Why People Can't Get Into Metal

All right, here's my another post. Here I'll explain why some people can't get into metal. These are not obvious reasons though, but I have noticed these problems. Some listeners complain about these things that they don't like in metal. I can't blame them. I also can't blame metal for it. However I am just going to say few things about these. And also how to deal with it. So let's get started

1. Vocals:
So, the first thing people may not like about metal is the vocals. Most metal songs feature powerful vocals. Even if some singers may have clean vocals but still they don't seem to be enough clean for new beginners. And if it's screaming, then no way. Some new listeners don't like screaming or growling. But there are lots of other bands which don't scream or growl. Bands like Dream Theater, Nightwish or Dragonforce have quite clean vocals unlike most other metal bands. So, some new listeners don't notice how much loud or heavy the backing music is if the songs have clean vocals. So this maybe the first problem that they face when they start to listen metal songs.

2. Fear of Satanic Stuffs:
Now, that be the second problem in metal. Some people say that metal is based on satanism. But this is a pure myth. Those people who say these kinds of things probably never heard enough of metal songs. Yes, I admit there are lots of bands like Mayhem, Gorgoroth or Behemoth which are satanic. But that doesn't mean that all metal bands are satanic. Bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica or Dream Theater are not satanic. In fact most metal bands aren't satanic. The only metal genre that contains lots of satanism is Black Metal. Though not all black metal bands are satanic. But still if you think you want to avoid satanic lyrics, then you could avoid these types of bands and genres. But metal genres like heavy metal, progressive metal or power metal usually do not contain satanic stuffs. However you can still still check a band's background to be sure if they are satanic or not.

3. Confusing Between Metal Genres:
Now, here comes metal genres. New listeners may sometimes get confused what metal genre to start with. So a lot of people try to listen very heavy genres, they choose extreme metal genres from the beginning. That's why they suddenly get breakdown and say, "Nah, these songs are too heavy. I can't listen them". Yes, this is one of the common problems that they face. However if you want my suggestion, then I got to say only one thing. Start with simple metal genres like heavy metal, symphonic metal or progressive metal. These genres aren't that much of heavy. On the other hand, genres like black metal, thrash metal or death metal may not be good genres to start. Of course you may enjoy them at a certain time. But those genres are not appropriate for new listeners. Listen them when you are get used with metal.

Here I want to say another thing. Don't start with Metallica. Even a lot of people say this is the beginner metal band, but still I refuse to say that. Because Metallica plays thrash metal. And thrash metal is not a soft metal genre. You may not like thrash metal from the beginning.

4. The length of songs:
All right, it's another big problem for new listeners. It is actually important how long the song is. Most other genres like pop, soft rock or rap songs are usually between 3-6 minutes. So if you start with progressive metal then you may have to face 20 or 30 minutes songs. But new listeners may not have the patience to listen those long songs. So if you want to enjoy metal songs as a beginner, then my suggestion is to start with short metal songs. Keep your range between 6-7 minutes. Longer songs may bore you quickly.

5. The Instrumental Parts:
In my early days I faced this problem. The problem is that long instrumental parts. Back then I didn't enjoy long guitar solos or instrumental parts. So this thing is kinda tough to deal with it. However this thing is inevitable. Because most good metal songs have solos. But you can always skip the instrumental parts if you want to. I used to do it. Just listen the singing part.

Final Words:
Here are my final words. If you can avoid any of these things, then you could get into metal. If you still can't, then no problem. However I suggest one thing, if you liked a small part of a metal song, then collect the song instead of avoiding it. You may enjoy the song in future.

Thanks for reading. I hope it helped. See you next time.


Wondeful post better than mine - visitor

Thanks! But your's was better. - zxm

I actually like the instrumental parts better than the singing parts. Some great ones include:

The Frayed Ends of Sanity - Metallica
Elimination - Overkill
Angel of Death - Slayer
Shame on the Night - Dio
Metropolis Pt. 1 - Dream Theater
Crystal Mountain - Death

And some great rock ones:

The Cinema Show - Genesis
Starless - King Crimson
Burn - Deep Purple
Green Grass and High Tides - The Outlaws
Achilles Last Stand - Led Zeppelin
It's a Long Way Up to the Top - AC/DC - visitor

It's good to see that you like Green Grass and High Tides - The Outlaws. - zxm

Those who can't get into metal should read my list "Things you should know about heavy metal". - visitor

Good list. - zxm

Wow..so nicely explained..these all are exactly why I hate metal... MetalObsessed please read this post - visitor

Thanks for the complement. - zxm

@zxm I took ages to explain the reason as to why I hate metal. you made it simpler. lol - visitor

Thanks again, and music taste changes a lot. - zxm

The first visitor of this post was MetalObsessed. - zxm

And the post how to get into metal was also mine. - visitor

No, the reason I can't get into metal is because of the elitists that plague the genre. - SwagFlicks

Would you miss some great music only because of some people? - zxm

I mean, I did give Ride The Lightning a 10/10, and a blackgaze album an 8.8/10, but that's not my point. It's just that every time I do want to get into metal more and express my opinion on some works, often, if not all the time, somebody has to judge my music taste, (MetalObsessed gave me sh*t for giving Master Of Puppets an 8/10) and say that it's bad. And more than often, it's the metal elitists that say I have a bad music taste.

So take from that what you will. - SwagFlicks