared to the rest of the album (there's even a Danny Elfman-inspired interlude in the middle of the song)
7) DragonForce (Speed Metal) - Once in a Lifetime - The best part about this band is that they incorporate all that is metal (the imagery, songwriting, and even keyboard solos) without really doing anything that could turn-off potential listeners. Often glorifying war, personal strife, and dragons (in a very medieval way), it's hard not to get sucked into the worlds they construct lyrically. Many a Warcraft player claim to listen to DragonForce before going on to raid dungeons. They're that good.
8) TYR (Folk Metal) - The Mare of my Night - These guys revolve their all their music exclusive to Nordic myth and folklore, so it's easy to get lost in the subject (or could bring intrigue if one is interested enough). Still, this doesn't take away from the fact that their musicianship stands out from other groups.
9) Danzig (Doom/Gloom Metal, Blues Rock) - End of Time - With Danzig, former The Misfits member Glenn Danzig offers a whole new musical landscape for us to immerse ourselves in. By slowing down the tempo, emphasizing melodies, and offering killer guitar solos, Danzig offers music that's dark, moody, and at times, damn sexy (She Rides comes to mind).
10) Rage Against the Machine (Rap Metal) - Know Your Enemy - Blending De La Rochas' rapid-fire spoken word with Morello's insane guitar work (the band even makes a point to say that ALL SOUNDS MADE BY GUITAR, BASS, DRUMS, AND VOCALS in most of their albums), RATM has achieved much success like no other politically-driven band before or after them.
I'm quite aware that this simple list is essentially just the tip of the iceberg, since I'm certain that people will point out that I'm missing quite a bit of music (especially some of the more older material), but that's a chance I'm willing to take. Besides, I could always make up a second list for more metalicious music!
