Classic metal is dead. Long live classic metal!
by Mike K on Apr.27, 2009, under General
Nirvana - Nevermind (1991)
On September 24, 1991, Nirvana released the seminal album Nevermind
It served as a wake-up call to metalheads, and a new breed of metal was born. Gone forever were the corny lyrical cliches, undernourished musical hooks and primping image-obsessed pansies that had so infused the genre over the previous decade, as fresh new bands formed in the underground and led the way to the resurgence of heavy metal that we’re seeing in the mainstream today. I suppose that the crash of ‘91 ended up being a good thing, as it gave rise to self-reflection within the genre that resulted in new metal bands and new outlooks from older metal bands, aiming for high artistic intentions and high standards of musicianship, qualities that had been lost over the previous decade. Today, groups like Mastodon, Children of Bodom and Dream Theater blaze new trails in ways that were largely unimagined back in the late 1980s…and one thing most of today’s bands share in common is a love of true classic metal.
Led Zeppelin, circa 1977
Because when you filter through all the dreck, pomp and circumstance that passed for popular metal as the 1980s drew to a close, you find that there were still some great bands putting out great work. And if you go back farther, to the early ’80s, back into the 1970s and even the 1960s, great metal abounds. It’s often said that 90% of everything is crap, and heavy metal was certainly not immune from this phenomenon. But in retrospect, the 10% that was worth listening to was really worth listening to, and for a while there, it seemed as if the 90% rule was turned on its head. There was a golden age in metal from the early 70s and into the mid 80s. All the big advances in technology and musicianship were being made in those days, and the influence of classic metal and hard rock on today’s music is literally everywhere. From the early shred of Michael Schenker and Randy Rhoads, to the jaunty excitement of Eddie Van Halen and Warren DeMartini, to the progressive complexity of Queensrÿche and Dream Theater, and to the wicked crunch of Metallica and Megadeth, it’s clear that today’s metal was incubated in fertile ground indeed.
It’s worth treading on that ground again, and this blog is meant as both a celebration and a retrospective of that brand of heavy metal. It’s the music I grew up with and loved dearly, and although my musical tastes and inclinations have matured and branched in many directions since that time, I still listen to it frequently today. I have long maintained that in all of popular music, heavy metal instrumentalists are among the most talented and technically proficient musicians out there, and I’ve heard no reason to change that opinion given the current crop of superb instrumentalists in the modern heavy metal genre. Here you will find band and artist biographies, full discographies, pictures, video, audio, and album reviews of the best (and the worst!) that metal had to offer prior to 1991, which is the year I will consider the era of classic metal to be over for the purposes of this blog. I do not pretend to be an expert, I simply assert myself as a fan, and when you don’t agree with an opinion or if you feel something is worthy of commentary, I sure hope you’ll post your own thoughts along with mine. Music is not an objective exercise, and it’s worth hearing thoughts and opinions from a wide variety of sources. So come on in, crack a cold one, and I hope you enjoy the read. Headbangers unite!
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May 9th, 2009 on 11:58 am
Hello METAL FELLOWS of the 80’s ! Greeting from Germany!
It is a pleasure to see that there are some fighters like me in this world who show defiance of commercial, conventional fashion music of the recent days.
I would like to inform you about a star who will come to life again in a stronger way very soon.
His name is Jack Starr, a talented guitar player and composer of the 80’s – exactly your favorite time style.
He has his predominant sphere of activity in the music of Melodic Metal, Hard Rock and Blues.
This exceptional artist has got known as the guitarist and former of the Heavy Metal band “VIRGIN STEELE”. Since 1982 he has released altogether 12 albums with several bands like this mentioned, “GUARDIANS OF THE FLAME“ and “BURNING STARR“.
Next month his new Metal CD “DEFIANCE” of Jack Starr’s band BURNING STARR will become published by Magic Circle Music, the “MANOWAR” label.
I can promise: This CD will be GREAT ! The title song “Defiance” for example is a very demanding true metal song with all the screams in the whole elemental power, the stunning ballade-like beginning will let you get a goose-flesh and high expression is lying in every tone and every word which is pronounced.
Other songs like “Black Clouds of Thanos” will provide amazing guitar solos, and I can already imagine that these will be the ones which every guitar player will try to cover on websites like YOU TUBE, because it is really a challenge to try to follow those awesome melodies.
On the next BURNING STARR CD you will find furthermore the touch of the Indian spirit, middle-eastern accessories, contrasts and profoundly developed song constructions which, nevertheless, are presented in a perfectly round and voluminous sounding way.
With tight roots in the true, honest, original Rock sound of the 80’s but also with facet-full ideas, genre-overstepping stylistic influences and a special love for melodic details Jack Starr’s music will become a secret favourite for connoisseurs of a harder, expressive music and experts of guitar sound dainties.
Besides, the band name “Burning Starr” actually has been created as a nickname because of Jack Starr’s ability to play so very fast that the plectrum becomes burned! Isn’t that cool?!
You can see it on YOU TUBE, too at http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=stratluvr
But chiefly characteristic at Jack Starr is an inimitable touching emotion in his guitar sound and an extraordinary sense for creating melodies beyond the out-trampled paths or short-living fashion influences in the Rock- and Metal scene.
On July 11th, 2008 Jack Starr’s current Metal band BURNING STARR performed in Germany at the Magic Circle Festival (Bad Arolsen, near Kassel), which was visited by an audience of about 35.000 people.
You can enjoy the open air atmosphere of this festival by watching the video clip of his song “Evil never sleeps” which is to find on YOU TUBE, too.
It is a pity that in the USA such festivals like this are so rare! How can you Americans survive without this enormous “live” inspiration by classic hard rock and heavy metal sounds?!
That must become changed at once!
For us from Germany: We, definitely, will be there at the next Magic Circle Festival in Germany
on July 18th, 2009
to see Jack Starr’s band BURNING STARR play
in St. Goarshausen at the Loreley’s destiny place high above the Rhine River
- together with Manowar, Holy Hell, Kingdom come, Domain, Crystal Viper, Van Canto, Metalforce and many others from all over the world.
But – for now – it is good to have media companies with the right attitude to be the rescue parties and let QUALITY live forever, not only in Germany and the USA.
Thank you very much!
Monika