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Top Ten Most Overrated Metal Bands


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Ten heavy metal holy cows that have contributed much less to metal than their popularity would suggest.

Created by: Ganondox | 18.04.2018



1. Ghost - Ripping Off Black Metal Aesthetics + Pop = Profit
2. Testament - Sorry, but Anthrax is the band which deserves the fourth spot in the big four
3. Cannibal Corpse - The point at which shock value in death metal became more important than actual music
4. Avenged Sevenfold - Talent wasted on a spastic Metallica wannabe
5. Mötley Crüe - The worst band in the worst subgenre of metal, they are known for hedonism rather than talent
6. Trivium - They couldn't decide if they were metalcore or some other subgenre, so they decided to not be anything
7. Amon Amarth - A mediocre melodeath band whose success is based on riding the oldest gimmick in metal
8. Manowar - The warriors of true metal are ironically barely metal themselves
9. Lamb Of God - By finding the ideal combination of European and American influence they please without doing anything new
10. Metallica - This watered down thrash metal band is the epitome of lowest common denominator metal



Disclaimer: All top lists are unofficial and do not represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
[ More lists by Ganondox ]



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Comments: 31   Visited by: 66 users
18.04.2018 - 00:02
Ganondox

The list is in reverse order, Metallica is supposed to be the most overrated.
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18.04.2018 - 14:13
mertriver1

Hell yeah!!
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20.05.2018 - 02:38
solar

I'd agree that Ghost is somewhat overrated as a consequence of the show they put on. But, I think they put on a good show, nonetheless. I like their music and cannot find many other bands that play a similar style. Also I don't think they're really metal to begin with. But I like their music so that's a win for me.
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20.05.2018 - 17:04
Metren
Dreadrealm
While I agree with most of these bands being overrated, I take issue with "Manowar are barely metal". WTF? I don't even like Manowar, but they are TOTALLY metal.
----
My one-man project's Bandcamp with free downloads: https://dreadrealm.bandcamp.com/
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20.05.2018 - 17:10
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Metren on 20.05.2018 at 17:04

While I agree with most of these bands being overrated, I take issue with "Manowar are barely metal". WTF? I don't even like Manowar, but they are TOTALLY metal.


Indeed, the totally non-metal band in this list is Ghost. It is pop with some rock leanings.
----
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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25.05.2018 - 10:10
Ganondox

Written by Metren on 20.05.2018 at 17:04

While I agree with most of these bands being overrated, I take issue with "Manowar are barely metal". WTF? I don't even like Manowar, but they are TOTALLY metal.


The only reason they are considered pure metal is because they insist they are metal. In reality they are borderline hard rock. Still clearly metal, but only barely. That would be understandable if they were a 70s band as metal hadn't had distinguished themselves much from hard rock then, but they aren't, they are an 80s band. The point wasn't to argue about how metal Manowar is, it was just a one-liner mocking them in a tongue in check fashion.
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25.05.2018 - 10:14
Ganondox

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 20.05.2018 at 17:10

Written by Metren on 20.05.2018 at 17:04

While I agree with most of these bands being overrated, I take issue with "Manowar are barely metal". WTF? I don't even like Manowar, but they are TOTALLY metal.


Indeed, the totally non-metal band in this list is Ghost. It is pop with some rock leanings.


Being pop does not change the fact that Ghost is in fact metal, I'd say more so than Manowar is. Saying they only have rock leanings is hilarious, it's the perfect ignorant elitism, no one who knows what they are talking about would dispute Ghost being some sort of rock. Obviously we use different measures to rate whether something is metal or not, but I find Ghost to be further removed from hard rock and taking distinctly metallic elements than Manowar.
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25.05.2018 - 10:25
Ganondox

Written by solar on 20.05.2018 at 02:38

I'd agree that Ghost is somewhat overrated as a consequence of the show they put on. But, I think they put on a good show, nonetheless. I like their music and cannot find many other bands that play a similar style. Also I don't think they're really metal to begin with. But I like their music so that's a win for me.


Ghost was a bit of a stretch, which is why I meant to put them at the number 10 spot.
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29.06.2018 - 22:19
jmika
Account deleted
1. Behemoth
2. Gorgoroth
3. DsO
4. Ghost
5. Ne Obliviscaris (and any other melo-death, symphonic black metal here on MS)
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04.07.2018 - 08:41
Ganondox

Written by Guest on 29.06.2018 at 22:19

1. Behemoth
2. Gorgoroth
3. DsO
4. Ghost
5. Ne Obliviscaris (and any other melo-death, symphonic black metal here on MS)


Ne Obliviscaris is good though. They aren't just symphonic blackened melodeath, they're progressive, and they got good violin.
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04.07.2018 - 18:05
Mercurial

Written by Guest on 29.06.2018 at 22:19

5. Ne Obliviscaris (and any other melo-death, symphonic black metal here on MS)

When I think of overrated bands Ne Obliviscaris are always the first to come to mind. I remember their demo getting something like 13 positive reviews on MA back in the day, even though it was pretty messy, average stuff. The follow up proved they're a zero-finesse band who prize an "everything but the kitchen sink" philosophy over quality songwriting and sound.

Behemoth were also hella overrated for The Satanist, probably because it was reviewed by a lot of publications that had no idea there were similar bands and albums out there that had already done it better.

Not sure about DsO though. Even though I dislike everything from Paracletus onwards, they're probably the most influential modern black metal band (not a good thing necessary as we're blessed with DsO-clones every day).
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04.07.2018 - 21:28
Karlabos
Meat and Potatos
Ne Ob is indeed too overrated. What good prog metal with violins? More like an entire album of interludes just with the violin and that's it.
----
"Aah! The cat turned into a cat!"
- Reimu Hakurei
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06.07.2018 - 13:19
Ganondox

Written by Mercurial on 04.07.2018 at 18:05

Written by Guest on 29.06.2018 at 22:19

5. Ne Obliviscaris (and any other melo-death, symphonic black metal here on MS)

When I think of overrated bands Ne Obliviscaris are always the first to come to mind. I remember their demo getting something like 13 positive reviews on MA back in the day, even though it was pretty messy, average stuff. The follow up proved they're a zero-finesse band who prize an "everything but the kitchen sink" philosophy over quality songwriting and sound.

Behemoth were also hella overrated for The Satanist, probably because it was reviewed by a lot of publications that had no idea there were similar bands and albums out there that had already done it better.

Not sure about DsO though. Even though I dislike everything from Paracletus onwards, they're probably the most influential modern black metal band (not a good thing necessary as we're blessed with DsO-clones every day).


NeO does not belong on this list for a few reasons. First, they are still fairly obscure, they aren't anywhere near as popular as the bands I listed. Second, regardless of your tastes, they are doing something different. I'm rating bands based on innovation, not sound quality. In general I'd say progressive metal bands don't have great songwriting, but NeO has a few pretty good songs. I've only really listened to their first album, that's enough of them for me.

Pretty sure something like Alcest is more influential than DsO, and more modern.
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06.07.2018 - 13:20
Ganondox

Written by Karlabos on 04.07.2018 at 21:28

Ne Ob is indeed too overrated. What good prog metal with violins? More like an entire album of interludes just with the violin and that's it.


I said prog metal with good violin, not good prog metal with violin. The difference is important, especially in context.
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06.07.2018 - 14:21
Mercurial

Written by Ganondox on 06.07.2018 at 13:19


NeO does not belong on this list for a few reasons. First, they are still fairly obscure, they aren't anywhere near as popular as the bands I listed. Second, regardless of your tastes, they are doing something different. I'm rating bands based on innovation, not sound quality. In general I'd say progressive metal bands don't have great songwriting, but NeO has a few pretty good songs. I've only really listened to their first album, that's enough of them for me.

Pretty sure something like Alcest is more influential than DsO, and more modern.

It's not about doing something different. It's about doing something different well, which Ne Ob don't. They're still vastly more praised than a band of their quality should be. Ghost have virtually as many detractors as they do fans after all. Ne Ob get almost nothing but praise, whereas Ghost do not, so Ne Ob are more "overrated" by pure ratio. Besides, 88000 likes on Facebook (solid mid-tier popular band number that would be considered successful by anyone in a metal band) and a successful crowdfunding campaign doesn't exactly strike me as "obscure." And no offense, but cherry picking some of the biggest named bands out there for an "overrated" list is pretty low-hanging fruit, especially as there's no analysis whatsoever Perhaps you don't know what "overrated" means or you would have named this list something like "Bands That Don't Deserve Their Popularity" which would be more fitting considering that some of these bands have made good albums, not to mention the inarguable influence of Metallica, but also have plenty of criticism levied at them. Popular doesn't necessairly mean overrated.

Furthermore, the idea of innovation can be applied to Ghost as well. Name me another pop rock / metal band that made use of black metal aesthetics and themes in the way they do. Bare in mind that appearance and theatrics is often just as important as the music when it comes to popularity. Sunn O))) wouldn't be where they are without their appearance, as would many critically acclaimed bands. You can't look at metal in such a binary way because innovative music alone will not necessarily get you anywhere.

Alcest, WitTR, Deathspell Omega; all bands that inspired very specific styles of playing, but I hear far more DsO-alikes than I do Alcest-clones these days, and probably marginally fewer WitTR ones, or at least bands that are heavily influenced by them. Alcest progeny may get more popularity by way of their sound, but in terms of sheer numbers bands that want to be DsO are far more prolific I'd wager. Also Alcest were never that original anyway, more of a melding of light black metal elements with post-rock and post-punk music so their influence is somewhat muddied by that, whereas the way DsO and WitTR play can be traced back to one specific band each.
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07.07.2018 - 06:15
jmika
Account deleted
To clarify my list: I feel like Behemoth totally is a justified number one, this band has like 400k listeners on last.fm. To make a comparison: First and second wave black metal bands like Satyricon, Immortal, Mayhem and Emperor have like 250k listeners. Where does the extra 150k Behemoth fans come from? I never really understood what's so great about them. The Vivaldi of black metal, Burzum has 350k listeners, and Behemoth with their pretentious "The Satanist" has 400k. That's an insult!

Gorgoroth have 170k listeners on last.fm, in my book that's 169k too many. Pretty overrated huh? If Immortal is everything that is fun about black metal, this band is everything that is wrong about black metal. No further explanation needed. I will rather move on to DsO. This band has the worst fan base in all of metal, they are everywhere and they like to talk about how smart they are for liking this band. And if you don't like them, you are dumb. You get it? You don't have a poor taste, you are dumb. This band is literally a garbage can where all the cretins gather to talk shit. Again... not really a huge fanbase (81k on last.fm), but the ones who are talking ruins the experience for me. Overrated among the fans.

Ghost, I don't get the hype. They were quite entertaining in the beginning, with black metal kind of costumes, black metal kind of lyrics, and then... what is this? soft rock? I must admit: it was quite clever. But then again, it's getting old very fast. And by the way: Have you guys seen that new mask? It's horrible! What's the idea?

Ne Ob... will come back to them later.
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07.07.2018 - 12:26
Cynic Metalhead
Paisa Vich Nasha
To clarify: Last.fm is not the ONLY source you base the judgment on.
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07.07.2018 - 13:05
Mercurial

Written by Cynic Metalhead on 07.07.2018 at 12:26

To clarify: Last.fm is not the ONLY source you base the judgment on.

Facebook: Behemoth: 1.4 million. Immortal 1 million. The others: 500k each and under. Weirdly Satyricon has more than Mayhem, Emperor and Burzum, but I guess they did basically sell out.

Behemoth got massive on a mediocre album that got a lot of exposure because the mainstream media picked up on the word "Satanist."
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07.07.2018 - 17:40
jmika
Account deleted
Written by Cynic Metalhead on 07.07.2018 at 12:26

To clarify: Last.fm is not the ONLY source you base the judgment on.

Of course. Please inform me if you got other relevant statistics. I do find these numbers kind of strange. I am guessing the old timers, the ones who know Bathory, Satyricon etc. are not on last.fm.
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07.07.2018 - 17:51
jmika
Account deleted
Written by Mercurial on 07.07.2018 at 13:05

Written by Cynic Metalhead on 07.07.2018 at 12:26

To clarify: Last.fm is not the ONLY source you base the judgment on.

Facebook: Behemoth: 1.4 million. Immortal 1 million. The others: 500k each and under. Weirdly Satyricon has more than Mayhem, Emperor and Burzum, but I guess they did basically sell out.

Behemoth got massive on a mediocre album that got a lot of exposure because the mainstream media picked up on the word "Satanist."


Wow! I guess it's that simple. A big band naming their album "The Satanist". I know how an album cover and/or a title can effect you as a listener. The kids buy the whole satanist thing, I have no idea why.
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07.07.2018 - 19:25
Mercurial

Written by Guest on 07.07.2018 at 17:51


Wow! I guess it's that simple. A big band naming their album "The Satanist". I know how an album cover and/or a title can effect you as a listener. The kids buy the whole satanist thing, I have no idea why.

It's just a theory but I can't imagine it would have done so well had it been named something more moderate, nor without all the Bible etc. controversy with Nergal.
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11.07.2018 - 22:23
Ganondox

Written by Mercurial on 06.07.2018 at 14:21

Written by Ganondox on 06.07.2018 at 13:19


NeO does not belong on this list for a few reasons. First, they are still fairly obscure, they aren't anywhere near as popular as the bands I listed. Second, regardless of your tastes, they are doing something different. I'm rating bands based on innovation, not sound quality. In general I'd say progressive metal bands don't have great songwriting, but NeO has a few pretty good songs. I've only really listened to their first album, that's enough of them for me.

Pretty sure something like Alcest is more influential than DsO, and more modern.

It's not about doing something different. It's about doing something different well, which Ne Ob don't. They're still vastly more praised than a band of their quality should be. Ghost have virtually as many detractors as they do fans after all. Ne Ob get almost nothing but praise, whereas Ghost do not, so Ne Ob are more "overrated" by pure ratio. Besides, 88000 likes on Facebook (solid mid-tier popular band number that would be considered successful by anyone in a metal band) and a successful crowdfunding campaign doesn't exactly strike me as "obscure." And no offense, but cherry picking some of the biggest named bands out there for an "overrated" list is pretty low-hanging fruit, especially as there's no analysis whatsoever Perhaps you don't know what "overrated" means or you would have named this list something like "Bands That Don't Deserve Their Popularity" which would be more fitting considering that some of these bands have made good albums, not to mention the inarguable influence of Metallica, but also have plenty of criticism levied at them. Popular doesn't necessairly mean overrated.

Furthermore, the idea of innovation can be applied to Ghost as well. Name me another pop rock / metal band that made use of black metal aesthetics and themes in the way they do. Bare in mind that appearance and theatrics is often just as important as the music when it comes to popularity. Sunn O))) wouldn't be where they are without their appearance, as would many critically acclaimed bands. You can't look at metal in such a binary way because innovative music alone will not necessarily get you anywhere.

Alcest, WitTR, Deathspell Omega; all bands that inspired very specific styles of playing, but I hear far more DsO-alikes than I do Alcest-clones these days, and probably marginally fewer WitTR ones, or at least bands that are heavily influenced by them. Alcest progeny may get more popularity by way of their sound, but in terms of sheer numbers bands that want to be DsO are far more prolific I'd wager. Also Alcest were never that original anyway, more of a melding of light black metal elements with post-rock and post-punk music so their influence is somewhat muddied by that, whereas the way DsO and WitTR play can be traced back to one specific band each.


I'm talking about MY list. You can hate NeO for whatever reason you want, but the criteria you are using to gauge overratedness is not the criteria I'm using here. If you actually bothered to read the description of the list at the top I clarified what I meant, but of course you didn't. Ne Obliviscarius may be a bit overrated, but they are a fine band. It's funny how you claim no one hates on them, but everyone in this thread has been hating on them! I was considering not including Ghost because of their hatedom and because they are bit innovative musically, which is why they are at spot 10, but it's their Grammy win that convinced me to include them. Regardless, they are far more deserving of a spot on this list than Ne Obliviscarius is.

"Besides, 88000 likes on Facebook (solid mid-tier popular band number that would be considered successful by anyone in a metal band) and a successful crowdfunding campaign doesn't exactly strike me as "obscure."" That's NOTHING. Every band I listed has at least a MILLION likes.

"specially as there's no analysis whatsoever " Dude, I gave as much analysis as I literally could in the list format, otherwise it spills across multiple lines. It's not like I need to justify my choices to you anyway. Your criticism isn't just unwanted, it's frankly idiotic. Fuck off.

"Perhaps you don't know what "overrated" means or you would have named this list something like 'Bands That Don't Deserve Their Popularity'"

Nope, it just never crossed your mind that popularity reflects positive opinions of something, and that there is more nuance than just popularity that you didn't pick up on.

"Furthermore, the idea of innovation can be applied to Ghost as well. Name me another pop rock / metal band that made use of black metal aesthetics and themes in the way they do. "

Aesthetics is not musical innovation, it's a gimmick. Also, they weren't the first, arguably Mercyful Fate meets that criteria and I'm sure there is others. Maybe not the way they did, but specifications are meaninglessly specific.

"Sunn O))) wouldn't be where they are without their appearance, as would many critically acclaimed bands."

>Ignoring the fact that Sunn O)))'s style of drone metal is unique. How they got popular doesn't matter, it's what they brought to the table that does.

Not going to even bother with the DSO stuff, their sound isn't anywhere near as distinctive as Alcest's so it's impossible to measure their influence. Your claim that Alcest is unoriginal while the other two aren't is pure nonsense. The funny thing is Neige didn't even know what shoegazing was until people compared his music to it in reviews.

Now get out.
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11.07.2018 - 22:26
Ganondox

Written by Guest on 07.07.2018 at 06:15

To clarify my list: I feel like Behemoth totally is a justified number one, this band has like 400k listeners on last.fm. To make a comparison: First and second wave black metal bands like Satyricon, Immortal, Mayhem and Emperor have like 250k listeners. Where does the extra 150k Behemoth fans come from? I never really understood what's so great about them. The Vivaldi of black metal, Burzum has 350k listeners, and Behemoth with their pretentious "The Satanist" has 400k. That's an insult!

Gorgoroth have 170k listeners on last.fm, in my book that's 169k too many. Pretty overrated huh? If Immortal is everything that is fun about black metal, this band is everything that is wrong about black metal. No further explanation needed. I will rather move on to DsO. This band has the worst fan base in all of metal, they are everywhere and they like to talk about how smart they are for liking this band. And if you don't like them, you are dumb. You get it? You don't have a poor taste, you are dumb. This band is literally a garbage can where all the cretins gather to talk shit. Again... not really a huge fanbase (81k on last.fm), but the ones who are talking ruins the experience for me. Overrated among the fans.

Ghost, I don't get the hype. They were quite entertaining in the beginning, with black metal kind of costumes, black metal kind of lyrics, and then... what is this? soft rock? I must admit: it was quite clever. But then again, it's getting old very fast. And by the way: Have you guys seen that new mask? It's horrible! What's the idea?

Ne Ob... will come back to them later.


Your list makes sense if you're talking about just black metal, but I'm talking about metal in general. The most overrated black metal band is nowhere near as overrated as Metallica.
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11.07.2018 - 23:29
Mercurial

Written by Ganondox on 11.07.2018 at 22:23


I'm talking about MY list. You can hate NeO for whatever reason you want, but the criteria you are using to gauge overratedness is not the criteria I'm using here.


Yeah, but it's still a pretty rubbish list. "Oh look, popular bands I don't completely like!

Quote:
"Besides, 88000 likes on Facebook (solid mid-tier popular band number that would be considered successful by anyone in a metal band) and a successful crowdfunding campaign doesn't exactly strike me as "obscure."" That's NOTHING. Every band I listed has at least a MILLION likes.


Yeah ok, just ignore eveyrthing I said there about ratio and proportion for caps locked reiteration.

Quote:
"specially as there's no analysis whatsoever " Dude, I gave as much analysis as I literally could in the list format, otherwise it spills across multiple lines. Your criticism is frankly idiotic.


You can fit a whole lot more words in this format. You basically didn't even try.

Quote:
Nope, it just never crossed your mind that popularity reflects positive opinions of something, and that there is more nuance than you are capable of appreciating.


I don't think you should be talking about nuance with a list as rudimentary and unoriginal as this.

Quote:
Aesthetics is not musical innovation, it's a gimmick.


Only if you have a very limited understanding of how music becomes popular / lauded. Black metal is pretty much predicated on its image and themes.

Quote:
>Ignoring the fact that Sunn O)))'s style of drone metal is unique. How they got popular doesn't matter, it's what they brought to the table that does.


Most of their music is Earth worship with some bells and whistles, so you're pretty wrong there, but the point is "what they brought to the table" wouldn't have found its audience without the image and mystery behind them.

Quote:
Not going to even bother with the DSO stuff, their sound isn't anywhere near as distinctive as Alcest's so it's impossible to measure their influence. Your claim that Alcest is unoriginal while the other two aren't is pure nonsense.


The only band that sounded like DsO before them was Ved Buens Ende, and the only band that really sounded like WitTR was Weakling. I guess your black metal history isn't up to snuff. Both bands took key elements of their progenitors and refined it as their own.

Quote:
Now get out.



Nope. You make a contentious list then you should expect responses. No need to get grumpy.
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11.07.2018 - 23:48
3rdWorld
China was a neat
Hellyeah, Jooe at it again.
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11.07.2018 - 23:52
Mercurial

Lolll. I don't think anything I can say here will top: "I can't give analyses on these bands because the words will go over to two lines." That is gold right there.

Although, "Ne Obliviscaris are a good band that don't deserve to be on here. They don't make good prog music but they have good violin. It's all about context" gets silver.
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15.07.2018 - 21:13
Ganondox

Now, if I were to make a list of bands whose are critically better received than they deserve, I'd put Deafheaven above Ne Obliviscaris anyday. They are good, but not album of the year good, and Alcest is better.
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07.09.2018 - 19:47
jmika
Account deleted
Deafheaven have some killer songs, like "Dream House" and "The Pecan Tree". Lots of passion and talent going on here. For me Ne Obliviscaris tries to be too many things at the same time. Are they prog? black metal? No? Eh? Melo death? Do they have symphonic elements you say? Then... more violin please! More of that symphonic stuff! My conclusion about this band: They fall between several chairs.
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13.09.2018 - 18:44
Ganondox

Written by Guest on 07.09.2018 at 19:47

Deafheaven have some killer songs, like "Dream House" and "The Pecan Tree". Lots of passion and talent going on here. For me Ne Obliviscaris tries to be too many things at the same time. Are they prog? black metal? No? Eh? Melo death? Do they have symphonic elements you say? Then... more violin please! More of that symphonic stuff! My conclusion about this band: They fall between several chairs.


I don't exactly disagree with you, but Deafheaven is rated significantly higher than Ne Obliviscaris is. Deafheaven has great songs, but they have a middle ground blackgaze as well. Ne Obliviscaris's best songs have always been the more violin driven ones. I haven't listened to much of them after their first album, maybe that's what people are complaining about, but songs like "And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope" and "As Icicles Fall" to be masterpieces.
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04.12.2018 - 15:59
I don't agree with Metallica (first 3 LPs). Despite the fact I am not their listener.

My list
1. Gorgoroth! Crap & boring music, "dark satanic" live show are for 12-15yo boys. This band is BM Justin Bieber. (I have no problem with homosexuals in Gorgoroth. I have problem with posers producing music/videos = profit).
2. Testament - copy of everything known before
3. Dark Funeral (5 guitar riffs and 5 accords in differenrt order in each song), also posers like no 1.
4. Dimmu Borgir - this band is one big commedy their music video too. The problem is that they really try to prettend to be soo serious ) Some "atmospheric" riffs are everything but no dark. Big collage for profit.
5. Vader, Unleashed - primitive, boring and 100x repeating similar riffs. I have to add that this music is not as bad as overrated.

PS: "bands" like Marilyn Manson. MM don't do music. They do show for kids. Ok but music? WTF?
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