A question for metal fans.

[oldskoolandi]

I find I get bored of too much of any one vocal style these days. Bands that have a variety are much more interesting, sometimes death growls fit the passage, sometimes it needs to be clean, or somewhere in between. Strapping Young Lad are a good example of varying vocal styles, since Devin Townsend is pretty much amazing at any style.


Also, you can apply filters to music in Audacity that will remove vocals, but as this is based on specific pitch ranges you'll also notice a change to the sound quality in other instruments which would probably make this impractical, unless the vocals really really bug you. there might well be some app on the interwebs that does this better, most karaoke machines work on that principle

 

[dashiz94]

I just think it's a waste of time to write lyrics for a song and that act like a dog trying to sing them, then again I have heard dogs sound alot better (not even joking). Nobody can understand them, you might know what lyrics there singing by the musical ques but there is no way you can listen to it and know what there singing growling.

It also makes the songs sound so amaturish. On the odd occasions I watched american wife swap, there have been the "family band" or something and you just know it's going to be this kind of music and the second the "singer" opens his gob with "WAAAAAAGH!, you know it's going to sound exactly like every other band out there with this style.

Except once you can understand screamed vocals you hear a different side of the lyrics with those heavy vocals. And nobody understands them? Okay, sure.

Your comment is just plain ignorant. You may not like the genre, but stating that it's pointless to write lyrics or that all vocals sound like dogs is just dumb.

 

[LordHotCakes]

The closest band I listen to with Growling vocals is Opeth. And even then, not everything they have done is growly vocally. In fact, its for that reason that makes them good (to me anyway). Opeth's Latest Album Watershed for example, is on the border of Damnation in terms of clean Vocals. But oddly a lot of people don't like it. I sometimes find that grunting vocals tend to be tiresome to listen to, its almost to much effect to try to hear what they are singing. If done badly, the vocals can also distract from the music, itself.

Hence why, over the years I've moved more on to Prog-Metal. Such as Sun Caged, Tool, A Chinese Firedrill, Minds Eye and Fates Warning to name but a few, All clean vocal based bands. But since we are talking about vocals, I also listen to a few bands that don't have vocals at all. Since as Monkey3, JT Bruce, Tesserakt and Canvas Solaris. Am listening to the latter right now, in fact.

Sometimes, lyrics, or vocals can never get across a sense of emotion or meaning as well as just music alone.

 

[zehydra]

IMO if you want metal with amazing vocals: Alice in Chains.

 

[McNinja]

Specifically, vocals. I've been listening to quite a lot of heavy songs lately, and I can't help but feel that the vast majority of them would be improved by the exclusion of guttural croaking.



Anyway, do you see death-metal vocals as an unfortunate necessity, or do you feel that they actually add to the song? What is the appeal?
Also, is there any way of separating the audio tracks in a song and removing the vocals? I love Opeth, but Arkfeldt's 'singing' makes me cringe. I have Audacity, if that helps.

Look up the bands Scar Symmetry, Mercenary, and Demon Hunter.

I like the harsh vocals because... I dunno, I just think they're cool. I also love the clean vocals, because I also love hearing good singers. Some bands use the insane pig-squeals... actually, I have no idea why. I don't like them in the least, and they are almost impossible to decipher without the lyrics in front of you.

 

[Silent Biohazard Solid]

Well, the main problem with Death Metal screams, or any kind of extreme metal screams is that they're overdone. They were unique at one point, and then everyone started doing it, and it does sound pretty much the same for many bands.
Whereas when it comes to actual singing, you could listen to Bruce Dickinson, Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Halford, Dave Mustaine, Peter Steele and they all sound distinctly different. That's just the nature of the human voice.
When it comes to screaming, yeah, there are definitely a few out there that really stand out like Burton C. Bell, Devin Townshend come to mind. But for the most part, when you hear Black Metal or Death Metal screams, it's difficult to tell them apart one from another. There's the standard "Low" scream, like Cannibal Corpse, and standard, "High" scream like Static-X. And once you've heard those two, you've heard them all.
Again, this is generalizing, there is the odd band out there whose vocalist will bring something unique in terms of screaming. But those are few and far between.

That, and the simple fact that there are some songs that should really just be instrumentals. It doesn't just pertain to extreme metal bands. Sometimes, there's just music that's so good, and you get right into it, and then the vocalist comes on, and takes you out of that zone you were in. And being a vocalist, I gotta say, that sucks. But it's just how it is. Sometimes, you just want to hear Music, without a voice.

 

[blar the great]

any idiot can scream....but very few can sing like timo kotipelto http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-4Gm6VG4O0

 

[omega 616]

I just think it's a waste of time to write lyrics for a song and that act like a dog trying to sing them, then again I have heard dogs sound alot better (not even joking). Nobody can understand them, you might know what lyrics there singing by the musical ques but there is no way you can listen to it and know what there singing growling.

It also makes the songs sound so amaturish. On the odd occasions I watched american wife swap, there have been the "family band" or something and you just know it's going to be this kind of music and the second the "singer" opens his gob with "WAAAAAAGH!, you know it's going to sound exactly like every other band out there with this style.

Except once you can understand screamed vocals you hear a different side of the lyrics with those heavy vocals. And nobody understands them? Okay, sure.

Your comment is just plain ignorant. You may not like the genre, but stating that it's pointless to write lyrics or that all vocals sound like dogs is just dumb.

Did I step on your toesies?

If I got a song you have never heard before and played it, there is no chance in hell you would understand a word that guy barked. There is no other side to the lyrics, there aren't any to start with, some person might have wrote down a bunch but that doesn't mean the lead "singer" is singing along to the words.

There isn't a skill set in screaming, any little girl can scream. There is no skill set in growling, just pretend you gargled glass.

If anybody has seen House they will understand what I think of that kind of music, there is a kid who tries to write plain awful music, it has no redeeming features, thats what I think of this "vocal style".

This is just my opinion remember, if you don't like it thats your problem. I think the music can be great but the "vocal style", nah!

 

[blankedboy]

Well that's just the reason I don't listen to much metal.
Then again, I don't care for lyrics in music at all anymore, they just seem to make the song kinda redundant.

/flameshield

 

[dashiz94]

I just think it's a waste of time to write lyrics for a song and that act like a dog trying to sing them, then again I have heard dogs sound alot better (not even joking). Nobody can understand them, you might know what lyrics there singing by the musical ques but there is no way you can listen to it and know what there singing growling.

It also makes the songs sound so amaturish. On the odd occasions I watched american wife swap, there have been the "family band" or something and you just know it's going to be this kind of music and the second the "singer" opens his gob with "WAAAAAAGH!, you know it's going to sound exactly like every other band out there with this style.

Except once you can understand screamed vocals you hear a different side of the lyrics with those heavy vocals. And nobody understands them? Okay, sure.

Your comment is just plain ignorant. You may not like the genre, but stating that it's pointless to write lyrics or that all vocals sound like dogs is just dumb.

Did I step on your toesies?

If I got a song you have never heard before and played it, there is no chance in hell you would understand a word that guy barked. There is no other side to the lyrics, there aren't any to start with, some person might have wrote down a bunch but that doesn't mean the lead "singer" is singing along to the words.

There isn't a skill set in screaming, any little girl can scream. There is no skill set in growling, just pretend you gargled glass.

If anybody has seen House they will understand what I think of that kind of music, there is a kid who tries to write plain awful music, it has no redeeming features, thats what I think of this "vocal style".

This is just my opinion remember, if you don't like it thats your problem. I think the music can be great but the "vocal style", nah!

...

On what basis are you saying that "any little girl can scream." You do understand that, biomechanically, screaming and growling use seperate muscles, so therefore no, it is not possible to growl by screaming. Also, I will accept your challenge. Send me a link to a metal band you can find and I'll listen to it and try and pick out the lyrics. Scout's honor I won't go and look up the lyrics online.

Finally, here are lyrics to a song by a METAL band that have a lot of depth

http://www.musicsonglyrics.com/I/isislyrics/isisthebeginningandtheendlyrics.htm

 

[PleaseDele]

I've seen an argument going around sayign any yahoo can scream (or growl for that matter).

This is not the case. In my opinion and experiences with live shows it's ones that can also actually sing quite decent or even well: think Scar Symmetry old vocalist), Mercenary (bassist now does all the work) and Opeth. These guys also have a good solid basis for clean singing.

There is a lot of technique involved with the actual growling and screaming. This is however, my main problem with it. I've seen bands that think growling and screaming is easy and therefor go that route and it sounds horrible.

It might be a bit easier because you don't have to work with as much melodies as clean singing, but pronounciation will ask for even more technique of projection and control over the mouth area. It's a different ball game. However I find most contestants are hardly A-List players.

 

[Mazza35]

I do like it when vocalists or guitarists pull of some sweet growls or false chords, to add to the chorus. It's add a certain cry of anger of emotions. I do like songs that consists of nothing but growls/scream, but only if the vocalists shows he can pull of many different types of it (Highs, lows, false chords, vocal fry ect.) But I do hate really contain high pitched screaming (I.E Bring me The Horizon or Escape The Fate)

All in all, I love growls, I can growl. When you try to learn it without ripping your throat, you gain more respect for it, it's as hard as learning to smash high notes epicly (clean).

 

[Z4N5H1N]

Any yahoo can scream.

Very much not true. That's like saying anyone can sing. Anyone can do it, but it takes skill to do it well. And if you can do both well and transition between the two well, than your awesome in my book.

I stand by my statement. Any yahoo can scream but it takes real talent to sing properly. It's not just dragging words on and changing pitch randomly, after all. It takes some talent and quite a bit of skill to carry a tune when singing.


Screaming? Kick any guy in the balls and you have part of a chorus for screamo. Noone would be able to tell the difference.


Even if it does take skill to scream to music it still sounds like shit anyways. I'd rather listen to something Autotuned than listen to screamo, and I hate autotune.

Sorry, no, you're an ignorant twat. Literally everything about this post is wrong, and not in a matter of opinion sort of way.

 

[Garrsus]

i love all metal of all kinds, especially heavier things but one of my favoured bands (bring me the horizon) screams through all of their main songs, but hell i can understand the words and so i love 'em.
well i can understand oli sykes (and yes i know he isn't actually very good a screamo but hell i still love it) architects and slipknots few scream songs, as i lay dying , your demise, anything really but hell i love the heavy stuff!

 

[omega 616]

I just think it's a waste of time to write lyrics for a song and that act like a dog trying to sing them, then again I have heard dogs sound alot better (not even joking). Nobody can understand them, you might know what lyrics there singing by the musical ques but there is no way you can listen to it and know what there singing growling.

It also makes the songs sound so amaturish. On the odd occasions I watched american wife swap, there have been the "family band" or something and you just know it's going to be this kind of music and the second the "singer" opens his gob with "WAAAAAAGH!, you know it's going to sound exactly like every other band out there with this style.

Except once you can understand screamed vocals you hear a different side of the lyrics with those heavy vocals. And nobody understands them? Okay, sure.

Your comment is just plain ignorant. You may not like the genre, but stating that it's pointless to write lyrics or that all vocals sound like dogs is just dumb.

Did I step on your toesies?

If I got a song you have never heard before and played it, there is no chance in hell you would understand a word that guy barked. There is no other side to the lyrics, there aren't any to start with, some person might have wrote down a bunch but that doesn't mean the lead "singer" is singing along to the words.

There isn't a skill set in screaming, any little girl can scream. There is no skill set in growling, just pretend you gargled glass.

If anybody has seen House they will understand what I think of that kind of music, there is a kid who tries to write plain awful music, it has no redeeming features, thats what I think of this "vocal style".

This is just my opinion remember, if you don't like it thats your problem. I think the music can be great but the "vocal style", nah!

...

On what basis are you saying that "any little girl can scream." You do understand that, biomechanically, screaming and growling use seperate muscles, so therefore no, it is not possible to growl by screaming. Also, I will accept your challenge. Send me a link to a metal band you can find and I'll listen to it and try and pick out the lyrics. Scout's honor I won't go and look up the lyrics online.

Finally, here are lyrics to a song by a METAL band that have a lot of depth

http://www.musicsonglyrics.com/I/isislyrics/isisthebeginningandtheendlyrics.htm

I am not saying growling and screaming are the same, I am saying they are both easy as breathing to do.

How am I meant to do that challenege at all? There must be hundreds of bands doing this style, I have no idea which bands you know/what songs and on top of that I have no idea the names of even really famous bads who perform like this (besides the painfully obvious cannibal corpse).

I like metal and stuff (in fact I am listening to lamb of god right now) so it's not like I don't appreciate the musical bit, I just find the crappy "vocals" to ruin the song entirely so I don't listen to it.

EDIT: even by your wording I know you have trouble with the lyrics, "I'll listen to it and try and pick out the lyrics"

 

[DYin01]

I love a good death metal growl, but I do think they're overused. It's a lot like tuning your guitar down to ridiculous pitches. There's no point in doing something heavy if it isn't contrasted. No one will really notice you're tuned down to F# if you only play on the lowest strings.

Same goes for death metal growls. They're supposed to sound agressive, but it loses it's charm if that's all you do all the time. A lot of growlers lack dynamics in their growls as well. At that point it stops sounding agressive and it's just gurgling.

 

[thylasos]

I concur with the OP, it's got to be said. The songs'd be improved if I could understand what was being said. Or possibly not. But it'd give it a fair chance.

 

[InfiniteSingularity]

Weak

Seriously, the vocals are part of metal music. The harsh vocals are used in around 90% of metal songs, and it doesn't ruin it, it completes it. You may not like it, but it's part of the whole package, it's like opting to take the woman (dunno who she is) out of the Mona Lisa because she gets in the way of the scenery. It's part of the song. I'll agree that sometimes it doesn't work, but more often than not the vocals accurately follow the overall feeling and direction of the song.

I used to be like you, I used to love the music, but the vocals shitted me to death. But it's an acquired taste, and once you learn to love it, is MASSIVELY expands your music taste in metal, there's so much variety once you get past the vocals, and it's all so awesome. Have a listen to some of the first metal songs I liked



And a couple I developed a taste for later:




and just for fun:


^ My favourite at the moment, can't get enough of it

EDIT: for those complaining about not hearing the lyrics, let me share something on that. I hate being able to understand everything that's being sung. I also hate knowing the lyrics before I know a song, because I often find myself listening to the lyrics rather than the music. I always get to know the music before the words, and if I hear the words before the lyrics i find it hard to enjoy the music as much. This is one reason I enjoy listening to bands like Rammstein so much because I don't know, or care, what they're saying. And if I want to find out I look it up, and I'm not saying lyrics are unimportant, they're just secondary to music. So if you can't understand what the singer is saying, and that's why you won't listen to death metal or something, get over it. Seriously, you don't need to hear the lyrics, and if you want to know what they are, look them up

 

[InfiniteSingularity]

I've seen an argument going around sayign any yahoo can scream (or growl for that matter).

This is not the case. In my opinion and experiences with live shows it's ones that can also actually sing quite decent or even well: think Scar Symmetry old vocalist), Mercenary (bassist now does all the work) and Opeth. These guys also have a good solid basis for clean singing.

There is a lot of technique involved with the actual growling and screaming. This is however, my main problem with it. I've seen bands that think growling and screaming is easy and therefor go that route and it sounds horrible.

It might be a bit easier because you don't have to work with as much melodies as clean singing, but pronounciation will ask for even more technique of projection and control over the mouth area. It's a different ball game. However I find most contestants are hardly A-List players.

Listen to this man. Also Akerfeldt is the greatest metal vocalist of all time.