READER’S CHOICE: METAL FROM MEMPHIS EDITION
Izzy Stradlin is not actually from Memphis. He’s not actually the writer of this song, either.
Okay, let’s keep this roadshow a-rollin’, shall we? Today MetalSucks reader Ian Youkin has recommended some bands from the Memphis area. I chose Ian’s e-mail today because none of the bands’ names sounded like the monikers of “core” outfits, but I could be wrong. Let’s find out together, shall we?
Well, it’s generic death metal with a hint of grind, but that’s a good step up from generic deathcore. I prefer my vocals to be a little more Corpsegrinder-y, but that’s just personal taste. There’s an audio sample of Martin Luther King, Jr., which makes less than no sense to me; Axl Rose did the same thing on Chinese Democracy, and if it were my band, I’d probably double-think ever walking in Axl Rose’s footsteps. Anyway, the music isn’t awful, but it doesn’t give me much reason to care, either.
Slow, slow, slow doom-stoner shit. The band has apparently opened for Intronaut and Saviours, which should give you some sense of the audience they’re pursuing. The non-scream vocals irritate me; they’re trying to do that drone thing, but it just sounds off. All this really does is make me wanna listen to Batillus. Now that’s an awesome doom band.
I like this band the best of the three so far. It’s kind of High on Fire-ish metal-tinged hard rock, but I’m digging it. It’s not the greatest thing I’ve ever heard, but it makes me wanna get up and move, y’know? I could see this band doing something really cool at some point.
You shouldn’t use the phrase “for the birds” in your band name; it leaves you open and vulnerable to being the butt of an easy joke (says the guy who writes for a website with the word “sucks” in its name). Besides, “Left for the Vultures” sounds way more metal, doesn’t it? In any case, it’s a moot point, ’cause I actually like the music. It’s pretty standard death metal stuff, but it’s well-written, well-executed, and tasty. Both this band and The Unbeheld are wwwwaaaayyy better than Cremains or Galaxicon.
“Unlight” isn’t a word, and a quick Google search does not turn up any bands called “Epoch of Darkness,” so I wonder why they went with “unlight.” I’d spend more time thinking about it, but the music is just super-generic deathrash and I don’t really care. The same Galaxicon made me wanna listen to Batillus, this kinda makes me wanna listen to Skeletonwitch. Next.
Alternately death and black metal. Not too shabby. It doesn’t do much for me, but I wonder if that’s because the production lacks oomph. I guess the riffs are kinda generic, but my head is bobbin’, so they’re doing something right.
Okay! So that was pretty painless. None of these bands were great, but at least two and possibly three of ’em were pretty good. Thanks to Ian for not sending me any Verb the Noun bands!
I’m really enjoying doing these, and based on all the e-mails I’ve been getting, it seems like you guys find ’em fun, too. We’ll do some more next week.
-AR
