In my 41 years on this planet I have listened to just about every genre of music there is. Everything from classical to Hip Hop and Classic Rock to Trap. Most people that know me, know that the largest part of my musical knowledge lies in Classic Rock and 90s-2000s Rap/Hip Hop. If you want to know who sang a certain song or what the name of a song is from those two categories…… I’m your guy. One genre that I’m more into than ever before is Metal. I’m still very wet behind the ears, as they say, when it comes to Metal and its sub-genres. But one of the biggest thoughts on Metal is that it’s “NOT MUSIC.”
First thing we can easily point out is that Metal is not for everyone. You know what? I totally get it! If you’ve read my previous blog you’d know that I wasn’t a big fan of it in the beginning either. I started off with Atreyu’s album Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses. I felt in the beginning that it was “too hard.” It was just “too much.” Now I go back and listen to it and laugh because, even though it is still amazing, it’s not even as remotely hard as some of the stuff I listen to now.
Metal, to me, is a genre that has a song/album/band for any mood or occasion. I can listen to some melodic metal songs from Counterparts, Spiritbox, Invent Animate or even Windwaker. If I want some good driving music I can throw on some SION, Killswitch Engage, Meshuggah, Judas Priest and Darko US. If it’s time to get angry, or pumped up for a workout, I will break out some Left To Suffer, August Burns Red, Slaughter to Prevail and of course I can’t forget Pantera.
I think what it is with metal music is that yes, it is loud, there’s screaming and in some cases it’s fast. Some would consider it “noise.” In the beginning I used it for driving fast or just psyching myself up to get through yet another horrible day at work. As time went on, I started to dive deeply into the music itself. Listening more to the structure of the song, the melodies and harmonies. The moment when you really start to realize Metal is more than just “noise” is when you start diving into the lyrics. Now keep in mind, just like with any genre of music, there are definitely ones that are absolutely ignorant and have zero meaning at all, but in the grand scheme of things, the music is extremely moving. These songs can be about the loss of a loved one, the struggles of the real world or even substance abuse and trying to kick the habit. Let’s take a look at some lyrics.
Life it seems to fade away
Drifting further everyday
Getting lost within myself
Nothing matters, no one else
I have lost the will to live
Simply nothing more to give
There is nothing more for me
I need the end to set me free
These are lyrics to Fade to Black by Metallica. Most people think of Metallica and they don’t think “They are an emotionally deep band.,” but they are. We can continue this thought with Lorna Shore. This is a Deathcore band. Lead vocalist and writer, Will Ramos wrote these lyrics for their song Pain Remains: Dancing Like Flames.
We're dancing like flames, flickering in the night
We sway in time with the wind before melting away
You're far from my reach but not far out of sight
You know the way to my heart but you just play the strings again
This song is about someone that goes to sleep every night and dreams about falling in love with the perfect person, but in the end, wakes up only to find out it was all a dream. This happens over and over but the person never finds true happiness. Again, a very deep and well written song but if you heard that it was a Deathcore Metal band, you wouldn’t give it a chance.
From the amazing lyrical content, to the insanely talented artists behind the instruments, the metal genre is way more than just “noise” and “screams.” They pour their hearts and souls into these songs and do one hell of a job making you feel the emotions. Sure, they can get the same message across without screaming, but everyone has felt pain and sorrow on that level. So when you hear them dig deep into their chest and you hear that guttural growl….. It will invoke a feeling in you that you’ve always done your best to suppress.
Metal is music……. Period!
Written By: Josh
