Funny thing is I just got into Korn and Mudvayne a little bit. I'd argue that there were a couple Nu Metal bands who were doing interesting things musically. Then you have Papa Roach and the other ridiculous power chord hordes.
Then again, it might be this way with the new xbreakdownx stuff. August Burns Red is an immensely talented band that often tours with these jackknobs. Miss May I (from what I can tell) at least has some respectable deathcore roots. They're no Zao, but their vocalist has a nice, developed, scream. At times they sound like AILD, but mostly I've been pleasantly impressed with the songs off their latest record. But they're certainly not indicative of the greater plight of the genre.
The guitar showmanship, in particular, is lacking. It's becoming just another rhythm instrument for breakdowns. I can't even hear the bass in half the mixes (although some would argue that's the way it should be. Wikety wink, winkety wink.). Some bands have talented guitarists and solos, but the general competency has diminished. It's almost like we're back to Nirvana.
Who I'm really beginning to respect are the producers and sound engineers. The breakdown has been evolving and it's become much heavier than it used to. Drums are starting to sound better across the board. Guitars are starting to sound heavier. But this has nothing to do with the actual skill and tastes of the band. They're not engineers. They let the engineer set up the mic and amps and then the tech hands them the guitar and they play power chords and diminished chords (apparently called chaos chords) until the producer says "stop."
Even at their worst, Korn had a talent for unconventional rhythm and syncopation. Steve Vai found himself impressed with Munky and Head's work, and that's validation for anyone who plays guitar. Fieldy is quite a competent bassist. Korn never held a steady drummer, but it's never been their downfall. Jonathan Davis has the biggest mouth, but alas: he's the weakest member of Korn. He's still not bad, but not too good. Mudvayne, on the other hand, is incredible. Their bassist is phenomenal. The guitarist is often overshadowed by him, but his work is decent. The vocalist, again, is the weaker side, but even he's got an interesting and refreshing voice. The drummer is spot-on most of the time. Of course I'm going off of L.D. 50. Their later records are much less impressive.
It seems like the only thing that the new metalcore is capable of is identifiable and discernible melody. It's catchy. This is its pop roots showing through. Pop music is popular because it's catchy, otherwise it would be no use to labels.
The recording quality is ever-increasing, but that's not any innovation of the actual musicians'.
I know a lot of people who sit around and say "dude, it has to be analog. digital is sooooo inferior." They sit there smoking their parliament cigarettes in their flannel shirt drinking PBR with a pair of aviators with that stupid beanie that hangs off in the back. They play "vintage" Fender Tele's on "vintage" Fender amps. Apparently nobody's told them that "vintage" is idiot-speak for "pay more money to sound like crap on outdated technology." A good modern amp can produce any tone, even vintage. Why pay more for something with limited production? But alas, this is just a diversion where I have ranted about hipsters and their stupidity.
But this is my question, I suppose. Bands like BTA are limited, extremely limited, in the musical universe. BTA happens to produce artistically rigorous music with evidence of mastery of their given instruments. I've never heard somebody with a better mid-range scream than Jason. But bands like this, as good as they are, never seem to be headlining. Typically they're getting dragged around the country by the equivalent of N*SYNC with ESP Guitars and Mesa full-stacks.
I know a lot of people are going to tell me that music has always been like this, but what about Megadeth? Critically acclaimed, critically talented. Popular and fantastic. What about Yes? For crap's sake, even Taking Back Sunday did some artistically rigorous things on their first two albums by being one of the first bands to use vocal counterpoint as a primary means of conveying lyrical themes and melodies. What about now?
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