BEST BAND EVER: Results!

MrKnickerbocker said:
I would argue that they are on the same level as far as only having one skill - hence why I voted for both of them. They're one-dimensional.
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But is it really fair to criticise an artist for the identity of their art rather than the objective quality? For example, Michelangelo was both a painter and a sculptor, but nobody would argue that he was objectively a better artist than, say, Rembrandt just because the latter only did paintings.
 
MrKnickerbocker said:
Dynamics are really important and a lot of people overlook them. Speed is great, volume is great, tone is great, but if you have no dynamics in your playing then you lose emotional resonance. I agree about Satriani's stagnant tone, but his dynamics are incredible. The same can be said of Petrucci, especially in the early years. I would say dynamics in playing (not just leads) is one of Petrucci's biggest strengths.
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This also gets to the heart of the role production/mixing plays. Sometimes I feel a guitarist is let down by poor production. But the other side of the coin is other guitarists are carried by the production. The former is possibly better than they sound, the latter sounds better than they probably are. And with production playing such a huge part in how Metal sounds, this is a big problem in "who's better" discussions, taste aside.
 
MrKnickerbocker said:
I would argue that they are on the same level as far as only having one skill - hence why I voted for both of them. They're one-dimensional.
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Iced Earth songs have lots of calmer pieces in their music. It is not non stop riff riffing. His biggest quality is (or at least was) writing adventurous songs with lots of good parts in it.

And: good points, @Perun

@JudasMyGuide Some of his best riffs are on Night of the Stormrider. Everyone who tries Iced Earth albums should at least try that one.
 
Schaffer always uses the same rhythm for his heavy riffing, and the same chord shapes for the softer parts. He has only a couple of tricks up his sleeve and he repeats the living shit out of those tricks.

Perun said:
I mean, most people say that Jimi Hendrix is one of the best guitarists ever (and I would agree), but he was all about soloing and no riffs or rhythm.
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Hendrix isn't one of the best guitarists ever, he was a pioneer for the rise of guitar rock into the mainstream. I like his raw sound, but his playing is nothing spectacular. Won't be too long until I start voting for him.
 
It's not true. There are various rhythms (patterns/breaks) in his riffing, because they are in the music as well. Maybe one needs to be a drummer to hear this. :/

anyway:
@Night Prowler you can change the topic to "Lead guitar players". Songwriting and rhythm guitar parts (and the playing of these parts), these are minor issues in this community.
 
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I’d put Schaefer in the same category as Malcolm Young: limited in variety, but extraordinarily good at what he does well.

Getting back to Rhoads, the dude has all the technical prowess and classical chops of a Malmsteen, with all the melodic touch and emotional soul Malmsteen lacks. His soloing is amazing and his rhythm playing is pretty damn good as well.

His catalog is limited but what he did with that bozo OZzy is outstanding, riddled with great playing.

 
James Hetfield is everything Schaffer is not. Great rhythm playing, great taste for riffs. His writing is way more imaginative too, I'll admit that even though much of what he's done in the 90s and 00s doesn't connect with me.

Malcolm Young is in a similar category although I don't like the AC/DC riffs that much. I recognize his vitality to the band but AC/DC was always more about the leads and vocals for me (again I realize those things were made possible with Malcom's rock solid foundation).
 
Rhoads sounded a bit sloppy.

@The Flash he did. I did not vote for him either, I think. I admire him. Still, I do not find it fair that he got such a different treatment.
Well, he can do some solos as well (love his Nothing Else Matters solo!) and him singing surely helps with his popularity.
Often, his riffs are less fast, perhaps easier to handle for some. I do not think he plays as tight as Schaffer either, live.
 
Speaking of melody, sad that the criminally underrated Buck Dharma is about to go.
I always appreciate how in the wankfest of solos in the Hear n Aid project, his stood head and shoulders above the rest for its sheer musicality.

It’s the finale, at 4:48

 
More Dharma. The fills and the solo are very tasty here, but the outro, starting around 4:30 is brilliant.
The speed without sacrificing any melody...

 
CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
This reminds me a two things I was thinking about lately in respect to guitar playing. One was something I mentioned in the Satch thread; namely that Satriani's lead tone was fixed quite early (a great tone) but it has barely changed. So when a lead section comes in everything sounds kind of similar. And this is a big obstacle to me really enjoying his discography.
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I think he likes his tone to stay in certain boundaries because his playing style complements it. Dude has a magical touch, that gritty distortion along with mid-rangey pick attack is pure Satch. I'm generally fond of guitarists who pick a few specific tones and work on perfecting those, instead of going for something wildly different each time.

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On Petrucci. I once saw a poll on Petrucci's solos vs riffs, and to my surprise, most preferred his riffs. I've come to understand it over time, because although I don't agree with it, I can see why many people think his leads are "lifeless". Petrucci is an interesting riffer in the sense that he doesn't bring much new to the table but still manages to sound fresh. A large portion of his heavy badass riffs are palm-muted power chords, just listen to anything on Train of Thought. Then, at times, he plays more intricate riffs that work as textures. What I like most about him is that he doesn't sound reserved: whether it's a chord over all 6 strings or a single note, it's bound to sound huge. Even if he's playing a riff that is compositionally nothing new, his bear arms hitting the strings carry an undeniable strength.

This one is quite a journey. There are straightforward heavy riffs and more subtle textures.

Cool intro riff, something more funky as opposed to palm muted power chords.

See some literal angry riffing towards the end of the video. The 180 jump is too funny.

Forostar said:
Rhoads sounded a bit sloppy.
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A bit, yeah, but these are live recordings, he delivered the solos well enough.
 
Now for some Malcolm Young:
Not too fast, just simple, heavy, precise and menacing, the pauses meaning as much as the chords.
People talk about that in terms of lead playing, but Malcolm did it at the song’s foundation.

 
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Eliminated after Round 10:
Jon Schaffer - 10 votes
Nuno Bettencourt - 10 votes
 
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