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Metal Storm (webzine)
Encyclopedia
Metal Storm is a webzine specializing in various forms of heavy metal music
. It is based in Tallinn
, Estonia
but caters to an international audience, symbolically recognized by the acquisition of an EU domain in 2008. As of September 2011, the website hosts 6334 band profiles, 6631 reviews, 493 interviews and 12021 news items.
s broken down by style and country. These lists, along with the favorite bands and ratings categories, are analyzed to compare users and match those with similar musical tastes in the "Neighbours" area of the Collection tab.
available to all registered members. The forum is divided into many categories, including sections for discussing specific metal styles, non-metal music, general discussion and community-related topics. All comments for publications on the site are also incorporated into the forum for the purpose of convenience. The forums are moderated for spam
and illegal content such as pornography
and copyright infringement
but are otherwise uncensored.
is divided into three broad sub-categories on Metal Storm. Bands that fall in between two sub-categories are usually allocated based on what elements are historically more prominent in their music.
Melodic metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
such as heavy metal
, power metal
, progressive metal
, glam metal
, doom metal
, Gothenburg
, gothic metal
, folk metal
, speed metal
and symphonic metal
.
Extreme metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
such as black metal
, death metal
, grindcore
, thrash metal
, and groove metal
. Extreme doom metal
bands are also included in this sub-category.
Alternative metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
such as alternative metal
, nu metal
, metalcore
, stoner metal, sludge metal
, post-metal, rap metal
, industrial metal
, avant-garde metal and drone metal
.
, Candiria
and Led Zeppelin
. Moreover, there are many reviews of stylistically ambiguous bands on the site, most commonly from the genres of gothic rock
, noise rock
, industrial music
, hard rock
, progressive rock
, AOR
and darkwave
. This attitude is rationalized as being an attempt at promoting open mindedness
amongst metal fans.
Metal Storm has a team of official reviewers who receive albums from labels and bands and then post official reviews of them on the front page of the website. Nevertheless, all registered users are able to submit reviews of albums, provided that they are of music that has been released for at least 3 months. If accepted by the editors, these reviews are then posted as "Guest Reviews" with an appropriate disclaimer attached to them.
An event is considered a "Supported Event" by Metal Storm if the organizers allow for Press Accreditation for an official reviewer from the website. The event then receives an official review with photographs. Like album reviews, concert reviews are also accepted from users; however, such events are not considered Supported Events.
In 2008 MetalStorm became one of the official partners of the French festival HellFest and a number of the interviews conducted by MS staff on the festival will feature on the upcoming HellFest DVD. The partnership is continued in 2009.
and embedded in the interview's page on Metal Storm. The first of these was an interview with Attila Csihar
of Norwegian black metal band Mayhem
and was conducted at the Hellfest Open Air
2008 festival.
There is also a special award each year called "Best drama." It's given to the band, who is considered to have provided a good drama the year in question. The drama award is generally only in sarcasm and not considered a "serious award". In 2007, the award was given to Gorgoroth
for the fight over the rights to the name Gorgoroth. In 2008, the award for best drama went to "Metal Storm vs. Wikipedia," or, as the nomination reworded it, the conflict between "the staff of Metal Storm and the uberposeurs of Wikipedia." This revolved around the "drama" with the conflict about Metal Storm's Wikipedia page reaching Wikipedia's standards of notability. It was the first year that this award has been able to be voted for by Metal Storm users, with various dramas listed as nominees. In the past the Metal Storm staff have just chosen the drama award themselves.
Every year Metal Storm contacts all the bands nominated for awards in each category and a lot of bands post their nomination and award wins as news on their official websites. Regarding the 2008 awards, news of Oceans of Sadness
' victory in the avant-garde metal category was printed in the Belgian/Flemish newspaper "Gazet Van Antwerpen." The online version of the newspaper also published it. The Metal Storm Awards in 2008 was the fourth year that the awards have been running.
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. It is based in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
but caters to an international audience, symbolically recognized by the acquisition of an EU domain in 2008. As of September 2011, the website hosts 6334 band profiles, 6631 reviews, 493 interviews and 12021 news items.
Members
Metal Storm users can register for free and create a custom profile based on their specific preferences. The comprehensive profile format allows for users to display detailed information about their musical taste, activity on the site, and other miscellaneous information, including up to three photos. "Community Points" are awarded to users for contributing forum reports, band info, lyrics, news, events, reviews, and articles, with the number awarded depending on the value of the contribution. Users may also add albums to their "Collection," an interactive list of albums acquired, of which statistics can be graphically visualized in the form of pie chartPie chart
A pie chart is a circular chart divided into sectors, illustrating proportion. In a pie chart, the arc length of each sector , is proportional to the quantity it represents. When angles are measured with 1 turn as unit then a number of percent is identified with the same number of centiturns...
s broken down by style and country. These lists, along with the favorite bands and ratings categories, are analyzed to compare users and match those with similar musical tastes in the "Neighbours" area of the Collection tab.
Forum
Metal Storm has a forumInternet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
available to all registered members. The forum is divided into many categories, including sections for discussing specific metal styles, non-metal music, general discussion and community-related topics. All comments for publications on the site are also incorporated into the forum for the purpose of convenience. The forums are moderated for spam
Forum spam
Forum spam is the creating of messages that are advertisements, abusive, or otherwise unwanted on Internet forums. It is generally done by automated spambots.- Types of spam :...
and illegal content such as pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
and copyright infringement
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
but are otherwise uncensored.
Tradelist
In each member's Collection section, they have the option of making the album part of their regular collection, their wishlist or part of their tradelist. Members can then browse other member's tradelists and privately negotiate the trade of albums. Metal Storm states that the trading of albums is to be done at the member's own risk and that the site won't be responsible for any outcomes.Bands database
Metal Storm features a database of metal bands, with each band having a detailed profile including such information as a biography, discography, lineup, genre categorization, photo, logo and more. All registered members are able to edit the database and submit information that is missing. Before being published, community edits are moderated by members of the staff.Genre categorization
MetalHeavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
is divided into three broad sub-categories on Metal Storm. Bands that fall in between two sub-categories are usually allocated based on what elements are historically more prominent in their music.
Melodic metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
Heavy metal subgenres
A number of heavy metal genres have developed since the emergence of heavy metal during the late 1960s and early 1970s. At times heavy metal genres may overlap or are difficult to distinguish, but they can be identified by a number of traits...
such as heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, power metal
Power metal
Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...
, progressive metal
Progressive metal
Progressive metal is a subgenre of heavy metal originating in the United Kingdom and North America in the late 1980s...
, glam metal
Glam metal
Glam metal is a subgenre of hard rock and heavy metal that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
, doom metal
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
, Gothenburg
Melodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...
, gothic metal
Gothic metal
Gothic metal or goth metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the aggression of doom metal with the dark melancholy of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music...
, folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
, speed metal
Speed metal
Speed metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from NWOBHM and hardcore punk roots. It is described by Allmusic as "extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding" music....
and symphonic metal
Symphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
.
Extreme metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
Heavy metal subgenres
A number of heavy metal genres have developed since the emergence of heavy metal during the late 1960s and early 1970s. At times heavy metal genres may overlap or are difficult to distinguish, but they can be identified by a number of traits...
such as black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
, death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
, grindcore
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
, thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
, and groove metal
Groove metal
Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It was often used to describe Pantera and Exhorder.- Characteristics and origins :Pantera's Cowboys from Hell album from 1990 was described as "groundbreaking" and "blueprint-defining" for the groove metal genre...
. Extreme doom metal
Extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. The term usually refers to a more abrasive, harsher, underground, non-commercialized style or sound nearly always associated with genres like black metal,...
bands are also included in this sub-category.
Alternative metal
This sub-category includes metal subgenres
Heavy metal subgenres
A number of heavy metal genres have developed since the emergence of heavy metal during the late 1960s and early 1970s. At times heavy metal genres may overlap or are difficult to distinguish, but they can be identified by a number of traits...
such as alternative metal
Alternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
, nu metal
Nu metal
Nu metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It is a fusion genre which combines elements of heavy metal with other genres, including grunge and hip hop...
, metalcore
Metalcore
Metalcore is a subgenre of heavy metal combining various elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The name is a portmanteau of the names of the two genres. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands such as Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity...
, stoner metal, sludge metal
Sludge metal
Sludge metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that melds elements of doom metal and hardcore punk, and sometimes incorporates influences from southern rock, stoner rock and grunge. Sludge metal is typically abrasive; often featuring shouted vocals, heavily distorted instruments and sharply contrasting...
, post-metal, rap metal
Rap metal
Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock which fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop music with heavy metal.-History:Rap metal originated from rap rock, a genre fusing vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with rock...
, industrial metal
Industrial metal
Industrial metal is a musical genre that draws from industrial music and many different types of heavy metal, using repeating metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer lines, and distorted vocals. Founding industrial metal acts include Ministry, Godflesh, and KMFDM.Industrial metal's...
, avant-garde metal and drone metal
Drone metal
Drone metal is a style of heavy metal that melds the slow tempos and heaviness of doom metal with the long-duration tones of drone music...
.
Accepted content
Metal Storm is known for its relatively relaxed attitude towards accepting bands that are not unquestionably categorized as metal. The database allows for 'invisible' profiles, which is a term used for profiles that are either incomplete or of bands that do not have enough metal elements to have them featured on the site. These profiles are still publicly accessible; however, they are not promoted as much as those of bands that are unquestionably metal. Nevertheless, Metal Storm still has visible profiles for stylistically ambiguous bands such as SlipknotSlipknot (band)
Slipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa. Formed in 1995, the group was founded by percussionist Shawn Crahan and bassist Paul Gray...
, Candiria
Candiria
Candiria are an American band from Brooklyn, New York. They blend various styles of music, including heavy metal, hardcore, jazz, hip hop and ambient. Candiria have often dubbed their sound "urban fusion".- History :...
and Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
. Moreover, there are many reviews of stylistically ambiguous bands on the site, most commonly from the genres of gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
, noise rock
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...
, industrial music
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
, hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, AOR
Album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
and darkwave
Darkwave
Dark Wave or darkwave is a music genre that began in the late 1970s, coinciding with the popularity of New Wave and post-punk. Building on those basic principles, dark wave added dark, introspective lyrics and an undertone of sorrow for some bands...
. This attitude is rationalized as being an attempt at promoting open mindedness
Open Mind
Open Mind may refer to:* Open Mind , 1984 album by Jean-Luc Ponty* Open Mind , American Champion racehorse* Keep Your Mind Wide Open, a 2007 song by AnnaSophia Robb* The Open Mind, a long-running public affairs talk show...
amongst metal fans.
Rating system and reviews
Members have the option to rate featured albums on a scale of 1-10, with the total votes from all members producing an average rating. Further statistics that can be viewed include average ratings based on voter gender and age. Studio albums with over 100 votes are eligible to be included in the "Top 100 albums" list, while others that accumulate 20 votes are eligible for more specific lists including "Top 20 albums by year", "Top albums by style", and "Bottom albums" (The lowest-on-average user rated albums). Live albums and DVDs are also eligible for their respective lists after receiving 20 votes.Metal Storm has a team of official reviewers who receive albums from labels and bands and then post official reviews of them on the front page of the website. Nevertheless, all registered users are able to submit reviews of albums, provided that they are of music that has been released for at least 3 months. If accepted by the editors, these reviews are then posted as "Guest Reviews" with an appropriate disclaimer attached to them.
An event is considered a "Supported Event" by Metal Storm if the organizers allow for Press Accreditation for an official reviewer from the website. The event then receives an official review with photographs. Like album reviews, concert reviews are also accepted from users; however, such events are not considered Supported Events.
In 2008 MetalStorm became one of the official partners of the French festival HellFest and a number of the interviews conducted by MS staff on the festival will feature on the upcoming HellFest DVD. The partnership is continued in 2009.
Interviews
Metal Storm regularly posts interviews with various metal bands through its contacts with bands, labels and festivals. They conduct interviews via email, over the phone and in person. Each interview is transcribed and posted as text on the site. As of September 2008, Metal Storm started video recording some in-person interviews. The videos would be uploaded to YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and embedded in the interview's page on Metal Storm. The first of these was an interview with Attila Csihar
Attila Csihar
Attila Csihar , also sometimes known as Void, is a Hungarian black metal vocalist, best known for his vocal work on the album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas by Mayhem. Author Ian Christe describes his vocals as "operatic."-Biography:...
of Norwegian black metal band Mayhem
Mayhem (band)
Mayhem is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 1984 in Oslo, Norway and regarded as one of the pioneers of the influential Norwegian black metal scene...
and was conducted at the Hellfest Open Air
Hellfest Summer Open Air
Hellfest is an annual music festival which takes place in Clisson, France in mid-June. It is held within the Val de Moine sport complex in Clisson, approximately 35 km south-east of the city of Nantes, and approximately 400 km south-west of the nation's capital Paris. Billed as an "extreme music...
2008 festival.
Metal Storm Awards
Metal Storm hosts an annual award, where they appoint the album of the year for the different genres of metal. The official 10 nominees of each category are decided by the staff members and receives a brief description and if available a link to an official MetalStorm review. In additions to the official nominees, the users have the opportunity to supply "write-in" votes for bands not officially nominated.There is also a special award each year called "Best drama." It's given to the band, who is considered to have provided a good drama the year in question. The drama award is generally only in sarcasm and not considered a "serious award". In 2007, the award was given to Gorgoroth
Gorgoroth
Gorgoroth is a Norwegian black metal band based in Bergen. Formed in 1992 by Infernus , the band is named after the dead plateau of evil and darkness in the land of Mordor from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. The group is currently signed to Regain Records and have released...
for the fight over the rights to the name Gorgoroth. In 2008, the award for best drama went to "Metal Storm vs. Wikipedia," or, as the nomination reworded it, the conflict between "the staff of Metal Storm and the uberposeurs of Wikipedia." This revolved around the "drama" with the conflict about Metal Storm's Wikipedia page reaching Wikipedia's standards of notability. It was the first year that this award has been able to be voted for by Metal Storm users, with various dramas listed as nominees. In the past the Metal Storm staff have just chosen the drama award themselves.
Every year Metal Storm contacts all the bands nominated for awards in each category and a lot of bands post their nomination and award wins as news on their official websites. Regarding the 2008 awards, news of Oceans of Sadness
Oceans Of Sadness
Oceans of Sadness was a progressive metal band from Belgium.-History:Oceans of Sadness caught their first bit of attention in 1996 when one of their demos was chosen Demo of the Month in the Dutch metal magazine Aardschok ....
' victory in the avant-garde metal category was printed in the Belgian/Flemish newspaper "Gazet Van Antwerpen." The online version of the newspaper also published it. The Metal Storm Awards in 2008 was the fourth year that the awards have been running.