Metal vs The Mainstream

This week a news articles has given me a chuckle.The article was telling of how  pop star Rhiannon's tour was not selling any tickets in the US

I am not sure exactly why Rhianna not selling tickets to her tour is such a shock. Firstly its difficult to call these people musicians or artists as they are more celebrities. If she wasn't a celebrity then she wouldn't sell any records let alone play gigs. With being a celeb you distance yourself from fans as you need to be unaccessible, live music is all about getting closer to your heroes. Also being pop music also means at some point in the not to distant future your time is up. There is only so long you can still record relevant music for people who's tastes change quicker than the weather.

This is not a new phenomenon either the same celeb (we'll call them what they are as the word artist is flattering) had to cancel shows for her last tour. This time around some venues have only sold 3700 or so tickets for venues that need to sell 15000 just to break even. This is not an isolated incident either. Big names in pop such as Britney Spears and Beyonnce having similar problems. Some articles claim that for one of Britney's shows int eh O2 some tickets were sold for £2 so as to make the venue appear full. When she was on stage half of the show was lip synced anyway hardly what you are paying the money for.

With these people still popular i can only imagine that what puts people off would be high prices and the fact they  only do it for the cash. Its not like they have much new material to tour the odd song that makes the charts so you are not watching the progression of an artist but giving your hard earned money to fill their bank accounts.

On the other hand most rock and metal bands have to tour constantly and sell out all over the world. This must be because they give value for money and inspire loyally in their fans. Once a metal fan always a metal fan, you can put it down and leave it but it will always be there. This loyalty is hard earnt and in so doing acts becoming better performers. Rather than have stardom thrust upon them they more often or not start off small in the case of Maiden east end pubs and through hard work and perfecting their craft till they headline Rock in Rio in front of 200,000 people. No one in their right minds believes in 30 years time Rihanna will be selling a single Cd let alone heading the biggest venues in the world. I think in music you have to earn a fan base, the fan and the band are mutually supporting one doesn't work with out the other. I think a lot of pop music forgets this, that is all very well acting like a Diva but normal people don't like that. If you have £50 to go watch a gig go see Maiden in the O2 this summer, oh wait you cant as its sold out

So despite no mainstream support Metal supports its self, we go to our gigs and support our bands. Its not a small feat either. These are big huge gigs they never get press attention and they certainly never get advertised in the media and that is because they sell out anyway. I would just like the mainstream to acknoledge there is an all powerful force in music it isn't Beyonnce, it isn't Simon Cowell its Metal and one day sooner or later they will have to recognize that.

I for one cannot wait to see the Irons in August.

Best Metal Album Covers

Its a well known fact that some of the best album art work has been in the genre of metal from its very inception to the current day. Metal has always seeked to give the buyer value for money supplying not only a quality musical product but also something that will be treasured by the fan. Many bands go to great lengths to make an interesting package with great extras so get out there and buy some.

Metal seems to have known that its not just about the music but the image that goes with it. Of course it would be impossible to create a definitive list of the very best of anything. For this particular topic its such a matter of choice, and how to judge it would be impossible to decide. Aesthetics, Style, Quality of the Art, Message are just some of the things you could like about a particular piece of album art.


So here are some of my favorites, i could have gone on forever such is the quality out there. I am sure i have missed some obvious choices and if so please leave a comment at the bottom and i will see to it they get added. I hope you understand what a mission it is! 

What better place to start than Iron Maiden! You could almost pick any Iron Maiden album cover as they have always been of a high standard. Ask almost any Iron Maiden fan how they got into the band they would almost always say "when i saw the art work i just had to listen to the music." Well i am no different, i remember from a young age seeing the "Seventh Son of  Seventh Son" and was memorized, my dad bought me the tape and there i was and Iron Maiden fan.....


Here is a selection of my favorite iron Maiden Album covers, everyone on the planet must know who Eddie is! 

Ok one of the Daddies when it comes to album covers, Rage Against the Machine. Where ever you sit on the political fence there is no doubt that these guys wanted to bring attention to their causes. I couldn't give a shit however but the album does sounds amazing! As a young teenager seeing this makes you want to listen to it, early 90's it was waaaay ahead of its time and doesn't sound anywhere near the 20 years old it nearly is!

Tool's 10000 days is a phenomenal album the music alone is a thing of artistic beauty and the album has those amazing stereoscopic eyeglasses to view the images in the inlay card. Very Cool! 

Picked by my hard rock loving friend Jude, Meat Loaf's Bat out of Hell Album cover is a classic, its as metal as they come! 

Metallica had that period in the 80's with the cool as fuck album covers, Master of Puppets is a great piece of work, while looking cool it also echoes some of the albums themes.The Black Album cover echoes the album content simple and effective, 21 million people thought so. 

Dimmu Borgir are not strangers to the flamboyant, they have a taste for the grand and theatrics. Their symphonic black metal is most of the time epic and so is some of the album art work. Such as that for Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia. 

Really creepy album cover by my favorite industrial metallers Rammstein. 

Had to have him in somewhere, H.R. Giger has lent a number of his works of art to bands for album covers. The Alien creator has provided bands such as Emerson lake and Palmer, Debbie Harry, Carcass, Danzig and my particular favourite Celtic Frost's - To mega Therion 

Megadeth decided to follow Iron Maidens lead and have a mascot, Vic Rattlehead, he features on quite a few album covers and pops up in inlay art as well. Megadeth usually have some great cover art such as these examples.

Love love love this album its for me the best black metal out there the high point for the genre. Ihsahn is a genius doing great solo work now. back when this was released Black Metal was as dangerous as it got and this album cover of the Castle and the weird orc like monsters invading it only must have built up its mystery. Put it this way the album covers artist is called Necrolord! 

Again one of my favorite albums ever, no one on the planet should dislike this master piece, the album cover is great as well, with the silhouetted figures barely visible in the mist. This album cover sets the tone for audio assault on the disk, packed full of influences its an album that twists and turns never once becoming tedious.  Ive chosen to show both the special edition CD cover and the original both done by a very good artist called Travis Smith who has done loads of album covers for mainly metal bands. Check him out. 

If anyone has an original for sale
please message me i would be very interested. 

Two here from Burzum one of the Black Metal greats. The album cover Aske is now something of a lost ark, not many exist due to its content, legend has it the picture on the front was taken by Count Grishnackh after he had burnt down a church. This is one story from a fascinating history of Black Metal that even now stands it apart from any other genre in terms of most extreme. This other is from the album  Hvis lyset tar oss Norwegian for "If the light takes us" and depicts a body lying by the side of a road.  

Time to lighten the mood, the beauty from Mastodon is a great cover, the album is a concept album based aroudn the story of Moby Dick, WHITE WHALE HOLY GRAIL!!!!! Crazy bastards, but a great album and fine artwork to accompany this monster. 

When this album came out it was the latest music to terrify. Korn were a new kind of heavy, they were angry and aggressive. The sinister album cover of the debut issued the bands statement they were her to cause trouble. Cant help but notice a theme of little girls here.....

Love these two covers from future headliners Avenged Sevenfold, 

Ok Ok clichéd but its still iconic and needs no introduction. 

Children of Bodom tend to go along the theme line always having the Reaper on the front. Do not be fooled into thinking this is dark materials, the best Finland has to offer is truly breath taking rarely letting you up for air!

I love the Photo on this Deftones album, surely must have won some kind of nature photograph prize, unless its just taxidermy.

Marilyn Manson int he 90's was the most dangerous man in rock! American Supermarkets wouldn't stock his albums and of course just fueled the hype fire. Despite all the hype the God of Fuck did produce some classic albums and these covers were pretty cool. Its such a shame he is generally crap these days i hope he has a revival and releases some decent material again.

If you were a kid int he 70's this was literally the best thing ever! You wanted the best.......

Have to have Sabbath in here. Their debut album was the self titled Black Sabbath. Apparently the band had no input into this album cover but were delighted when they saw it. The album depicts a cloaked figure standing outside an abondoned mill. The eerie figure could be Ozzy! The cover gives off the air of Occult and Witchcraft which were of course big influences on the bands music and lyrics. What a way to start the 70's as the world was hung over from the free love of the 60's, life was looking bleak!

 

Just like this album at the moment, the cover is a painting by Jean Delvile a symbolism painted and is called Satan's Treasures.

I'm personally not a fan of this cover but every article i have read on Metal album covers, ranks this highly and the fact they need a mention, here is Vulgar Display of Power by Pantera. Don't get me wrong love the album but the whole parallel between a man being punched in the face and the music being a punch in the face is very obvious. I think i may being harsh, like everything else make your own mind up. 

Manowar, power metal kings! Over the top album covers that are still cool! Great band so metal they even sing about it! Death to false metal! 

Black Dahlia Murder - Nocturnal.
I have done this loads of times and bought albums just because they have a cool picture on the front. This is one of those times it paid off as its a beast! 

Love this cover by Devil Wears Prada, really enjoying the album at the moment as well. A lot of Metal fans hate this new metal coming out but i quite like a lot of it. For anything to survive it must evolve. Imagine where we would be if people thought like that when Sabbath came out, 

Slayer - Reign in Blood is one of the biggest metal albums ever, this cover depicts Hell, welcome.....

Up there as the best Thrash album ever. This is a stunning album packed full of great tracks and if you really look into them a very political album highlighting struggles from around the world. Cool cover is symbolic of suffering to people in Brazil, not massively obvious though. 

The album that got me hooked on In Flames OK not as heavy as their old stuff but by now they had mastered the melodic Death Metal this is a great album to gently ease you into Death Metal. A wicked covers that shows someone having their Heart ripped out, lovely! 

Satyricon Age of Nero. Simply a Black Crow on Tombstone, menacing and evil, the only reason not to pick up this album is if you are too scared! 

Deep Purple in Rock, This album is from the Stone-age of Metal and with songs such as Highway Star will always be a classic. 

Another classic band, Judas Priest had a few iconic covers to back up there songs. If you had to explain to an Alien what Metal was you surely play them Judas Priest and show them Rob Halford.