Saturday, February 15, 2014

Heavy Metal Versus Hard Rock, Part 1:

I have  discussions on occasion with folks about what constitutes the difference between Heavy Metal and Hard Rock. I love both genres, but if forced to choose only one to take with me on a desert island, it would be metal. I find that it’s really impossible to describe the differences. It’s a ‘hearing’ thing. So, I’m going to do a series of posts, probably four of them, that illustrate the differences to me. First up, we have my top 5 favorite metal songs of all time. They are listed as band, song title, and the link is to the You Tube Video of the song. I’ve put these in an order, but that order could change depending on my mood. My next post will be the metal songs between 6 and 10 on my list. Following that, I’ll give you my top ten favorite Hard Rock songs.

1.  Megadeth: Sympathy For Destruction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyWJCd1GYhw

2.  Metallica: Leper Messiah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fm71Khu5-Lk

3.  Black Sabbath: Snowblind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHal84S_XkI

4. Celtic Frost: Procreation of the Wicked: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GhgwKmjzr0

5. Motorhead: Death Forever: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0rgmNPWYxs

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14 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Megadeth's Sympathy For Destruction! Nice choice.
I'd be hard pressed to make a choice between the two. Although for me, progressive rock would come out on top.

Erik Donald France said...

The titles alone are worth a million in prizes.

Ty said...

Okay, you've got my attention.

Charles Gramlich said...

Alex, I think we've talked about prog rock before. I'm not a huge fan. I think I'm more old fashioned.

Erik, that's true. I love those titles.

Ty, at last. :)

Oscar Case said...

Didn't know there was much of a difference, but I don't know music. Anything after the '40's is not understandable for the most part.

Riot Kitty said...

I've never heard of Celtic Frost, I will check them out!

Ty said...

Don't know if I could ever come up with a list of 5 or 10 or even 50. My moods and interests change too often for me to stick with any one group of favorites for a definite period of time. That being said, I probably fall down more on the hard rock side than the metal side, though there's plenty of metal I love.

I've long considered writing a fantasy series with a strong metal influence, sort of horror/epic fantasy, but I've tested the waters a little here and there and don't see a lot of interest, or at least not enough to be economically worth my time. But maybe it's just my approach, and I need to rethink my ideas.

pattinase (abbott) said...

I am completely unable to appreciate heavy metal. I wish it were not so but to me it is just ear-shattering noise.

eric1313 said...

Always felt Master of Puppets was far and away my favorite Metallica record. I like every song on it, Leper Messiah is a great crunching ditty in particular.

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

Charles, I listen to heavy metal/hard rock off and on though frankly I wouldn't know the difference. Black Sabbath was popular in India in the 1970s and 1980s. Thanks for the links.

Charles Gramlich said...

Oscar, it's like many things. if you really pay attention to it clear differences show up. They can be subtle.

Riot Kitty, good band.

Ty, I actually have a story about a third of the way done in which the section titles are all lyric lines from metal or rock songs. Don't know if I'll ever finish it.

Patti, we all have our faults. I will forgive you for this one. :)

Eric1313, me too, with And Justice for All coming in a close second. Great heavy tunes on both.

Prashant, the differences are pretty subtle for the most part and there's lots of room for debate in many cases.

jodi said...

Charles-Black Sabbath is the only one I've ever listened too. Too heavy!!

Brian Miller said...

dude i am way behind.
this is def right up my alley...metallica and megadeath....aMAZing

Charles Gramlich said...

Jodi, no such thing as too heavy. :)

Brian, the metallica and Slayer songs both came out int he same year.