How technical is too technical?

As tends to happen in any walk of life, metal musicians are constantly trying to top those who have come before them. Metal has always been largely based on technical proficiency. Along with heaviness and generally larger-than-life lyrical themes, it is one of the basic defining characteristics of the genre. Therefore, many metal bands are perpetually creating music that aims at achieving a higher level of technical proficiency. Is there such a thing as being too technical, however?

In recent times some bands have pushed their musical prowess to such extremes that they struggle to perform the music in a live setting. A big part of metal is its live energy. Metal, and any hard/heavy music for that matter, captures the emotions, and is meant to be a channel for the release of those emotions. So much of that energy is lost when musicians can't move onstage because their music is too demanding to play. If a band does not move around and interact with the crowd because they are so consumed with their instruments, the concert essentially becomes a CD listening party. What separates a live show from listening at home is basically lost. In some genres (i.e. classical) this is accepted and expected, but not in metal.

Even worse, sometimes the musicians can't even handle the material live and the performance gets dragged down by constant missed notes and mistimed harmonies.

However, some may hold an opposite opinion - that CD recordings are more important than live shows, and that bands should continue to push the musical envelope.

What side of the fence do you stand on? Do you believe that metal bands should refrain from creating music that inhibits their ability to put on an energetic and polished live performance?

Read More News

Tags:  necrophagist, technical wanking   

Quentin    July 30, 2008