h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I don't agree with several of your assertions:
first, your statements on black metal are possibly the least well-informed i have ever heard on that subject.
true black metal is pure in its satanism. the norwegians that founded the genre have a history that is both bizzarre and unfathomably evil.
they burned churches, killed one another, etc. this is not an act. these guys, mayhem especially, are one of the only groups whose actual lives paralleled their imagery. all of those trendy nu-metal bands can pose in masks and makeup and do whatever they want, but the real bands would make these posers cry. wearing a scary mask is one thing, killing your bandmates and eating their brains is something else entirely. there are quite a few books on the subject if you want to learn more.
second, bands like korn and slipknot are not metal. they are pop bands that happen to exploit a heavy (and heavily overproduced) sound, while seeking huge fan bases. they are heavy metal like KISS was heavy metal. twelve years ago, they would have been in bands like poison, or more likely, loverboy.
third, it has never been hard to be a metal fan, unless you depend on the mainstream for your metal. they will give you inferior, overly polished product every time. any true fan knows that the best way to get your metal is off the internet/out of mail catalogs. i reccomend relapse records. there are amazing metal bands out there right now, breaking new ground, but you wont hear them on the radio, or mtv.
how can you expect good extreme music to be viewed on a format designed for twelve-year-old-mallrats with their mom's pantyhose on their arms?
the good bands, bands like mastodon (check them out, they are amazing), in flames (ditto), darkest hour, today is the day, neurosis, bongzilla, pig destroyer, goatwhore, eyehategod, and england's greatest band (gorerotted). seriously, forget about those horrid mall-metal bands, and start supporting the underground. more importantly, have some civic pride - support your local metal bands. they need your help, and maybe theyll get big one day and you can say you knew them when . . .
and if you are unsatisfied with metal's current state, change it - start your own band.
and for god's sake, TURN OFF YOUR RADIO!!!
love,
jay

hey just thought youd like to know, i wrote an article on the genres of metal, did the best i could not sure if its available yet, but you should check it out. and right on about in flames, my personal fav

AMEN dude!!!!

Well, while I liked how you start your post, putting things straight regarding Black Metal, I honestly was dissapointed by your exclusion of modern metal bands, just based on their labeling.

While Slipknot don't play (and never claimed to) Black Metal, it doesn't mean they're pop. They denied the whole Nu Metal label years ago. In their own words they play "extreme death metal", which is probably true, once you listen to their work.

Korn on the other hand, while not very easily acceptable by traditional metal fans, helped break a whole lot of mainstream kids into heavier sounds. It's much more easier for younger kids to start on Korn and Limp Bizkit and then move on to Machine Head and Sepultura. After all, nobody can start with Mayhem. Most start with Metallica or Maiden and then move deeper into the metal zone.

As for the whole what's metal, and what's not discussion, I will just say it is very easy to label things, it's harder to understand. For me metal is a genre so wide that saying what is not metal is not possible. All is metal, and metal is all.

By the way, i listen to all kinds of metal, including Black and Nu. Bands like Mayhem, Cradle of Filth, Ved Buens Ende (RIP), In The Woods..., Rotting Christ, Samael, Satyricon, stand side to side in my CD collection with the likes of Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, Korn, Slipknot, Deftones, Otep, right next to Metallica, Mastodon, Manowar, Arch Enemy, Dream Theater and many more...

Stay Heavy

___________
Art is WAR

SLIPKNOT ARE NOT 'EXTREME DEATH METAL'!!!

They barely even qualify for Nu-metal, they are what real metal fans term "Absolute Gash" because, funnily enough, thats exactly what they are... You are entitled to your opinions obviously, but Slipknot are definately not "Extreme death metal" even though they said it themselves, if I say "I Am God" i don't gain omnipotence, so Corey Taylor was, as usual talking absolute nonsence, plus there is also the fact that they are signed to RRR who are a record label who refuse to sign bands because they are "too heavy"...

bands signed on Relapse Records however tend to be more hardcore influenced, the bands are amazing, and vary intensly.

- Bobaah

Ahhh, someone with a brain. I do love Replase's blend of music, they've got some great people.

And anyone calling Slipknot extreme needs to have their ears removed for their own safety...as the some of fluffy bunnies might give them a heart attack.

Hahaha

Excellent, generally on relapse bands tend to be... well a hell of a lot better than roadrunner bands, especially with bands like Pig Destroyer, one of the best bands i've seen in britain. Also that's a ing excellent name for a band!

And in further reply to peskat's post, you name-dropped bands that are very popular and you probably just searched kazaa or even the bbc website and found them... so don't think your cd collection is so controversial and ecclectic...

Pig Destroyer is indeed an excellent name for a band... but it doesn't touch on F**k, I'm Dead! or Jesus of Spazereth.

Ah but neither of them have a patch on Ar*e Destroyer or Scissor Fight are better names for bands, in my opinion.

I never claimed to be eclectic. And my collection is controversial on other grounds (anyone into Current93 ? Einsturzende Neubauten maybe?).

I accept that my taste is more to the mainstream (although Ved Buens Ende can never be called mainstream...) but why is that an accusation? And when did Roadrunner become a "softie label"? I'm not into hardcore and stuff, but I don't get it.

I thought the whole point was what's metal. And I just said that it's not something to define in 5-6 lines. Black Sabbath is metal, although they are considered really mainstream and "soft" by today's standards. Yet Slipknot is "too pop" to be considered metal, even though they are way heavier than, say Stratovarious.

Whatever. To each his own.

I don't see why everyone has to get their undies in a bundle whenever Slipknot is mentioned. First of all, people need to stop writing them off because they wear masks. Base your opinion on the music, not the image. As for the music itself, it's definately not extreme death metal, but there's definately a death metal influence in there. Before people start criticising my remark, hear me out. Slipknot's music incorporates elements of death and thrash metal, but they do water it down. The self-titled album (Slipknot's first album with vocalist Corey Taylor), is the best example of this. It was the least commercial album, and the one that I wish people would base their opinions on. However, their latest, Vol. III: the Subliminal verses, has brought them to the forefront of the mainstream. The songs were obviously written for radio, and sound nothing like their previous albums. Give the self-titled album a listen - it might give you a different view of the band. Finally, they aren't really nu-metal. The producer of their first album was also producing Limp Bizkit and other related bands at the time, so they kind of got stuck with that label. I'm not sure how you'd classify them though. I guess nu-metal works because of the lack of a better term...