Best Music Artist(s) Today?

[Jakehammaren]

[QUOTE=Insanity Hero][B]Nightwish[/B] and [B]Lacuna Coil[/B] a pretty good bands. If you want to get into Nightwish I suggest that you listen to their old stuff like [B]"Nemo"[/B] or [B]"Over the hills and far away" [/B]

[B]Lacuna Coil [/B] is a good band also. [B]"Heaven's a Lie" [/B] is a very good song and [B]"Enjoy the Silence"[/B] is also a top fave in my book.[/QUOTE]

"Nemo" and "Over the Hills and Far Away" are not their old stuff. "Nemo" is off their most recent album, and "Over the Hills and Far Away" is a cover that was released on a single/EP they did not too long ago. As far as their "old" stuff goes, Oceanborn is probably the best album.

[nekoconeko]

Today musical artists? Hmmm...well, I like Ken Hirai, Utada Hikaru, Ali-Project and Koda Kumi...

[Claire]

[quote name='nekoconeko']Today musical artists? Hmmm...well, I like Ken Hirai, Utada Hikaru, Ali-Project and Koda Kumi...[/quote]

[FONT=Arial]I repeat:

[quote name='Myself']Please put just a little more thought into explaining why you like those artists. We can't really generate discussion if all we know is that they "kick ***," or nothing at all.[/quote]

[U]Please.[/U]
[/font]
[quote name='Jakehammaren']As far as their "old" stuff goes, Oceanborn is probably the best album.[/quote]
[FONT=Arial]
In my opinion, Century Child is the best (but I don't know if you're considering that old). I was crazy obsessed with Nightwish when I was in the eighth grade but I drifted so far away from them that I didn't listen to any of their music for at least a year. Now I've been listening to their stuff again and my love for them has been revived.[/FONT]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]*looks at list* The list of my favorite bands can be confusing at times, but i think the next logical choice would be...

[B]Mastodon [/B] - Interestingly enough, I actually have never heard their first CD and their second one I'm no raging fan of. [B]Leviathan[/B], their sophomore release, was largely popular for it's deep, churning grind of technical riffs, deep sludge, and all sorts of vocal styles. While the songs [B]Blood and Thunder [/B] and [B]Seabeast [/B] were both great in my opinion, the other 8 tracks were nothing awe inspiring.

...But then, last year in '06 the band released their mainstream debut [B]Blood Mountain[/B]. This is one of the first metal albums in a while to be placed in the top 10s of magazines like [B]Rolling Stone[/B], played on [B]MTV[/B], and even liscenced by [B]Warner Records[/B]. Does this mean their sound was more watered-down? Not even close. The album is a thousand times more technical and all-around beefed up than Leviathan.

(in interest of not repeating things I typed before, this will be copied from my review site)

Blood Mountain immediately bursts into action with brutal drum beating , a maniacal guitar slide, and a kick into the ultra-heavy beast of a track that is [B]The Wolf Is Loose[/B]. This style of brutal intricacy is also heard in the second track, [B]Crystal Skull[/B], as well as others such as[B] Circle of the Cysquatch [/B] and [B]Hand of Stone[/B]. The songs [B]Sleeping Giant[/B], [B]this Mortal Soil[/B], and [B]Siberian Divide [/B] have a very trippy sound with lots of airy riffs and an eerie vibe emitted. [B]Capillarian Crest[/B], [B]Colony of Birchmen[/B], and [B]Hunters of the Sky [/B] feature a more raw metal sound and elements of stoner-rock with sick riffs and shredding solos. Finally there are two instrumental tracks. [B]Bladecatcher [/B] is pure insanity and must be heard to be conceived.[B] Pendulous Skin [/B] is a more relaxed, 7-minute track with a calm yet chilly air. Afterwards is around 15 minutes of silence and then a secret fan-letter message.

The vocal style greatly varies between, and often during, tracks. At times there is deep yelling, growling, or screaming, while at others there is gruff singing, calling, or even speaking. And then there?s the really freaking strange voices that make your brain explode. Between the two vocalists is a wide variety of styles. Also, there is a brief guest appearance from [B]Cedric Bixler-Zavala [/B] of [B]The Mars Volta[/B].

Lyrically, the album is adventurous and more than a little strange. Lines like ?Into the black hole/searching for crystal/making the veins bleed? riddle the often cryptic plot. The concept apparently deals with finding the legendary Crystal Skull, bringing it to the summit of Blood Mountain, and traversing dimensions with it?s power. On the way are battle with many strange beasts, such as the Cysquatch; a one eyed sasquatch that can see into the future.

Blood Mountain is the perfect disk for anyone looking for a heavy CD with unique elements and a portrayal of great skill.[/COLOR]

[Jakehammaren]

Aw man, when I saw that you'd bolded [B]Leviathan[/B], I thought you meant the US-based one-man depressive black metal band, not the album by Mastodon. I was all excited and whatnot. Aw, shucks!

I cannot get into Mastodon, despite my efforts. They just annoy me, and nothing more. Eh, to each his own.

[Goodbye, Face]

[quote name='Jakehammaren']I cannot get into Mastodon, despite my efforts. They just annoy me, and nothing more. Eh, to each his own.[/quote]
[font=arial][size=1]I keep trying to get into them, because apparently my music tastes demand it so. Every time I listen to them, I just get turned off by it. I think it's the vocals, maybe it's the clown make-up music video. Heh, I don't know. What is the best, definitive Mastodon song?

[URL=http://www.myspace.com/thiswilldestroyyou][b]This Will Destroy You[/b][/URL] is pretty much the best band around today. There is no one who would say otherwise after listening to "I Believe In Your Victory".[/size][/font]

[Jakehammaren]

[QUOTE=RiflesAtRecess][font=arial][size=1]
[URL=http://www.myspace.com/thiswilldestroyyou][b]This Will Destroy You[/b][/URL] is pretty much the best band around today. There is no one who would say otherwise after listening to "I Believe In Your Victory".[/size][/font][/QUOTE]

I'm listening to that very song right now.

The first portion of it reminds me of...

Agalloch? What? If the guitar tone was a little thicker and the drums a tad more agressive, this could easily be part of an Agalloch song. Which is awesome.

This song is amazing, Rifles. You're completely right. I'm definately going to look further into this band.

Meanwhile, you NEED to listen to Agalloch. Go to their official myspace ([url]www.myspace.com/agalloch[/url]) and listen to the entirety of "Odal". It's post-rock leanings should have you hooked, especially when the song really kicks into gear after the minimalist intro. Enjoy.

[DeathKnight]

[quote name='RiflesAtRecess][font=arial][size=1']Heh, I don't know. What is the best, definitive Mastodon song?[/quote][/font][/size]

[color=crimson][url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uShqlufsq5w]March Of the Fire Ants[/url] from Remission.

This Will Destroy You is a great live band. I saw them open for Fall of Troy and Portugal The Man a couple of months back and thought they were the best band there. FoT was awesome enough but This Will Destroy You took the cake.

And yeah you NEED to listen to Agalloch. You NEED to. You absolutely, totally need to even if advertising the band has nothing whatsoever to do with this post. I just know you need to. If you don't your balls will fall off.

*whispers* You need to.[/color]

[Jakehammaren]

[QUOTE=DeathKnight][/font][/size]

[color=crimson]
And yeah you NEED to listen to Agalloch. You NEED to. You absolutely, totally need to even if advertising the band has nothing whatsoever to do with this post. I just know you need to. If you don't your balls will fall off.

*whispers* You need to.[/color][/QUOTE]

See, Rifles? That's two for two, man. You better get on it.

[Akuya Astarios]

Okay see I'm relatively new to OtakuBoards and I don't even know what to do. As for Agallock, I've never heard of them. As for my favorite music artist(s) I love Evanescence, and Green Day, and Linkin Park, and Utada Hikaru, and Good Charlotte, and Cascada, and a whole bunch of other people. The only thing I don't usually listen to is rap. I can't stand it.

[Goodbye, Face]

[quote name='Jakehammaren']See, Rifles? That's two for two, man. You better get on it.[/quote]
[font=arial][size=1]Man, I started listening to them a few days after I made your banner. I downloaded The Mantle and I'm just now listening to it in detail. This band could pull off Post-Rock (as in the style of This Will Destroy You) very well, but the vocals throw that off. I think I was waiting for these songs to really pick up, but they never do so. So I guess I'm confused by what the band is really trying to do, it's mostly acoustic guitar and kind of growly vocals.

Don't get me wrong, they're pretty damn awesome.

& Jake, you might like [url=http://myspace.com/dreamscapesoftheperverse][b]Dreamscapes of the Perverse[/b][/url], they're based about two hours away from me and they have a fun live show. :D I hear they sound like Dimmu Borgir, but I don't like DB... but I really like these guys. To me anyway, it sounds like Between the Buried and Me if they got into black metal. Check out "World of Malice" it's the first song on the cd after the intro and it's my favorite, although the cd is quite an experience put together.

It'd be nice to see that band go places.[/font][/size]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[QUOTE=RiflesAtRecess][font=arial][size=1]Man, I started listening to them a few days after I made your banner. I downloaded The Mantle and I'm just now listening to it in detail. This band could pull off Post-Rock (as in the style of This Will Destroy You) very well, but the vocals throw that off. I think I was waiting for these songs to really pick up, but they never do so. So I guess I'm confused by what the band is really trying to do, it's mostly acoustic guitar and kind of growly vocals.

Don't get me wrong, they're pretty damn awesome.

& Jake, you might like [url=http://myspace.com/dreamscapesoftheperverse][b]Dreamscapes of the Perverse[/b][/url], they're based about two hours away from me and they have a fun live show. :D I hear they sound like Dimmu Borgir, but I don't like DB... but I really like these guys. To me anyway, it sounds like Between the Buried and Me if they got into black metal. Check out "World of Malice" it's the first song on the cd after the intro and it's my favorite, although the cd is quite an experience put together.

It'd be nice to see that band go places.[/font][/size][/QUOTE]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]You REALLY need to listen to [B]Ashes Against the Grain[/B]. That's when they truly explode and become full-force of what they were meant to be. Also, be careful in using [B]DB [/B] as an acronym -- I thought you were talking about me for a second >_< Which, really, is purely stupid of me, :animesmil

So, according to my insanely strange logic, the next in line comes to...

[B]Isis [/B] - Post-metal is a controversial genre term that I personally support, though others would decapitate on sight of usage. Isis take the usual gentle, harmonious, overly-long post-rock tracks with their switches from quiet to grandious, their use of long passages of riffs, their generally skillful performances -- and juice them up with heaviness.

The earlier Isis albums are apparently some kind of departure -- i've honestly never heard any but their 3 most recent and the albums that brought the term 'post-metal' fully into existence. The first of these and my favorite is [B]Oceanic[/B].

(I was reluctant to do this, as I am talking about the band in it's entirety, but since Oceanic is 80% of the reason I like this, I thought I's carry the review once more.)

Oceanic is not easily comparable to anything I?ve ever heard. The album opens with the eight minute track [B]The Beginning And The End[/B], which immediately kicks off with a wicked riff-beat-combo creating one of my favorite culminations of guitar, bass, and drums ever. The atmosphere is immediately recognizable as deep, dark, and a bit airy as well. Just as the album?s title suggests, you?ll feel like you?re deep at the bottom of the ocean all the way through. The next 3 tracks portray a similar style to the first with deep riffs and dispersed angry vocals. The fifth song actually has no title (marked as [B]?-?[/B]) and is a strange 2 minute piece of static, wave noises, and some sort of crunching towards the end. This is followed by another brief song, [B]Maritime[/B], which crosses over toward a more post-rock vibe. That style is carried into what is probably my favorite track on Oceanic, [B]Weight[/B]. This 10 minute epic consists of long mellow passages and soft female vocals coming in at times repeating ?all in, all in, all in a day, a day it changes everything.? The final 8 and 9 minute tracks ([B]From Sinking [/B] and [B]Hym [/B] respectively) combine the post-rock elements and the heavy sound of the earlier tracks to create what could arguably be called the first post-metal songs.

As for lyrical content, Oceanic is a concept album revolving around an incestual relationship, a love-triangle, and a man very desperate to drown himself. Alas, this may not be the full story as the lyrics are very cryptic and open for interpretation. Lines such as ?rape she was and ready for death? haunt the heavy and usually unintelligible singing.

The only downside to Oceanic is that it can sometimes move a bit slowly, but even when it degenerates to very little music it stays cool and creates a great atmosphere. This problem only really arises once or twice in tracks 2 and 3, but either is still a worthwhile track. Isis may take a little getting used to if you?re new to this sort of music, but if you?ve been listening to anything like [B]Tool [/B] or [B]Neurosis[/B], you?re definitely going to love this CD.

(the rest is not from the review. You'll be able to tell because the spelling mistakes will start appearing again >_<)

The other albums, [B]Panopticon [/B] (viewed as the first official post-metal album ever) and [B]In The Abscence of Truth [/B] have a unique style from Oceanic. Panopticon is my least favorite of the albums, mostly because it is less flowing, complete album than it is a collection of songs (when it comes to an album, I alwys say the whole should be greater than the sum of it's parts...) though it is still mildly entertaining. Unlike Oceanic, it doesn't leave you wanting to come back for more.

That last statement can be used once more in describing In The Abscence of Truth, though the case pleaded is not quite the same. This album fatures a lot of enhanced elements - much more use of percussion and synths are included and it is overall more mellow than the previous two albums. It does have an immense atmosphere to it, but nothing of the calibur which Oceanic holds.[/COLOR]

[Jakehammaren]

Yeah, Isis is incredible. But they sludge metal with progressive influence, none of this "post metal" business :animesmil (just giving you crap... but really, they are proggressive sludge)

And Rifles, I should have told you before hand. You really need the Agalloch album [B]Ashes Against the Grain[/B]. You'd probably like it the best. It has the most post-rock influence out of all their albums, and it picks up more where it feels natural. I think you'd find worlds of listening pleasure within that album's dark, beautiful, perfect tracks. Go now and buy/download!

As for Dreamscapes of the Perverse, I'm going to check them out, but my expectations are low seeing as you referenced Dimmu Borgir (who I hate [besides their really old stuff, such as the ORIGINAL Stormblast, For All Tid, etc.]) and BTBAM, who I'm not really fond of. I'll give it a listen though.

[DeathKnight]

[quote name='Jakehammaren']See, Rifles? That's two for two, man. You better get on it.[/quote]

[color=crimson]Nah, I was being sarcastic. Thanks anyway though.

In the vein of 'post-metal' there is [b]Pelican[/b]. Pelican has a couple of full length releases out and a new CD is being released in early June.

I've mainly listened to a self titled EP of theirs and their last full length album which has the wholly un-original title [b]The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw[/b]. Their musical ability and compositions are simply wonderful. Heavy, soft- even acoustic at times, they are a fine blend of rough metal and post-rock melody. The prior I found on a torrent [tsk] and the latter I purchased.

For your listening pleasure, if interested, I have found some live videos on YouTube:

March Into the Sea: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VL5L5sEtJN0]part 1[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdYtcEJwJ7c]part 2[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JA0ZwOcieYM]part 3[/url].[/color]

[Jakehammaren]

[quote name='DeathKnight][color=crimson']Nah, I was being sarcastic. Thanks anyway though.[/quote]

I know. I was rolling with the punches :rolleyes:

And advertising them does indeed have to do with this thread, seeing as it's about the "Best Music Artist(s) Today", a category under which they most definitely fall. It's no less appropriate than you advertising Pelican.

Anyway, on to Pelican. They are indeed a good band, but as far as that particular style of sludge metal goes, Mouth of the Architect and Isis are superior. Granted, I haven't heard as much Pelican, but from the album I listened to, it wasn't quite as enjoyable as Mouth of the Architect's [I]The Ties that Blind[/I] or Isis' [I]Panopticon[/I].

[Goodbye, Face]

[quote name='Jakehammaren]Anyway, on to Pelican. They are indeed a good band, but as far as that particular style of sludge metal goes, Mouth of the Architect and Isis are superior. Granted, I haven't heard as much Pelican, but from the album I listened to, it wasn't quite as enjoyable as Mouth of the Architect's [I]The Ties that Blind[/I] or Isis' [I]Panopticon[/I'].[/quote]
[font=arial][size=1]Everyone keeps saying that Isis is better, but man, I like Pelican tons more. There's also [url=http://www.myspace.com/tidesrites][b]Tides[/b][/url], but I don't think anyone really knows about them. I saw them live in a place that sells moonjump things, that was amazing. :D

And also, has anyone heard of [url=http://www.myspace.com/cinemechanica][b]Cinemechanica[/b][/url]? They're really cool guys who plays songs based off of their videogame obsession, but not literally like HORSE the Band does. They have two drummers (now, at least, "Get Outta Here Hitler is their only recorded song with double drums) and two guitarists that also do vocals. Everything in their music has a really amazing dueling effect, and it's even more prevalent now that they have new songs written specifically for the added drummer. They also tour in a Contraband and a Megaband, which play the soundtrack to Contra and Megaman respectively, all while a professional gamer plays through the game on a projector screen. It's really awesome stuff, and their next album is going to be incredible.[/font][/size]

[DeathKnight]

[QUOTE=Jakehammaren]I know. I was rolling with the punches :rolleyes:

And advertising them does indeed have to do with this thread, seeing as it's about the "Best Music Artist(s) Today", a category under which they most definitely fall. It's no less appropriate than you advertising Pelican.[/QUOTE]

[color=crimson]Oh yeah, speaking of. Have you guys heard of

[size=4][b]PELICAN[/b][/size]

They are this great band you really need to check out ASAP. [url=http://www.myspace.com/pelican]Here's[/url] their myspace. Check out Last Day of Winter!
[/color]

[Jakehammaren]

[QUOTE=DeathKnight][color=crimson]Oh yeah, speaking of. Have you guys heard of

[size=4][b]PELICAN[/b][/size]

They are this great band you really need to check out ASAP. [url=http://www.myspace.com/pelican]Here's[/url] their myspace. Check out Last Day of Winter!
[/color][/QUOTE]

I sure hope that I can be as witty as you one day.

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=DarkOrange][quote name='Jakehammaren']I sure hope that I can be as witty as you one day.[/quote]

We ALL do, cuz [B]DeathKnight [/B] is just SO smart and cool and ALWAYS right :rolleyes:

Anyway, logically my next choice would have been [B]Dream Theater[/B], but I'm gunna have to cut into that a minute here. Seing as I just got [B]Snakes and Arrows[/B], I believe it's time to go a little old-to-new school.

[B]Rush [/B] - this band has been around for an eternity. My dad listened to them when he was a kid, and wouldn't you know that I would follow suit. Rush is known for being a guy with a bass, a guy with a guitar, and a guy on the drums who REDEFINE the way the instruments should be played. [B]Getty Lee[/B], the band's falsetto-belting frontman is simultaneously a passionate singer and one of, if not the greatest bass player of all time.[B] Neil Pert [/B] is by far the greatest percussionist to ever live with his behemoth drum set. And [B]Alex Liefson [/B] qualifies as one of the most underrated guitarists ever, since he can shredd with the best of them despite lack of attention.

Now, I have not come close to hearing half of all Rush albums. Over the course of 27 years they have released 19 albums, not including their live albums. Rush have changed their style a ton of times. Rush's first three albums weren't all that popular and featured the band slowly moving from hard rock to progressive before...

[B]2112[/B]. This album is only 40 miutes long with 6 tracks, 5 of which I don't care about. 2112, the 21 minute epic opus of the album, is truly one of the most amazing pieces ever created. It's got an entire story to it, parts of which are detailed in the lyric book, and the song is absolutely amazing. It's the only 20-minute song I have ever actually gotten stuck in my head -- it's got brilliant instrumentality, and it really must be heard to be belived.

the next 2 albums follow suit in the progressive style, one of which is [B]Hemispheres [/B] that I also own. This one is actually only 4 songs, though one is another 18-minute epic that is once again amazing, and there also happens to be a 10-minute instrumental track. Interestingly enough, though, my personal favorite song on there is [B]The Trees[/B], a really strange tale of tree hierarchy.

Afterwards, Rush started to distance themselves from the huge, epic tracks and 2 albums later they released by far ther most well-known album, [B]Moving Pictures[/B]. Songs like[B] Tom Sawyer[/B], [B]Red Barchetta[/B], and [B]Limelight [/B] still come on the radio all the time. This album sees Rush starting to bring synthesizers more into their music. Their next album and another popular one, [B]Signals[/B], sees the full emergence of electronical instrumentation.

... and I really can't tell you about their next nine albums, since I've never heard anything from this era. This was the time when Rush's prog influence began to dwindle a little and they became more oriented toward rock and radio-friendly songs, though I've never heard anything from any of these albums on the radio.

Now i'm listening to their new album, [B]Snakes and Arrows[/B], and I'm at least mildly impressed. They have brought back plenty of the prog elements of their early releases and fused them with som eof their newer sound and gone just a bit heavier than they ever have before, while simultaneouslly having a lot of acoustic instrumentation. Overall, there are plenty of great songs and a few okay ones. The instrumentals are the best on there, and a lot of the acoustic stuff just sounds plain cool. My only disappointment is that I've yet to hear any of the instruments stand out like they used to, but it seems like they put a bit more concentration on atmosphere and layering for this one. Worth it for Rush fans at least, I'd say.[/COLOR]

[DeathKnight]

[quote name='Jakehammaren']I sure hope that I can be as witty as you one day.[/quote]

[color=crimson]All it takes is practice and easily exuberant victims as your target.

What's funny is that when you first mentioned Agalloch like a week or more ago I listened and they were really good, lol.[/color]

[quote name='2007DigitalBoy][COLOR=DarkOrange]We ALL do, cuz [B]DeathKnight [/B'] is just SO smart and cool and ALWAYS right :rolleyes: [/quote][/color]

[color=crimson]You should probably leave sarcasm to the people good at it. ;)

Metal has a very big following in this forum so I'll address some other genres to clear the air of them.

Rap:

Aesop Rock- Aesop Rock is one of the bigger 'underground' rap artists that I know of. His lyrics are usually abstract but I wouldn't go so far as to call them philosophical. The level of depth in them borders on it but it is just short of it.

In hip hop usually when I read conversations about him people are very divided between love and hate. His purposefully abstract lyrics drive some people nuts. Others go a little too far the other way and make him out to be some kind of modern day messiah.

Simply, and hopefully, if you listen to some tracks from him you'll find him to be a fine rapper with interesting lyrics. Looking for something more here is probably missing the point of his music. He's one of my favorite rappers though, lol.

Tracks: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWCJvLE-lbw]"None Shall Pass"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4t3Z4y3Y1w]"Bent Life"[/url],
[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6BEpiEC7nU]"Abandon All Hope"[/url].

Indie:

The Delgados- I've never, EVER understood why more people don't like The Delgados. Actually no one seems to really have heard of them which is even more depressing. I first heard them when watching the Gunslinger Girls anime- the Japanese opening song is "The Light Before We Land" off of their album, Hate.

Their musical sound varies from song to song. There are moment of mellow melodies and more aggressive rock pieces. I'd describe the tone of most of their songs as ambivalent- bordering between positive and negative.

The band broke up a couple of years ago but I'm still a big fan of their sound. I've always hoped that I could get a few more people to hear them because I know they have a very universally appealing sound.

Tracks: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgFAhriVVcc]"Thirteen Gliding Principles"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v3WCeYArd4]"The Light Before We Land"[/url]

TV on the Radio- TV on the Radio is listed as experimental rock but they are not.. so much experimental to me. Granted, their tracks aren't conventional and rarely sound alike but it's not so much cutting edge as it is unique. I suppose some view the two as the same but, eh.

Uh, their tracks are rather diffused sound-wise. The only quality I can attach to all of them is a universal trait of 'this is kind of different'. Different and addictive.

The band released a new CD recently, Return to Cookie Mountain, which is as acclaimed as their previous efforts.

Tracks: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d808dcKhCiY]"Staring At the Sun"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUB1xSAAADk]"Wolf Like Me"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73qBnuzrjx0]"Wolf Like Me (live)"[/url].

Blues:

Son House- Son House first recorded in the 30s/40s before blues kind of faded out of view. In the 60s/70s when the genre came back into style he was discovered and told of how his early recordings were popular again so he came out of retirement.

A very deep, soulful voice and a good mastery of the guitar make him one of my favorite blues musicians. Listening to him is just.. immersive from how good of a singer he is. The emotion behind his voice is very focused and just drowns you in what he's saying.

Tracks: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jN5vqEyV7g]"Death Letter"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRiKNS1S3LE]"Levee Camp Blues"[/url]

Stevie Ray Vaughan- I really hope I don't have to describe him to you guys.

Tracks: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAxLgGVRV64]"Texas Flood"[/url], [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GSpbuFSr2o]"Voodoo Child (cover)"[/url].[/color]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]Who says I was being sarcastic :therock:

Also, I don't think it's so much that metal has a large following on [B]OB[/B], more just that me and [B]Jake [/B] are the most outspoken people in the music forum, lol.

As for the bands you mentioned [B]TV on the Radio [/B] is pretty cool, namely the tracks you highlighted which were in my favorite song of the week at some point back there (my god that thread has gotten huge!) and they have some other OK tracks. I like their vocal style and stuff, but their music isn't quite enough to keep my enticed.

Well, [B]Rush [/B] was really the last band I could really do that huge of a description of save fo rthe one I'm going to do in my next post. The next couple are ones that I haven't heard but a portion of their material but I still very much enjoy it.

[B]Dream Theater [/B] - This is a band that I really want to get into, but it holds me at bay at times. I have the album [B]Train of Thought [/B] which is an absolute masterpiece. Every song is heavy, epic, and awesome. Basically, they're like [B]Opeth [/B] without the darkness that covers everything. The songs [B]Honor Thy Father [/B] and [B]In The Name of God [/B] are particularly awesome. On the other hand, this band has been around since the eightees and most of their older stuff (they only have 8 albums, 9th coming this year) has that irrevocable '80s sound' to it. Like on the one hand it's not a bad song, but it feels before your time, at least in my case. I have liked what i've heard from their sixth album, [B]Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence[/B], which I might pick up, but the main thing keeping me away is that I already know that ToT is their 'heavy album' by a lot compared to their old ones, and they sound best heavy.

[B]Ayreon [/B] - [B]Arjen Lucassen [/B] is a genius of a Dutch composer who can play pretty much any instrument and does in his albums. On each album he brings in a myriad of vocalists from all kinds of prog groups together and they all play different roles or characters in the albums. All of their albums are concept albums, some even rock operas. Now, all of their older stuff is basically just your average progressive rock. Their most recent album, [B]The Human Equasion[/B], though, is an amalgation of every musical style known to man blended together perfectly in a spectacularly epic album. With voices such as [B]Mikael Akderfelt [/B] of [B]Opeth [/B] and[B] James Labrie [/B] of [B]Dream Theater[/B], you really can't go wrong with the vocal delivery and the number of unique instruments displayed is simply fantastic. (Didjeridoo!!!)[/COLOR]

[Jakehammaren]

[QUOTE=DeathKnight][color=crimson]All it takes is practice and easily exuberant victims as your target.

What's funny is that when you first mentioned Agalloch like a week or more ago I listened and they were really good, lol.[/color][/quote]

Hahaha! It's all good, man. :animesmil

And DigitalBoy is right, it's really just that he and I are so outspoken. All genres are followed here, really.

And DigitalBoy - I hate all the bands you mentioned. Rush, not so much, but Ayreon is so explosively pretentious that it's almost impossible to listen to without having a seizure. And don't even get me started on Dream Theater :mad:...

And to continue DeathKnight's indie section, I'm going to have to pimp my favorite indie band right now: [B]Menomena[/B].

They're from Portland, OR (what is up with the Pacific Northwest and awesome music?). They write very unique songs with lots of atmosphere and experimentation. Definitely a band to check out. Go to their myspace and listen to [i]Rotten Hell[/i] and [i]Wet and Rusting[/i] or your balls will fall off (in the words of the eloquent DeathKnight).

[url]www.myspace.com/menomena[/url]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]I agree that both bands can seem very pretentious at times, especially Dream Theater, though as a pretentious person, I guess it doesn't bother me, lol. Also, Jake, I just heard The Night and the Silent Water fromt the Morningrise album, and that was pretty badass. Is it one of the better songs or ae you shorthanding me on the quality of this album?

Next next next... Oh! I almost forgot! My brother's favorite band...

[B]Dragonforce [/B] - Dragonforce are the golden gods of power metal and the two guitarists, [B]Herman Li [/B] and [B]Sam Totman[/B], are possibly the fastests players around. Everything about this band is extreme and beyond. The drumming is a constant barrage, the bass, when it is put up front, comes in at maniacal speeds, the wailing guitars melt the very crust of the earth, the keytarist shreds vortexes in the atmosphere, and above all is falsetto-bearing vocalist[B] ZP Theart [/B] with the most inspiring vocal delivery ever heard. You cannot listen to this CD while sitting still - this album lifts you from stationary and simply propels you.

[B]Valley of the Damned[/B], their first album, is arguably their best and definitely their most diverse. The first song, Valley of the Damned, is the ultimate metal anthem. It's catchy, it's brilliant, and other than the mediocre solo, it is one of the greatest songs to ever be conceived. Now, basically all Dragonforce songs follow the same format. solo - verse - chorus - solo - verse - chorus - long chain of slos with some sort of 'woah-oh-oh' in there - chorus - possibly another solo. But on this album each song has something about it that's unique. [B]Black Winter Night [/B] has special focus on keyboards, [B]Starfire [/B] is a totally freaking amazing power-ballad (you CANNOT have more fun than with a Dragonforce power-ballad. You will laugh your *** off and still enjoy it.) and revelations has a really cool acoustic break midway. Overall, it's the most addicting of the Dragonforce albums.

Their second release, [B]Sonic Firestorm[/B], i've honestly not heard but maybe twice. It just lacks the unique quality of the other albums.

(this one copied from my reviw site... a good overview of their general sound)

Each Dragonforce song contains a solo (or rather a group of solos) that last between 2-4 minutes on average. The solos may contain dual work between Li and Totman, battles between the two, insane keytar work, video-game inspired melodies, and the occasional sick bass solo. There are also usually mini-solos between verses and at the beginning and end of songs.

One of the cool things about Inhuman Rampage is that it has many quirks and intricacies which make the songs stand out at parts where they otherwise wouldn?t.

Therein lies the only trouble of Dragonforce?s music. All their songs sound incredibly similar. The lyrics are always basically the same (Total usage of ?fire? or ?flames? comes to 26 NOT counting repeats of the choruses! Pain, burning, and blood are all used a lot too). The guitars are always raging, basically everything is always moving at the same breakneck pace. They?re all so great, though, that this won?t really be a problem till you?ve heard it a good 40-50 times (I have no idea if most people listen to the same album as much as I do). The cycle is broken by the last track, [B]Trail of Broken Hearts[/B], the ultimate power-ballad. It is impossible to not feel like a nerd when you hear it. I love it.[/COLOR]

[Nomurah!]

[COLOR=Magenta][B]Well the best (modern) bands in all history are probably Slipknot, Underoath, MCR, and Linkin Park based on all that technical crap, but my faves are a lil' different.

Underoath- Kick butt Christian Screamo. All Five albums rock. Techno, Nice drum action, pretty okay guitarness.

Coheed and Cambria- Dood, these guys kick butt. The guitarists and bassists are really really awesome...not to mention that Claudio's voice is powerful...in a chick kind of way, which I like.

The Number 12 Looks Like You- The whole band is pretty awesome, they bring the sense of old skool emo back to the music, and I think that's awesome. Allow me to say the word Awesome once more. Awesome.

Haste The Day- These guys are a Christian Screamo band also under Solid State, like Underoath, but these guys have more of a nice...METAL feel. The whole band is wild. Good guitarists, kick butt bassists, onuvmuh fave drummers.

Avenged Sevenfold- Dood, these guys are probably the best band ever. Every aspect is great. I don't normally dig music like this, but when it's A7X, I'm all over it.

Umm...Yep. I didn't reallly go into it, but I hope that's good enough for ya. Indeed.[/B][/COLOR]

[Jakehammaren]

[quote name='Kazuwa Nomura][COLOR=Magenta][B]Well the best (modern) bands in all history are probably Slipknot, Underoath, MCR, and Linkin Park based on all that technical crap, but my faves are a lil' different.[/B'][/COLOR][/quote]

Please define "all that technical crap".