Under Rated/ Overlooked Metal Albums/Bands

[The Dude]

So, after hearing  there will be a Pantera "reunion" and listening to some interviews,  one being Eddie Trunk with Anthrax and Zakk Wylde, it was brought up that somehow one of my favorite bands (Pantera) never achieved the commercial achievement like bands like Metallica did. Then it dawned on me, while Charlie Benante was talking..... I think I liked the John Bush Anthrax more than anything Anthrax has done upon reuniting with  Joey Belladonna. I mean by like a lot.

 

Obviously the 80s and early 90s Anthrax stuff gas its place. But holy fuck were the Bush years pretty solid. 

 

"We've come for you all" was so god damn solid and I feel it was such an overlooked album that didn't get any credit. 

 

So, I figured I'd start a thread here about underrated albums. 

 

My first contribution is  Anthax- We've come for you all.

 

Please feel free to add your picks.

 

 

 

And Charlie is the best drummer. Ever. Let's fight. 

Edited August 15, 2022 by The Dude

[The Dude]

 

Danzigs Deth Red Sabaoth

 

 

 

 

[Phil]

What do you mean by underrated, exactly — just that a lot of folks don't really appreciate it? Or something more detailed?

 

Using "overlooked" as a framework, I'd say most Maiden records apply to this. I also think Pantera's Great Southern Trendkill is one of their best, and is consistently ranked as one of their worst by critics.

[The Dude]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

What do you mean by underrated, exactly — just that a lot of folks don't really appreciate it? Or something more detailed?

 

Using "overlooked" as a framework, I'd say most Maiden records apply to this. I also think Pantera's Great Southern Trendkill is one of their best, and is consistently ranked as one of their worst by critics.

Underrated, overlooked,  not given enough credit for,  passed over due to the time period in which it came out, unheard of bands, bands fans stopped listening to due to singer change.... stuff like that. Tons of variables.

 

Not really any restrictions for such a subject. 

 

 

 

Edited August 3, 2022 by The Dude

[Phil]

Just thought of another from a while back. God Loves, Man Kills by One King Down. People I grew up around just tore it apart saying they were too "nu metal" now. It's the only record of theirs I actually like.

 

I was also a huge fan of the vocals change with Throwdown from Keith Barney to Dave Peters. Deathless is undeniably the best record they ever made because it wasn't the same cookie cutter hardcore stuff they were putting out year after year. I remember thinking it had so many Pantera vibes. Still do.

[The Dude]

8 minutes ago, Phil said:

Just thought of another from a while back. God Loves, Man Kills by One King Down. People I grew up around just tore it apart saying they were too "nu metal" now. It's the only record of theirs I actually like.

 

I was also a huge fan of the vocals change with Throwdown from Keith Barney to Dave Peters. Deathless is undeniably the best record they ever made because it wasn't the same cookie cutter hardcore stuff they were putting out year after year. I remember thinking it had so many Pantera vibes. Still do.

 

 

Wow. Wasn't expecting those bands out of you. Loved One King down and loved the singer going over to take over for Most Precious Blood. Merciless was fucking flawless. 

 

Buuut I cant stand Throwdown after "You don't have to be blood to be family"  when Barney didn't want to sing anymore. The music totally turned into a wanna be Hatebreed or Pantera rip off. Their original straight edge/ beat down style was so raw and powerful. IMO just a superior and original sound for its time. Gimme "Power Figure" and that beefy breakdown stuff over the newer mealy stuff.

 

Lol, in looking,  there are no original members left in the band today according to a blurb on Google. 

 

But glad to know you have a bit of roots to some hardcore stuff man. Awesome. 

[The Dude]

 

The early 2000s got overlooked for some really great stuff.  How this band wasn't gigantic just for this album alone is criminal.

 

Acts like Slipknot, System of a Down and Disturbed (yuck) got the attention while Shadows Fall was making some of the best shit like EVER. The Massachusetts scene was seriously pumping out top notch metal that wasn't being given its proper due.

Obviously Killswitch Engage got very popular for a hot minute, but Shadows Fall and All that Remains should have been so much bigger. 

 

[Parsley]

BAND: CLUTCH

 

They've been around for 3+ decades now. Really amazing group of down to earth guys. Over the years they've laid off the heavy stuff but they are amazing live and continue to put out quality music.

 

90's CLUTCH

 

 

2022 CLUTCH

 

 

Edited August 3, 2022 by Parsley

[The Dude]

49 minutes ago, Parsley said:

BAND: CLUTCH

 

They've been around for 3+ decades now. Really amazing group of down to earth guys. Over the years they've laid off the heavy stuff but they are amazing live and continue to put out quality music.

 

90's CLUTCH

 

 

2022 CLUTCH

 

 

Always liked Clutch. Definitely a band that hasn't gotten their due. But typically if you pass it on to someone, they become a fan.

 

Im more of a fan of their earlier work and up to Strange Cousins though. I feel like everything since hasn't grabbed me. Typically I like bands to have a sticktooitive way about them. Meaning don't change too much. But I feel like Clutch has been putting out the same dong/album for 10 years now lol. IDK, maybe I need to take a deeper dive back into them and should check out their new one. I've seen their set lists for recent shows (I should have seen them with the Sword a couple months ago, but I'm lazy) and they were actually playing some of the old stuff like Impetus, so I wonder if they are getting back to their roots. 

[siddious]

I’m not THE biggest metal guy so pardon me if my take is wack but one of the few metal bands I still go back and listen to often is Acid Bath. I think they only had 2 albums but both are pretty damn good. 

[phillyb]

In the shadows of BTBAM existed a small outfit from NC called Glass Casket. Their first album is a banger. 

 

Never got into Shadows Fall but I def had one of their shirts that read, “Eating emo kids for breakfast.”

[Phil]

4 hours ago, The Dude said:

Wow. Wasn't expecting those bands out of you. Loved One King down and loved the singer going over to take over for Most Precious Blood. Merciless was fucking flawless. 

 

Buuut I cant stand Throwdown after "You don't have to be blood to be family"  when Barney didn't want to sing anymore. The music totally turned into a wanna be Hatebreed or Pantera rip off. Their original straight edge/ beat down style was so raw and powerful. IMO just a superior and original sound for its time. Gimme "Power Figure" and that beefy breakdown stuff over the newer mealy stuff.

 

Lol, in looking,  there are no original members left in the band today according to a blurb on Google. 

 

But glad to know you have a bit of roots to some hardcore stuff man. Awesome. 

 

Except it wasn't original, at all. It sounded like every other "beat down style" kick-snare kick-snare chug-chug hardcore act at the time. That's what I loved so much about the "Hatebreed or Pantera rip off" — that at least had layers to it. Melody. Depth.

 

My "hardcore roots" though, I'd imagine, will conflict with yours at every opportunity. I loathed all the mainstays because of how basic and boring I found their music to be. Bane, Gorilla Biscuits, Earth Crisis, Agnostic Front, Cro-Mags, Terror — all that stuff is awful to me. And the next generation wasn't much better. It's all the branch out work that most fans hated that I loved most. Take Snapcase, as an example. The only album of theirs I can routinely go back to is End Transmission because it's the most experimental one they ever did. Progression Through Unlearning is OK, and there's tracks that take me back, but it's never a record I seek out.

 

Most of my friends were hardcore Long Island hardcore guys, so I was always around local shows, I just didn't actually like the music lol unless it was the much more complicated, "post-hardcore" and "metalcore" stuff. Though, on metalcore, I also hated most of that, too. LOL.

 

Converge, Refused, Killswitch, late-era Dillinger Escape Plan, Lamb of God, Norma Jean (Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child only), and Zao were all favorites of mine. Basically, if it's closer to melodic death/black metal, I'm in, 100%. I'm a huge In Flames, Soilwork, Solution .45, Scar Symmetry, etc. fan. Oh, and Shai Hulud was great, too.

[The Dude]

11 hours ago, siddious said:

I’m not THE biggest metal guy so pardon me if my take is wack but one of the few metal bands I still go back and listen to often is Acid Bath. I think they only had 2 albums but both are pretty damn good. 

Acid bath is great. Favorite tune is Grave Flower. This is a really good band to throw in this thread. Another Louisiana band that was heavy as fuck. 

[Parsley]

9 hours ago, Phil said:

 

Except it wasn't original, at all. It sounded like every other "beat down style" kick-snare kick-snare chug-chug hardcore act at the time. That's what I loved so much about the "Hatebreed or Pantera rip off" — that at least had layers to it. Melody. Depth.

 

My "hardcore roots" though, I'd imagine, will conflict with yours at every opportunity. I loathed all the mainstays because of how basic and boring I found their music to be. Bane, Gorilla Biscuits, Earth Crisis, Agnostic Front, Cro-Mags, Terror — all that stuff is awful to me. And the next generation wasn't much better. It's all the branch out work that most fans hated that I loved most. Take Snapcase, as an example. The only album of theirs I can routinely go back to is End Transmission because it's the most experimental one they ever did. Progression Through Unlearning is OK, and there's tracks that take me back, but it's never a record I seek out.

 

Most of my friends were hardcore Long Island hardcore guys, so I was always around local shows, I just didn't actually like the music lol unless it was the much more complicated, "post-hardcore" and "metalcore" stuff. Though, on metalcore, I also hated most of that, too. LOL.

 

Converge, Refused, Killswitch, late-era Dillinger Escape Plan, Lamb of God, Norma Jean (Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child only), and Zao were all favorites of mine. Basically, if it's closer to melodic death/black metal, I'm in, 100%. I'm a huge In Flames, Soilwork, Solution .45, Scar Symmetry, etc. fan. Oh, and Shai Hulud was great, too.

Lol, I learned that about you over the years.  Not a fan of NYHC. I love it. Funny thing is all summer I’ve been listening to Pandora (sick of it all station) and they’ve been playing tons of Snapcase, Strife, Terror, Trapped Under Ice and I have enjoyed it immensely. I really hadn’t spent much time listening to them all until recently. 

Edited August 4, 2022 by Parsley

[The Dude]

9 hours ago, Phil said:

 

Except it wasn't original, at all. It sounded like every other "beat down style" kick-snare kick-snare chug-chug hardcore act at the time. That's what I loved so much about the "Hatebreed or Pantera rip off" — that at least had layers to it. Melody. Depth.

 

My "hardcore roots" though, I'd imagine, will conflict with yours at every opportunity. I loathed all the mainstays because of how basic and boring I found their music to be. Bane, Gorilla Biscuits, Earth Crisis, Agnostic Front, Cro-Mags, Terror — all that stuff is awful to me. And the next generation wasn't much better. It's all the branch out work that most fans hated that I loved most. Take Snapcase, as an example. The only album of theirs I can routinely go back to is End Transmission because it's the most experimental one they ever did. Progression Through Unlearning is OK, and there's tracks that take me back, but it's never a record I seek out.

 

Most of my friends were hardcore Long Island hardcore guys, so I was always around local shows, I just didn't actually like the music lol unless it was the much more complicated, "post-hardcore" and "metalcore" stuff. Though, on metalcore, I also hated most of that, too. LOL.

 

Converge, Refused, Killswitch, late-era Dillinger Escape Plan, Lamb of God, Norma Jean (Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child only), and Zao were all favorites of mine. Basically, if it's closer to melodic death/black metal, I'm in, 100%. I'm a huge In Flames, Soilwork, Solution .45, Scar Symmetry, etc. fan. Oh, and Shai Hulud was great, too.

Ha! I get that. I was more of a fan of the simplistic beat down stuff, but never liked the bands that transitioned away from it.

 

While I get how you can say the music style was the same as everything else, with the chuggyness, but I feel the lyrics set those bands apart. It wasn't always about their musical talents as much as it was the emotion and the message.

 

Throwdown singing about being straight edge or being united seemed deeper than "Holy roller" or other stuff I felt was cornball due to its abrupt shift in attitude, style and message. Definitely jumping on board the coattails of Hatebreeds initial success and sucking up to Pantera. To me, You don't have to be blood and all that had layers and some really great off beat drum stuff to it, that gave it the depth you feel it lacked. Lol. To each their own though. Never going to change people's minds about music. 

 

Snapcase was great, definitely an all time fave, whom were overlooked. 

 

You bring up long Island hardcore,  but didn't mention Vision of Disorder. Any take on them? 

 

Can't believe you brought up Zao. Holy shot. That's one I hadn't heard in a long time. Though I only liked one CD of theirs that I can't seem to remember the name of. 

 

As for In Flames. I lost interest after Reroute or Come clarity . But Clayman will forever be in my top 10 faves. I don’t know if it's just because it's so fucking good,or if it just reminds me of great times as it was the soundtrack to my early 20s.  It was an album I was going to put in this thread. 

 

Fuckin guy brings up Shai Hulud...  Awesome. Another that belongs in the thread. I feel like THAT band needed to be heard way more than it did. 

[Phil]

15 hours ago, The Dude said:

Ha! I get that. I was more of a fan of the simplistic beat down stuff, but never liked the bands that transitioned away from it.

 

While I get how you can say the music style was the same as everything else, with the chuggyness, but I feel the lyrics set those bands apart. It wasn't always about their musical talents as much as it was the emotion and the message.

 

Throwdown singing about being straight edge or being united seemed deeper than "Holy roller" or other stuff I felt was cornball due to its abrupt shift in attitude, style and message. Definitely jumping on board the coattails of Hatebreeds initial success and sucking up to Pantera. To me, You don't have to be blood and all that had layers and some really great off beat drum stuff to it, that gave it the depth you feel it lacked. Lol. To each their own though. Never going to change people's minds about music. 

 

Snapcase was great, definitely an all time fave, whom were overlooked. 

 

You bring up long Island hardcore,  but didn't mention Vision of Disorder. Any take on them? 

 

Can't believe you brought up Zao. Holy shot. That's one I hadn't heard in a long time. Though I only liked one CD of theirs that I can't seem to remember the name of. 

 

As for In Flames. I lost interest after Reroute or Come clarity . But Clayman will forever be in my top 10 faves. I don’t know if it's just because it's so fucking good,or if it just reminds me of great times as it was the soundtrack to my early 20s.  It was an album I was going to put in this thread. 

 

Fuckin guy brings up Shai Hulud...  Awesome. Another that belongs in the thread. I feel like THAT band needed to be heard way more than it did. 

 

Yeah, it's just a general difference in musical taste. It wasn't the chuggyness I really had issue with, it was the formula of how almost all hardcore songs are structured. That's what I meant by "kick-snare." It's pulled directly from that high-speed punk and OG hardcore style. It's not that it's bad, it's that I can't tell the difference between any of it, lyrically, or musically. Early Throwdown is like a literal caricature. Fast pace + breakdown + uplifting lyrics about never backing down and staying united. Rinse, repeat.

 

I've always appreciated the more theatrical/layered/melodic stuff over the straight forward approach of most hardcore, which is funny, because I also love punk rock, so you'd think the transition would have been seamless. Go figure.

 

VOD I was kinda into. Weird band, though, musically. Not even close to traditional hardcore, but also not really "post" or any of the other genres. They were kind of, in some ways, the precursor to early Glassjaw, I feel like.

 

I hear you on In Flames. I kept up somewhat post Reroute, but Jester Race through Reroute is undoubtedly their best work. Episode 666 is still one of the best metal songs I've ever heard in my life. Just incredibly catchy.

 

And yeah, Shai Hulud rocks. "It's gonna be cold. It's gonna be gray. And it's gonna last you the rest .... of your life."

[phillyb]

I'm with Phil on the hardcore stuff, which is funny cause I came from punk, but more poppy shit. WIth that being said, NOFX, Strung Out, NUFAN, Lagwagon are some of my faves and they all have that "kick-snare" 1-2 beat. It's indistinguishable alone without the rest of the instruments and lyrics and I agree that it's "boring" in a way. 

 

Hardcore also had gang vocals, which was not really in punk. That shit was fun but it missed me. I wasn't going to hardcore shows a lot. 

 

I'm with Phil on black metal as well and I'm with him all the way through Norma Jean - Bless the Martyr ONLY hahaha, funny. I think I had redeemer, but only cause it was a dollar at goodwill. Bless the Martyr is amazing. 

 

Converge, Dillinger and that "chaotic" hardcore was much more my pace because it took the formulas of hardcore and tossed em out the window. 

 

@Phil Check out Dark Trail Records, they have a lot of these newer bands doing chaotic hardcore - Under the Pier and Mothman are two that come to mind. Black Matter Device is another one. 2 minute songs with 37 different parts where nothing repeats. Gimme that. 

 

[Phil]

Talk of old In Flames got me thinking — old Arch Enemy, with Johan Liiva has to be on this list. Stigmata and Burning Bridges are great early melodic death metal records.

 

 

If you never listened to this record before, do so today @The Dude — it's phenomenal. Especially if Clayman is a favorite of yours.

[The Dude]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

Talk of old In Flames got me thinking — old Arch Enemy, with Johan Liiva has to be on this list. Stigmata and Burning Bridges are great early melodic death metal records.

 

 

If you never listened to this record before, do so today @The Dude — it's phenomenal. Especially if Clayman is a favorite of yours.

Pfffft have it, got it when it came out. I fucking LOVE that album and hate everything after the singer left. Pilgrim and Silverwing are such great tunes. Back then, I always wanted to put a Richter highlight reel or MSG Rangers game opening montage with a music backdrop of Silverwing. 

 

Nevermind my ideas for songs for warm ups.    

[The Dude]

Pretty much everything these guys did was fantastic. So all over the place and flat out mean sounding, heavy as fuck. 

 

 

[Albatrosss]

1990s Megadeth is totally underrated IMO.  Some of best pure rock songs ever written that get no credit.  Mustaine was at his best when he transitioned from speed/thrash metal to more melodic songs in the 90's

[Phil]

I'm not even remotely a Megadeth fan, but I agree completely. They're arguably the most underrated metal band of all-time.