The Greatest Metal Song Cup - Part II, Round 2, Matches 100-105

[srfc]

sites like Metal Archives should take note - this is the way to go.

Agreed.
My personal opinion is if a band is covered in metal media, plays on metal festivals and tours, and is generally listened to by metal fans, then people should not be getting bent out of shape if they are considered under the wider umbrella of metal.

 

[JudasMyGuide]

Once again, I don't like Rammstein at all, but having Deep Purple on your metal site or various "dark ambient" bands and not Rammstein feels strangely idiotic. I find that rather offensive, actually, it irks me on principle.

 

[LooseCannon]

Agreed.
My personal opinion is if a band is covered in metal media, plays on metal festivals and tours, and is generally listened to by metal fans, then people should not be getting bent out of shape if they are considered under the wider umbrella of metal.

Yep, and that's what we're trying to do here!

Once again, I don't like Rammstein at all, but having Deep Purple on your metal site or various "dark ambient" bands and not Rammstein feels strangely idiotic. I find that rather offensive, actually, it irks me on principle.

About the same, except I kind of like Rammstein a bit.

 

[LooseCannon]

It's no secret that Buckethead has never connected with me. He always feels somewhat unfinished. Meanwhile, I sort of like Avenged Sevenfold, and I can tolerate this track fairly easily.

I really love the intro to The Conjuring and some of the riffwork in it. But I'm not a fan of the verses. In a lot of ways, this feels like Megadave by the numbers, so it's decent, at least. Sepultura is a band that I've also never found much enjoyment with. It's the same here. This particular song feels like something by Megadave, but being copied. It's not bad, per say, but it doesn't spark joy. Megadeth.

I can get into some Death, but Symbolic has never been one of my favourite albums by them. There's definite talent here in the guitar and drum work, and some days I can handle the vocals, but today I find them puerile and grating. But the frequent time changes, the cool fingerwork, and the thrilling riffs are really enticing. Meanwhile, Fear Factory just kind of stinks. Everything feels like it's ten levels less good than Death, and the filter used on the "clean" vocals is fucking horrible. Truly terrible. Death in a cakewalk.

Time for a true Steel Panther trios match, and while none of this is stuff I love, that doesn't make it less interesting. The Crue have one of their top songs up here, and one I actually enjoy bobbing my head along to, as long as I don't think about it. It taxes the fairly scant talent in the band to the max, but they use what they got. Still, it's juvenile lyrics, a basic riff, and a guitar solo that sounds about as advanced as something Adrian Smith would do to show people what he considers "not really a guitar solo". Meanwhile, Jon Bon Jovi has a song that is about as talented but has managed to become a classic of the genre. I don't really know what makes glam work, if it's the poppiness of it, or if it's the infantile nature of it. Monkey Business was the only song I haven't heard a few times, I might have heard it once or twice in the past. Skid Row has more talent than either band, but I don't think it's as well deployed here. Still, all three are good tracks within their lane, but I'll go for Motley Crue.

I used the Youtube link, and I generally have subtitles on, and over the very acoustic intro, it said (heavy metal music) for this Monster Magnet song, and that made me fucking laugh. I don't really have opinions here. I think this song sucks a fair bit. I've also never been a true Korn hater, having listened to a fair bit of them in my youth, but Right Now was never a Korn song I enjoyed, so there's no nostalgia here. To me, this is a matchup with no winners, only losers (me and anyone else who listens). I'll go with Korn.

Okay, Turmion Katilot. It's safe to say this song lost me within five seconds. The vocals are not coming back, some of the worst I've ever heard. And the chorus being this weird cheery thing - I agree, it sounds like really shit Sabaton. Tool by default, and I don't exactly like Tool.

 

[LooseCannon]

Avenged Sevenfold sends Buckethead off to the afterlife. Megadeth conjures up a strong win over Sepultura. Death easily breaks down Fear Factory. The Crue and the Row are sent off to pray by Bon Jovi. It's not now for Korn, who lose to Monster Magnet. And Tool just totally smokes out Turmion Katilot.

---

Part 1, Round 10, Matches 55-60​

Play In Round	Match 55​	Kevin Shirley Division​
Deep Purple - Hush	vs.​	Van Halen - Unchained​
Radio EHS 100	Nominators​	Popoff 500​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Play In Round	Match 56​	Wildest Dreams Division​
Black Sabbath - After Forever	vs.​	Judas Priest - Genocide​
Popoff 500	Nominators​	Popoff 500​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Play In Round	Match 57​	Wildest Dreams Division​
Rammstein - Feuer Frei	vs.​	Godflesh - Slateman​
Youtube 50	Nominators​	Rolling Stone 100​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Play In Round	Match 58​	Wildest Dreams Division​
God Dethroned - Sigma Enigma	vs.​	Meshuggah - Future Breed Machine​
@Perun	Nominators​	Popoff 500​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Play In Round	Match 59​	Empire of the Clouds Division​
Black Sabbath - Supernaut	vs.​	Black Sabbath - Killing Yourself to Live​
Popoff 500	Nominators​	@srfc​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Play In Round	Match 60​	Empire of the Clouds Division​
Darkthrone - Triumphant Gleam	vs.​	Kampfar - Rekviem​
Best Music Art 100	Nominators​	@Night Prowler​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

 

[LooseCannon]

My time over the next couple days is extremely limited, so I will vote early with very brief explanations:

Hush is a better song, Unchained is a little more metal, but too close to glam. Deep Purple.
Genocide rocks (please do not take this out of contest), After Forever is fine. Judas Priest.
I have a deep personal connection to Feuer Frei! and the Godflesh song felt like a 30 second loop. Rammstein.
I really did not love the Meshuggah song. I also disliked that about 900 remixes popped up when I tried to add the links. Sigma Engima was interesting, at least. God Dethroned.
The second one is better. Killing Yourself to Live.
At first, I thought Darkthrone would take it, the Kampfar song didn't really inspire me. However, the Kampfar song won me over. Kampfar.

 

[Magnus]

Tough voting against a pretty decent Celtic Frost song but Kampfar it is.

 

[MrKnickerbocker]

 

[DJMayes]

Match 55 - Deep Purple - Hush

I was excited to listen to a new Deep Purple song but I've definitely heard this one somewhere before and never realised it was them. Fantastic song, thanks for the earworm. I'm a big fan of the Van Halen song too but this wasn't a contest.

Match 56 - Black Sabbath - After Forever

I have two main observations from this match:

1) I've never heard After Forever before, but it immediately reminded me of the theme song from Friends.
2) Is every song from Sad Wings of Destiny going to show up here? I'm admittedly biased towards 80s Priest but even amongst their 70s work I much prefer Stained Class as an album.

Match 57 - Rammstein - Feuer Frei

I thought this was fun and energetic, and its competitor was a bit of a drag.

Match 58 - God Dethroned - Sigma Enigma

I wasn't a fan of either of these songs but the Meshuggah song felt positively jarring in places, where Sigma Enigma felt like it flowed more naturally.

Match 59 - Black Sabbath - Killing Yourself To Live

Black Sabbath was good, but I liked Black Sabbath more.

Match 60 - Kampfar - Rekviem

I would really prefer this song if it had clean vocals but they were better than whatever was going on in the Darkthrone song, and whilst it started out a bit busy for my tastes I found myself really enjoying the groove it settled into around 4-5 minutes in.

 

[LooseCannon]

Is every song from Sad Wings of Destiny going to show up here?

Just Victim of Changes, Ripper, Tyrant, and Genocide.

 

[DJMayes]

Just Victim of Changes, Ripper, Tyrant, and Genocide.

Ah, fair enough - they've just all appeared pretty early (with Victim of Changes presumably starting in Round 2).

 

[LooseCannon]

Yeah, Victim of Changes definitely was seeded direct to division. Specifically, Division 83 - Remember Tomorrow, where it will face off against Tool - Forty Six & 2 and the winners of Tarot - Stigmata vs Mercyful Fate - Melissa, Dark Funeral - Atrum Regina vs. Bathory - Hades, and While Heaven Wept - The Furthest Shore vs. Sleep - Dragonaut.

 

[Mosh]

There's no denying that Hush is a classic song, but once again it feels like Popoff's list is more about songs that influenced Metal than songs that are actually Metal. While Deep Purple certainly became Metal adjacent over the course of their history, Hush is UK acid rock that is a pretty strong distance from the type of Purple that deserves to be in this game. Semantics aside, I also just don't think Hush is a very good song. It has a nice hook but it's a pretty loose jam and the playing just isn't that inspiring. Unchained is also pretty Metal adjacent but it has an iconic guitar riff and represents Van Halen in one of their heaviest moments. You could credibly include this on a classic Metal playlist. It is a little glam, but I would argue that it's much more like every glam metal band that polluted the 80s desperately wanted to be Van Halen. Unchained is closer to Metal and it is a much stronger song in every way.

This next round is more like it with an appropriate clash of two Metal titans. With Sabbath it's all about the riff and Iommi doesn't disappoint on After Forever. The psychedelic middle sections actually kinda remind me of The Beatles' Revolver era. This is a more upbeat and straight rocking version of Sabbath forever, but no shortage of religious imagery and sludge (is Ozzy advocating for us to find Jesus? ). This song is at its best when Ozzy gets out of the way, some nice riffing in the middle section and a solid solo. It's not the most memorable Sabbath track but it's solid. Genocide meanwhile has all the trappings of a Priest classic. Bluesy power chord based riff, thunderous drums, Halford wailing. Genocide simply has more to offer. It's a tighter song with a much less meandering middle section. I love the epic spoken word bridge and the riffing that follows. We seamlessly revisit the main theme and the outro riff really brings it home. Again, it all naturally moves from one section to another. While the two songs have a lot in common, Genocide just rocks harder and is less clunky.

I would never go out of my way to listen to Rammstein on purpose, but it's hard to deny the catchiness and sheer fun in their music. Feuer Frei is endlessly entertaining through its short run time. There's not a lot of complexity to it, but it does what it needs to. Godflesh is industrial enough and grungy enough to be a favorite among the music establishment, so it makes sense that they made it on to the Rolling Stone list. Slateman has some decent riffing but feels more like a proof of concept than a fully fleshed out song. At the end of the day, I just enjoy listening to Feuer Frei more.

Sigma Enigma is great. Devastating riffing, tight drumming, in your face vocals that are surprisingly inteligible. It's also surprisingly catchy! I can get into some Messhugah and Destroy Erase Improve is probably the best they have to offer. I can dig the riffing and unexpected time changes. The novelty wears off really fast though and it feels like these kinds of djenty bands only really have one thing to offer. They may have invented it and influenced an entire subgenre, but it's not my thing.

Love a good Sabbath off. This one is tough. Supernaut is an iconic riff. Unlike After Forever earlier, the moving parts are much more coherent and Ozzy's vocals sit with the rest of the song more. Killing Yourself To Live is a stone cold classic. Amazing riffing and Ozzy actually sounds fantastic. The psychedelic guitar effects are fun. Despite establishing themselves as trailblazers, you can hear that Sabbath is still pushing for new heights and bringing in different influences while still maintaining a signature sound. Endless supply of riffs and dynamic changes in this always engaging Sabbath classic.

I quite like Darkthrone when Varg isn't writing their lyrics. I think at least one of their songs deserves to go far in this game but it will be a tall order given the rough production and black metal isn't really a thing on this forum save for a few members. You can't deny that riffing though. They're carrying the Sabbath torch in a way that the "mainstream" Metal bands do not. The rough production has a charm to it, I actually really dig the DIY attitude. Triumphant Gleam is a solid song and Darkthrone should be held up with the other Metal forefathers in this game that are normally recognized. Against many opponents that have appeared so far, Triumphant Gleam would take it for me easily. Man, Rekviem though. Just like we have bands like Deep Purple and Thin Lizzy to thank for bigger and better things later on, we have Darkthrone to thank for stuff like Kampfar. I love the bare bones sound of Darkthrone, but Rekviem just has more going for it. More variety in the riffing and some epic choruses. It takes from a variety of different extreme metal tropes and creates a fusion of epicness. Awesome track.

 

[MrKnickerbocker]

Hush is a perfectly fine little classic rock song. It’s easy to sing a long too. I have nothing spectacular or negative to say about it. On the other hand, it will be a cold day in hell before I vote for Van Halen with David Lee Roth’s trust fund fuck boy lyrics and bad voice acting.

After Forever is one of the rare instances where Ozzy doesn’t sing directly over the guitar riff, but it’s a bit unfocused for me. The major key parts are jarring and, let’s be honest, I don’t listen to Black Sabbath for Christian lyrics. I feel similarly about Genocide, though. The vocals don’t fit the music very well, like Halford is belting over a much more intense, epic song. Ultimately it’s just a kind of stock blues rocker with Halford being the only unique aspect. I’m voting Priest, but neither song is great.

Feuer frei! kicks ass as is typical of Rammstein. It wastes no time and is badass all the way through. The final “bang! bang!” is incredibly hokey but great. By comparison, Slateman does very little. It’s a big, samey droning tune with vocals hidden behind a wall in a windy hallway. Sorry, Godflesh. I don’t get whatever you’re trying to do here. Bang bang.

I guess Sigma Enigma has okay music, but the harsh vocals are really terrible and the awkwardly literal, straightforward lyrics even worse. Decent enough melodic guitar work, though. Meshuggah sound far more professional, with a heavily syncopated hardcore-tinged slab of open note seven string chugs. Lyrics don’t really matter here since they are unintelligible and devoid of absolutely any melody (as is the whole song). The middle section sounds like Opeth on cocaine, though, so I guess that’s enough to throw my vote to Future Breed Machine. Curious what effect they used to make it sound like someone coding an app after the breakdown.

Supernaut has a classic main riff and killer dynamics. The solo is a bit too long for what it is and the main riff repeats a tad too often, but it’s a cool song. Killing Yourself To Live is far more meandering, but has loads more depth. Ozzy is surprisingly moving here, with a more powerful, nuanced vocal than usual. Did they cover this with Dio? Seems like a tune he would have absolutely crushed. The bridge riff feels a bit like a knockoff Paperback Writer, but that’s okay. I actually like Ozzy singing along with the guitar line in the bluesy bridge, it works for the song. It’s not a 10/10 Sabbath song, but I dig it.

Triumphant Gleam…I….I just hate it. I just can’t. Kampfar starts out terribly, but at least the production is alright. The spooky half-time bridge with the organ synths is awesome. Rekviem pulls out some cool music in its second half and gets an easy vote from me.

 

[MindRuler]

Never really liked Hush, so a rather easy vote for  Unchained although the song features some silly vocals but it is what it is.

Pretty good ideas in Genocide but as a whole a pretty forgettable Priest track. After Forever isn´t among the best Sabbaths but it is what it is.

Industrial metal and me never will be friends. I like some Rammstein but Feuerfrei isn´t on the list. Pity vote for Slateman. It is...right.

In this next match are bands I never listen to, the few Meshuggah songs I heard in the past made me realize I had to avoid them at all costs. I simply can´t stand their sound. This song is no exception so Sigma Enigma wins by default.
Please LC tell me there aren´t anymore Meshuggahs in the game. If there are, well then I´ll have to accept it. It is what it is.

Another Ozzy round. Neither of these songs are top but Supernaut has the coolest riffs.

Darkthrone again? This is way out of my comfort zone like their other song earlier in the GMSC.
Some surprisingly nice melodies in the Kampfar song so my vote goes to Rekviem.

 

[JudasMyGuide]

(is Ozzy advocating for us to find Jesus? )

From what I gather, Geezer Butler, who wrote the lyrics, is Catholic (there is no "was" for Catholics, technically; apart from possibly achieving a true schism, it's semel Catholicus, semper Catholicus) and while I wouldn't expect him to be particularly devout or even practicing, I take this as his reaction to the band being called and considered Satanic back in the day - which they never ever were; provocateurs, maybe, but indeed always rather spiritual (even their very first track, the eponymous tritone one, is, after all, literally about meeting a dark presence and desperately calling to God for help).

(When they released 13, I found it somewhat funny that the provocative title God Is Dead? that had Nietzsche on the cover of the single, still had the question mark there in its name and was once more again about a personal crisis and ended with the twist of the chorus into "I don't believe that God is dead!")

This very song doesn't fit something I said before, but I'll get to that in the general write-up.

 

[Kalata]

Both are really cool songs, but Van Halen's song is a bit more ''rock'' so it gets my vote.
Priest's song is one of their most interesting ones from the 70's and I like it, while this Black Sabbath song does not impress me.
Battle of Black Sabbath! Supernaut has some really cool riffs.

 

[Diesel 11]

Please LC tell me there aren´t anymore Meshuggahs in the game. If there are, well then I´ll have to accept it. It is what it is.

“New Millennium Cyanide Christ” and “Bleed” at least deserve to be here. Really important songs in the evolution of djent and beyond that just fantastic songs. When Meshuggah are on point you can just get lost in their rhythms.

 

[Shmoolikipod]

“New Millennium Cyanide Christ” and “Bleed” at least deserve to be here. Really important songs in the evolution of djent and beyond that just fantastic songs. When Meshuggah are on point you can just get lost in their rhythms.

Looks like we have Bleed and Broken Cog, so no NMCC which is a shame. I wanted to nominate some Catch 33, but it's not worth it without the entire album...

 

[LooseCannon]

Please LC tell me there aren´t anymore Meshuggahs in the game. If there are, well then I´ll have to accept it. It is what it is.

There are two other Meshuggah songs. Blame the Radio EHS list and Night Prowler.

Darkthrone again? This is way out of my comfort zone like their other song earlier in the GMSC.

Darkthrone has a place in the tournament for sure. Their next and final song is group seeded.