This is an awesome site: Map of Metal

[CptStern]

currently hanging out on Punk island

http://mapofmetal.com/#/home

 

[Vegeta897]

Why was I hoping for this to be a geographical map of the various types of metal in the world?

Too much DF.

 

[morgs]

Was expecting a map made of metal. I am disappoint.

 

[Stormy]

Oh was about to post this a few hours ago, its pretty win.

 

[VirusType2]

I learned much of this through experience, and more recently though Wikipedia, which has a motherlode of information that similarly branches out.

I just found the pause button for the music - I was trying to play some of these bands (from my HDD) while they talk about them.

 

[StarBob]

Well that's pretty interesting...

I feel like this should be sponsored by something to promote something but it's just here for awesome.

 

[Evo]

I likey, thanks for the link Stern <3

 

[Krynn72]

Metal sucks. Its almost worse than Rap.

 

[Silent Presence]

Metal sucks. Its almost worse than Rap.

Troll the old chariot along.

 

[VirusType2]

Metal sucks. Its almost worse than Rap.

Well damn. You don't like sex or money? What do you like?

 

[ktimekiller]

This made my morning ****ing metal as ****

 

[MuToiD_MaN]

Reminds me of Ishkur's Guide to Electronic Music
http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/

 

[Remus]

I just love how it lumps everything together under METAL. Rock is the base, not metal. Metal is a sub genre of rock, not the other way around, god damn it. I also find it ridiculous how many sub genres metal has.

 

[Bad^Hat]

Metal differs enough from rock to be considered it's own genre now. Early efforts were very similar to hard rock and stuff (as is represented on the map), but that's the case in the genesis of any new genre. You don't go around calling rock a sub-genre of blues or jazz, do you? That said, yeah, the sub-genres can get pretty ridiculous, which is part of the fun in a way.

Good stuff. Would be nice to see a few more bands represented in certain genres, but it seems pretty comprehensive (I'm by no means an expert).

 

[VirusType2]

Good stuff. Would be nice to see a few more bands represented in certain genres, but it seems pretty comprehensive (I'm by no means an expert).

Not to take anything from the Map of Metal, because I think it's a good attraction (for newcomers especially) with the music playing, and especially compared to the vast white pages of Wikipedia, but if you are looking for something comprehensive, Wikipedia is pretty damn good.

For example, if you follow the links here:

Metal: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_metal_music

Then on the right, click on a sub-genre, then again on the right click "list of all..."

Like, check out how comprehensive the thrash metal band list is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_thrash_metal_bands


There's also this overwhelming monster: http://www.metalstorm.net/bands/index.php

If I remember correctly, it has a lot of new and unsigned band information as well. Click on the yellow text to narrow down your search.

 

[Bad^Hat]

Oh yeah, I more meant that a few well-known or iconic bands from certain genres were absent (or maybe I just see them that way because I like them). I use wikipedia and other sites sometimes to search for similar stuff, but I don't really like dealing with huge lists because there's no way to sort by any of my overly specific criteria.

Anyway, I took another look and found a few of the bands I thought were missing, just not where I'd expected. That's the other problem with metal subgenres, so many bands fall under like five or more without really fitting completely into one.

(Also, where the **** is Cynic.

)

 

[VirusType2]

I very rarely like metal bands that friends introduce me to, but for what it's worth, I've been listening to Satyricon and Darkthrone for the last few days. Very tame and manageable, yet unrefined.

Love this old Bathory album, Blood on Ice (recorded in 1989 but completed in 1996).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEjGUIsuWVY

Of course, I'm partial to kick drums that sound like horse hooves, god damn it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yk5_Xn804c

Time... takin' its toll on you.

 

[Laivasse]

It's a nice piece of work, does a good job of showing the through-line between a few of the subgenres which are aurally dissimilar. It's easy to stand back as a non-listener to metal, look at all the stupid-sounding classifications and say 'nonsense, lump it all under rock', but a newcomer to metal following the map would find a lot of sense in it. For example in tracing a way from Black Sabbath's 'Heavy Metal/Traditional Doom' through to, say, Thergothon's 'Funeral Doom', see how they have similar elements while still being completely alien to eachother, and in the process see how trad metal eventually has links with dark ambient music through a back door.

It's not perfect - some stuff that's identical to other stuff receives differentiation as separate thanks to superficial buzzwords ('Death'n'roll'? C'mon, no need, same goes for a lot of the alternative/metalcore stuff which is referred to in a ton of different ways as an accident of popularity), while other stuff doesn't get differentiated enough (the 'Canadian Black Metal' bit has some excellent bands but lumping them all together as if Axis of Advance and Blasphemy sound the same isn't logical); some stuff that's ridiculously obscure and discontinuous gets represented ('Unblack Metal?' Laughable, although maybe that's the point, with the crosses and shit), a lot of stuff could sport more links to other subgenres as a matter of curiosity, like the folkier ethnocentric stuff could be linked up, etc etc. But it's not like you can 'perfect' such a subjective exercise... it's kind of fun thingy, extensive, and useful enough.