So, as good as my word (see the music thread) I purchased a Children of Bodom CD. Hate Crew Death Roll. (Friendly lot.) Read the lyrics, wished I’d bought the cafetiere instead.
First impressions: it’s not “fast” at all. The notes are close together, but the beat is slow. I wouldn’t put it as a backing track to a unicycle video. But that’s only my opinion.
Guitars and other melody instruments - pretty good, within the genre. Quite a lot of Iron Maiden influence. I kept expecting a chorus of Run to the Hills. My mate (an IM fan) thought the same. Still, there’s plenty of variety there, some guitar work that’s comparable to Scottish fiddle playing in its rhythm, and there are some clever cross rhythms in other songs - not quite Dave Brubeck, but far better than I expected and far far better than Sepultura - but so is being poked in the eye with a salty icicle.
Drums, a bit rudimentary. Well, very, really.
Vocals - disappointing. The singer sounds like he’s trying too hard to sound like a heavy metal singer ought to sound. Every track: the same vocal howl.
Lyrics? My! What a lot of potty mouths! Tut!
Seriously, they are clearly a very competent band, and not just another average band from the mainstream within the genre. I’d prefer something a little more blues-based, but then I’m old enough to like “dad rock”. 7/10.
I must say, I didn’t really like Children of Bodom either. I’m not sure why, I haven’t listened to them in ages, I don’t like their lyrics, and it just doesn’t seem quite like something I like I guess. I don’t know.
Not listened to much Children of Bodom, I’m big on Cradle of Filth however, and I can thoroughly reccomend them. Yes there is something about scandinavia which produces death metal of a very high quality.
Fair point: nothing on the keyboard or the bass. This was on one listening to the CD. Being of the elderly persuasion, I don’t really listen for keyboards, seeing rock as a guitar-led style of music. But yes, the keyboardist is good. The bass? Good interaction with the guitar on those cross rhythms, but I’m no expert in the genre so I can’t comment further.
All this prefix-metal stuff. Heavy, death, dark, thrash… a proliferation of labels like that is divisive. It helps for niche marketing, to a market of mainly young males who get their identities from being “into” something. In my youth, I was a Ted, and we used to argue with rockabillies, rockers, mods and punks. Years later, I notice the similarities in the music, not the differences.
More important to me is the question: does it sound good or bad.
On the whole, Children of Bodom sound good, but the vocalist gets a bit monotonous.