It's really strange to me to see sludge metal receive such mainstream recognition. Bands like Baroness, Mastodon, and Kylesa are becoming very big and popular bands, in particular Mastodon who is now one of the biggest metal bands on the planet. But why it's so odd is because of the genre's extremely abrasive beginnings.Sludge metal started as a combination of doom metal with hardcore punk elements, and occasionally some southern rock influences. It really began in Louisiana with groups like Corrosion of Conformity after incorporating metal elements (they began as a hardcore group), Crowbar, and the mighty Eyehategod.
The trouble I see is really with the band Eyehategod, who I really enjoy but is definitely not for everyone (my fiancee absolutely hates them). Their songs are absolutely miserable. They are extremely slow and feature Mike Williams's probably shit-faced drunken shouting. They use heavy, downtuned riffs, and lots of feedback to produce their signature sound. Groups like Crowbar and Corrosion of Conformity, and the supergroup Down are all very catchy and at least somewhat radio-friendly at times. Eyehategod on the other hand, are completely chaotic and quite possibly insane.
It is very difficult to fathom the sludge genre rising to the heights of mainstream metal when one of its core pioneering bands is Eyehategod.
Interesting post.
ReplyDeleteWell, look at what happened to thrash metal, when its pioneers/inspirations included the likes of Slayer and Venom.
I can kind of see how Baroness gets the mainstream attention, but what I don't understand is how Mastodon did it with Leviathan. There are between two and five metal albums on par with Leviathan that come out every year, and yet they only take notice of that one album. It's not like it's any more accessible than some of the ignored albums, either.
Good points. I enjoy Leviathan quite a bit, but you're correct that it really is not THAT special.
ReplyDeleteWell, I should clarify that I think it's one of the three or four best that came out that year. (I just didn't put it on my list because Blood Mountain is better. Blood Mountain is THAT special, a once-in-a-generation kind of thing. In my book, it's on par with Master of Puppets, and those two albums are above everything else.)
ReplyDeleteBut Leviathan was getting all kinds of mainstream critical attention before Blood Mountain. I don't think ordinary mainstream jackoffs were listening to it, but the critics and the people who think they're special would listen to it.