powermetal (u/powermetal)

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

Exoristos · 2 years ago

Your experience of the lyrics might benefit from learning about literary devices. For example:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostrophe_(figure_of_speech)?...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiperspectivity?wprov=sfti1

powermetal · 2 years ago

The second might be figures of speech, but not the first definitely isn't. Again I had cited the second as an example of ego worship not of murder/rape. Its not like I am saying its bad/good that power metal bands lyrics are of this nature but that's how it is.

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

lukan · 2 years ago

"My hunch would be that the more specific and entrenched a genre is, the closer these bands stick to their styles (and lyrics)."

They usually also have the problem, that their fans often don't like them to change. They want more of what they know, but better. Not different (especially in entrenched genres).

Turisas for example, a band making songs mainly about vikings. I watched them live a few years ago - was quite good, but the band made remarks that they do not take the whole viking thing that serious (nostalgic buisness they called it) and would rather play something else. And they did one song in the end, in a quite different style (sounded like futuristic metal) but the audience was not thrilled - they were there for viking and glorious battle metal. So this is what Turisas are still playing, this is what brings them money, but they have not made a new album in over 10 years, but how can you make a good album, with a theme you don't find that exiting anymore?

powermetal · 2 years ago

If you want that, ideally you should spin up a new band name for a project thats too different in style from a band whose style you have already established. Its not that people resist change, thats how thrash metal bands changed into death metal slowly and the invention of death metal is highly celebrated. But it was a slow and organic change. Typically bands that have some sense about this tend to spin up a different name if they want to play something totally different from their existing band.

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

DeathArrow · 2 years ago

I listen to Power Metal only because it is the closest genre to classical Heavy Metal (Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne,Motörhead, Judas Priest) and almost no band sings classical Heavy Metal anymore.

powermetal · 2 years ago

Trad revival is a big thing these days. But I think there is something subtle about even older power metal that sometimes makes it a bit different from something you'd class as "plain" speed metal. Its a bit hard to put in words precisely. But that is why I love the genre so much. I am not so much into pure speed metal or thrash metal.

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

justforasingle · 2 years ago

I found power metal because I was looking for a more positive sub-genre of metal. What I was listening to before often had ahrimanic themes - death, violence, satanism etc.

powermetal · 2 years ago

Power metal is either brazen ego worship and/or or similarly (to death metal) talking of topics like mass murders and rapes. Though unlike the more neutral/clinical approach of death metal, power metal lyrics usually come from an angle of glorifying these things.

edit: I am merely relaying the common lyrical subjects of the genre. I made no judgment whether its a good or bad thing.

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

RajT88 · 2 years ago

Big metal fan here, as are some of my friends.

The Power Metal genre is less popular here in the US for sure. For example as great as the playing is for bands like Rhapsody my friends and I always found them too silly to get into.

Some other bands make the cut of course. But why this resistence to the genre in general?

My working theory is one of culture: Songs about dragons and shit probably resonate a lot better if you grew up in a places filled with castles and shit. That is simply not the US and very much is Europe.

powermetal · 2 years ago

Its nothing to do with the USA. Older metal genres are in general quite niche today. Death metal and black metal is ubiquitous everywhere. Power metal and speed metal are relatively obscure these days.

powermetal commented on Power Metal: is it really about dragons? (2018) notes.atomutek.org/power-... · Posted by u/guardienaveugle

NamTaf · 2 years ago

In fairness, early BG very much aligns more with speed metal, which is a fairly close sibling to thrash. It was that vector that got me into them more than my latter appreciation for power metal in all its bombastic soaring-vocal glory.

powermetal · 2 years ago

European/german power metal bands tend to be more speed metal based. American power metal retained closeness to heavy metal more. I would recommend him to try out bands like Helstar and Jag Panzer next.