DEBUNKING / DECONSTRUCTING: GOLDEN AGE OF METAL?

 

 

ORIGINAL POLISH VERSION 

Pre-80s 

The common assumption about Heavy Metal music is that its heydays fall upon the 80s, for a very simple reason - they were truly a formative years of the genre developing and finally separating itself from Hard Rock roots, therefore becoming a serious contender for a popular music among young people, even if for a short amount of time, and also due to nostalgia of people, who were growing up then. It wasn't the only subculture fighting for recognition, but it did have a huge amount of dedicated people globally, comparable to how later Rap music infected the youth in the next decade (but it's a topic I will touch upon some other time, maybe next week)...

I'm not going to discuss the socio-political context, as we all know that it's a road to nowhere, instead, will mainly focus on trends and changes in tastes.

The 80s

Action provokes reaction, and the more Heavy Metal was still being confused with Hard Rock, the more there were kids, who after discovering Venom, Metallica, or Slayer, also decided to grab a guitar, and be even more radical than their idols.

There is this underrated contribution of Punk ethos, which influenced people in regards to creating and distributing music, namely, without any compromise and outside of the mainstream. That's how the underground was born, which was in opposition to then-Pop Metal trend, a.k.a. Hair Metal. But each decade apparently had its own boogeyman.

What also might have been a decisive factor is that everything felt new and fresh, without any limits or rules set in stone. What was called Black Metal then would in future be labelled as Death Metal, and vice versa. As such, the lack of clear boundaries, or norms, numerous options were avalaible, which would direct the evolution of Metal music. The first styles to which there is a general consensus are Heavy, Speed, Thrash and to some extent Power, due to its biggest popularity. It doesn't mean that there weren't other, more extreme genres, but they didn't have any serious push, nor strength to dominate the scene, unlike only few years later.

The "good times" ended with the dawn of Grunge (another topic for future discussion), and very quickly, many Hair Metal bands turned into Alt Metal. Many reverred bands, like Alice In Chains (whom I respect) did go through such metamorphosis. Just like Soundgarden, where Chris Cornell called its style Neo Metal. In USA the trends quickly came and went, and the classic mode was extinguishing itself more or less after 1987, which resulted in the "journalists" proclaiming that "Metal is Dead", and jumped onto another popular thing. Ironically, this turned out to be a blessing, as the only people that remained, were those who were authentically fascinated by the possibilites provided by Heavy Metal.

The 90s

But just as many people will die on the hill that it was 80s that were a definitive decade, there are numerous arguments in favor towards 90s as the most important era for the development of Metal music. As not only the majority of popular subgenres started then, but also because it was the "ultimate" decade for the subculture, and what it meant for people as far as a lifestyle.

In 90s we truly gained Doom, Gothic, Industrial, and Symphonic, while Black, Death, and Grind evolved - the latter was another notable example of Punks contributing to the Metal scene (and not the last time). Thrash as a genre tried to evolve into Groove Metal, which despite it contemporary popularity, is hardly remembered fondly nowadays, and is treated even worse, than the attempts at experimenting with female vocals and adding keyboards. Speed Metal basically felt extinct, without any hope for return. Lets not forget about Rage Against The Machine - the first genuinely serious attempt at mixing Metal with Rap, which would have important influence in the future. It's sometimes hard to believe how many key releases happend as early as 1991, and this was only the beginning.

Despite its global reach, the Metal genre felt pretty insular in its character, making it an equivalent of a secret club. This trait was exploited by Norwegians, who pushed Black Metal towards its logical end, into something more than only a satanic image and poor man's attempt at Speed / Thrash Metal hybrid. Death Metal on the other hand, after a failed flirtation with maligned mainstream, started to radicalize itself even further in the area of technique, intensity and breaking more barriers and taboos.

Trends were changing even quicker than a decade before. There were short-living attempts at Death 'n' Roll, Melodic Death Metal, Symphonic Black, or Beauty Meets Beast (Doom featuring both growling and delicate female vocal). Constantly something was happening all the time and the audience slowly, but surely was becoming more sophisticated and elitist, or maybe, even snobbish...

The 00s

Near the end of 90s there would be an explosion of another popular hybrid. The "universally" hated by all "trve / orthodox" Metalheads... the infamous Nu Metal. No matter what anyone thinks about this genre, it was undisputably the last time, when you could hear loud guitars and aggression in both radio and TV. It's easy to dismiss bands like Deftones, Korn, System of a Down, Mudvayne, Slipknot, etc. but the truth is that they were the bridge between the "normal" world, and something much darker. They served the same function, which Smashing Pumpkins, Marilyn Manson, or even Motley Crue, and W.A.S.P. did before. With a minor difference - Nu Metal did not necessarily had a commercial appeal. The succes seemed to be against the odds.

And because this decade feels the closest to me, due to the fact that I was growing up back then, and there will be more people like me opening up about this era, it shouldn't come off as a surprise that Nu Metal will be possibly re-evaluated, even if there is never going to be a reneaissance of this genre - albeit everything is possible, with a head full of dreams, as we sing it here, in Poland. It's pretty much natural - nostalgia is a hell of a drug.

Because what is the main point? You see, it was the first time the past met with the future, due to the magical invention called the internet, which arguably could be considered the best tool for giving equal opportunities and possibilities for humankind worldwide. Sure, the tech was still in progress, and majority of known social media and platforms were about to start, but there was already an option to get the goods, even if from not quite legal source. It was the time, when arrived the first vinyl and tape rips, and many blogs dedicated to Metal. Due to moving from analog to digital, the main source for new music was to be found on the defunct Myspace, when suddenly came a massive wave of amateurish musicians doing ridiculous amounts of projects.

And what about the trends, you ask? Nu Metal died off somewhere in the middle of the decade, while there would arrive a new wave of playing "retro". First with Neo Thrash, then a massive return of Death Metal, with Szwecją at the helm, and what surprised me the most, with absurd popularity of the "Cavernous Death Metal", created by Incantation. It is mind boggling that neither Morbid Angel, nor Deicide, and not even Schuldiner, or Immolation, but Incantation school of atmosphere would become the main course for the upstart bands.

For a while there were also common such peculiar subgenres, like Slam Death Metal, or Depressive Suicide Black Metal. However, it seemed like the threshold of extremity was reached, and people started looking in different areas to push, rather than speed and making noise.

Also, the first important re-editions started happening. Not to mention that many sites dedicated to rating your music, or archiving Metal appeared, where anyone could write a review, or create a recommendation list. Bands which had split-up long time ago were doing reunions. Forgotten albums got a second life. And while I don't think anyone will ever call this particular decade a "golden age", it's certainly was a renaissance for Metal culture.

The 10s

Despite the catastrophe for physical formats in previous decade due to the arrival of mp3, youtube and spotify, step by step the grand return was around the corner. First, with a huge boom for vinyls (another controversial topic I will have to write about, albeit many people will hate me for that), and then, the horror, with casette tapes. While CD didn't receive the similar love and respect it deserved, as a complementary format, it also received a rise in sales.

Everything that happened in the 00s seemed to intensify. One could say that two next genres joined the umbrella of unwanted styles, namely both Metalcore, and Deathcore, except they never had their own zeitgeist, that blessed the previous eras, as people were too busy rediscovering the obscure gems, and as such, never truly appeared in the public conscience. Not to mention the constant, tiresome growth of the washed-up Rap scene, way long after its glory days, which marginalized basically every other genre of music, not only Metal.

Thankfully, the internet entered into the new level, and finally everyone could listen to whatever the hell they wanted, completely disregarding the mainsewage. Bah, I myself was finally capable of expanding my own horizons, and finally educate myself about plenty of interesting music, sometimes outside of Metal realm. Unfotunately, the biggest victim of this change turned out to be Metal culture, which limited itself to virtual space, and not quite was visible in the real world. Numerous message boards and discussion very often devolved into mudflinging, insult olympic and trolling, as if people preferred to vent their personal frustrations, rather than discuss their beloved music. Alas, let's return to the topic at hand.

The 10s could have been summarized as 00s, but over-the-top. Much more remasters, much more new bands, both the arrival of modern classics, as well as even more reunions everywhere. Many of them finally got their second chance at making a career. And if someone was smart enough to attend gigs back then, they had an opportunity to see a wide array of generations sharing the scene, from both legends, to promising rookies. Even the festivals were coming back, like Maryland Death Fest.

But the most crucial thing to happened then was a very simple fact - many bands, like Paradise Lost, who abandoned their extreme roots and "betrayed" their genre seeking the greener pastures, started embracing their past, and bringing back their old style. It really felt as if the history of Heavy Metalu finally reached the full circle and met a happy end, except the fate has different plans...

The 20s

One could have thought that the global pandemic that happened in 2020 would kill off the growing Metal market, but funnily enough, the mandatory stay at home policy resulted in astronomical numbers in new projects, maybe even reaching a historical record. One can't help but feel that again, 20s were like 10s, only more and more. But here's the thing - does quantity equals quality?

It doesn't also help that numerous labels were desperately scrapping the bottom in an attempt to find another obscure gems, thus littering the market. Considering that all of the important classics already got re-released, it seems very unlikely to rediscover another holy grail in the underground.

There are still new bands forming, and what's more interesting, it seems for me as if people more eagerly wanted to go back to the ultimate primal roots, which is Speed Metal and the theatrics of the classic bands like Mercyful Fate, or Venom. Time will tell what kind of trends will define this decade, but I feel certain to say, that Heavy Metal reached some kind of maturity, when it's aware of its identity, and knows what works, and how to reach outside of the comfort zone.

Currently we are in the middle of the 20s and I can't help, but notice the first signs of losing steam. Ignoring for a while the general demography and how pandemic affected people attending the concerts, not to mention both current and upcoming global conflicts, the biggest obstacle to overcome seems to be... the very same technology that saved Metal previously. I am of course talking about AI. The rapid and sudden growth of AI already has serious repercussions for the "artistic side" of humankind, which are only starting. Almost overnight a computer code, an algorithm is capable of creating videos, music, lirycs, art. Sure, it's in its infancy right now, but it's learning quite fast and it's a matter of time, before it will become a serious competition for living organisms.

To add insult to injury, I myself created the OP pic using AI. I did it on purpose, and I wonder how many of you noticed it.

However, Metal can sleep calmly at night and doesn't have to worry about its fate. The stubborness, consistency, and cautiousness in experimentations and innovations will be useful tools to survive any upcoming storms and hard times. Bravery and belligerence are after all the essence of this genre.

CONCLUSIONS

Having all of the main decades dissected, I was wondering myself, which decade I would pick as the truly best? In my own personal opinion, which might surprise some, I would chose 2010-2019, as it felt like a all-you-can-eat buffet. Depending of what was your area of expertise, you had the abundance in everything. It was also an era that I will always remember as that time, when both buried treasures finally got rediscovered, as well as the new breed was tactfully taking the mantle and building upon the foundations created by the previous generations.

And that's all folks.