Blogging is a new experience for me and is a totally new environment that I must get used to so please bare with me while I get past this first posting. It is my intention to share my view in a way that is honest and frank that unfortunately might offend some. If you get offended by one of my postings please accept my apology now.
That being said, let's get to the reason for this posting. What does distinguish a good band for a truly great one? There are different forms of music, all equally important and relevant but at the moment I will concentrate on the type of music which I listen to, Heavy/Thrash Metal.
Music has always bean a very important part of my life even though, until recently, I never had the opportunity to attend the concerts of the bands that I ejoyed listening to, I have held a deep admiration and respect for the musicians and the music which they create. Which brings me to the topic of this posting:
It is not just radio airplay that distiguishes a good band from a truly great band. With the way the recording industry is these days, anyone can have a hit record. Case in point, back in the eighties, an eighty year old woman went into a recording studio and cut a record. That record actually got played on the radio and became a hit. The woman admitted to having no real talent and that it was all done in the studio. This actually happened in Tennessee if anyone wants to check up on it.
Record sales don't mean that much either. Take for instance Metallica's new record "Death Magnetic". According to a blog posting on metalundergroung.com by Diamond OZ on Sept. 30, Death Magnetic sold 132,000 copies worldwide in one week.(Diamond Oz, 2008). Two days later on Oct. 2 Diamond Oz posted another blog entry which quoted a petition of over 13,000 disgruntled Metallica fans trying to get the record remastered or at least remixed due to poor sound quality on the record. I will give Metallica the credit which is due to them. They are a good band, and they have influenced countless bands since their formation back in the early eighties, but they will never be a truly great band. The total disregaurd shown to their fans and the fact that in order to achieve the level of success which they now enjoy, they had to embrace what they claimed to despise early in their careers shows a total lack of character. It seems that the almighty dollar is what drives some instead of the loyalty of the fans or the love for the music.
Check out the Metal Underground blog because it is an outstanding source of information on your favorite metal bands.
Metal Underground
So if a band as big as Metallica is just a good band with their multitude of gold and platinum records, what constitutes a great band? I can name a couple of my favorites for starters. The first band that comes to mind is Iron Maiden. Not only does the band enjoy phenomenal success worldwide in terms of record sales but also has influenced countless numbers of bands not only in the U.S. but world wide. They have also supported their former members, which is an act that is hard to imagine in the self serving attitudes of most of the American bands. For instance, when Clive Burr (former Iron Maiden drummer)was diagnosed with MS (Multiple Schlerosis), Iron Maiden held a benefit concert to help support Clive in his struggle with the infliction. The event was so successful that the band made an annual Clive Aid event not just to help Clive but to help others inflicted with MS. Not only that but several years ago, while on his way home from an Iron Maiden show, a fourteen year old kid was murdered. Of course this horrendous event made the local news and when the band found out about it they not only contacted the kids parents to express their sympathies, which is beyond most bands, but they also offered over 1000 British pounds($1,722 U.S. currency) from their own pockets as a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for this act. Many people will say that they only did it for good press. So what if they did, it is more than any American band in history has done for a fan in the history of music as far as I am aware. So yes, Iron Maiden is truly one of the greatest bands in history, not only in heavy metal but in any kind of music, period.
Another truly great band is Testament. Eventhough they do not enjoy the kind of record sales as Metallica and Iron Maiden they still have been very successful in that aspect of the music industry. Influencing bands and even individuals such as myself to work hard to achieve the success that they desire and to do it on their own terms. If I may be so bold as to quote Greg Christian from a conversation I had with him recently after a show in Oklahoma City, "I am not perfect while playing, and eventhough you may not hear the mistakes I make on stage, I can, and it makes me work even harder to improve, and that is how I got to where I am today". It is a lesson that I have taken to heart and I appreciate the fact that the time was taken to relay that advice to a fan. Alex Skolnik, lead guitarist for the band, also has had an impact on me personally. He has a blog of his own called SkolNotes which is very interesting to say the least. On his blog he has posted a an entry called "Gary Hart vs. Joe Satriani" which is a lesson on doing what you think is best for yourself and not what someone else thinks is best for you. This blog was actually the inspiration I needed to begin my own blog. Anyway, back on topic, Alex is one of the most underrated guitarists not only in metal, but in music of any genre, and he still finds time to spend with fans and give autographs when asked. This appreciation for fans and their dedication to the music is what makes Testament a truly great band.
http://skolnotes.blogspot.com/
There are many other good bands out there and many others that are truly great but the day only has 24 hrs. and I can't listen to all of them so feel free to leave a comment giving your opinion on the subject.
That being said, let's get to the reason for this posting. What does distinguish a good band for a truly great one? There are different forms of music, all equally important and relevant but at the moment I will concentrate on the type of music which I listen to, Heavy/Thrash Metal.
Music has always bean a very important part of my life even though, until recently, I never had the opportunity to attend the concerts of the bands that I ejoyed listening to, I have held a deep admiration and respect for the musicians and the music which they create. Which brings me to the topic of this posting:
It is not just radio airplay that distiguishes a good band from a truly great band. With the way the recording industry is these days, anyone can have a hit record. Case in point, back in the eighties, an eighty year old woman went into a recording studio and cut a record. That record actually got played on the radio and became a hit. The woman admitted to having no real talent and that it was all done in the studio. This actually happened in Tennessee if anyone wants to check up on it.
Record sales don't mean that much either. Take for instance Metallica's new record "Death Magnetic". According to a blog posting on metalundergroung.com by Diamond OZ on Sept. 30, Death Magnetic sold 132,000 copies worldwide in one week.(Diamond Oz, 2008). Two days later on Oct. 2 Diamond Oz posted another blog entry which quoted a petition of over 13,000 disgruntled Metallica fans trying to get the record remastered or at least remixed due to poor sound quality on the record. I will give Metallica the credit which is due to them. They are a good band, and they have influenced countless bands since their formation back in the early eighties, but they will never be a truly great band. The total disregaurd shown to their fans and the fact that in order to achieve the level of success which they now enjoy, they had to embrace what they claimed to despise early in their careers shows a total lack of character. It seems that the almighty dollar is what drives some instead of the loyalty of the fans or the love for the music.
Check out the Metal Underground blog because it is an outstanding source of information on your favorite metal bands.
Metal Underground
So if a band as big as Metallica is just a good band with their multitude of gold and platinum records, what constitutes a great band? I can name a couple of my favorites for starters. The first band that comes to mind is Iron Maiden. Not only does the band enjoy phenomenal success worldwide in terms of record sales but also has influenced countless numbers of bands not only in the U.S. but world wide. They have also supported their former members, which is an act that is hard to imagine in the self serving attitudes of most of the American bands. For instance, when Clive Burr (former Iron Maiden drummer)was diagnosed with MS (Multiple Schlerosis), Iron Maiden held a benefit concert to help support Clive in his struggle with the infliction. The event was so successful that the band made an annual Clive Aid event not just to help Clive but to help others inflicted with MS. Not only that but several years ago, while on his way home from an Iron Maiden show, a fourteen year old kid was murdered. Of course this horrendous event made the local news and when the band found out about it they not only contacted the kids parents to express their sympathies, which is beyond most bands, but they also offered over 1000 British pounds($1,722 U.S. currency) from their own pockets as a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for this act. Many people will say that they only did it for good press. So what if they did, it is more than any American band in history has done for a fan in the history of music as far as I am aware. So yes, Iron Maiden is truly one of the greatest bands in history, not only in heavy metal but in any kind of music, period.
Another truly great band is Testament. Eventhough they do not enjoy the kind of record sales as Metallica and Iron Maiden they still have been very successful in that aspect of the music industry. Influencing bands and even individuals such as myself to work hard to achieve the success that they desire and to do it on their own terms. If I may be so bold as to quote Greg Christian from a conversation I had with him recently after a show in Oklahoma City, "I am not perfect while playing, and eventhough you may not hear the mistakes I make on stage, I can, and it makes me work even harder to improve, and that is how I got to where I am today". It is a lesson that I have taken to heart and I appreciate the fact that the time was taken to relay that advice to a fan. Alex Skolnik, lead guitarist for the band, also has had an impact on me personally. He has a blog of his own called SkolNotes which is very interesting to say the least. On his blog he has posted a an entry called "Gary Hart vs. Joe Satriani" which is a lesson on doing what you think is best for yourself and not what someone else thinks is best for you. This blog was actually the inspiration I needed to begin my own blog. Anyway, back on topic, Alex is one of the most underrated guitarists not only in metal, but in music of any genre, and he still finds time to spend with fans and give autographs when asked. This appreciation for fans and their dedication to the music is what makes Testament a truly great band.
http://skolnotes.blogspot.com/
There are many other good bands out there and many others that are truly great but the day only has 24 hrs. and I can't listen to all of them so feel free to leave a comment giving your opinion on the subject.
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