Loading ...Some years ago I read an article of the flagship of Finnish metal music, Amorphis. They started as a death metal band in 1990, and examples of their great early production are tracks like Karelia, Black Winter Day, Exile of the Sons of Uisliu, Sign from the North Side, Black Winter Day, In the Beginning and The Castaway.
The real success began when they released they masterpiece, Elegy. Awesome opening sounds of Better Unborn blasted out gazillion times from my ghetto blaster, continuing with the faster and furious Against Widows. On Rich And Poor opened my eyes to melodic death metal, while My Kantele forced me to sit down, close my eyes, enjoy a glass of whiskey and fly away with my dreams. Amorphis was in my head 5-7 hours a day during late 90’s. Then happened what?
Amorphis released Tuonela and Am Universum and turned to progressive and stoner metal. Even though I do enjoy tracks such as Divinity and Drifting Memories, but they dont’ give me such kicks as Drowned Maid. I realized I miss death metal grunts and doom sounds. When Amorphis released Far From The Sun, I quit buying new albums, but I kept on listening to old material. I think Pasi Koskinen (ex vocalist) felt the same as he left Amorphis. Amorphis had changed from melodic death metal to progressive and stoner. Latest albums of Amorphis contain again elements of death metal, which I find good, but the bands doesn’t still sound as great as in the early 1990’s.
Nowadays Amoprhis sounds pretty good and is getting better and better, but there are few things I cannot stand. Check the video below. I HATE that nu-metal jumping of Tomi Joutsen (vocalist)! And what the fuck are those 40 years old ladies with their cameras doing in the audience? Are they looking for death metal? I guess not. Come on! Where are good old moshers? With this kind of riffs and death metal grunts one NEEDS a moshing! Look at the audience at 1:07 minutes. Yes, I know we Finns are pretty quiet and shy, but this audience is just standing. I see no heads banging. I hate to see great bands playing their classic masterpieces to audience like this. This is waste or good music. No, fuck this is raping!
Now, let’s take a look at Satyricon, a Norwegian black metal band. Just like Amorphis, Satyricon was founded in 1990. They are known from their classic black metal album Bad Medieval Times which contains masterpieces such as Walk the Path of Sorrow, Dark Medieval Times and Min Hyllest Til Vinterland. Satyricon’s debut album is a great piece of Norwegian black metal, one of the classics.
In their next albums, The Shadowthrone, Satyricon continued with black metal, even though flutes did not appear in this album anymore. Third album of Satyricon was again one great metal album, even though I find it more furious. Nemesis Divina contains awesome tracks such as Mother North.
In 1999 Satyricon released Rebel Extravaganza, which is labeled as black metal, but it clearly contains elements of industrial metal. Satyricon started to explore different sounds. Latest two albums of Satyricon, called Volcano and Now Diabolica! are also black metal albums, but they sounds much more “rocking” than older material. Satyricon’s awesome guitars are still there, but the rhythm has changed and albums are much easier to understand. They are clearly targeted to bigger masses. For many old-school black metal fans this has been disappointing.
Why these great bands, Amorphis and Satyricon, together with many other big names change their genre or style? Reasons are probably many, but change is not always just bad. With Amorphis I feel it has been negative, but in case of Satyricon the change has been interesting and positive. Sure I still enjoy their old music, but I also find the new stuff interesting. I have always loved guitars of Satyricon and they are still there, and combination of those guitars and new rhythm sounds cool.
Many death metal bands change their style towards progressive or even rock in order to reach more fans. They make music for living and selling 10.000 records in five years does not bring money enough for living. Remember what happened with Metallica in middle of 1990’s? A great thrash metal band cut their hair and released Load and Reload albums. Was that disappointing? Oh yes, if you ask me, but with that move Metallica found lots of new fans. There are zillions of people who say Metallica’s best song is Enter Sandman just because they haven’t heard the albums before Black and they are not familiar with thrash metal.
Bands get older and artists get interested in various new things. Their lives usually stabilize and they don’t carry so much hate anymore. Hate works as the fuel of metal music and if you don’t hate anything, it is pretty difficult to create such music as Arch Enemy’s. Bands evolve and they want to experiments different sounds and themes. Even though I might feel disappointed with Amorphis, I find the evolution of bands great. I love discovering new music and every now and then old bands release interesting new but different music. One great example is Celtic Frost.
This post was written by Headbanger and its original location is in Metal-Music-Videos.Com blog. For more great metal music articles, please visit Metal-Music-Videos.Com!
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Hi there!
You are touching on a really delicate subject here, friend.
A few of the phenomenal bands that did their ‘big change’ may be listed as:
Paradise Lost - after “Draconian Times”
Anathema - after “Eternity”
Megadeth - after “Countdown to Extinction”
Moonspell - after “Sin/Pecado”
Samael - after “Ceremony of the Opposites”
Amorphis - after “Elegy”
Tiamat - after “Clouds”
Actually all of them actually made exceptionally memorable albums upon making the ‘big change’, and opened themselves to new directions, expanding the horizons to which we metalheads are used to. It’s this ‘opening up’ that took more or less time to assimilate, and after that ‘bitter feeling’ lapses, you sort-of kick yourself: “hey, i’ve been missing THAT much?”
Now, just imagine this: instead of the “Black Album” Metallica puts out rehashed versions of “… And Justice for All”, “Ride the Lightning”, “Master of Puppets” year after year, a bit like My Dying Bride is currently doing. I believe that, just like us, we have careers, and it brings us to discover new things, and evolve and acquire maturity with time. While these musicians do their stuff every day. Every day. Every day, on and on play the same songs, the same rhythm, the same structure, repeated before each and every audience, evening after evening…
Yes, as you may imagine, it may get boring after some years, that’s why they develop that urge to try ’something else’. It’s natural for any creative person. Creative people are not like the pot-makers in, say, India, or Cambodia. Pot makers have to make pots by the quantity to guarantee themselves a living. Not musicians. If artists did that, well, they start calling themselves celine dion, britney spears, etc…
So, to the young metal-heads reading this, just cool down when you find your favourite (ferociously-named) band starts trying new sounds, take a break, and try new bands, and come back after some time to your favourite old band. Your feelings will change, and as strange as it may sound, yes, you WILL appreciate your band’s new music better.
Cheers!
Akash, thank you for your long and great comment! I appreciate you took the time and wrote your opinion.
Yes, I agree with you. Those evolving bands like Metallica have their career, and just like in “traditional industries”, also in music industry you need to evolve and create something new. Even though I did not really enjoy Am Universum of Amorphis, I am still their fan and I listen to the new stuff as well. In today’s post I shoot down the DVD of Bruce Dickinson, but I still worship Bruce as a singer and his career in Iron Maiden. Iron Maiden Bruce Dickinson is a pure diamond.
Even though bands change their genre or style, it is not always band. I would say only few bands loose their touch, but most bands come back with great stuff. Amorphis is a great example of this. Oh yeah, and Satyricon as well, even though they sound much different today if compared to Dark Medieval Times. I still enjoy them.
Hey there,
I’m really glad someone is analyzing this, because it is definitely one of the most aggravating, but interesting, things in metal music. I think you did a good job talking about the changes made, and as for WHY they changed, I can offer you a “public relations” viewpoint I suppose. I am a PR student, and so from my sense of the world, and my sense of the music industry, I’m pretty sure that changes in bands’ styles are due to two things: 1) Maturation and the inability to write the same songs when band members are 35 as they wrote at age 20. And 2) Pressure from changing music environments or their labels to try something new, branch out and attempt to grasp new audiences, which I think you did mention.
I find it annoying that Amorphis changed as well; I used to love them! And not so much anymore. But I understand that with so many changes in what’s popular, marketable, and what bands are surrounded by in terms of new music must affect their own music as well.
What do you think of the changes In Flames has gone through? I’m curious….
Thanks!
Hey, nice to hear that you like my post. It is also interesting to see that your thinking the same in with this issue. Yes, I meant exactly those two points you listed. I think with Satyricon their record company pushes the band to try something new and “easier to understand”. This helps them to find new fans and sell more.
Amorphis used to be a unique band. Nowadays they are closer to other bands and I don’t find them as interesting as years ago. Anyhow, they have few good songs, but the material from their early days is awesome.
In Flames? Well, I expected a lot from their new album, but I must say I did not find it as good as they earlier albums. It feels like they are on the same road as Amorphis. I like their music, it’s nice, but I find myself listening to something else. Latest In Flames just doesn’t kick my ass.
I just checked your blog. Cool band those 14-year old dudes! I noticed you have a poll running. I voted for Ensiferum. They are good, but I miss the times of Jari Mäenpää. You should add Wintersun to your poll
Hello again!
I would add Wintersun to my poll, they are a definite favorite (aka I am infatuated with them), but I’m focusing right now on who I should interview at this festival in Massachusetts–sadly Wintersun is not playing. Hopefully, they will be added on to Wacken…
Regarding Amorphis and In Flames: In Flames IS on the same road as Amorphis; they went from in a category of their own, playing metal in a style that could be categorized as death, but also stood apart from the masses, and introduced a lot of great sounds into their songs. I considered myself a fan a few years back, but I honestly don’t even listen to them anymore (or they would have been part of my survey!). Although I admired their adventurous attempt to push the boundaries of their style, I’m not sure it worked. I know many other former In Flames fans (and Amorphis fans, same deal) who are in the same boat.
Do you know of any situations in which a great band actually improved their sound by changing?
I’m not sure if Opeth could fit that, but I genuinely believe they are one of the greatest contemporary progressive metal bands because they CAN progress and change but maintain their unique style through it all.
Have you already agreed interviews with those? Sounds good if you can make it. I definitely want to read your interview of Ensiferum.
I agree with you. In Flames is one of those who created so called “Göteburg sound”, which is typical in Göteborg are in Sweden. During the last few years their sound has changed and I don’t find them as interesting as earlier. Anyhow, they are a great band, but I just don’t get kicks so much anymore. I rather listen to Trivium nowadays
Another disappointing band has been Stratovarius whose early albums are much better than the last ones they released.
I gotta think about your question. I’m at work now and a bit busy, so I need a little bit time.
Opeth is one interesting adn great band. Check out also Twilightning http://metal-music-videos.com/category/twilightning/ I really like them.
Hi! Stumbled on your website, and just like anybody love fools around I fell in love with it because I love metal music. By the way, great analysis. A band jumping to another genre is like experiencing culture shock once you’ve moved to a foreign country. Same way that I felt way back then when Metallica released Load sometime in ‘96. Doesn’t sound like them anymore. And its very alienating as well.
Thanks for your comment, Tony! I’m glad to hear you like my humble metal blog. Metallica is a good example of this topic because they are so famous and they changed so radically their style and sound.