White Wizzard bassist explains how Metallica helped kill metal in the 90's

In a controversial blog post, exclusively on HardTimes.ca, WHITE WIZZARD bassist, Jon Leon goes into great detail on why he believes that the legendary acts, METALLICA and QUEENSRYCHE were instrumental in the decline of heavy metal in the early 1990's. Jon puts the era into context and elaborates on why both bands, once symbols for the anti-establishment fell prey to the powers that be and ultimately, along with the help of other contributing factors would help bring the downfall of heavy metal music at that time:

"Metallica's track 6..."Don't tread on me" was a track lyrically that actually called upon peoples patriotism and glorified support of the US government and the blind devotion of patriotism without questioning.... It was an odd 180 to say the least.....lines like "Love it or Leave it" were a sharp contrast to the lines on Justice...so much it was hard to believe more did not see it....To have such a strong lyrical stance on the justice album that was so anti system and exposing the lies and inspiring heavily to question it......it seemed odd that this album would be silent in this regard and then on top of it there was this patriotic song that encouraged a blind devotion to country......

Queensryche's track 6, "Empire" was equally head scratching from a band that had released the most lyrically sharp attack on the government and system in music history...this song seems to paint a PG rated picture of a call to have more cops on the street to avoid the kind of uprising the previous album had almost seemed to push for. There is a narration in the middle explaining that we do not pay enough for law enforcement....What a huge almost hypocritical contrast to put out an album and statement at the level of mindcrime, and then to basically say in this one song that we need more cops on the street and kind of a "hey, yeah we fucked up and we should not have wrote about a revolution or exposed all these truths....conform to the system-we are going to now and make alot of money".....I guess you could argue they got wise and cashed in...but it is just really interesting to me-always has been, so that is why I decided to write this....Now they are warning us that conforming and not rebelling and getting more cops on the street will save us from "Empire" ....thanks guys.."

Jon Leon's lengthy opinion piece can be read in full at http://hardtimes.ca/node/9719

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Tags:  White Wizzard, Metallica, Queensryche  

admin    January 20, 2010