I find myself in a bit of personal quandry. Every once in awhile I get an e-mail from an unsigned band or a PR person asking for me to check out material for review.So far most of the stuff that comes through is pretty damn good. I've been turned on to bands like Hemoptysis, Legacy of Disorder, and Ana Kefr to name a few. But occasionally I get an e-mail from a band that's struggling to make themselves seen and heard and I can't bring myself to review their work. At least in print where it goes out to the public.
One reason is the band is a part of a genre I generally don't like. Sometimes I get e-mails from people that have obviously never seen the site and the music is out in left field. But then I get an e-mail from a band that seems to be intriguing enough to check out and it's really just not very good at all upon listening.
So here are my questions in regards to this and maybe I can get some feedback on the proper course of action or preferred direction.
Do I respond back at all? I mean, how many other websites got the same e-mail and does it even matter if they get a response that says no thank you?
If I should respond do I tell them no thank you and why not? As in constructive criticism or just say no thanks. I mean I really do want to tell some of these bands what I think but then I don't want to be an asshole that thinks too much of myself to give back more info then is needed.
So though I've been around for over 3 years I've only taken TDM to the next level over the past 6 months therefore I'm still not 100 percent on proper etiquette for stuff like this. This is where you come in. Give me some input on what direction I should take on not giving press out in the comments below por favor. Gracias.
Have any of you liked a band's page on Facebook? Or fanned up a page in the old days? I have to in a way in order to sometimes get news articles without relying on Blabbermouth to copy and paste it before anyone else. And I know there are alot of people that don't know what Blabbermouth even is so getting these sources is crucial sometimes. Well, my question is this. If you do have a band as one of your 'likes' do you comment? Comment frequently or not at all? Awhile back I did an article on the good and bad of band pages. I was going to try and make it a regular feature but I really couldn't get the inspiration for many of the good sides of it. Well now we fast forward to today and a sequel of sorts. I want to focus on the people that comment on these pages. The everyday joes if you will. After the jump.
So typically what happens is a band will post about an upcoming album or tour or something to whore themselves out with. And that's perfectly acceptable behavior. They are in a business and are using Facebook to further promote themselves and their product. What inevitably happens with this though is the everyday person sees this as a social networking tool and they have the ability to interact with the band. While in theory this is true it doesn't happen often. Depending on the pecking order some bands hire an admin to moderate their page and they themselves never look at it while others strictly just use it as a marketing tool. No interaction, no chance. Some bands will in truth interact back when they get a chance and those are actually my favorites.
But back to the regular people. There are many different types of people that comment. Let's break it down shall we?
The Fanboy: This person no matter what the status is will suck the testicles out of the band if given half the chance.
Band: "Bus broke down today in the middle of the fucking desert and we're dying of heat exhaustion".
Commenter: "You guys fucking rock and the new album is the sickest fucking album ever!!"
This person when the band asks for an opinion on new material will not only praise it as the second coming of Jesus will also turn on a dime and viciously attack anyone who dares criticizes. Usually by telling them to go back and listen to Justin Bieber if they don't like it.
The Clueless Foreigner: This person has just enough grasp of the English language to loudly proclaim "Com 2 Algeria!" after every status update. No matter what it is.
Band: "Tour just wrapped up. Time for some well deserved rest for the next 6 months so we can bring you some more metal on the next album".
Commenter: "Cum 2 tiny village in Amazon, please!!!"
The Troll: Everyone should know this person. The one guy that gets 'lulz' from saying something just to piss off the next 20 commentators in line after him. This guy derails the fanboy and makes him become the defender as previously mentioned but goes unnoticed by the clueless foreigner. Usually this guy says something a logical critic would say but is more vicious about it in order to get max responses. Which segues into this.
The Logical Critic: This person is rare. He likes the band and in turn liked the band page. But has no qualms about voicing displeasure in the direction of the band. He is usually outnumbered and gets buried in the comments from the fanboys, clueless foreigners, and trolls.Therefore any good that could come from him/her is forever lost. Or otherwise attacked by the fanboy.
So which of these are you? Or do you just stay quiet and occasionally pipe in with whether or not you listened to a song or bought the album? Regardless I highly recommend if you're bored to read the comments on band pages. It can be quite entertaining at times. Oh and while you're at it. Like our Facebook page too. Then you to can be a fanboy, clueless foreigner, troll, or logical critic.
In a previous post I mentioned I am a big fan of Van Halen. They once were the biggest bar band in the world (with both David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar) playing FUN music. As a kid, I remember sitting in my room for hours listening to "Eruption" and "Hot For Teacher", thinking how does Eddie do that? He inspired me, and millions of other kids, to pick up the guitar. His sound and style have progressed immensely since the first Van Halen record. With each new release (and back catalog acquisition) I eagerly awaited something new. For years Eddie, Alex, Mike, Dave, and Sammy delivered. Despite all of the drama surrounding the band in the last 15 plus years, including the short stint with Gary Cherone (who is a great vocalist), I still admire the band for their accomplishments and hope that the rumours of their reunion with Diamond Dave in the studio are true. I am sad that Mike is no longer in the band. But, I applaud his positive attitude and support for Eddie's son Wolfgang playing bass. The world has seen new guitarists pushing the limits and creating new sounds. If not for his life being cut short by a deranged lunatic, Dimebag Darrell would still be around creating new sounds and doing new things with the guitar. One of my favorite modern-day guitarists is Jeff Loomis from the Seattle-based metal band Nevermore. He has taken on the 7-string guitar and is doing things most people could never imagine, inspiring thousands of kids lucky enough to hear him to pick up the guitar. I understand Eddie's focus is on great song-writing, but as a long time fan of Van Halen and guitar, I issue him a challenge: can he create a new sound, a new technique, that will inspire a new generation of players? Will Van Halen create a new album that is relevant and everlasting in 20 years (or more) as Van Halen I is today (33 years later)? Can Van Halen create music that is as relevant and timeless as Iron Maiden continues to do? I'm sure they can. They must... because they are Van Halen. I hope the rumours are true.
I don't get as many e-mails from unsigned bands as many of my contemporaries but I do get my fair share. That Devil Music is growing constantly in readership so as a conscientious, power mad CEO of this slice of the internet I find it is my duty to be a filter for you,the reader,on what should or shouldn't be exposed to you.As such I will pass on news and other information on bands I end up enjoying and think deserves a shot and ignore the ones from the bands that have ,let's just say,issues. So journey with me on my do's and don'ts based purely on my own criteria of how to get your band to end up being the pages of That Devil Music for the world to see. After the jump of course. DO be polite and courteous in your introductory e-mail. This should be a given. You are initially dealing with a complete stranger that may or may not like your music therefore if you say please and thank you I'm more apt to look at your links. DON'T be a complete jackass in your introductory e-mail. I don't want to see douchebag slogans at the end of your e-mail that only a neanderthal would respond to. Even if you do say thanks spell it properly and not with an 'x'. I don't know you and we're not beer buddies and even if we were I'd still mock you for acting this way.
This we are not
DO be thorough. Send me links to album art if applicable,links to any music that can be played,band photos,press releases, and a brief history of the band. I have to post this for potentially thousands of people to run across over a period of time so we both want the promo article to be as engaging and informative as possible. DON'T just send me myspace links. Myspace doesn't tell me shit of who you are or what you're about plus it's a lazy outlet for getting you seen. Have a hosted website at least with content on it so I can get a good feel of what you're about and know you're making a real effort to be a real touring band. Set up a bandcamp account so I can check out your music or something similar.
DO keep any if at all opinions to yourself about That Devil Music. I don't want my ass kissed just to get the band's name out there. It's ok if I'm not well known. I'm just trying to help the heavy music industry out.Just get to the point of what you'd like from me. DON'T lie to me about my site. I don't want my ass kissed by telling me my site is sick as fuck. I'm not a 20 year old that responds well to bro speak. If you're going to tell me you like my site then at least reference what you liked about it so I know you actually read it. I will in turn invest time to see what your band is doing.I'm a computer tech in the real world and I can smell a copy and paste e-mail a mile away,genius.
DO get a publicist or at least have the best speller in the band send out the e-mails or press releases. The more intelligent the e-mail is the more likely I'll take you seriously. DON'T spell like this DON'T send me e-mails filled with teenage texting speak. If all of you are knuckleheads that are too lazy to use spell check or at least be professional then I'm ignoring you. You're too lazy to be a real band in my eyes. Even the most infamous bands in history had someone that was intelligent enough to communicate properly. Like this guy
Now granted even if the do's are met ,and there really isn't much of them, there is the possibility that I just don't like your band or the music. Please don't take it personal but right now it's mostly just me running things here and while I do have other contributors it's highly unlikely at this point that I can send your music to someone I feel might do it justice because they post so infrequently. Though I could be wasting my breath there because let's face it either way if you're in the do's or don'ts camp you probably won't notice not being published if you're sending e-mails to every site you can find.
Mainly because we're just one of at least thousands of sites out there that are trying to get the music heard and the bands seen that we like. But if you truly are in this because you think your band is good enough and you love what you're doing then that should translate on how you present yourself to get noticed out there. Not just for me but I'm pretty sure the thousands of other sites in existence.
While taking my daily trip through Stumblr's randomized metal related posts I came across Cracked's Article Old School Heavy Metal Fans. I read the list of 101 ways you can tell you've been a metal fan too long, and as someone who will be 41 in a few weeks I have to say I disagree with most. So for fun let's compare notes shall we? Feel free to compare my answers to the article after the jump.
1. I only have about 20 thank you very much and it's usually what's on top or the least worn out.
2. No because I have enough sense to not wear such things around my family. They annoy me enough as it is without drawing undo attention to what I wear.
3. Both, because I'm not an unpatriotic nimrod that forgets my own national anthem.
4. I only like a few Kiss albums and have never wanted to see them live. Well that's not true I kind of do, but I'm not paying 200 dollars or more to do so.They're not that good.
5. No my wife has never been a big metalhead. I think she likes a total of 5 metal albums and even half of those are suspect.
6. I knew Bon Scott wasn't the original but I don't recall the first guys name.Bon Scott was the best though.
7. Actually this is referring to hair metal and its not even metal and even in 1987 I thought those guys were fags.
8. Yes because Robert Plant is very assuring that way.
9. I've known about both of these terrible genres for awhile now. I have high hopes that screamo will die out this year.
10. This is actually partly true. I thought Ozzy was awesome for the shit he did and the great music but then yeah, MTV had to go and shit all over the legacy that has never recovered.
11. I can think of 5 and I have been to the Sunset Strip. I live less then 600 miles from L.A. incidentally.
12. Really? This article falls into the trap too often of not knowing what real metal and cock rock/classic rock is. Little Runaway is still a pop rock song.
13. I remember the announcement and saying 'ya fucking think'? Anybody in 1984 that didn't correlate the dude from Village People's look to Rob Halford's look was an idiot.
14. See # 13.
15. I have gotten into those arguments. And Led Zeppelin isn't.They were an inspiration but have always at the core been a blues rock band.
16. No. Because I'm not a douche.
17. Again no. I wasn't into the glam poser scene.No one up here was. that was only in L.A.
18. Actually my kids are into video games. My wife is the worst influence due to her incessant need to show them horror movies.
19. It depends on what band is on their shirt. If it's obscure and I like it I will. Otherwise who gives a fuck if someone is wearing an Iron Maiden shirt?
20. Yes. That has happened. In a grocery store.
21. No because I have short hair as do most of the people that I know are metalheads. In fact I've tried to grow my hair long and hair that looks like whitecaps on the ocean needs to be kept short.
22. Nope.My friends have other ways of being embarassing least of all wearing spandex pants.
23. I would not be surprised by this actually. Is it ok? Sure, just don't act like a bitch if I mock you for it.
24. Yes. I will agree to this. Though he is an accountant but doesn't dress like it at shows.
25. Nope. I was made to cut my hair after high school and was allowed to grow it long while working in a warehouse.
26. Blue denim, black shirts, and other neutral color shirts. Come on , some variety is in order.
27. No. Now you're just being silly.
28. Eddie Van Halen hasn't been relevant in 25 years.
29. Absolutely. Because they are.
30. This is also true. In fact you have to reference the song Zero the Hero to jumpstart the memory banks of that *cough era *cough.
31. Um. I never give her a reason to be sick of me saying that because, I really don't. Even though it is.
32. Actually those came down when I started having girls over at my parents house. You have to prioritize your life sometime.
33. Yes my garage is full. But its all useless bullshit from 15 years of marriage. I think my wife kept her RIP magazines though.
34. Again no. My garage door is in danger of crushing someones skull from falling apart so the car would never fit in there anyways.
35. Enough with the magazines. Look I used to buy Hit Parader and Circus but once they were read they got thrown out.
36. Yes. This is true. And I'm still getting flashbacks from the 70's.
37. Actually I laughed at the first part because it was so contrived but yes the second part did suck.
38. Yeah it's a nice song but going back to this clip, what a crappy fucking movie this was.
39. Yes. Very true. Nothing like having your belly fat be pinched by a belt buckle.
40. I agree on the opinion of Gene and I have never spent a dime on Kiss Krap.
41. Actually I always suspected he was gay.
42. No I think we all pretty much agree it was the Black album. It just took longer to come to that conclusion instead of it being Load.
43. Actually I thought it painted a shitty picture of the scene at the time. Too much glam and then when it got to something cool he was piss drunk in the middle of a pool being a complete asshole.
44. For the most part.
45. I really should get on that.
46. Absolutely. Any dickhead can strum a guitar of any sort. It takes real talent to strike multiple notes with your fingers.
47. No. I could care less. That's being to particular about a band.
48. No. I did grow up after high school.
49. Yes. I will agree to that. The fact my parents let me go to a metal show at 16 was probably one of the coolest things they've ever done.
50. Nope. I really don't want to hang with my co workers because they're all nerds anyway.
51. No they just say "You're old" ....alot. It makes for a great excuse when I say I don't like shit like Whitechapel or Attack! Attack!.
52. I suck. I have no tattoos. Because I know 10 years from now I'd want to remove it.
53. I need to finally take them to their first one actually.
54. See 53.
55. No but I did have a goatee that someone commented looked like a hairy pussy.
56. God yes. Now there are bitch fights about the 100 subgenres.
57. No. I'm not THAT old.
58. Yes. And some still do though the growls are predominant these days.
59. I used to know about 20 intro riffs but yes i was excited to learn the whole Am I Evil song. Then forgot it years later.
60. Also true.
61. Apparently I got rid of it years ago and forgot that I had. But yes, it would probably fit like a glove....around my elbows.
62. Wasp states its whatever you want it to mean. The We Are Sexual Perverts was probably the same fans that thought Kiss meant Knights in Satan's Service.
63. I haven't got that fat yet. But it is a one pack.
64. 2 days tops. 4 days means the band was overcompensating for something.
65. Well duh...that could be said of kids nowadays too.
66. I don't remember. Maybe?
67. Four words. Iommi. Van Halen. Dimebag. Loomis.
68. No and yes.
69. When I was 15.Now it's based off of their mp3 collection. Get with the times or get left out ...man.
70. I could go with that theory. Though people overly tattooed are douchebag scene kids.Just ask Bring Me the horizon.
71. Nope. My wife would kill me.
72. Again no. I would literally be dead.
73. That just screams "I'm a redneck actually".
74. Oh god yes. Linear fans are the most fun to pick on.
75. This is probably true. Though I do love the hybrid forms of metal to come out of those regions.
76. Yeah, not one of those guys perpetually stuck in 1982.
77. Absolutely. Even if you disagree Lemmy tells you like it is.
78. No, but they do make Lemmy cool.
79. Yes because VH1 is owned by MTV who are full of fucking idiots that get their research from Rolling Stone magazine.
80. Well yes. Because if the documentary is any good it will explain why Clapton is there.
81. No I'm embarassed I thought the members were all girls and one of them was hot. My wife has the actually cassettes.
82. Well yeah because seriously...there was some embarrassing shit to come out of the decade.
83. Nope. I was a cassette kid.
84. See 83. Replaced cassettes with cd's.
85. Not really. I've got gray around the fringe but still hair on top and it was always cool that old guys dug the metals.
86. I lie awake....actually no, I don't give Dave Mustaine much thought.
87. I remember the first time I heard Mercyful Fate and it scared the shit out of me.
88. The song Black Sabbath was pretty creepy in the intro.
89. No. there is something wrong with someone who does that.
90. I actually thought it was kind of cool.
91. They did?!?! Oh no!
92. No. They've sucked forever.
93. That could be true.
94. Shit, my mom sewed my only patch on.
95. Back to hair are we? My hair has been short for a long time.
96. Yes. the date is very important and location because I really don't have the patience of being in a club for hours sweating and smelling farts just to drive all the way back to get up for work after 6 hours. So it damn well better be on a night when I'm off the next day.
97. Nope, I still remember the Motley Crue show though the buzz wore off by the time we got inside to watch the show. I remember it all.
98. Yeah no. I've been to some stinkers and mehfests.
99. I'm pretty good at acting like I understand what they're saying but no I've never had to do anything for random people.
100. The first one. I'm too much of a puss for the second one.
101. Hell yes. Welcome Home Sanitarium is still new to me!
So there we have it. Holy crap that was long. So this is either a telling sign that I'm not old enough, I'm too much of a nerd, or I'm not a single braincell rocker. You decide. And thanks Cracked for inspiring a pointless long post by me.
Have you ever heard of Stanley Harvey Eisen? Lots of women have and I bet he’s banged more chicks than the sum of your graduating class in High School. How about Michael Peter Balzary? He’s one of the modern day’s most famous and respected bassists who has guest thumped on many albums.
Stage names have been a part of mainstream music for about as long as music’s been popular and musician’s been idolized; but why do people change their name when they go on stage?
Rob Liz (a stage name of sorts) and I have had talked about this off and on, with the most recent conversation centering around one of my favourite bands, Avenged Sevenfold. “Why do they have fake-ass names?” “Their names are gay”. I’ve heard it over and over, mostly from people who hate A7X (for whatever stupid reason) and it’s all the same. Their names make them suck. Shouldn’t it be about the music?
As far as I’m concerned, Avenged Sevenfold is made up of some of the most amazing musicians out there. This band is composed of two of the best guitarists out there today, with shredding that’s up there with the best of them, and their solos are legendary, instilling within me the feelings of some of the great harmonized solos from Iron Maiden (Murray and Smith) and Judas Priest (Tipton and Downing. Their drummer was regarded as one of the best of this generation, recently winning a fan-polled award, Revolver Magazine’s BEST DRUMMER. Let’s not even get me started on the songwriting. It’s epic!
So why is it, no matter how talented and creative these musicians are, no matter how many records they sell, they suck because they have stage names…? I wish I knew.
According to Wikipedia: “A performer will often take a stage name because his/her real name is considered unattractive, dull, unintentionally amusing or difficult to pronounce or spell, or because it has been used by another notable individual or because it projects an undesired image.”
So here we have The Rev (Jimmy Sullivan), Synyster Gates (Brian Haner), M Shadows (Matt Sanders), Zacky Vengeance (Zachary Baker), and Johnny Christ (Jonathon Steward): five individuals who alone are a musical force to be reckoned with, but together creates one of the greatest bands of our time: But they have stupid names.
This phenomenon isn’t just limited to heavy metal and hard rock. Sure, we’ve all heard of Sting (Gordon Sumner), The Edge (David Howell Evans) and Slash (Saul Hudson); but what about rappers? Marshall Bruce Mathers III is more famously known as Eminem and/or Slim Shady. Lil Wayne is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. There’s Jewel (Kilcher), Pink (Alecia Beth Moore). Even the world of Country music has been plagued by artists using fake names; Troyal "Garth" Brooks, and Conway Twitty's real name is Harold Lloyd Jenkins.
Still why do it? I’d like to think, that at least in today’s world, people like Brian Warner can call themselves Marilyn Manson and use that as excuse to do and say the things that normal people just don’t talk about in polite conversation. They can go up there on stage and become someone else; renaming themselves as a key to tap into that unlimited well of awesomeness, to go from just playing music to becoming the music. There’s nothing wrong with that. Actors do it all the time, reinventing themselves, albeit temporarily, to be able to, with the help of special effects and the vision of a director, become someone else and do things that they possibly never would have thought possible, all for the entertainment of their audience; us. We wouldn’t have Darth Vader without someone putting on a costume and synthesizing one of the most famous voices in Hollywood to create the ultimate villain and downright worst dad ever. So what’s the big deal, Rob?
You’ve said, in one of your arguments, that it’s ok for a band like Dimmu Borgir to use stage names because their real names are so hard to pronounce. You’re completely right! How on earth do you pronounce Sven {Silenoz}??? Or what about Tom (Galder}?? It boggles the mind. Shagrath, though is a hard one, I have to admit: Stian?? Almost sounds like the last two syllables in Sebastian, but I could be wrong.. Those crazy Norse names!
Shagrath and Stian (together again for the first time)
Even still, I have to admit, I’m glad for some of them. I absolutely worship at the altar of Kamelot and will til I die, but I thank the gods of rock and roll that lead singer Roy Sætre Khantatat, decided to go with Roy Khan or just Khan, because that last name IS a doozy!
Either way you look at it, it’s been going on for decades, this alter ego business. Think back to when you were a kid and you were scared shitless when in the presence of “The Demon” from KISS (Gene Simmons or his birth name Chaim Witz) when he was bludgeoning your ears with his bass guitar on TV. Let’s not forget his cohorts Ace Frehley “Catman” and “The Star Child” Stanley Harvey Eisen, or more famously, Paul Stanley.
Becoming these characters give them the freedom and permission to become the best musicians they can be, pulling forth from that well of inspiration where the most amazing guitar solos and those epic choruses come from. It also give us permission to worship them like the rock gods they are, though you’ll never hear a crowd shouting the name Michael Peter Balzary. They’ll be chanting him by his alter ego; Flea! Flea! Flea! Balzary just doesn’t seem to roll off the tongue that well, does it?
Oh yeah, by the way Rob. Ronald James Padavona = God
