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When I saw my The Number Of The Blog brother groverXIII doing this piece for the month of May I figured I could do my very best to bring to light and issue that is a very large problem with today’s heavy metal scene, lack of knowledge of the past. When trying to enlighten some fellow metal heads whether it be on a Metalsucks post, The Number Of The Blog, or a concert venue, the newer age of fans seem at a loss for things that happened in the 70’s, 80’s, hell even the 60’s which was the impetus for all the original heavy metal bands.

You really wonder in this day and age of the internet and Wikipedia, How don’t people know this shit? The first time I listen to something I say to myself “I wonder where this came from.” So then I look it up, and problem solved. I have found countless bands either new or old and have come away from it a much more educated fan. But let me go over several different genres and time periods and discuss the influence for the benefits of some neophytes.

When looking at an album like Vincebus Eruptum you hear several covers of blue rock staples but what you hear here is the guitar tone that Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath would make very famous only a year and a half later. It can be pointed out that many heavy metal acts owe a great debt to this album more especially in the case of the great blues rock/metal band Witchcraft from Sweden who basically uses this style and makes it completely their own.









Death metal seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year, for better or for worse but going back to the beginning was something I did before I ever listened to any current Death Metal. I love the genre now and tend to not be able to get enough of it. Death is a well known band by many in the genre but ever so often there are some kids who just miss the boat for one of the true pioneers of the genre. Possessed were also one of the true pioneers and these guys were only in high school when they recorded Seven Churches. (a side note their guitarist is none other than Larry Lalonde of Primus fame)









Black metal seems to have really taken off in 2,010 as many great releases from the genre have come out namely, Watain, Nachtmystium, Ihsahn, Sigh, among others. It started from more than humble beginnings by a couple of Brits who really did nothing but mash on their instrument of choice. I am talking of course about Venom and their 1982 LP Black Metal. The songs were fast and frenzied and included many of the blasphemous lyrics that black metal is known for. Mercyful Fate is a different animal altogether as they took influence from a band like Venom lyrically speaking but musically they borrowed heavily from Judas Priest and showed what the genre could sound like in the hands of real musicians.









Bands like Black Sabbath are cited for being Doom Metal Pioneers, and while I love and respect the band like no other a band that tends to fall by the way side is one of the oldest American Heavy Metal bands, Pentagram. Bobby Liebling and his band of Virginia maniacs were essentially peers of early Sabbath. But due to problems with the band internally they did not release anything until 1985 which was a s/t album but is commonly referred to as Relentless due to the re-issue. Saint Vitus is another doom metal band of yesteryear that still exists as Wino is becoming a bigger star thanks very much to touring with a band like Clutch. Lest I forget a band like Trouble too, their 1984 album Psalm 9 is one of the best early releases for the genre.










One last genre for me to cover is grindcore, which I have already covered elsewhere. I realize the genre isn’t as popular as most of the other genres I mentioned but it came about around the same time both Death Metal and Black Metal did. I have stated many times that Discharge’s 1982 album Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing is one of my favorite albums of all time. It is the groundwork for all grindcore to come. Most people know Napalm Death and their 1987 release Scum but they may miss progenitor bands like Cryptic Slaughter and 1st wave Grind bands such as the great Terrorizer.








I hope that I have been able to shed some light on where these many sub-genres come from and perhaps introduced you to some bands that you were previously unfamiliar with. But please remember you don’t have to stay current within your musical scene to be “cool.” There are plenty of other bands out there that may be old but that shouldn’t change the fact that they are in fact very good. Let me know if you learned anything from me today. [Editor’s note: SRSLY]

-Snagon

The Number of the Blog


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