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[Sir Finkus]

I'm rather picky about my music, so I don't listen to a lot of bands.  The ones I do listen to I usually hate my first time hearing them.
Of course there's Blind Guardian (seeing them live on december 6th, hell yes).  The only song that they've done that I don't like is Tommyknockers.
Then we have Sabaton.  The have one of the best vocalists I've ever heard.  I feel that with their latest album they tried a bit to hard to cover all of the nuances of the conflict they are singing about, leading to awkward sounding lyrics
Ensiferum has already been mentioned.  I suppose I really like triumphant sounding music.
Somewhat different sounding, but fitting in with the "battle anthem" theme I can't go without mentioning Turisas
And finally, while we're on the subject, we have Tyr (my dad, a devout christian was NOT amused at the cover to this album)  Tyr was on of those bands I wasn't really all that into the first time I heard them.  They have a somewhat strange, almost unsettling sound.  Then I saw them live and I was completely sold on them.
The band I saw them live with was Korpiklaani, who were also great.  Their drinking songs are legendary, and I don't even drink.
Moving back to the power metal side of things, we of course have Gamma Ray.  It *sounds* like stereotypical power metal (it should, the lead singer helped invent the genre), but the earlier stuff comes off a lot less cheesy.
Falconer is pretty good too, but only when Mathias Blad is singing.
Lastly we have Twilightning.  It's a pity they made a shitty album and broke up.

And just for fun have some Sex Machineguns(music doesn't start until 2 minutes in).  They are surprisingly good, but they dress as women in a suspiciously large number of their videos.

I think that's about it for me.  I'm sure I'm forgetting a few, but whatever.

[Maggarg - Eater of chicke]

Just listening to Diadem of 12 Stars by Wolves in the Throne Room. Pretty interesting album - sort of atmospheric black metal.

[Pandarsenic]

Holy shit Tyr is win.

Also, this thread srsly needs more love for the gods who go by the name Kamelot.

[kg333]

Holy shit Tyr is win.

Also, this thread srsly needs more love for the gods who go by the name Kamelot.

Agreed on both counts.  Have some classic Kamelot.

KG

[Lysabild]

Okay, alive you go. *Casts spell*


Soliman

Compare this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kObI4XuTR2o

With this


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLzExTvLF34


Both are metal.

Soliman/Solibabe = Solifuge, I'm starting to feel fond enough of you to call you nicknames. That are silly.

[Simmura McCrea]

Compiling some metal stuff for Soli. Watch this space.

EDIT: METAL

Count of Tuscany - Dream Theater - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4yzYKIiV9Y - Progressive Metal
3 Minute Warning - Liquid Tension Experiment - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3y0zyRhVc4 - Progressive Metal (note - one take, improvised)
Hot for Teacher- Van Halen - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my-gEdtsJ3Y - Metal of some sort. Heavy maybe.
Masterplan - I'm Not Afraid - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRHAnHdfk6k - Power metal
Voice in the Dark - Blind Guardian - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIZNb96EQJ8 - Power Metal
Speed Metal Messiah - Joe Stump - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxQZsW0H7LU - Speed metal
Aenema - Tool - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCEeAn6_QJo - Progressive Metal
Valhalla - Blind Guardian - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ_VFJn2kJM
Silver Bride - Amorphis - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRsNZarFGxA
Bard's Song - Blind Guardian - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zklqr1xj32Q
Indestructable - Disturbed - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSF2i0rU_Q8 - Alternative Metal
The Haunting - Kamelot - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I438RH1oUJc - Progressive/Power metal
Sensorium - Epica - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4YMs0x--fk - Symphonic metal (some growled vocals, but very few)
Oblivion - Mastodon - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6WGNd8QR-U - Progressive Sludge Metal (definitely heavier, but a lot lighter than their earlier stuff)
Blood and Thunder - Mastodon - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-Su1YXQYek - Sludge Metal (heavy, arguable growled vocals, but how often do you get songs about Moby Dick?)
Fear of the Dark - Iron Maiden - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4HVV8X5OKs - Heavy Metal (with bonus mishead lyrics video and one of the few Iron Maiden songs I like)
One - Metallica - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXPkmIwwobA - Thrash Metal (melodic for Metallica, who are way way way on the melodic side of thrash, also one of the few Metallica songs I like)
Ghost Riders in the Sky - Die Apokalptischen Reiter - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thjCnWf-kEI - Iunno (they usually growl a lot more, though, but I really like this version)
Blood - Priestess - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5YmehXj-GQ - Stoner Metal/rock (there's not much difference between stoner metal and rock)
Abandoned - Kamelot - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F88G4itQyds
Sudden Death - Megadeth - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TfZHas3MYo - Thrash Metal (the only Megadeth song I've found that I like)
Paranoid - Black Sabbath - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz_6jagv_D4 - Heavy Metal
Serenade - Versailles - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5L_ZdM7nmzo - Visual Kei (as much of a look as a style of metal, but bonus points of you can correctly identify the genders of all band members just from that video)

I really don't know why I put it track title then artist, but oh well. I usually have it the other way around.

Feel like adding some other stuff for comparison. No idea if you'll like any of it.

Báthory Erzsébet - Sunn O))) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKdwEobpaGY (part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt0m_OQmyzA (part 2) - Doom Drone. Slow, long, heavily distorted, few vocals, no drums. Minimalistic. Slow is not an understatement, by the way. First guitar note is 7 minutes into the first half. Everything before is atmospheric with a bell sort of thing.
I - Meshuggah - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bkHLkmSQ14 (part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoMOtI3dPlw (part 2) - A weird band, sometimes called maths metal, due to heavy use of polyrhythms. Heavy chugging throughout, complex drumming, scream/shouted vocals. Basically, the stuff you said you didn't really like.
Constant Stillness - Ablaze in Hatred - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meKxxOneJSU - Melodic Doom (aka melodoom) - Vocals are almost whispered in this, sort of. Heavy.
Sinner's Defeat - Mors Pricipium Est - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwwfgstoSlQ - melodeath. Fast, heavy, growled.
Done with Everything, Die for Nothing - Children of Bodom - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pucg5ASLJU - melodeath again - Heavier than MPE, likes their fast solos.

[Solifuge]

Necromancy, because the topic is being discussed elsewhere, and this is the place to do it!

I have a hard time finding the appeal of most Metal too. On the off chance that I can understand the lyrics, I generally don't get a whole lot out of "GRIMDARK ANGRYSAD KILLDEATH". If I treat the singing as a musical instrument, like I often do when things are sung in languages I don't understand, I really don't find the guttural yelling pleasant; same goes for the constant smashing of heavily-amplified drums without complexity or pattern to it, and atonally scratching guitar strings for no end but to make it whine painfully.

I recognize that I'm pretty set against it myself, but I would actually like to hear what people who enjoy it get out of it, in case there's a level to it that I'm missing. I do like a lot of things that are ostensibly bad-sounding... Chiptunes, for one, because there's a certain pure simplicity to using sampled 8-bit sounds as "instruments". The sounds are low-quality, and a bit edgy, but their simplicity makes them crisp and recognizable, allowing for musicians to do crazy-complex songs with a lot of components at crazy speed, but keeping everything perfectly understandable.

But yeah, Mindmaker, I would honestly like to know what makes metal appealing to its fans. As I said, I imagine I'm probably missing something about it, since it has a pretty big following... but all I see are grown men smashing on instruments, and growling about how dark/crazy/violent they are while sporting enough makeup, metal studs, and leather to make a Goth Kid squeal.

That was a bit inflammatory, but it was meant to be silly. I still am honestly curious about Metal. I know of Nightwish and Apocalyptica, but they range so far from what I think of as Metal, and seem to be more "Alternative Classical" than "Symphonic Metal".

[freeformschooler]

Just posting to say I used to listen to all sorts of symphonic metal stuff. It was my favorite music. Then one day, suddenly, I didn't like it.

Mindmaker was right in that there's a portion of metal that isn't grimdark darkgrim. I listened to a lot of that. But it had to include even more nice sounding stuff too, like a piano.

Now I don't like the "feel" of most any kind of metal in general. Will report back when I find a subgenre that I like the "feel" of, like how I couldn't stand most of it before but liked symphonic.

[Mindmaker]

I'll compile something tomorrow. It's 11 pm here and I really don't think I'll manage to make something that feels nearly complete.
Also it's been some time and I'll have to remember everything I've listened to.

When it came to metal, I used to be a "all over the place"-kind of person.
And I do have a bad memory when it comes to names and titles.

[Simmura McCrea]

List up there updated for you Soli. It's by no means extensive, mostly coming straight out of my youtube favourites list.

EDIT: I did once find a big old map thing of metal, listing history, influences, time periods and giving example bands/tracks. I'ma see if I can find it again.

[Lysabild]

People are always either over-simplifying or over-complicating Metal, it's a very wide genre, and almost doesn't mean anything other than "Uses lots of distortion." Which is not even guarenteed.


Look up at Fikes post from 2010, I know and love all the bands posted except a few.

Edit: Looks like a pretty good list Simmura, I'd have added some Nu-Metal and Heavy too though.

[Simmura McCrea]

Map of metal - http://www.mapofmetal.com/#/home

Yeah, I'm not fond of Nu Metal. It was mostly just a skim through my youtube favourites list going "Growled, growled, not metal, growled, clean, copy and paste, growled..."

EDIT: Added some more stuff.

[Lysabild]

Map of metal - http://www.mapofmetal.com/#/home

Holy crap how awesome It's a bit faulty though, but it really introduces the nuances!

Yeah, I'm not fond of Nu Metal. It was mostly just a skim through my youtube favourites list going "Growled, growled, not metal, growled, clean, copy and paste, growled..."

I don't understand how people can't appreciate growling though, grunts I can understand, but something like Opeth, Hacride or Eluveitie, it just melts my spine hearing them scream.

[Simmura McCrea]

When I was younger, maybe 7 years ago, I could never imagine myself listening to anything with growls. Got bored, tried Opeth, liked it, slowly expanded my tastes into lots of other metal.

EDIT: This might interest you too: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness
It's subjective, but gives some idea of what to expect.

[Lysabild]

Yeah it's sort of like an acquire taste, very largely. I remember first time I went to Wacken I thought Amon Amarth was noise and me and my brother didn't like any of the hard stuff, listening only to the heavy, power, folk and progressive stuff. After coming home, half a year later, we were suddenly listening to death, black and doom.


All it takes is an open mind, an interest in the theme of the band and a few tries I think.

Classical is an acquired taste too, most will be bored from it till they can hear all the wonderful details.