The Greatest Metal Song Cup - Part II, Round 4, Matches 82-87

What is your favourite song in each match? Vote in all six matchups!

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  • Total voters
    8
  • Poll closed .
It's probably a moot point anyway, I am not a huge fan of either band, but I felt that Ogre Battle was better Queen (and more metal) than Sin City was AC/DC, but any of these tracks will probably get eliminated in the very next round anyway.

Do what you must, lads.
 
Metallica has stamped out Annihilator, while Gojira storms the Keep of Kalessin. AC/DC wins in the first kickoff over Queen. Blind Guardian topples Sacred Outcry's towers, while Angra drives Jag Panzer's last nail. Finally, Arcturus squeaks by one vote past Soen.







Part 1, Round 9, Matches 49-54


Play In Round
Match
49
Fear of the Dark Division​
Avenged Sevenfold - Afterlife
vs.
Buckethead - King James​
@KidInTheDark666
Nominators
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon
Links

Play In Round
Match
50
Murders in the Rue Morgue Division​
Megadeth - The Conjuring
vs.
Sepultura - Inner Self​
@srfc
Nominators
Popoff 500​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon
Links

Play In Round
Match 51
Murders in the Rue Morgue Division​
Death - 1000 Eyes
vs.
Fear Factory - Demanufacture​
@KiDDo
Nominators
Popoff 500​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon
Links

Play In Round
Match 51
Trios Match​
Match 51
Murders in the Rue Morgue Division​
Mötley Crüe - Dr. Feelgood​
vs.
Bon Jovi - Livin' On a Prayer​
vs.
Skid Row - Monkey Business​
Popoff 500​
Nominators
Radio EHS 100​
Nominators
Popoff 500​
Links
Links


Play In Round
Match 53
Kevin Shirley Division​
Monster Magnet - Powertrip
vs.
Korn - Right Now​
Popoff 500
Nominators
Best Music Art 100​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon
Links

Play In Round
Match 54
Kevin Shirley Division​
Turmion Katilot - Sikio
vs.
Tool - The Pot​
@KidInTheDark666
Nominators
Best Music Art 100​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon
Links
 
Tough matchup for my Death entry but still confident since it's not up against "Self Bias Resistor" or "Hunter-Killer" :shred:
 
Tough matchup for my Death entry but still confident since it's not up against "Self Bias Resistor" or "Hunter-Killer" :shred:
Oh, I think anything from Symbolic should be safe alright against anything from Fear Factory. This is my favourite from Demanufacture vs one of my bottom songs from Symbolic and I'm not certain which way I'll go myself...
 
Thank you for Arcturus guys, you know who you are.
The way you wrote it means we are now known as Arcturus guys.
That’s not the only good black metal related to masquerades. Ever listened to Diabolical Masquerade? Nightwork is a lovely album.
 
"Afterlife" has decent but derivative guitars, the singer's tone is less whiny and annoying than usual, and the chorus is actually pretty good, but the verses and the solo are a mess. "King James" has some cool, playful foreground tones and a nice chill vibe through the "verses", and I like the darker and more driving feel of the bridge section. A good instrumental. Neither track blew me away, and Avenged Sevenfold performed better than I was expecting, but sorry @KidInTheDark666, this is still an easy choice for @Diesel 11's nominee. Winner: Buckethead - "King James"

"The Conjuring" is one of those cool early Megadeth tracks that sometimes gets overlooked, and I like that it was nominated here. The sinister vibe is great, as are all the snaking guitar licks and sweet riffs. The verses explaining all the ceremonial steps verge on being too repetitive, and the chorus is really driven by the riff and the following guitar work rather than the flat vocals, but those are the only weaknesses IMO. "Inner Self" has some nice rhythmic change-ups, and the clean guitar in the middle is nice, but the vocals are mostly nonmelodic and disappointing, and almost everything about the guitar work is simpler and less interesting than its competitor. The solo almost elevates the song a bit, but doesn't quite get there. A very easy decision for @srfc's nominee. Winner: Megadeth - "The Conjuring"

"1000 Eyes" has great, interesting guitar work and a nice proggy structure throughout. The vocals are non-melodic and generally bad, though nowhere near as bad as those of a modern extreme vocalist. "Demanufacture" is largely one-note thrashy industrial music with mostly non-melodic "bro shout" vocals and atmospheric synths. It's loud and you can bob your head to it, but that's about all it's got going for it. Another easy call for @KiDDo's nominee. Winner: Death - "1000 Eyes"

In the hair band three-way (how appropriate!) we have "Dr. Feelgood", which is pretty appealing commercial Crüe with a solid riff and memorable vocal lines, and a mostly strong main solo. Then there's "Livin' On A Prayer", which is iconic for so many reasons. The talk box guitar with a solid solo, the great vocal melodies, the explosive chorus that gets taken up to 11 for the final round. This is a pretty much perfect poppy hard rock song. "Monkey Business" has nice bluesy beginnings, a strong groove, a nice interlude, and a great performance from Sebastian Bach, but it can't really stand up effectively against its two competitors here. All of these are good songs, but only one of them is truly great. Winner: Bon Jovi - "Livin' On A Prayer"

"Power Trip" has an energetic main riff and occasional bursts of catchy vocal melodies, but the song mostly just treads water and repeats itself. "Right Now" has an appealing rhythm, but the vocals are only half melodic and the backing vocals are pretty icky, and the "shut up, I'll bust you up" part repeats so much that I soon start agreeing profusely with the lyrics. Not a fan of either track, but I'd much rather listen to the Monster Magnet song if forced to choose. Winner: Monster Magnet - "Power Trip"

"Sikiö" more or less steals the synths from Billy Joel's "Pressure" to merge them with nu metal riffage, techno sounds, and crappy non-melodic vocals with melodic backup singing. No sir, don't like it. Meanwhile, the first bass line in "The Pot" has more worthwhile musical content in it than the entirety of its competitor. While this Tool song goes into the "music I appreciate more than I enjoy" bucket, it does have some very nice rhythmic interplay that offsets the less compelling vocal lines. Sorry, @KidInTheDark666, but this is an easy win for the list nominee. Winner: Tool - "The Pot"
 
I'm unapologetically a big fan of Avenged Sevenfold. They write good songs, have solid talent, and of all the metalcore-turned-Arena Rock bands of their time, they're the only one I can think of that are always trying to do interesting things with their sound. Save for one massive miss (Hail to the King) each album has added an interesting dimension to their sound. Afterlife in particular has held up as a bit of a classic over the years and kinda represents them at a peak of pop songwriting. It's a solid song with a great hook and fantastic guitar solo. A pretty tightly written hard rock anthem. On the other hand, it's also no secret around here that I am a big Buckethead fan and King James is a classic. I'm a sucker for Bucketheads' jams and I think there's a lot more compositional value in his songs than he gets credit for. King James is a great example when you consider the amount of varying parts and melodies that happen throughout the song. It's instrumental and guitar is clearly a focus, but it isn't overly shreddy and the song isn't simply a vehicle for a solo. At the same time, sometimes a song like King James sounds like a framework for more and is somewhat incomplete sounding. You could argue that neither song really has any business in this game, but Afterlife is a more complete experience so I'm going to give it to A7X by a hair.

The Conjuring is classic thrash at its finest. Great riffing, unexpected tempo changes, and the obligatory weak link vocalist. I enjoy The Conjuring for its rough and rugged garage Metal vibe, but Megadeth really needed that strong lead guitarist to take them to the next level. The riffs are there though and are the main event. Sepultura is one of those bands I've meant to get into but they've long eluded me. Inner Self is OK but kinda generic thrash. Conjuring wins for the riffs.

1000 Eyes is a great pick. Classic Death with insane riffing and playing. Epic melodies throughout such as the octaves harmony at the end of the track. Chuck sounds great on vocals and the drumming is wild. Just an all around classic. I can respect Fear Factory for bringing more extreme/industrial sounds to the (primarily American) masses but it just doesn't hold a candle. Not a bad song, but Death takes it easily.

That three way matchup, ugh. I would be happy never to hear any Bon Jovi song ever again and I'm close to that point with Motley Crue as well. I almost gave it to Skid Row by default but if we're being real, there's a reason that one of the three songs if far less known than the other two. Dr. Feelgood but I don't feel good about it.

Monster Magnet is the kind of stoner rock that just doesn't do it for me. Not a fan of the vocal styles and the lyrics are just obnoxious. I just don't see the appeal. I'm much more into the stoner metal variety of bands like Electric Wizard, Kyuss, and even Clutch (although I'm not a big fan of the latter for similar reasons as Monster Magnet). As for Korn, they have some songs I enjoy but this is not one of them. For the first time in this game I'm actually at a loss of what to vote for. I guess Power Trip was the less obnoxious of the two?

I hadn't heard Turmion Kätilöt before and I have to say I wasn't expecting anything like that. Kinda weird Eurovision Black Metal and definitely not my thing. The Pot is a great second tier classic Tool song. Really love the riffing and the way Maynard's vocals interact with the rest of the instrumental.

Yikes folks. A lot of the songs in this round were awful. Do better next time. :P
 
Avenged Sevenfold vs Buckethead, both great songs, I liked Bucket better.
Megadeth vs Sepultura, seriously epic battle, Sepultura for this.
Death vs Fear Factory, another great battle with marginal victor Fear Factory.
Motley Crew vs Bon Jovi vs Skid Row, not even close, in retrospective I can recognise the whole Black Album in the heavy riffs of Dr. Feelgood, great moment for the Crew.
Monster Magnet vs Korn, I was a fan of Magnet's and haven't ever listened to Korn back in the day but today I find Korn more interesting.
Turmion Katilot vs Tool, Tool, naturally.

Guys, this was the best round so far, thanks for the nominations @KidInTheDark666, @KiDDo, @srfc, @Diesel 11, great groups great matches some serious metal here.

Ha! Some people had quite a different take for the round. :D

Yikes folks. A lot of the songs in this round were awful. Do better next time. :p
 
Avenged Sevenfold is one of those bands I'm periodically trying to get into... you know, because I feel I should, with their overall prestige and recognition... but just as periodically, I repeatedly fail to do so, because... well, they just sound really immature, I guess. The guitar harmonies are rather nice, the late Rev was actually pretty competent, but the sound of the riffs, the sound of the vocals, it just sounds like something you should grow out of, as a performer and as a listener. Also the chorus is more sugary than NSync. I won't say this sounds like something that should belong on the American Pie 2 soundtrack - and that one was pretty good for its time - but it's close.
So far, the only track by them I was genuinely close to liking was Nightmare ... and there they were trying to channel their inner Metallica as much as possible, to an almost ridiculous degree. But here?
I'd say the pars pro toto, the significant indicator would be the fact the (arguably) most well-known member of the band calls himself - still, after all these years - Synyster Gates. Yes, with the ypsilons and everything.

Buckethead is, in a way, a complete opposite - I have absolutely no inclination to get into his music whatsoever (blame the general obnoxiousness of his image; a bloke that relelases 200 albums during one year, calling them all "Pike" is not someone who should be listened to, purely on principle), however most of the work I have heard has been admittedly pretty good. Mostly. This here song is one of those pulling the average down, I guess. On its own, it's a fine little track, nothing special among the guitar instrumental tracks as released by MacAlpine, Satch, Vai and others... well, I correct myself, would be a fine little track, if it wasn't produced in an obviously intentionally annoying way. The electronic buzzings and squeaks and whistles and whatever else that sounds like you were dancing tarantella on a toy calculator, it's just a terrible idea. A terrible, horrid idea. Maybe the current set up I'm listening on is amplifying its worst aspects, so I'm not trying to base it on this fact alone, but it brings the track down, definitely.
Actually, scratch that, I have just now replayed Vai's Velorum and some of his choices there annoy me to a similar degree. So it's probably just my current mood. Still, I think he's overdoing it with the obnoxious tones and even apart from that, the composition is nice, but not necessarily something I'd be inclined to love.
I'm not saying Soothsayer from the same album is downright better, but I certainly understand the appeal more.

I guess I shouldn't in good conscience vote for Mr Bucket, since he's been voted for enough - mainly by virtue of him voting for himself all the time, if you know what I mean - and on the surface, the admittedly adolescent aesthetic, appearance and altogether attitude adorning the Avenged is possibly more palatable after all ... and anyway, their song doesn't sound as if it was trying to chase the rats out of your house.

-----

Man, that Popoff list is pretty crazy. I didn't check it myself to see what's in there and by now I'd be expecting this


just as much as this


from it. Anyway, this is certainly one of the more laudable choices, as we once again dig into their best (?) album Beneath the Remains. This one starts more in the mid tempo range, with a rather captivating train-chug and despite occasional speed-ups, the song never switches tempo completely. And yet, the switches are fluent and rather addictive and Kisser's solo is still pretty out there - and probably fitting the song more than the one on the title track I was talking about the last time. Admittedly, outside the context of the album, it might not be as special, but as far as 80s thrash mid tempo album tracks go, it is pretty solid.

For a band as generally consistent as Megadeth, some of their albums seem pretty overrated. Peace Sells in particular usually works for me when it's being catchy (the title track) or relentlessy hectic (My Last Words), but The Conjuring is neither. Some of the guitar ideas are nice (especially in the intro), but Dave's vocals are even more annoying than usual and the way the main riff returns in the cleaner, isolated version around the third minute is honestly quite cool, but as a whole it doesn't do it for me. Not a bad song, but nothing special either.

I suppose I should go with Sepultura, who are going to have it tougher here on the forum, it seems.

-----

1000 Eyes is, like possibly only my fourth or fifth favourite track on the best Death album ever (my absolute favourite being Empty Words, now, then, always), but it's still Schuldiner at his prime; the ability to accentuate the killer riffs (though maybe less pinch harmonics would be better), the way the song is constructed, being the sum of various parts and yet sounding cohesive and fluent (Symbolic would be the last album of his to do this well, IMHO), and yes, somewhat moving away from the original death metal paradigm and becoming ... whatever latter-era Death are ("spiritual death metal"?) is inherently great.
It wouldn't have to be put against fucking Fear Factory for me to vote for it. I mean, I kinda get the appeal, I really do, I actually even like groove metal as a whole (though this might be more industrial than groove), but just like Papa Roach, Staind or Limp Bizkit, Fear Factory should be best left forgotten. This particular song especially - it just does nothing for me. It sounds like Meshuggah, but without the chops. Or Pantera, if they made their The Unspoken King. Sorry, Popoff, you surprised me pleasantly once again in this round, twice would be asking too much, I guess.

Death and it's really no contest here.


Shit, it's getting really late, I'll finish the other half of the matches tomorrow.
 
As usual, A7X have awesome music with incredible, surprising guitar work and truly fucking awful, whiny, nasally vocal melodies. The solo is super weird and cool. The guitarmonies are as great as always. And yet, M. Shadows (aka the James LaBrie of metalcore) continues to be in the band. Give me something off of Waking The Fallen (their only great record and pre-vocal blow out) and I’d vote for it in a (second) heartbeat. The Buckethead song has an annoying intro riff, but otherwise great playing. It’s a bit riff salad (as is usual from Sir Bucket) and a bit too in love with the octave pedal, but it’s actually far more succinct and concise then most of what I’ve heard. Plus, it has one major thing going for it: a complete lack of M. Shadows. A vote for empty KFC meal boy.

The Conjuring is a masterpiece. From the creepy intro to that wild solo after the first title drop break to THAT FUCKING RIFF in the middle…it’s untouchable. Sorry, Sepultura. Your basic chugging and amateurish double bass are worthless here. It’s a ridiculously easy vote for The Conjuring. Obey.

I have no taste for either vocal in match 3, but the riffs and proggy, manic changes in the Death song are way more interesting than the syncopated chugging by FF.

I hate Motley Crue. This band sucks. The only thing about this song that doesn’t suck is the production. A+ for Bob Rock. Livin On a Prayer is stone cold classic, it’s true. Bon Jovi could write a killer pop-hard rock tune. But the cheesy synths kill me a bit. Plus the fact that Jon has literally never been able to sing this song live makes me hate it the tiniest bit. Still, a classic song. Oh, and once again another A+ for Bob Rock’s production. Monkey Business is a dynamic, absolutely killer slab of sleazy metal that crosses the bridge somewhere between Aerosmith Lane and Soundgarden Blvd. Sebastian Bach is in his godly prime, the music is hooky and groovy…it’s just rad and slick. I can even forgive the kinda lame gang vocals in the chorus. The bluesy intro and breakdown are awesome. Damn this band was a force to be reckoned with for 2 albums there. Shame.

I’ve never really listened to Monster Magnet, but this is fun as hell. Kinda sounds like Foo Fighters if they didn’t care about being on the radio. I’m enjoying the hell out of this so much that I’m still singing the chorus halfway through another KoRn song about cutting yourself in the corner of the basement while daddy tries to rape your favorite stuffed animal. There is no match here. In Korn’s own words, “I fucking hate you!” I’ll party with Monster Magnet for sure.

Sikiö sounds like Rammstein covering Powerman 5000 in Finnish for some reason. It’s…not for me. Fun, though. I am no Tool fanboy. I kind of equate them to Beatlemania: half of their stuff is good (some great), and half is utter shit. The Pot, however, has been and probably always will be my favorite Tool song. It proves that they can write a damn catchy tune while still retaining their progginess and not cram it full of unnecessary sound effects and whining or synchronized rhythmic wanking. It’s an absolute banger, as the youth say, and I shall be smoking The Pot here beyond a shadow of a doubt.
 
I'm much more into the stoner metal variety of bands like Electric Wizard, Kyuss, and even Clutch (although I'm not a big fan of the latter for similar reasons as Monster Magnet).
Whoa whoa whoa now.

What is this about Clutch and having bad lyrics? I generally respect everything you have to say in your critiques, but that being said I feel rather victimized. And I will seek substantial compensation, whether legally, legal-ish or otherwise.
 
I just can't get into Avenged Sevenfold. They strike me as angsty, immature, whiny, and try-too-hard. This song is no different from the rest. The Buckethead piece is great; some of the effect stylings remind me of Joe Satriani.

The Conjuring is a classic tune from a classic album. Killer guitar, excellent bass grooves, and batshit crazy lyrics about creepy cult rituals. Sign me up! (For the song, not the ritual). That riff at 2:55 is massive! The Sepultura song does nothing for me, so it's an easy vote for Megadeth.

I can't stand the vocals in either of these bands, but Death's track has better music. It's too bad, because I'd enjoy Fear Factory's mechanical metal with a solid singer.

This may be a cock rock match, but nothing defines the term more than Mötley Crüe. I truly cannot stand them. The Skid Row song isn't bad, but Livin' on a Prayer is great. Whether it's playing in the background at work, karaoke night, or a Cubs game, this song is a classic. Bon Jovi.

Monster Magnet by default. Why is there nu-metal in this game? And so much of it?

The one thing Sikio has over The Pot is its ability to make me laugh. Not only is Tool's song the clear winner here, but it's by far the best song in this entire round. The rhythm section grooves in this band are exquisite.
 
The first match was the toughest.
I really liked the Buckethead song but the Avenged Sevenfold one had such a great chorus. Not a fan of the vocals though.

I enjoyed the Sepultura song much more.

If it was Self Bias Resistor we would have had a better competitor, now it´s just an easy vote for Death.

Monkey Business isn't among the masterpieces on Slave To The Grind and the Crüe are awful.
Desmond Child Bon Jovi by far.

I dislike Korn! Monster Magnet all the way!
And the song itself wasn´t that great.

Never heard of Turmion Katilot, I suppose it's meant to be funny but it´s rather unlistenable.
Not in the SunO)))) league yet though.
Never been a Tool fan and probably never will but they win by default.

Poorest round so far.
 
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Missed the previous round, but my votes probably wouldn't have changed anything.

Bar a few songs, I really don't like Avenged Sevenfold, and I especially don't like the singer's voice. His rasp sounds incredibly artificial, and really rubs me the wrong way. I have heard "Afterlife" before, and it's honestly not one I feel like giving another listen. It's dull, the chorus sounds like it's lifted from a completely different tune and doesn't fit in, and once again the vocals are annoying. Most of what I've heard so far from Buckethead hasn't clicked with me either, but "King James" has some pleasant melodies and a nice, cohesive mood overall. Gonna vote for Buckethead.

The next match is tough. "The Conjuring" is obviously classic Megadeth; frantic and chaotic with great riffing and awesome, creepy lyrics. On the other hand, I was pleasantly suprised with this Sepultura-track - it started out like Slayer-lite, but took some nice twists and turns along the way; once again I liked the riffing and soloing. I'm tempted to vote for Megadeth, but I know they have even better songs coming up later in the cup, so I'm gonna go for Sepultura here.

Symbolic is probably my favourite Death-album; it features Chuck at his creative peak, the sound is immensely heavy, and man, those drums - off the top of my head, it might be the best sounding drums ever on a metal album, and Gene Hoglan's performance is simply out of this world; him and Chuck were a perfect fit. I wouldn't rate "1000 Eyes" as the best song on the album, but it's still amazing, and this Fear Factory tune with mindless, monotone vocals simply can't compete. Death.

I hate everything about Mötley Crüe, and I can't imagine any kind of situation where I would actively vote for them. "Livin' on a Prayer" is one of those guilty pleasures that comes on the radio once in a while - I would never actively listen to Bon Jovi, but I'm pretty much entertained and having fun through the entire song. "Monkey Business" actually has very cool, heavy riff, but the rest of the song doesn't quite pick up. I think I gotta go with the catchiest, most well-written song here. Bon Jovi gets my vote.

"Powertrip" is good, upbeat fun. I'm not familiar with Monster Magnet, but they do have a somewhat refreshing energy to them that I wouldn't mind checking out more of their music. I also like that their singer sounds a bit like Chris Jericho. On the other hand, Korn is shit as always. Monster Magnet.

Eh... Despite a strangely catchy chorus (even if I can't understand what they're singing!), "Sikiö" is definitely not for me. I'm not big on Tool in any way - in fact I find them quite overrated - and I'm certainly not blown away by "The Pot", but this is an easy vote. Tool.
 
I will post the second half of the write-up later, I'm just honestly surprised at the hatred and vitriol thrown at Motley Crue - I have also always disliked them in the past, but since I've recently tried to actually listen to them for once, I came to conclusion that
1.) the band is instrumentally/technically/production-wise on a different level than most of their peers, especially those of Poison, Bon Jovi (and I like Bon Jovi quite a lot), Def Leppard, Whitesnake and others ... and even their writing is rather solid in general. In fact, out of the general glam idiom, only Extreme come to mind as a more technically proficient band... and that's mostly down to the talents of Nuno Bettencourt. And it's debatable whether Extreme are actually glam after all.
2.) Dr. Feelgood - which I discovered relatively recently (I genuinely didn't know most of Crue's discography) - is one of the songs that's actually genuninely great, doesn't matter which band did it, it slaps like motherfucker, I mean it. The groove is infectious, the production is pristine, I would have expected more appreciation here.

And now you've made me actually go and defend fucking Motley Crue. Shame on you. But I found the general attitude somewhat prejudiced.
 
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