griffith9 Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 I love hard rock/metal music that's more melodic and gutar-driven.(lots of riffs, not too many power ballads like Strangeways) One time, I listened to a couple songs by this band called Dark Tranquility, I loved the riffs but the death-metal vocal(shrieking/growling) really turned me off. I don't know why but it just annoyed me. Dunno. I guess I'm not used to that type of creepy devilish voice. (had the same shock when I stumbled upon 'blind guardian'[just creepy, ominous sound] and 'cradle of filth') So.. could you guys please recommend good "melodic"(fast, guitar-driven, lots of riffs) hard-rock/metal bands that do not have too much growling vocals?? By that am I referring to 'LA metal' bands(GnR)? I don't know.. just throwing terms around. Most of the bands I know fall into that 'MTV band' category.. so I need some help. Thank you for reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 You mean gay glam metal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dhsu Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Well, do you have any gay glam metal suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffith9 Posted March 9, 2008 Author Share Posted March 9, 2008 Well, glam metal is cool. I wouldn't call it gay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Angra Gamma Ray Helloween Iron Maiden (of course) Kamelot Symphony X To a lesser degree: Rhapsody DragonForce Edguy HammerFall Sonata Arctica Not quite sure what's the problem with the vocals you're having (Hansi's vocals for Blind Guardian, while in some ways a bit unusual, are clearly far different than death metal growls - listen to the Bard's Song - In the Forest for example). These bands I listed are pretty melodic though (Iron Maiden & Edguy to a lesser degree). If you want particular album recommendations, I say check out Angra's Rebirth and Temple of Shadows albums, Gamma Ray's Land of the Free, Powerplant, and Majestic albums, Helloween's Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I & Part II, and The Dark Ride albums, Kamelot's The Black Halo (you probably won't like the first song on there, just a warning, but the others are well worth listening to), and Symphony X's The Odyssey. Edit: Wow, the first few bands I listed were in alphabetical order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffith9 Posted March 9, 2008 Author Share Posted March 9, 2008 Thank you very much, Bahamut. I'll check them out. Blind Guardian.. well.. I see your point. One of their songs just creeped me out. Maybe I'll give them another listen. Helloween.. sounds kinda familiar. Isn't that a 'power ballad' band?(no clue) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dhsu Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 A power ballad band would be awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Thank you very much, Bahamut. I'll check them out.Blind Guardian.. well.. I see your point. One of their songs just creeped me out. Maybe I'll give them another listen. Helloween.. sounds kinda familiar. Isn't that a 'power ballad' band?(no clue) Helloween is a power metal* band - big difference. The genre generally emphasizes fast melodic riffs, and technical instrumental playing across the board (including vocals). It is also very notable for clean vocals, although bands are not afraid of experimenting for the sake of concept - there are a few even famous for use of death metal growls and/or thrash tones, such as Children of Bodom. Concepts tend to be an important part of the genre as well, all stemming from Helloween, the second major pioneer of the genre and definitively the biggest impacter on it (the Danish band Pretty Maids started it). Some of the bands I've listed all have a rich history in the genre, such as Gamma Ray, founded by guitarist Kai Hansen, the former guitarist & one-time vocalist of Helloween. Blind Guardian also is pretty famous as well, melding speed & power metal together, although recently they've taken more of a progressive direction. Iced Earth is well-known for their melding of thrash & power metal (Schaffer's guitar playing is probably the most unique style you'll ever hear - it stands out the most of any I've heard). Sonata Arctica is originally known as a Stratovarius clone, although they are better than Strato in every way, and have grown into their own style (their latest album sucked though, but it was an anomaly, to paraphrase their description). Rhapsody interweaves symphonic elements a lot more, but are at their best in their faster & more aggressive songs - the band is based on telling one long tale, but they take it a bit too loosely and the concept seems unmanageable and thrown together. On the opposite end, DragonForce focuses more on speed & technical playing, but their songwriting is sorely lacking, hence the jokes about them having only one song. Kamelot is an American power metal band, but unlike Iced Earth, plays straight power metal and sports some strange but competent vocals - they made their mark with the album The Black Halo, a very good album. I could probably go on all day about bands in the genre, but I shouldn't (unless others want to discuss the merits & drawbacks about certain bands and their songs. I'll just say that Angra is probably one of my favorite bands with those two recommended albums though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotSS Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 This sounds just like me a few years ago. Dark Tranquillity are the ones who got me into metal, and when I first heard them I thought the same thing. "This music is great, but those vocals...:-?" After awhile I got used to them, and eventually I even started to like them. Now DT is one of my favorite bands and Mikael (DT's vocalist) is one of my favorite vocalists, and DT one of my favorite bands. (Go out and buy Fiction today!) Anyways, irrelevant and uninteresting facts about myself aside, along with Bahamut's suggestions I recommend: Scale The Summit (See my sig) - Instrumental technical progressive melodic "adventure" (as they call it) metal. Incredibly awesome. Canvas Solaris - Instrumental technical progressive metal similar to the above, although they have a keyboardist and some slow, atmospheric sections as well as lounge-music like sections as well. They're alot like An Endless Sporadic of Guitar Hero III fame only more technical. Sepia Dreamer - Instrumental progressive metal. They are like the above two bands primarily in description only; they sound quite a bit different than the above two in actuality. Ne Obliviscaris - Progressive (god that word gets thrown around a lot these days) melodic black metal. There's a lot of high-pitched black metal growls/shrieks, but there's also a lot of clean vocals and instrumental, vocal-less sections as well. Disillusion - Progressive (there's that word again) Melodeath. I've never heard Gloria, but Back To Times Of Splendor is awesome and has pseudo-clean and strait up clean vocals. I can't really think of anything else at the moment as most of what I listen to has an ass load of growling in it. None of this is probably what you had in mind anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Hey, can't be as bad as my first foray - the first metal band I've ever heard was Children of Bodom. I loved the guitar playing but I wasn't crazy about the vocals - I ended up appreciating them though, they do fit. If only the lyrics weren't so one-dimensional though... Nightwish really got me into metal in general though (and lots of other music across the board). So strange that I don't listen to them much anymore, even despite seeing them live and meeting them this past October. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Bahamut, you mentioned my favorite band, Iced Earth. Jon Shaffer's guitar playing is what inspired my rhythm playing. He plays guitar with the mindset of a drummer, and it's freaking awesome. Percussive guitar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Bahamut, you mentioned my favorite band, Iced Earth.Jon Shaffer's guitar playing is what inspired my rhythm playing. He plays guitar with the mindset of a drummer, and it's freaking awesome. Percussive guitar. Oh believe me, I noticed with your DKC 2 wip. I remember you mentioning Iced Earth around here a few years ago, and your riffing definitely stuck out. For some reason though, I've never really fell in love with their stuff, although there were a few tracks I've liked - got any recommendations on tracks that best represent them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Stormrider - http://youtube.com/watch?v=HYZzncX-mIQ Desert Rain - http://youtube.com/watch?v=VSlhaiXqDCI Dante's Inferno - http://youtube.com/watch?v=FsVdau231RQ , part 2 http://youtube.com/watch?v=DqKKZMhTLAw I'd post more but I have to get to bed. Fucking daylight savings time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotSS Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Hey, can't be as bad as my first foray - the first metal band I've ever heard was Children of Bodom. I loved the guitar playing but I wasn't crazy about the vocals - I ended up appreciating them though, they do fit. If only the lyrics weren't so one-dimensional though... Yeah, their lyrics are absolutely horrible. The vocals are hardly the best I've heard, but they're definitely not the worst by any means. The Guitarwork is definitely the star. Still, those lyrics... Personally, I prefer Kalmah. Amazing guitarwork as well, and the lyrics are much, much more intelligent, though the fact that English is not their native language definitely shows through. Plus, as crazy as the vocals are (particularly the crazy pre-Black Waltz black metal-ish screams), I absolutely love them for some reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Desert Rain was one of the few that caught me when I listened to all their stuff before. Burnt Offerings is another one (one of my friends thinks it's their best song). I'll take a listen to the others tomorrow...Dante's Inferno is a long damn song. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 I lied. I'm not in bed yet. It has growling vocals, but you can come to bear it through the overpoweringly AWESOME guitar melodies. I'm posting cover versions a guy did, they don't have vocals, and they sound almost the damn same as the originals. In Flames. OLD In Flames, none of this numetal shit they do anymore. "Resin" "Gyroscope" "Embody the Invisible" "Jotun" "Dialogue With the Stars" "Zombie Inc" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotSS Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Nice find with those videos. I haven't listened to In Flames in ages. Don't hate on new IF, though; they may be generic carbon-copies of countless other nu-metal bands playing the same uninspired music, but at least they have a crappy drummer. At least there's that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 But that's my problem. They went from being a band that almost singlehandedly innovated an entire genre (melodic death metal -- there were VERY few bands doing what they did back then in the early 90s) to a band that is bland, formulaic, and completely generic. Watered-down numetal for the kiddies. How do you go from badassery to that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotSS Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 At about the time that Niklas Sundin stopped writing/translating their lyrics, Anders began to gain too much power. I really think that he is the main reason; before, Anders just growled, and that was pretty much it. Now he seems to be the leader. Daniel seems to have played a role as well. I've never expected much from either Anders or Daniel, really, but I know that Jesper and Bjorn can do better. For some reason, though, they seem content to ride the trendy mallcore train to mediocrity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jandalf Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Not sure if this is what you are loking for... Do you know "Machinae Supremacy" (Website)? They make really good music imho. What stands out here is that they use one SID station (sound chip used in the Commodore 64) for their songs, hence they call their music "SID metal" Check out their MySpace site where you can listen to some songs from their latest album "Overworld" Also, these guys actually sing, not just screaming into the mic... ;-P NinjaN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Haha new In Flames...it's almost like they pulled a Metallica, except that they had more talent. Some videos! Angra - Nova Era Ayreon - The New Migrator http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2UjU6wdX8U Gamma Ray - Land of the Free http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iOeA06_vOs Helloween - The Dark Ride (video itself is crappy, but the song!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKMZvTD78F4 Kamelot - When the Lights are Down Nightwish - Wishmaster Iron Maiden - Wasted Years Yeah, their lyrics are absolutely horrible. The vocals are hardly the best I've heard, but they're definitely not the worst by any means. The Guitarwork is definitely the star. Still, those lyrics...Personally, I prefer Kalmah. Amazing guitarwork as well, and the lyrics are much, much more intelligent, though the fact that English is not their native language definitely shows through. Plus, as crazy as the vocals are (particularly the crazy pre-Black Waltz black metal-ish screams), I absolutely love them for some reason. I don't know Kalmah too well (although I have listened to their stuff before). Speaking of bands similar to Children of Bodom, Norther is very similar to Bodom, except a little more keyboard driven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argle Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Kamelot is my favorite metal band, give them a listen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotSS Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Kalmah - Heroes To Us Kalmah - Evil In You Kalmah - Swamphell My three favorite Kalmah songs. The vocals definitely take getting used to because, well, they're completely insane, but the music is awesome. Power metal + speed + thrash = hell yeah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdgeCrusher Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 New In Flames ROFL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy In Rubber Suit Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 A lot of bands mentioned here that I was going to list but I'll add some new ones. Accept, German heavy metal band that doesn't have death growls though he does have the falsetto vocals with a tinge of screaming. Nothing really extreme. If you don't mind a mixture of death and clean vocals then All That Remains would be up your alley. They have some fairly melodic riffs and Phil Labonte is quite an amazing vocalist able to perform both death and clean without missing a beat. Betrayer is another melodic metal band that sounds similar to Iced Earth. Biomechanical is a progressive power/thrash metal band that sounds almost like a cross between Pantera and Iced Earth. Dream Theater is another band to check out. A great progressive metal band with melodic passages. Into Eternity, again if you don't mind death/clean vocals. A fantastic, frantic band. Mercenary is a melodic death metal band similar to In Flames, Dark Tranquillity and Soilwork. Nevermore, which I'm kind of surprised no one has mentioned here, is a fantastic power/thrash metal band that uses all clean vocals and has some heavy yet also melodic riffs. Definitely one of my favorites. Opeth is a band which is similar to Disillusion, though it's more like the other way around, with a mixture of progressive death metal and acoustic guitars as well as death and clean vocals. And that's all I really see in my playlist. I don't listen to too many bands that don't growl, not because I favor one over the other that's just where it seems my tastes gravitate towards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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