Global Metal review
For those of you who are familiar with Metal: A Headbanger's Journey are (more or less) going to be more pleased with the next staple in metal history, but not in your typical American/British/Scandinavian scenery. I'm talking Global Metal, where metal is reviewed as a worldwide phenomenon and NOBODY can crush its reign within the world we live in.
Now I have to admit, I was skeptical about this movie when I first heard about it from my cousin, who's as heavily into the rap and alternative rock scenery as I am with thrash metal. But it actually is a really compelling journey through some of the "international" aspects of metal, which includes Brazil, Japan, China, Indonesia, India, Israel, and because he couldn't get into Iran we got the UAE instead. Granted, if you watched Headbanger's Journey, you're not going to be surprised when you see most of the bands there usually associating themselves with screechy, extreme metal vocals. Oh, Sam Dunn, is that all you have to offer?
To answer that, no. Actually, it improves on moving away from those extreme metal/Iron Maiden (even though Iron Maiden switched with Sepultura) topics and divulge into some actual bands that promote either hope from the lord (Israel) or the use of actual singers (China, Marty Friedman's personal project). In fact, that's what Global Metal is. Taking the use of what metal does to you, how it affects you, and redistributing it in your own unique way, which can vary from wearing metal/non-metal clothing/image, lyrical themes and even their purpose for listening to it.
With all of that being said, something that has enlightened me was "Count Grishnakh" or Varg Vikernes for simpler terms, and his connection to one of the bands in the video: the religious views against one of the religious views. Why was he mentioned in this documentary, but not in Headbanger's Journey? That documentary had went through black and death metal traits in the Scandinavian countries, yet he comes in only to be viewed as a church burner (even though he did burn a church). As well as that, I was kind of disappointed that no African countries were mentioned in the documentary (part of it being because I'm Ethiopian). Then again, we're still waiting to become a properly functioned continent (for a SERIOUS lack of better terms).
Either way, I'm happy that Sam Dunn had taken the time to do another documentary like this again. This clearly erases most of the prejudices that metal heads are usually branded with, and helps give a new perspective to those who brand us as screaming pigs. Granted, now all that's left is one question: what's Sam going to do next?
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
Comments: 14
Visited by: 46 users
| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway  |
Really, what IS he going to do next?
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Timmeh Dudeman Posts: 344 From: Australia  |
Written by Milena on 09.03.2011 at 08:34 Straight from Wiki: "Dunn has produced a documentary series for VH1 Classic on various metal genres. Its release date is planned to be November 11, 2011." Wait, that's today!
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Timmeh on 11.11.2011 at 14:39 Yeah, I know, I just won't be able to watch it because I haven't got VH1 Classic. But it is based on the metal family tree showed in Headbanger's Journey, which I don't like, as it overlooks a lot of bands and puts some bands in random categories 
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Timmeh Dudeman Posts: 344 From: Australia |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 15:15 Oh darn, yes I remember looking at that tree and questioning a substantial part of it. I live in Australia so I can't watch it anyway, I might try and dig up the first episode on the internet somewhere, if its content doesn't annoy me too much I might keep watching the series.
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Timmeh on 11.11.2011 at 15:21 There is no 'true' version when it comes to the classification of metal genres, but I've found that a lot of musical journalists and people dealing with metal on other professional bases have a lot of wackier beliefs about them then the rest of us fans... and we should agree on the majority's opinion, as this is the model this world functions by... but they keep on pushing their versions of what subgenres should be :/ I mean, Judas Priest = power metal? If that is the case, we can retire heavy metal as a genre, as it doesn't exist, and everything is either power or proto metal  The article says you're from Ethiopia but you live in Australia.... have you moved?
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Posts: 40071 From: The Netherlands  |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 15:15 the metal family tree in Headbanger's Journey wasn't even made by Dunn but by Martin Popoff of Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, a so-called serious metal journalist for decades. I really do find it disconcerting he came up with a family tree which is quite off at points and totally overlooks certain genres.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996 
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 11.11.2011 at 15:31 I've mentioned in the comment below how metal journalists tend to do that. It's quite... I don't know the word for it. Why the hell they do it anyway?
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Posts: 21306 From: Canada  |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 15:36 Laziness, ignorance, apathy. You decide. 
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Troy Killjoy on 11.11.2011 at 19:40 Maybe a troll here and there too?
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Posts: 21306 From: Canada |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 19:41 Quite possibly. The thing with these metal anthropologists or whatever they call themselves, is they have to cater to the mainstream market. If I'm introducing someone to metal, I'm going to want them to get into stuff they like. And most people don't start off by liking something like Sui Caedere to start, they'd rather go with an Iron Maiden or Slayer kind of band. Once you promote the popular bands to the populace, they'll hopefully dig into the lesser known bands on their own time. That being said, it's a shame how little the underground is promoted. Although if the underground was promoted it wouldn't be underground. :/ Dilemma much.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Troy Killjoy on 11.11.2011 at 19:44 I don't mind him promoting the underground too little, as you may have heard, there's gonna be a whole series dedicated to the genres in question My problem is that the dude who made the metal family tree featured in A Headbanger's Journey was obviously some sort of a troll.
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist Posts: 21306 From: Canada |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 19:46 Definitely. Anyone who knows their genres and their bands can instantly spot a handful of mistakes in that diagram.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| Timmeh Dudeman Posts: 344 From: Australia |
Written by Milena on 11.11.2011 at 15:30 I'm not the reviewer  .
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| Milena gloom cookie Posts: 4603 From: Norway |
Written by Timmeh on 12.11.2011 at 01:10 I thought no one but the author would have a discussion with me, I'm sorry it would be a huge move across continents so it startled my imagination!
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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