What make a tune or group 'Metal' ?

Balding Germans in latex.

What distinguishes metal from punk and/or hardcore?

The metal horde raise their swords and hail
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal
Sure of their coming victory, they swear on
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal

The massive volume of their chanting, false ears bleed
It's nothing but a massacre when the titans clash with the weak
Trying to put us down cries out for revenge
The gods of metal will blow the wimps away

The metal horde raise their swords and hail
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal
Sure of their coming victory, they swear on
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal

The metal horde raise their swords and hail
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal
Sure of their coming victory, they swear on
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal
The metal horde raise their swords and hail
Iron, steel, metal
Iron, steel and metal
Sure of their coming victory, they swear on
Iron, steel, metal

A flash of light
There's thunder on the way
The stage ignites when we play metal soldiers

And we're marching through the night
Metal Soldiers
Clenching fists of metal might

Out on the road, the battle has begun
And we plan our strategy
Cross fields of fire beneath the burning sun
Onward to our victory
A flash of light
There's thunder on the way
The stage ignites when we play...metal soldiers

And we're marching through the night
Metal Soldiers
Clenching fists of metal might

It's in our hearts, and deep within our bones
A passion no one can deny
Get on your feet, lord you know you're not alone
Let me hear your battlecry
A flash of light
There's thunder on the way
The stage ignites when we play...metal soldiers

And we're marching through the night
Metal Soldiers
Clenching fists of metal might
Can u feel it ?
Metal Soldiers
Clenching fists of metal might...metal soldiers
And we're marching through the night
Metal soldiers
Clenching fists of metal might
See ya real soon

We play more metal than the most people can take
Bad reviews and fat ass critics we don't care
We play metal for all metal heads
And not for rotten poser rats

True metal the sound of our hearts
We will never be apart
The sense of our lives
Deceivers our victory is your doom

Don't try to stop 'cause we are too strong
The wall on which you'll be crushed
The day we meet you will never forget
Your untrue poser rats
We are not born to serve
We are born to rule

We play metal loud and proud
Smashing enemies to the ground
Born to play the metal sound
By true metal we are bound
We don't care what you say
Hear what we play

We'll break through the crust, leave from our crypts
Protected by eternal life
Lay down the laws from our satanic scripts
Bringing you nothing but strife

Death metal
Kill them pigs

Ruling you cities, controlling your towns
Entrapped in your worst nightmare
Piercing your ears with the horrible sound
Casting my exclusive stare

Lucifer laughs, his needs are fulfilled
The flames are now burning hot
Bodies are burning, the people are killed
Torture reason we fought

Death metal
Kill them pigs

Now we take over and rule by death metal
Enjoy our long wanted reign
Blood's what we want and we won't settle
Until we drive you insane

Attacking the young and killing the old
Pleeding with every heart beat
Darkness has fallen and your soul is sold
Claws will dig into your meat

When the sun doesn't rise and the day is like night
Know that your life is at its end
Rendered helpless so scream out fright
Death metal came in the wind
Death metal

I wouldn't agree that Funkadelic qualify as metal. Chuck may be confusing their anal fixation with something else, perhaps.

[Strophe 1:]
Coming out of darkness, powerfull like a fortress.
Glorious and raw.
Wearing spikes and leather, standing proud together.
Fight against the law.
Pounding like the Thunder, never we surrender.
Look inside our eyes.
Strong unification in the Heavy Metal nation,
for my Brothers I would die!

[Bridge:]
All together we are one, but the false we can't forgive.
We are bound by truth and faith, forever we shall live.

[Chorus:]
Heavy Metal
Our Strength and our Religion
Heavy Metal
The meaning of our Lives.
Heavy Metal
We're rebels with a vision.
Heavy Metal
We will keep on fighting till the end.
Until the end.

[Strophe 2:]
Some people laughing at us and even might ignore us,
but at the end they'll see:
Their trends they're living are a fuckin lie.
Hail to MAJESTY
All the clubs of Metal, Brothers in the Battle,
fighting loud and proud.
All the Fanzine writers are Heavy Metal Fighters.
We salute the Underground!

[repeat Bridge]

[repeat Chorus]

[Solo: Ross The Boss]

[repeat Chorus]

We are the kings of madness

We are the sons of evil
Burning down every house
We are the metal gladiators
Unchain the beast and let it loose

Come raise your hands and shout it out
We want it now we want it loud

cause we are slaves to metal - locked into the taste of steel
Slaves to metal - well march you to the beat
We are slaves to metal - chained up to the sound
Slaves to metal - well rock you to the ground - so evil

Born to be the bloodhounds
In the legions of the damned
A million miles of madnesses
On the battleground of screaming guitars

Will you taste the sweat of metal
Will you lick the open wounds
Its the ultimate commandment
Which will never guarantee your doom

Come raise your hands and shout it out
We want it now we want it loud

cause we are slaves to metal - locked into the taste of steel
Slaves to metal - well march you to the beat
We are slaves to metal - chained up to the sound
Slaves to metal - well rock you to the ground

cause we are slaves to metal - locked into the taste of steel
Slaves to metal - well march you to the beat
We are slaves to metal - chained up to the sound
Slaves to metal - well rock you to the ground

Slaves to metal

the best ever death metal band out of denton
never settled on a name.
but the top three contenders, after weeks of debate,
were satan's fingers, and the killers, and the hospital bombers.

jeff and cyrus believed in their hearts they were headed
for stage lights and leer jets, and fortune and fame.
so in script that made prominent use of a pentagram,
they stenciled their drumheads and guitars with their names.

this was how cyrus got sent to the school
where they told him he'd never be famous.
and this was why jeff,
in the letters he'd write to his friend,
helped develop a plan to get even.
when you punish a person for dreaming his dream,
don't expect him to thank or forgive you.
the best ever death metal band out of denton
will in time both outpace and outlive you.
hail satan!
hail satan tonight!
hail satan!
hail hail!

Faster beats are pounding
While the fans are shouting

Metal is forever
In every single matter
Metal is forever
Nations come together

Excited - when you go to see a show
Your feelings arise
Committed - You became a fan forever
Knowing the words you sing all the tunes

Faster beats are pounding
Glowing tubes - high sounding

Metal is forever
In every single matter
Metal is forever
Nations come together

Faster beats are pounding
Screaming voices - howling

Metal is forever
In every single matter
Metal is forever
Nations come together

I'm your leader
I'm your ruler
WE SHALL OVERCOME!

I'm your master
I'm your messiah
WE SHALL OVERCOME!

METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!

METAL! METAL! METAL! METAL!
METAL! METAL! METAL! METAL!
NOW DIE! DECAY!
GET EATEN BY MAGGOTS, FAGGOTS!

METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!
METAL! METAL! METAL MESSIAH!

METAL! METAL! METAL! METAL!
METAL! METAL! METAL! METAL!

Now you're dead!
I'll chop you up
I'm sorry to dismember you, but I love it!

Cut your head and now your dead, boy!
METAL MASSACRE!

Cut you up!
It'll be over soon!
What did I do?!
Momentary lapse of insanity

METAL MASSACRE!
METAL MASSACRE!

Crunching bones and bleeding heads
And fingers falling
DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! DOWN!
DOWN!

METAL MASSACRE!
METAL MASSACRE!

Bones, arms, legs, heads, fingers falling DOWN!
DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! DOWN!

NOT METAL

http://static.flickr.com/24/35459347_88d1077d59.jpg

http://static.flickr.com/33/47674535_d4b6357e05.jpg

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g209/pukeandcry/Animation1.gif

1. You have one goal: be epic.
2. Let no sound be lonely. If there’s a guitar solo, harmonize it. If there’s singing, make it a choir.
3. Keyboards offer a way to add thousands of different textures to a song. Find two of those that you like and use them on every song you write.
4. In a power metal world, everything steel is good, and anything good must be compared to steel.
5. You are not bound to sing about Satan, evil, and/or darkness.
6. You are bound to sing about dragons, freedom, and/or power metal.
7. Remember how no sound should be alone? Same goes for albums. Everything can have a sequel!
8. You are allowed to be blonde.
9. Swords enhance your credibility and your performance. Be sure to carry one regardless of whether or not you know anything about using one.
10. Pick a theme and stick to it. Manowar are warriors of true metal, and they don’t get to sing about anything else. Rhapsody has their Algalord chronicles. Hammerfall has their steel, hammers, and templar. Running Wild has pirates. Blind Guardian has Tolkein. None of them are allowed to sing about anything else.
11. If you have to sing about something else, put together a side project to do it. Avantasia is the perfect model.
12. Ballads are permissible.
13. That doesn’t mean your ballads can suck.
14. The longer a song is, the more epic it is. See rule #1.
15. More solos means more epic.
16. If at all possible, be Michael Kiske.
17. If this is not possible, pretend to be Michael Kiske.
18. Your album cover should include at least one of the following: fire, steel, weird glowing magical items, irregularly muscular men, fists thrust into the air, weaponry, magic creatures (preferably dragons), or bright beams of light around somebody/something.
19. ‘Grim’ and ‘necro’ don’t apply here; they just make you look silly. Now go back to singing your 20 minute epic about dragonslaying!
20. Power metal depends on power chords.
21. 16th notes are the only notes.
22. Unless you’re singing, in which case you are not permitted to hold a note for any less than 2 bars.
23. Keyboards get solos, too.
24. If you can’t be Michael Kiske, you can at least be Timo Tolkki.
25. Actually, don’t be Timo Tolkki.
26. In case you didn’t know, “symphonic” is synonymous with “epic.” See rule #1.
27. Just because 300 bands before you have already done “epic,” there’s always room for more.
28. Songs come in two tempos: metal and ballad.
29. You are officially the only group of people who can refer to themselves as ‘mighty’ without being laughed at. Much.
30. Audiences need to be able to sing along. Make it catchy.
31. Sing in English, even though your fan-base will be comprised entirely of Brazilians, Germans, Japanese, Swedes, and Finns. See rule #30: if it’s not catchy, it’s harder to sing in a language that is not your first.
32. Play in as many bands as possible. More side projects and guest appearances means more epic!
33. Tight. Pants.
34. You don’t have to detune your guitars.
35. Though you probably should drop them a half-step.
36. Unfortunately, you need at least two guitar players. How else are you going to have dueling guitar solos?
37. Keyboards may substitute for one guitar player, as long as they can solo.
38. Fortunately, you don’t need a bass player! Or at least, you never have to use the same bassist twice.
39. Begin all songs with one big swelling chord on the keyboard.
40. Acoustic guitars are allowed. Sometimes.
41. It’s not a tour, it’s a crusade!
42. Layer your vocals, hundreds upon hundreds of times. Don’t worry about them live.
43. Never use mundane words in your lyrics. Nothing is epic if you don’t use words like “majesty,” “glorious,” “magical,” and so on.
44. Wizards! You need wizards!
45. Although your costume does not require corpse paint, it will require a cape, lots of jewelry, and the aforementioned swords.
46. Unless you are Manowar, in which case you are too metal for clothing.
47. Come to think of it, don’t be Manowar.
48. Wear armor if at all possible. Hammerfall can give you an idea of the variety of acceptable armors, ranging from leather to ring-mail.
49. Songs don’t begin at full speed. Gradually work your way into an epic frenzy.
50. Hail true metal!
51. Acoustic guitars are for intros and bridges. Then crush them with steel.
52. Epic. Tight. Pants.
53. Higher vocals are epic vocals. Female lead singers are great for this.
54. So, male lead singes should sound like female singers. See rule #52.
55. True warriors can tell the difference between albums.
56. Concept albums are totally epic. Nobody will ever see it coming.
57. Liner notes must include pages of backstory, either of your epic saga of conquest over dragons and evil or of your epic battles with alcoholism while recording the album.
58. Drugs aren’t metal.
59. Beer, however, can be served in all kinds of true metal ways.
60. “Flagons of ale.” It’s appropriate to your fantasy-riddled lyrics, and it almost looks like “dragons,” so you score extra points.
61. Since you can’t get away with grunts, growls, and other troll-like noises, you will have to sing.
62. Your accent will show as a consequence.
63. To compensate, sing about killing trolls. Preferably with the swords that you carry onstage.
64. More sequels = more epic. See rule #7.
65. Guest vocalists, guest guitarists, and any special appearances from outside your band will make your sound more epic, even if the track sounds just like all the other songs on the album with an extra solo.
666. Norsk Arysk Blak Metal! Rahhh!!!
67. Begin songs at half-tempo, and then, when listeners least expect it (i.e. at exactly the same time it happens in all your other songs) kick into full speed complete with double-bass and power chords.
68. Bass players: one note. Really fast.
69. But include one enormous crazy-ass bass fill before the chorus, even though the production will bury you so far in the mix that most people won’t realize your band has a bass player.
70. Just because you don’t play black metal doesn’t mean you can’t use Tolkein.
71. Whenever you short of ideas, pick up your Dungeons and Dragons books. You might as well be the first band to sing about owlbears.
72. Never leave Europe.
73. For purposes of rule #72, Japan may be counted as part of Europe.
74. Oh, and South America was colonized by Europeans, so it can count too.
75. Orchestras make a great addition to your album. Since you can’t afford one, find a new patch on your keyboard.
76. If your live album does not have the crowd singing all the harmony parts for you, you aren’t epic enough to justify a live album.
77. If you are European, use as many archaic English words in your lyrics as you can. Obfuscation is epic!
78. If you are South American, your lyrics should be closer to standard English, though nobody will ever read them.
79. If you are U.S. American, you probably aren’t actually a power metal band. Sing about tanks, or something.
80. If you are Italian, write some lyrics in Latin. Your American fans won’t be able to tell the difference between your Italian lyrics and your Latin ones, but Latin is epic.
81. Remember, shaving is epic, haircuts are not.
82. Entire albums must be recorded in the same key.
83. For that matter, entire careers may also be recorded in the same key.
84. Guitarists, remember: dun da-da dun da-da dun da-da…
85. Make your band logo very angular, but perfectly legible.
86. More than a logo, you need a mascot.
87. He need not be distinguishable from Eddie, but he does need to be on all your album covers.
88. At your first gig, if you feel a “rising force,” do be sure not to get it all over your audience.
89. Record your best songs unplugged, and sell them as an EP.
90. Do not expect anyone to buy the EP.
91. Remember, power metal fans are not gay. They are just comfortable with their masculinity.
92. Sing along.
93. Don’t get caught singing along.
94. Glitter is not epic.
95. Neither is body oil. See rule #47.
96. If you see a black metaller in the woods pretending to be a troll, see rule #9 and rule #63.
97. In your liner notes, thank everybody you toured with, even if they’re Stratovarius.
98. Complain about Stratovarius constantly even though you’ve bought all their albums and listen to them more than anything else in your collection.
99. Power metal must be pure; do not mix it with other metal styles.
100. To repeat: be epic.
101. I ran out of funny things to say way back at rule #52, but any less than 101 rules would so not be epic.

x-post

any band that sounds metal-y but doesn't want to admit they're metal ARE NOT METAL. TRUE metal embraces its metal nature. METAL IS PROUD.

Clearly-defined musical conventions, dress codes, social contracts, habits of attitude and so forth prevail in this or that corner of the metal underverse, but for the most part, latebloomer is right: being TRUE and PROUD in one's metalhood is the key to metalhood itself.

Therefore, BEING FUCKING METAL is what makes a band metal, and being played by a fucking metal band is what makes a song metal. Q.E. motherfucking D.

Context is important, too. Metal bands find their primary inspiration in other metal bands, in the "metal scene", and in traditionally metallic themes (war, power, violence, darkness, D&D, Celtic shit, badass wizards, Frank Frazetta, copious bong hits, comic books, being an outsider, Satan, H.P. Lovecraft, evil women, man's inhumanity to man, partying as a verb, addressing one's suburban loserhood by never adressing one's suburban loserhood, etc.).

Existing completely within this hermetic cultural context keeps the metal true, insulating it from corruption by Those Who Wouldn't Understand.

This is an interesting question. I actually think that, as a genre, metal is unique in that what you might call 'genre denial' is almost unknown.

metal: Iron Maiden, Slayer, Venom, Celtic Frost, Mayhem, Judas Priest

It's very complicated.

And I generally don't love the kind of metal you're talking about anyway. I usually prefer the other kind. You know: NON-metal metal.

basically, the first category uses metal as a reference point but generally thinks itself above it.

the second lives and breathes the fact they are metal.

this says nothing about the quality of any of the groups, just whether or not they are "metal".

the first group is concerned with "cred" to some degree or another

the second is endearingly dorky.

-- xhuxk (fakemai...), June 23rd, 2006.

yeah, i'd say so because their artistic choices are seen in context from what they were doing before.

within Metal, some bands/fans are VERY elitist about what they deem is or isn't metal. that of course is why you have all the concern about being "Nekro" or "kvlt" among black metal fans.

WHY YOU HURT MY BRANES?

http://www.susiesscrumptioussweets.com/cake_cherries_jubilee.jpg

Metal:

ihttp://www.shunya.net/Pictures/Ecuador/TheAndes/RoastPig.jpg

http://deanoman.com/z201820.JPG

http://www.vthorseco.com/images/indie5d.jpg

http://www.vthorseco.com/images/indie5d.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/images/400/areyoubeingserved_1.jpg

http://www.zvuki.ru/photo/b/19540/picture.jpg

This reminds of one of my earliest teenage face-offs "measuring up against the other boys" when one day the whole playground was riven by "Who started metal - Ozzy or Led Zeppelin?" question. I'm pretty sure that I gave the correct answer (at least in terms of that question), which is Ozzy.

As I think about it now, my gut feeling is that the dividing line between "metal" and "not-metal" (heavy rock) has something to do with the blues -- somehow none (very little) of that feel gets through to metal.

#1 - use the aesthetics of metal

That means guitar-based, heavy distortion, pounding drums, etc. The stuff everyone associates with metal anyway. That also means that whatever his credentials, Mortiis is not metal.

#2 - convey the spirit/value system of metal

The less obvious one, but metal has a thread that runs from Black Sabbath to today - anti judeo-christian, free-spirited, traditionalist, basically Dionysian/Nietzschean. It ignores personal issues and modern day society as much as possible. Self-affirming and inward looking - unlike punk, it has never tried to be relevant or revolutionary. This means that just playing rock with distorted guitars is in itself not metal.

Tons more on this to say of course, but not enough time to elaborate.

but i get what yer saying.

By Master Of Reality they are ready to take a friggin' ROCKET to get away from satan and this evil horrible planet!

Those early Slayer photos are good, too. They could be Night Ranger! And I love that they used to cover UFO and Van Halen songs. That makes me respect Slayer more than I've respected them in many a moon.

So does that mean that RATM and SOAD aren't metal?

O RLY Chuck? So all those NWOBHM bands, they weren't metal 'til '82 or so? C'mon, man.

—Creem review of a Sir Lord Baltimore album, published in 1971

On the other hand...

http://www.dickdestiny.com/blog/2006/05/he-was-metal-man-before-you-ii-nothing.html

http://www.dickdestiny.com/blog/2006/05/he-was-metal-man-before-you-left-in.html

Of course, Metal Mike hates Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, and pretty much hates any metal after 1978 or so, except Warrant and Poison, who obviously have nothing to do with metal except the false kind. So obviously when he invented the phrase heavy metal he was *lying*! He was totally ignoring the true meaning of the phrase! What a phony. How dare he name a genre that means something else entirely!

Even if it's very little, though, it remains significant. This is why Motley Crue were more metal than Twisted Sister - more blues intervals. Or why Boston wasn't metal - not enough blues intervals.

Anyway, one thing that proves that defining heavy metal is easy is that fact that everybody always agrees on what the phrase means. (Has anybody ever confused heavy metal for a wallaby? Not even once!)