That strange beast Metal

Since its inception, metal remained a bit of an odd outsider in music. Loud, aggressive and extreme in its sound and imagery it is easy to dismiss as adolescent folly you eventually grow out of. Except when you don't.

Metal is... different

Because it sets itself apart so strongly from the majority of other styles, it is by default easy to misunderstand, avoid and straightaway dismiss. Its relatively easy to put together a top-50s-playlist for a party, that most people would get along with, despite it probably being composed of quite a variety of different styles. Generally speaking, you wont find lots of complex rhythms or lengthy instrumental passages or strong contrasts in dynamic or speed. Of course that's all the stuff is what actually makes metal so appealing!

Surely, not every metal song ticks all of these boxes, but by far and wide, metal has always been a bit of a more complex, or at least challenging musical beast (pun intended!), than the standard chart fare. It requires dedication from its listeners. Especially once you delved into its more obscure variants; some of you can call acquired tastes! Metal has a rich and cherished history, and a ton of genres and sub genres. In a sense its probably the best religion one can have!

Neurosis - Times of Grace (1999)

Not the cool kids

Right from its beginning, the relationship between metal and music critics - and actually society as a whole - has been a rather difficult one. Of course the critics 'didn't get it' when it came out and continued to dismiss or simply ignore it for a long time. The strong brush strokes of heavy guitar riffs and hard hitting drums made it too easy to dismiss as primitive, untalented and blunt. Still, metal found its fans in pretty much all parts of the world.

Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)

I admit it feels weird to see bands like Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden or even an obscure underground formation like Electric Wizard or Mayhem suddenly getting featured in mainstream media sites. They even get positive reviews!

It literally took decades really until metal received some mainstream recognition and I wonder if its simply because it kept sticking around long enough and became part of life for so many people, so it could not be ignored anymore. And in the case of a band that has literally been around said decades, there is no way denying them their cultural significance.

Iron Maiden - The Book of Souls (2015)

 

Metal as a whole might still not quite be liked, or even understood, though. I also think this has a lot do with demographics. Metal never was the socially most accepted music and had always this underdog vibe to it. This working-class, biker, pub and open-air festival smell that is light years away from the hip urban clubs and concert venues, frequented by the typical middle-class music journalist. 

You want it darker.

Darkthrone - Under A Funeral Moon (1993)

The typical themes metal keeps coming back to probably haven't helped its cause either. Lyrics and artworks that deal with death, destruction, war, drug abuse, apocalypse, murder, insanity, corruption, etc - all those dark themes of society and life in general that doesn't makes it terribly appealing for the majority of people. Then again, its exactly this dipping into the dark side of things that's for a large part what makes metal so interesting. It doesn't pretends the world is all fluffy nice and sweet and good. Metal fully acknowledges that the world can be a cold and cruel place - and a lot of it is mankind's own doing.

Slayer - Reign in Blood (1986)

With this in mind, it isn't surprising that a lot of the inspiration that led to the creation of metal initially came from horror films and the way they play with stark themes and emotions like fear, anxiety and aggression in a controlled and safe way. In a way, this can be quite cathartic really. A crossing of boundaries that probably plays a significant role personal development towards adulthood. No surprise that both horror films and metal seem like naturally attractive to adolescent audiences.

Electric Wizard  ‎– Wizard Bloody Wizard (2017)

The flip side of this is the affinity to power fantasies, which are probably just as prevalent in metal. A lot of it is Tolkien or Robert E Howard-inspired, with lyrics full of glorious battles, manly men, mighty swords, heroic deeds and things like that. Deliberate escapism, cranked up to the maximum and often even further: deep into the realms of kitsch and comedy. Not everyone one's taste for sure, but then again - what is?

Blind Guardian - Nightfall In Middle-Earth (1998)

Who do you call Bastard?

Metal's influences are quite divers and at least partly surprising. There is of course hard/heavy rock, where metal directly evolved from. Especially bands like Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple had a big influence. Their hard, often fast, riff-based songs with extensive guitar solos and, at least in Deep Purple's case, a good measure of classical influences  have inspired generations of musicians. If you say hard rock, you have to say blues. It is inseparably part of the composition, rhythm and melodic language of all rock music. Often just speed and heaviness of the sound turned an old blues standard into a hard rock hymn. Just ask Led Zeppelin!

Deep Purple In Rock (1970) - Not quite metal, but highly influential.

Metal did a couple things different though: Heavier in tone; rhythmically and in its song structure more straightforward than its predecessor. Film music was another inspiration. The intense use of contrasting intervals to create tension, the theatrics and more strict composition than the often quite loose style you find it rock music. Metal was always more extreme. Pushing intensity and aggression further than their predecessors ever did.

Rock 'n' Roll, Metal, Hardrock? All of the above! Motörhead (1977)

The evolution of the equipment, especially the electric guitar, played a big role as well. The deliberate creation of distortion of the guitar signal in the 1960s, initially just an unwanted byproduct of increased volume in a tube amplifier, blew the doors into a new world of opportunities wide open. Soon effects were developed that allowed the player to modify the guitar tone even further. The guitar turned from a relatively tame and clear sounding instrument, heavily influenced in its tone by its acoustic predecessor, into a biting, screaming and growling beast. And the players able to control it, became heroes.

Sexy like a fallen angel: Jimmy Page in 1973

With those new possibilities in tone and volume, the playing style evolved too. Soon guitarists realised that, when distorted, relatively simple chord shapes (power chords) and single notes do sound a lot more interesting than when played clean. Notes also sustain a lot longer and even muted notes develop quite a notable, percussive 'chuck'. Soon amps that allow more gain got developed and pedals that made the guitar signal 'hotter' too, making distortion more controllable and further refining and expanding the range of possibilities. All these elements led to the development of new rhythmic and melodic ideas, that created the metal guitar sounds we know today. 

Metal is... so much!

Tool - Lateralus (2001)

Browsing through this little attempt in exploring the origins and the nature of metal, I feel that if there is one thing to take away from it, is that metal is indeed a quite unique cultural phenomenon. Surprisingly long-lived, with passionate, dedicated followers. It is a vast genre. Complex and emotional and speaks to our innermost feelings. Metal is more than just music. 

Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats - The Night Creeper (2015)

If you ever wondered, how it would have sounded, if Black Sabbath and the Beatles got merged together in some weird teleportation or cloning accident, Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats' The Night Creeper might give you the answer: Imagine Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds played with heavy riffing guitars, eery, distorted vocals and repetitive, hypnotic grooves. A gloomy psychedelic nightmare you may find, you can't get enough from.

Thematically, the album revolves around the eponymous Night Creeper, a Jack-the-Ripper-style serial killer. And it does it brilliantly. The way it transports its distinctive 60s-psychedelica-atmosphere, like an expressionist horror film inside your head. The haunting vocals, the Sabbath-like chord progressions and the very retro production - everything just plays together just brilliantly, creating a truly unique experience.

This said, Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats is certainly not everyone's taste and if you are into more conventional, or simply more modern metal, you might not enjoy them too much - for all the reasons mentioned above!

To me, Uncle Acid are one of the most significant discoveries in the recent years. Retro-doom at its finest, with a lot of emotional impact and their own, unique character. Not an easy thing to achieve, but they delivered brilliantly.

Literary Intermezzo: Clive Barker - The Scarlet Gospels (2015)

When the film Hellraiser came out in 1987 (based on the book The Hellbound Heart, released in the previous year), it was a game-changer of the horror genre comparable in its vision to The Exorcist or Alien.  Like these films before, it offered us a new take on familiar elements of the genre: Barkers unique take of hell and its demons, the grotesque disfigurements, the mixture of sex and gory violence - Hellraiser was a film that hinted at a richer, deeper world beyond what you saw on screen. Perfectly embodied by the iconic Pinhead. Unfortunately, it was followed by a number of sequels that never could live up to the original and rapidly deteriorated in quality.

In the late 90s, when the damage to what has become the Hellraiser-franchise was already mostly done, writer and director Clive Barker, who wasn't involved in any of the sequels, eventually decided to pick up what he started more than ten years ago, give it a decent conclusion as he envisions it. The result is The Scarlet Gospels, has 368 pages, which is maybe a bit surprising if you know what his books from the late 80s and 90s, but more on that later, and has been released in 2015.

The Scarlet Gospels start with a series of gruesome murders amongst the world's leading magicians, which turns out to be part of Pinhead's plan, who is actually named Hell Priest in the book, to amass enough magical power to take over hell itself. Another character from Barker's books, the supernatural detective Harry D'Amour, with a couple of friends, gets on the Hell Priest's tail and the story unfolds...

According to what I have gathered from interviews, the book was originally going to be significantly longer and has been cut down on demand of the publisher. Something that - for an author of Barker's calibre, who certainly isn't a beginner - appears quite unusual and I wonder if this may be the reason, together with its unusually long digestion period for some of the fundamental flaws of this book.

It is certainly ambitious. In a way Imajica and The Great And Secret Show are - the two favourite books by Barker. Both books get time to breathe and let their rich and imaginative worlds and its characters unfold. The Scarlet Gospels though race through their story like a hollywood screenplay. Unsophisticated and quickly paced, it doesn't really leaves much time to introduce its characters and let them interact with each other beyond some superficial bantering and wisecracking.
This makes most of the characters, save for the very central ones, not much more than one-dimensional dialogue-givers and the whole book uncanningly distant and unemotional. It could have been a enchanting, mysterious and multi-layered experience, like his best works are. Tragically, it throws away all the promising elements it has.

After finishing The Scarlet Gospels, I started reading Sacrament (1996) again. A book I have fond memories of. And after 30, 35 pages it is already deep in the characterization of its protagonist and his friends, while at the same time, baits us elegantly with the central mystery of the story.
The difference couldn't be greater: subtlety and skilful pacing vs. quick action. well-rounded, realistic protagonists (even the side-characters) vs. placeholders and snarky one-liners. The Scarlet Gospels' weak writing makes it appear like its been trimmed-down and dumbed-down beyond recognition in contrast. And I really, really hope it's the publisher to blame for this.

I would gladly say I enjoyed The Scarlet Gospels more than I did. It is better than all the uninventive sequels, but I argue this isn't such great an achievement. I would love to praise the sheer scope and wealth of Barker's storytelling and the intensity of its characters. And its not like there aren't glimpses of its potential. But it falls short to really pick them up and fly with them. Instead, it plays safe and leaves us a quick and easy to digest, but fundamentally insubstantial product. What a pity.