The Greatest Metal Song Cup - Part II, Round 2, Matches 70-75
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MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Changed Spotify accounts, so this is the new playlist I’ll be updating! I know a few folks followed the previous one, it’ll be deleted.
Detective Beauregard
Leviathan of Doggerland
Nothing particularly horrible about Gamma Ray’s effort here, other than it being rather generic double bass-running power metal with few dynamics. Not my bag. Welcome to the Jungle is simply a catchier, better-written song. Guns ‘n Roses.
Lol, Megadeth and it isn’t even close. Hangar 18 is a masterpiece of classic metal, complete with 10+ solos and nutbag, paranoid X-Files lyrics. I love every second of it. Uriah Heep cannot compare.
AC/DC have a classic here. Therapy? (what a stupid name) do not.
I don’t like Motorhead, and this is no exception. Guns n’ Roses by default.
Trapped Under Ice is a decent deep cut, and I was fortunate enough to see the band play it in 2000 (they dedicated it to a cancer patient who requested it, which was awesome). But unless you have some stupid grudge against the band for “selling out” with the ballad-ish first half of One, there’s no denying that it is the better-written song all around.
I just can’t get past Venom’s horrible recording quality here. Pantera is being Pantera, but by default they get my vote. Tight song with some great start-stop riffs, even if I don’t like the “come at me bro” vocals.
Best song of the round: tie between Hangar 18 and One
Lol, Megadeth and it isn’t even close. Hangar 18 is a masterpiece of classic metal, complete with 10+ solos and nutbag, paranoid X-Files lyrics. I love every second of it. Uriah Heep cannot compare.
AC/DC have a classic here. Therapy? (what a stupid name) do not.
I don’t like Motorhead, and this is no exception. Guns n’ Roses by default.
Trapped Under Ice is a decent deep cut, and I was fortunate enough to see the band play it in 2000 (they dedicated it to a cancer patient who requested it, which was awesome). But unless you have some stupid grudge against the band for “selling out” with the ballad-ish first half of One, there’s no denying that it is the better-written song all around.
I just can’t get past Venom’s horrible recording quality here. Pantera is being Pantera, but by default they get my vote. Tight song with some great start-stop riffs, even if I don’t like the “come at me bro” vocals.
Best song of the round: tie between Hangar 18 and One
TheMercenary
Ancient Mariner
So for me :
Gamma Ray, because it's a band who made better music than Guns'n'Roses. Just have a look on the great 'Skeletons In The Closet' double live album recorded in Barcelona (Spain) and you'll see immediately the quality of Kai Hansen, Dirk Schlächter and Henjo Richter's songwriting. Slash is a very nice guitarist, but G'n'R have only a few songs that are audible and asskicking.
Megadeth, because Dave Mustaine is a very badass guy who knew how to create a very solid competitor to Metallica. He's very good songwriter and his music style is immediately recognizable. Uriah Heep is one of my favorite bands, but they play on the flowerbeds of Deep Purple with this great hammond organ gimmick. But their music is not as unique as the one created by Megadeth. Plus, I'm a big fan of Sci-Fi movies and "Hangar 18" reminds me of X Files, a TV series that I loved to watch in the 90's.
AC/DC because it's AC/DC. Therapy? is not a band I listen to. AC/DC is often in my playlist.
Motörhead because it's Lemmy and all the guys that played with him. It's kind of a supergroup for me and once again Lemmy's songwriting is by far better than the one of Slash. And Lemmy is a legend, not Slash. So, Motörhead wins.
Metallica vs Metallica. What an interesting competition. "One" is the better song. So, "One" is the winner here.
Venom got my vote not because I'm a big fan of the band. I don't like this "satanic" imagery with the reversed pentagram and Baphomet. But, the band has created a new kind of music and inspired a lot of black metal bands later. And 'Black Metal' is a cult album. I don't like Pantera so much, except some rare songs like "Walk". So, Venom wins.
Gamma Ray, because it's a band who made better music than Guns'n'Roses. Just have a look on the great 'Skeletons In The Closet' double live album recorded in Barcelona (Spain) and you'll see immediately the quality of Kai Hansen, Dirk Schlächter and Henjo Richter's songwriting. Slash is a very nice guitarist, but G'n'R have only a few songs that are audible and asskicking.
Megadeth, because Dave Mustaine is a very badass guy who knew how to create a very solid competitor to Metallica. He's very good songwriter and his music style is immediately recognizable. Uriah Heep is one of my favorite bands, but they play on the flowerbeds of Deep Purple with this great hammond organ gimmick. But their music is not as unique as the one created by Megadeth. Plus, I'm a big fan of Sci-Fi movies and "Hangar 18" reminds me of X Files, a TV series that I loved to watch in the 90's.
AC/DC because it's AC/DC. Therapy? is not a band I listen to. AC/DC is often in my playlist.
Motörhead because it's Lemmy and all the guys that played with him. It's kind of a supergroup for me and once again Lemmy's songwriting is by far better than the one of Slash. And Lemmy is a legend, not Slash. So, Motörhead wins.
Metallica vs Metallica. What an interesting competition. "One" is the better song. So, "One" is the winner here.
Venom got my vote not because I'm a big fan of the band. I don't like this "satanic" imagery with the reversed pentagram and Baphomet. But, the band has created a new kind of music and inspired a lot of black metal bands later. And 'Black Metal' is a cult album. I don't like Pantera so much, except some rare songs like "Walk". So, Venom wins.
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Jer
A window to the west, a blazing star above
I understand that people can vote any way for any reason, but this isn’t the Greatest Metal Band Cup, it’s the Greatest Metal Song Cup. Shouldn’t we be voting on the strength of each individual song, rather than just voting based on band bias…?
TheMercenary
Ancient Mariner
But the fact behind the best band counts a lot in songwriting, because the best bands write better music than the other ones. 
Sometimes, sure, but there are a lot of bands out there that have one great album, or even one or two great songs, and those deserve their own laurels, I think. Anyway, I recommend listening when you can. These songs are coming back a few times so even once is a good investment of peoples' time.
Jer
A window to the west, a blazing star above
Though I'm generally not a fan of GnR, "Welcome To The Jungle" is an absolute monster of a track, from its echoing guitar opening and scream, to its upbeat groove and Axl's punchy delivery, to its tasty and slightly bluesy solos, to its great clean bridge 1, to its creepy bass-driven bridge 2, and its final up-modulated choruses. Excellent song. "Anywhere In The Galaxy" has a moody intro, then kicks into full overblown bombast. The driving groove is nice, and the verses work well, but Kai's singing is a bit behind the beat on the pre-chorus and chorus. The vocal melodies are strong, though the Queeny harmony bits could be handled better. Great solos, and the riff under the first part is particularly cool. Kai's singing is uneven here, showing off all his pros and cons, though he's generally effective and sounds quite good in parts. Very good overall, but sorry @Shmoolikipod, the list nominee has the edge here. Winner: Guns N' Roses - "Welcome To The Jungle"
"Hangar 18" is another monster of a track, taking Mustaine's arpeggio from Metallica's "Call Of Ktulu" and playing it out in full chords to kick off this riff and solo fest. The vocal sections are appealing, but the instrumental sections are what blow the roof off the house here. I especially like the enhanced bass in the remixed version of the song, since you get to hear more of the musical interactions than you could in the original dry mix. No wonder I nominated it! "July Morning" starts with a solid organ groove, eventually giving way to a gentle verse with a strong vocal melody. The heavier "la la la la" bit isn't as compelling, but it's fine. Good organ solo. The high "la" bits afterward are a bit cringey. Not sure the second half of the song was necessary, but the extended jam is pleasant enough, and the computery bits near the end are interesting. Bloated, but pretty good overall. Unfortunately for the list nominee, DJMindLooseJerCayes's song easily throws this one in the wood chipper, leaving it in a bloody Uriah Heep. Winner: Megadeth - "Hangar 18"
There are a lot of excellent songs to choose from on Back In Black, but "You Shook Me All Night Long" is a classic among classics, from the plaintive opening to the upbeat yet easy-going groove, then the great build-up to a huge sing-along chorus. Brian Johnson's delivery is relentless and Angus Young's solo is iconic. An excellent track for sure. "Nowhere" is appealing, peppy pop-punk with an overly repetitive chorus. It's fine, but it's also kind of in one ear and out the other. Sorry, @MindRuler, but in this case your nominee is utterly outclassed by the one from some guy named @Jer! Winner: AC/DC - "You Shook Me All Night Long"
"Paradise City" is overplayed, but it's still one of GnR's very few great songs. The vocal parts are catchy and interesting, as are the guitar parts, and synths are used in a limited and surprisingly effective way too. Love the sped-up alternate chorus and jamming that finishes up the song. Excellent stuff. "Orgasmatron" plods along in a simplistic groove while Lemmy mumbles on non-melodically. The solo / interlude sections have some brighter moments, but otherwise there just isn't much going on here. A ridiculously easy call for Guns N' Roses here. Winner: Guns N' Roses - "Paradise City"
"One" is interesting from a songwriting perspective, with its beautiful clean guitar work and melancholy verses that build through a heavier chorus and harmonized leads into the relentless jackhammer and soloing of its second half. Excellent stuff. "Trapped Under Ice" offers some nice driving riffage and some actually good wah-laden solos from Hammett. Hetfield mostly sounds pretty good. Some awesome riff change-ups throughout the song, and that call-and-response bridge is great. The chorus is pretty great too. Really good stuff, but it's still outclassed by DKMiDDo's nominee here. Winner: Metallica - "One"
"Black Metal" has a pretty good groove, but the production blows, the singer is lame, and the chorus is flat and repetitive. The brief instrumental parts are a little better, but this is not a good song. "I'm Broken" aptly describes my spirit after listening to yet another Pantera song. The main riff sounds like some kind of Rage Against The Machine joint, but less fat. Everything about the verse is annoying, and the chorus is a complete dud aside from the overly repetitive riff. The bridge doesn't leave much of an impression, but the solo is decent. Ugh, glad that's over. Let's review -- this song was a moderately interesting riff that was thoroughly beaten into the ground, a decent solo, and a bunch of noise. No thanks. Not a fan of either track here, but as usual, Pantera sucks worse than the competition. Winner: Venom - "Black Metal"
"Hangar 18" is another monster of a track, taking Mustaine's arpeggio from Metallica's "Call Of Ktulu" and playing it out in full chords to kick off this riff and solo fest. The vocal sections are appealing, but the instrumental sections are what blow the roof off the house here. I especially like the enhanced bass in the remixed version of the song, since you get to hear more of the musical interactions than you could in the original dry mix. No wonder I nominated it! "July Morning" starts with a solid organ groove, eventually giving way to a gentle verse with a strong vocal melody. The heavier "la la la la" bit isn't as compelling, but it's fine. Good organ solo. The high "la" bits afterward are a bit cringey. Not sure the second half of the song was necessary, but the extended jam is pleasant enough, and the computery bits near the end are interesting. Bloated, but pretty good overall. Unfortunately for the list nominee, DJMindLooseJerCayes's song easily throws this one in the wood chipper, leaving it in a bloody Uriah Heep. Winner: Megadeth - "Hangar 18"
There are a lot of excellent songs to choose from on Back In Black, but "You Shook Me All Night Long" is a classic among classics, from the plaintive opening to the upbeat yet easy-going groove, then the great build-up to a huge sing-along chorus. Brian Johnson's delivery is relentless and Angus Young's solo is iconic. An excellent track for sure. "Nowhere" is appealing, peppy pop-punk with an overly repetitive chorus. It's fine, but it's also kind of in one ear and out the other. Sorry, @MindRuler, but in this case your nominee is utterly outclassed by the one from some guy named @Jer! Winner: AC/DC - "You Shook Me All Night Long"
"Paradise City" is overplayed, but it's still one of GnR's very few great songs. The vocal parts are catchy and interesting, as are the guitar parts, and synths are used in a limited and surprisingly effective way too. Love the sped-up alternate chorus and jamming that finishes up the song. Excellent stuff. "Orgasmatron" plods along in a simplistic groove while Lemmy mumbles on non-melodically. The solo / interlude sections have some brighter moments, but otherwise there just isn't much going on here. A ridiculously easy call for Guns N' Roses here. Winner: Guns N' Roses - "Paradise City"
"One" is interesting from a songwriting perspective, with its beautiful clean guitar work and melancholy verses that build through a heavier chorus and harmonized leads into the relentless jackhammer and soloing of its second half. Excellent stuff. "Trapped Under Ice" offers some nice driving riffage and some actually good wah-laden solos from Hammett. Hetfield mostly sounds pretty good. Some awesome riff change-ups throughout the song, and that call-and-response bridge is great. The chorus is pretty great too. Really good stuff, but it's still outclassed by DKMiDDo's nominee here. Winner: Metallica - "One"
"Black Metal" has a pretty good groove, but the production blows, the singer is lame, and the chorus is flat and repetitive. The brief instrumental parts are a little better, but this is not a good song. "I'm Broken" aptly describes my spirit after listening to yet another Pantera song. The main riff sounds like some kind of Rage Against The Machine joint, but less fat. Everything about the verse is annoying, and the chorus is a complete dud aside from the overly repetitive riff. The bridge doesn't leave much of an impression, but the solo is decent. Ugh, glad that's over. Let's review -- this song was a moderately interesting riff that was thoroughly beaten into the ground, a decent solo, and a bunch of noise. No thanks. Not a fan of either track here, but as usual, Pantera sucks worse than the competition. Winner: Venom - "Black Metal"
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
I’ve decided to set a voting plan based on three criteria for these matches with songs that stretch the definition of metal. My three questions will be:
Hangar 18 vs. July Morning
Finally, a proper battle! Trapped Under Ice is a cool song that gets lost amongst much better material on Ride the Lightning. One is easily the most well composed song on the fantastic Justice album. Easy vote for One.
Black Metal sounds like Satanic Lemmy playing a NWOBHM tune inside a shoebox at the back of a closet. It’s fine and I’m sure historic. I’m Broken has a decent main riff and a nice breakdown riff, but also really bad vocal melodies. Overall, I’ll take Pantera’s chainsaw riffs and properly recorded instruments over lost-in-my-parents-basement Venom.
- Which song is more metal?
- Which song did I enjoy listening to more?
- Which song is objectively better composed?
- More metal? Galaxy
- Enjoyment? Galaxy
- Better? Jungle
Hangar 18 vs. July Morning
- Metal? Hangar 18
- Enjoyment? Hangar 18
- Better? Hangar 18!
- Metal? Idk…neither. One has a proper guitar solo (but is definitely just rock), one has more energetic guitar playing and palm muting (but is definitely just pop punk).
- Enjoyment? AC/DC, I guess
- Better? AC/DC
- Metal? Orgasmatron
- Enjoyment? Paradise City (I’m not a big GnR fan, but damn Motörhead are so plodding and repetitive here)
- Better? Paradise City
Finally, a proper battle! Trapped Under Ice is a cool song that gets lost amongst much better material on Ride the Lightning. One is easily the most well composed song on the fantastic Justice album. Easy vote for One.
Black Metal sounds like Satanic Lemmy playing a NWOBHM tune inside a shoebox at the back of a closet. It’s fine and I’m sure historic. I’m Broken has a decent main riff and a nice breakdown riff, but also really bad vocal melodies. Overall, I’ll take Pantera’s chainsaw riffs and properly recorded instruments over lost-in-my-parents-basement Venom.
Siddharth
Long Distance Trooper
Shmoolikipod
Stranger to the Light
I endorse this system!
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
“Welcome to the Jungle” is metal-adjacent enough that I don’t mind it being here and will vote for GNR, especially since Gamma Ray has been one of the biggest disappointments of this game.
Tough draw for Uriah Heep but “Hangar 18” is something else. Megadeth.
I’m drawing the fucking line here. “You Shook Me All Night Long” is a perfect rock song, one of AC/DC’s best, but there is nothing metal about it. I understand “Hells Bells”, I understand “Back in Black”, I understand “Highway to Hell”, I do not understand why this song should be considered for a greatest metal song cup. Therapy? isn’t exactly metal either but I think they’ve got one foot on the floor at least and it’s a pretty fun song.
I’d vote for almost anything over Motörhead and this time it’s GNR, again.
Giving Venom the respect they’re due.
Tough draw for Uriah Heep but “Hangar 18” is something else. Megadeth.
I’m drawing the fucking line here. “You Shook Me All Night Long” is a perfect rock song, one of AC/DC’s best, but there is nothing metal about it. I understand “Hells Bells”, I understand “Back in Black”, I understand “Highway to Hell”, I do not understand why this song should be considered for a greatest metal song cup. Therapy? isn’t exactly metal either but I think they’ve got one foot on the floor at least and it’s a pretty fun song.
I’d vote for almost anything over Motörhead and this time it’s GNR, again.
Giving Venom the respect they’re due.
JudasMyGuide
The resident reactionary recalcitrant
I've also decided to use an improved methodology to assess the songs.
I mean, nobody in his right mind would deny that metal is more or less a very guitar-based genre. That means that - barring some unfortunate exceptions - the guitar is a most quintessential part of the general metal experience.
Now, there is a lot of things you could say, but when we talk about guitar, there is no other way to put it - there has been one single best guitarist ever, whose position has hardly ever been doubted and never by a person of sound mind, and that is Django Reinhardt.
The man who married the complex and the simple, the familiar and the untrivial, the fast and the slow. The man who - despite losing functionality of two of his left hand fingers - hasn't given up on the complexities of jazz harmony or flashingly fast arpeggios, who under the guise of "gypsy jazz" produced music that was innovative, yet timeless, that is "conservative" nowadays, but never fails to fascinate, bringing mostly joy (but also sorrow) and more specifically the joie de vivre - that can't be truly disseminated, copied or even fully understood and which is truly infectious - to any listener then and now. He was unprecedented then and is still outstanding now and he can be enjoyed by the laymen and the hoi polloi much as by the professors and the connoisseurs.
As Ian Cruickshank put it:
In the words of Hugues Panassié:
Writing in 1945, Billy Neil and E. Gates stated that:
Django-style enthusiast John Jorgenson has been quoted as saying:
Also, it was precisely Django Reinhardt who inspired Tony Iommi - say it with me: the inarguable founder of the metal genre - to not give up on playing guitar after the accident that mutilated his own left hand.
With that in mind, I shall from now on assess each and every song primarily with regard to how much Djangian (Reinhardtian?) it is.
Guns 'n' Roses - 27 % Django (although "jungle" and "Django" are almost homonyms, that unfortunately doesn't count)
Gamma Ray - 47 % Django (mainly because of the driving rhythm and feeling more upbeat and inspirational)
Gamma Ray.
Megadeth - 55 %, as it is (relatively) complex and guitar heavy
Uriah Heep - 35 % Django (there's really not much apart from the final Moog insanity that - to add insult to injury - hasn't even been played by the band but the guest starring Manfred Mann)
Megadeth.
AC/DC - 15 % Django
Therapy? - 15 % Django
Now, both of these leave a lot to be desired, being rather outwardly un-Djangian, if anything, then the former gets points for its primeval exuberance, the latter for the upbeat tempo and unassuming attitude, however I guess I'll go with the more competent band here, which is AC/DC.
Guns 'N' Roses - 35 % Django
Motorhead - 30 % Django
Man, both of these are so monotonous, it's like having a mechanic drill delving into your forehead ... I guess there's slightly more Reinhardtness to the GNR song, as it has more "spring to its step", so to speak, and isn't as overtly mastodonic and self-serious as the Motorhead song, I also kinda like both of these bands against myself, it seems, and in general I guess I like Motorhead more; also despite the Djangometer being the most important criterion, it is still not the only one and I guess I vibe more with the outright anti-religious lyrics of Lemmy, feeble-minded as they may be, instead of the almost blasphemously inappropriately appropriating lyrics of Paradise City, so Motorhead get my vote.
Metallica's One gets more points on the Djangometer for being more iconic in its song structure and for its emotional poignancy, cheap as it may be, but if the other song won, I wouldn't mind, really.
The last match completely broke the Djangometer, it's either a shitty variation on Motorhead, "now with added SAYTAAAN" or one of the most redneckish bands in this entire cup. Again, I have a weird soft spot for Pantera, so let's pretend they also go higher on the Djangometer (anyway, Dimebag was definitely thousand times the guitarist than Mantas was, so...)
I mean, nobody in his right mind would deny that metal is more or less a very guitar-based genre. That means that - barring some unfortunate exceptions - the guitar is a most quintessential part of the general metal experience.
Now, there is a lot of things you could say, but when we talk about guitar, there is no other way to put it - there has been one single best guitarist ever, whose position has hardly ever been doubted and never by a person of sound mind, and that is Django Reinhardt.
The man who married the complex and the simple, the familiar and the untrivial, the fast and the slow. The man who - despite losing functionality of two of his left hand fingers - hasn't given up on the complexities of jazz harmony or flashingly fast arpeggios, who under the guise of "gypsy jazz" produced music that was innovative, yet timeless, that is "conservative" nowadays, but never fails to fascinate, bringing mostly joy (but also sorrow) and more specifically the joie de vivre - that can't be truly disseminated, copied or even fully understood and which is truly infectious - to any listener then and now. He was unprecedented then and is still outstanding now and he can be enjoyed by the laymen and the hoi polloi much as by the professors and the connoisseurs.
As Ian Cruickshank put it:
In the words of Hugues Panassié:
Writing in 1945, Billy Neil and E. Gates stated that:
Django-style enthusiast John Jorgenson has been quoted as saying:
Also, it was precisely Django Reinhardt who inspired Tony Iommi - say it with me: the inarguable founder of the metal genre - to not give up on playing guitar after the accident that mutilated his own left hand.
With that in mind, I shall from now on assess each and every song primarily with regard to how much Djangian (Reinhardtian?) it is.
Guns 'n' Roses - 27 % Django (although "jungle" and "Django" are almost homonyms, that unfortunately doesn't count)
Gamma Ray - 47 % Django (mainly because of the driving rhythm and feeling more upbeat and inspirational)
Gamma Ray.
Megadeth - 55 %, as it is (relatively) complex and guitar heavy
Uriah Heep - 35 % Django (there's really not much apart from the final Moog insanity that - to add insult to injury - hasn't even been played by the band but the guest starring Manfred Mann)
Megadeth.
AC/DC - 15 % Django
Therapy? - 15 % Django
Now, both of these leave a lot to be desired, being rather outwardly un-Djangian, if anything, then the former gets points for its primeval exuberance, the latter for the upbeat tempo and unassuming attitude, however I guess I'll go with the more competent band here, which is AC/DC.
Guns 'N' Roses - 35 % Django
Motorhead - 30 % Django
Man, both of these are so monotonous, it's like having a mechanic drill delving into your forehead ... I guess there's slightly more Reinhardtness to the GNR song, as it has more "spring to its step", so to speak, and isn't as overtly mastodonic and self-serious as the Motorhead song, I also kinda like both of these bands against myself, it seems, and in general I guess I like Motorhead more; also despite the Djangometer being the most important criterion, it is still not the only one and I guess I vibe more with the outright anti-religious lyrics of Lemmy, feeble-minded as they may be, instead of the almost blasphemously inappropriately appropriating lyrics of Paradise City, so Motorhead get my vote.
Metallica's One gets more points on the Djangometer for being more iconic in its song structure and for its emotional poignancy, cheap as it may be, but if the other song won, I wouldn't mind, really.
The last match completely broke the Djangometer, it's either a shitty variation on Motorhead, "now with added SAYTAAAN" or one of the most redneckish bands in this entire cup. Again, I have a weird soft spot for Pantera, so let's pretend they also go higher on the Djangometer (anyway, Dimebag was definitely thousand times the guitarist than Mantas was, so...)
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
More extraordinary high quality bullshit, @JudasMyGuide! You’re outdoing yourself here. 
Siddharth
Long Distance Trooper
To quote a friend of mine, that makes me "question your entire grip on music"
TheMercenary
Ancient Mariner
I should improve this all using Nicko McBrain reference instead, talking about his technic and groove.
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