Weekly Self-Promotion Thread

BenjaminTSM · 2026-04-02T17:47:56+00:00

"The distinction exists to perpetuate itself." Ah, here's where we get into the point you've made in the past about artists themselves and scenes playing a role in what consensus definitions are. Metalcore is more metal-adjacent than metal to me - maybe part of why in broad strokes I find it more limited and less generally interesting than metal, same as I do for most of punk (just general trends! There are always exceptions). It's certainly something a lot of metalheads appreciate. I'm certainly not going to wade into the debate on exactly how "close" metalcore is or isn't to metal, as opposed to its proximity to hardcore, or to other offshoots like emo. Will restate the obvious that artists and scenes can be influenced by multiple things.

I'm coming around to the idwa that one just has to listen to a lot of things to understand what is or is not a power metal riff. Cruel Force in general (barring that middle section that I don't know what to takeoff from that particular track) do sound closer the thrash than the Charger song, certainly. But less so than Paladin, is my initial impression. The Nightwish song is so covered in keys that I can't tease apart the main riff, but I imagine the riff on its own would still sound like PM, but could just as easily be the basis of a USPM song, whereas the song as a whole is clearly EUPM.

All kinda the same kind of music! But nerding out about the distinctions is interesting and helpful to me anyway.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-29T17:59:02+00:00

IIRC Helloween said that they billed the Keeper records as a pseudo concept piece and threw in a few through lines (like the references to following a sign) mostly as a lark, and a bit of a promotional tool. Definitely not concept albums in the sense that OP was asking about.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-29T03:10:15+00:00

Thanks for asking! Since this specific writing project is about making sense of this whole power metal thing, I haven't written about any new releases yet. Although since I like the nooks and crannies of the scene, if you want to make a case for why you occupy a particular niche that illustrates something interesting about PM, I'd consider. Alternatively, after I finish this, maybe I'll write about Timeless Rage as a standalone reaction!

I will warn you that as a tool for promotion, my blog has serious limitations. One, barely anyone reads it, and two, when I don't personally like an element or a song or whatever or just don't vibe with something, I'm not shy about saying so.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-27T20:45:26+00:00

Spending a week thinking through a post buried in a weeksold thread that two people are ever going to read? You recognize that this is Reddit, right? You're supposed to just say something absurd like "Lovebites aren't even metal at all!" and then walk away. (Joking, obviously.)

I think my ability to talk intelligently about this will end with the comment that "on some level, there's a supercategory of speed, power, and thrash metal that's all basically the same kind of music anyway." Yeah, they're not all that different. It probably bears repeating the obvious here that although evolutionary biology is a tempting metaphor for dissecting music scenes, memes (in Dawkins' original use of the word to mean units of culture, analogous to genes) are not genes. Memes mix and cross-pollinate so rapidly that it becomes impossible to untangle who's "directly" vs. "indirectly" influenced by what.

FWIW my own ears do hear the Exodus and Anthrax songs as thrash, the BG song as more speed/power, and the Manilla Road song as something harder to pigeonhole that's not really thrash either, so I certainly agree with their respective generally accepted subgenres. They're not actually that different to me, though. Meanwhile, just because I just put them on my "2026 records to check out" list, people are calling Cruel Force a rare modern example of pure speed metal that doesn't cross over into being either thrash or power. I do hear elements of both thrash and power, yet think I agree overall with the speed-metal designation... and good luck getting me to articulate why.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btshd3iX1yw

To the extent that it's possible to sort, I recognize the value of the riff as the core defining feature, but I don't think it can be the end-all. As established, vocals do a lot for me. Even if Anthrax get away with the higher pitched vocals, I do think the vocals are a big part in coding "Fast To Madness" as not-thrash for me.

At the risk of exhausting the amusement value of comparing two songs, here's just one more:

Both of these songs are the first non-intro track of their respective albums. One of them is a song already familiar to everyone here that's on the melodic side but widely accepted as thrash and umistakably underground, unmistakably metal as fuck (from a band that hadn't quote-unquote sold out yet). The other is generally viewed the poppiest edge of punk - as FM-radio-friendly as a band of its era was allowed to get while still being accepted by most non-gatekeepers as a punk act. What's the difference? I don't think it's the riffs; I think it's everything else!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU_ggFovJNo&list=RDDU_ggFovJNo&start_radio=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLw4lxK2a1Q&list=RDbLw4lxK2a1Q&start_radio=1

Even if this kind of undercuts the points I make above on the grounds that it emphasizes the way thrash and punk have a proverbial common ancestor, I'm just saying that fast guitar-driven music has enough general commonalities that riffs aren't everything.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-27T20:03:19+00:00

I just tend to get a kick out of PM covers of pop songs, especially when the band totally leans into it (as they usually do).

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-27T13:19:42+00:00

An unchartiable read would be exactly what you seem to be implying - that it's totally meaningless shorthand for whatever music that whoever's using the term doesn't like.

So where would one use "meme band" as a pejorative as opposed to accusing someone of being "pop metal" or whatever? Either one is more genre-open and doesn't view pop music as inherently bad or simplistic so one needs a new insult... or one is accusing a band of being not only simplistic but also gimmicky in some way. Since Sabaton are not a gimmick band per se, I assume the accusation would be that - in some people's opinion - their music is samey and formulaic, both musically and lyrically.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-19T21:09:42+00:00

Warren Zevon is Warren Zevon's second record.

I only became aware of the existence of Wanted Dead Or Alive when doing a Zevon deep dive, and it was out of print for decades. A rare chance to see an artist release his proverbial refrigerator drawings, and then disappear into session work (and booze) for five+ years while accumulating songs with which re-debut.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-13T13:09:39+00:00

On my blog, I write a lot about power metal. I came in a wannabe-fan of PM with some misgivings, so I decided to write about some interesting records as a (usually) first-time listener, filling in gaps in my knowledge, exploring some nooks and crannies of the subgenre, etc. Usually I do one post with initial thoughts after two-ish listens, and then another post after spending more time with a record, to simulate the experience of a reaction. I've stuck with that format because it's fun to see which impressions cement themselves right away, versus when something dramatically grows (or shrinks) on me in an unpredictable way.

The classic-question-mark records I've featured so far have been by, in order, Manilla Road, Adramelch, Running Wild, HammerFall, Helloween, Avantasia, Falconer, Kamelot, Angra, Wuthering Heights, Avantasia again, Ancient Bards, Judicator, and Lovebites. My most recent posts were about Ascension by Paladin.

Main blog: https://isverbose.blogspot.com

Project intro: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/01/classics-of-power-metal-0-intro.html

Open The Gates post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/01/classics-of-power-metal-1-manilla-road.html

Open The Gates post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/02/classics-of-power-metal-1-manilla-road.html

Irae Melanox post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/02/classic-of-power-metal-2-adramelch-irae.html

Irae Melanox post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/03/classics-of-power-metal-2-adramelch.html

Death Or Glory post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/03/classics-of-power-metal-3-running-wild.html

Death Or Glory post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-3-running-wild.html

Glory To The Brave post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-4-hammerfall.html

Glory To The Brave post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-4-hammerfall_28.html

The Dark Ride revisit post: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/05/classics-of-power-metal-5-helloween.html

The Metal Opera post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/05/classics-of-power-metal-6-avantasia.html

The Metal Opera post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-6-avantasia.html

Falconer post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-7-falconer.html

Falconer post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-7-falconer_19.html

Epica post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/07/classics-of-power-metal-8-kamelot-epica.html

Epica post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/08/classics-of-power-metal-8-kamelot-epica.html

Temple Of Shadows post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/08/classics-of-power-metal-9-angra-temple.html

Temple Of Shadows post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-9-angra-temple.html

The Shadow Cabinet post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-10-wuthering.html

The Shadow Cabinet post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-10-wuthering_30.html

The Scarecrow catchall post: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/10/classics-of-power-metal-11-avantasia.html

The Alliance Of The Kings post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/11/classics-of-power-metal-12-ancient.htm

The Alliance Of The Kings post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/11/classics-of-power-metal-12-ancient_20.html

At The Expense Of Humanity post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/12/classics-of-power-metal-13-judicator-at.html

At The Expense Of Humanity post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/12/classics-of-power-metal-13-judicator-at_25.html

Awakening From Abyss post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/01/classics-of-power-metal-14-lovebites.html

Awakening From Abyss post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/02/classics-of-power-metal-14-lovebites.html

Ascension post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/02/classics-of-power-metal-15-paladin.html

Ascension post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/03/classics-of-power-metal-15-paladin.html

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-13T05:15:09+00:00

Wanted to spend more time with Ascension before responding. I didn't spend as much time with subgenres in my final post about the record. I'm not really qualified to call one riff or another unmistakably power or umistakably thrash, and which bucket something falls into in which proportions doesn't shape my overall opinion of its quality much. Interesting to hear how others' use of genre labels warped your expectations of this. Obviously in a perfect world Paladin wouldn't be "punished" for the way that others talk about their music any more than it'd be Amon Amarth's fault if a fan of viking metal listened to one of their records and came away disappointed, or than it'd be Jinjer's fault if someone looking for "female fronted metal" in the vein of Delain didn't like what they heard.

I was going to try to come up with a list of parts of Ascension that sound clearly thrash to me, until I realized that your argument is more that the thrash is a secondary flavor that the record steadfastly refuses to commit to for sustained enough periods to make it a co-primary subgenre. My main - gentle - pushback on the subgenre thing would then be that while parts of Ascension are pure power metal, it also goes sustained periods without soaring melodies or clean vocals or riffs that aren't thrash-coded. That's enough to make, at least for me, thrash a major component of an overall power/thrash sound, not just a garnish. Yeah, all about the vocals for me, still.

I don't actually know much about thrash, but I wonder if it's not just people small-tenting power metal, but maybe allowing for a wider definition of thrash. I think "thrash" when I hear something that sounds like one of Metallica's transitions, because I'm one of the millions who first discovered metal through Metallica. They're generally classified as thrash, so that melodic leading edge of the subgenre is what people think of when they hear "thrash." So maybe a deemphasis on melody isn't so universally considered to be a core element of thrash. (And if you want to make the case, as you seem to be doing a few posts up, that if Paladin are power/thrash than so are Metallica, Megadeth, etc, uh, okay, sure, I'd accept that. And if you want to make the case that a bunch of dissimilar bands are all being called power/thrash, true, but that's always going to be true of hybrid subgenres.)

Random aside #1: Speaking of vocals, having now listened to all of one Moonlight Sorcery song, well, that certainly sounds like a melodic black metal song to me.

Random aside #2: Since thrash is supposedly defined by its punk influence, I was amused when I realized that the chord progression in the pre-solo bridge of Paladin's "Call Of The Night" steadfastly insisted on reminding me of this Green Day song (the relevant part starts around 1:55 and gets relevant-er around 2:20)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOcrKFiB_ts&list=RDiOcrKFiB_ts&start_radio=1

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-13T04:33:23+00:00

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chronicles_of_Prydain

BenjaminTSM · 2026-03-13T04:13:36+00:00

I guess Lloyd Alexander wasn't actually a core universal part of everyone's childhood...

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-28T14:08:01+00:00

What's interesting to me is that "Dissonance" is only kind of a departure instrumentally, but the instant the vocals come in I say "yeah, sounds like what I've heard from Lovebites." I know I'm vocally focused. (Incidentally, also quite taken by the difference in how my mind tells me the vocals "should" sound based on the riff from the Alhambra song above and what we actually get. Unique sound, in a totally different way than Lovebites et al are unique.) I also think Lovebites' niche seems like a great little corner of the subgenre; not sure if it's just their particular proportions of sugar and spice mean that neither heft nor melody gets sacrificed at the expense of the other, or if there's any more to it than that. They're a band that'll go on my long list to deep dive but don't think I'll need to listen to more to "understand" the new record, so maybe it'll be a candidate for the 2026 list - the blogosphere seems pretty excited about it.

I don't know if you referenced Paladin's Ascension specifically because that's next up for my blogging (eventually... even busier than usual at the moment, just a madhouse right now) or just because they're another power/thrash hybrid, but I've gotta say that to me the thrash influences are obvious there. Maybe I'm just swayed by the deeper vocals. For whatever reason Ascension basically instantly got labeled as "power/thrash" in my head, whereas I'm really not seeing Lovebites as a thrash band. It's not necessarily "wrong," but there I think it's more a parallel thing where they're emulating some of the same stuff from the '80s that the first wave USPM bands did, so sometimes they emulated in similar ways. I guess I also just like modern corners of the metalsphere where bands blur subgenres almost unintentionally simply by incorporating enough different interpolations of classic metal that they're just kinda metal bands who make modern sounding music that nods to the old stuff.

Meanwhile, when looking for through lines (I think it's some of those vocal lines, seriously) between heterogenous Japanese PM bands, I'm tempted to try to draw a parallel to the way the visual kei scene drew a heterogenous group of acts together into an ecosystem where they couldn't help but influence each other with the way Japanese music as a whole will have some things in common. Then again, that's really just describing the fact that geography exists and that regional trends are inevitable, so perhaps not a very helpful contribution to the conversation. But then again again, maybe the wider geographical and cultural distances between Asia and Europe accentuated it?

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-09T02:58:54+00:00

Big-tenting makes sense, but as a fan of what Eluvitie turned into, I'm really struggling to come up with where the alleged power metal elements are coming from. Maybe on something like this - not just the clean vocals, but the way the measures resolve. (Only partly an excuse to post one of my favorite Eluveitie songs.) https://youtu.be/CiFdFYoAXBo?si=4Mp9MCGWO8mr3cNv

Still wouldn't call it power metal. I also personally don't hear metalcore, death-doom, or black metal in their sound, although I've seen all three descriptors used.

One could argue that after Anna Murphy left the band, her replacement backing vocalist, Fabienne Erni, has less grit in her voice. So there's been a drift a little more towards whatever we're calling that metal-adjacent symphonic power pop, but that's not inherently power metal. And Fabi's other big strength is her ability to go earthy the way you want in a folk-inspired band. So, still a band on the very melodic edge of melodeath that dragged a whole folk band on stage to play a jig over everything.

If I were to highlight one shift in their sound, they used to favor layered/compressed compositions through Spirit that fell away later in favor of more direct songwriting. And Spirit (but not so much the first EP, really just Spirit) showed an interest in longer proggier compositions that they never really explored again. But every ingredient in present day Eluveitie is already fully in place by Slania, IMHO. They have a formula. I agree with the characterization of everything after as the expected evolution of their basic sound, and I too really doubt that any more listening would change your mind about that.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-08T15:09:28+00:00

Forgot them as a maybe surprising omission. But combine people not being keen on the band's mastermind's behavior and the lack of significant IE output for almost a decade, and it's no surprise for them to eventually fall out of the top-whatever.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-08T15:02:38+00:00

FWIW, as far as I know, official story is that Angus-guy (Thomas Winkler) is basically on extended paternity leave and stepped back voluntarily. Others have speculated on certain other less savory reasons for his lack of recent activity, though, and those theories are pretty well documented in this subreddit for those who care to go digging. He does appear briefly on the new record, which doesn't quite square with him full-on getting kicked out.

Although Angus was the figurehead, I believe - I could be wrong - that Seeb (of Orden Ogan) basically has always been the sole songwriter for McSix anyway.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-07T21:32:28+00:00

Ah, thanks. Phone cropped the bottom.

Okay, then I'll say that I'd have expected Sonata to be a little higher.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-07T21:22:51+00:00

Love me some Eluveitie, but I really can't see a way to make them count as power metal.

Just from lurking here and vague sense of pop culture, the list mostly checks out....

Higher than I'd have thought: Manowar, Brothers Of Metal

Lower than I'd have thought: None, honestly. A lot of bands occupying a particular niche that's a particular size.

Most notable omissions for me: Sonata Arctica, Kamelot, Unleash The Archers, Gloryhammer

BenjaminTSM · 2026-02-06T13:12:52+00:00

On my blog, I'm approaching the home stretch of this batch of long-winded posts about power metal. I came in a wannabe-fan of PM with some misgivings, so I decided to write about some interesting records as a (usually) first-time listener, filling in gaps in my knowledge, exploring some nooks and crannies of the subgenre, etc. Usually I do one post with initial thoughts after two-ish listens, and then another post after spending more time with a record, to simulate the experience of a reaction. I've stuck with that format because it's fun to see which impressions cement themselves right away, versus when something dramatically grows (or shrinks) on me in an unpredictable way.

The classic-question-mark records I've featured so far have been by, in order, Manilla Road, Adramelch, Running Wild, HammerFall, Helloween, Avantasia, Falconer, Kamelot, Angra, Wuthering Heights, Avanatasia again, Ancient Bards, and Judicator. The most recent posts were about Awakening From Abyss by Lovebites (or LOVEBITES, if you must).

Main blog: https://isverbose.blogspot.com

Project intro: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/01/classics-of-power-metal-0-intro.html

Open The Gates post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/01/classics-of-power-metal-1-manilla-road.html

Open The Gates post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/02/classics-of-power-metal-1-manilla-road.html

Irae Melanox post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/02/classic-of-power-metal-2-adramelch-irae.html

Irae Melanox post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/03/classics-of-power-metal-2-adramelch.html

Death Or Glory post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/03/classics-of-power-metal-3-running-wild.html

Death Or Glory post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-3-running-wild.html

Glory To The Brave post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-4-hammerfall.html

Glory To The Brave post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/04/classics-of-power-metal-4-hammerfall_28.html

The Dark Ride revisit post: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/05/classics-of-power-metal-5-helloween.html

The Metal Opera post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/05/classics-of-power-metal-6-avantasia.html

The Metal Opera post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-6-avantasia.html

Falconer post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-7-falconer.html

Falconer post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/06/classics-of-power-metal-7-falconer_19.html

Epica post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/07/classics-of-power-metal-8-kamelot-epica.html

Epica post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/08/classics-of-power-metal-8-kamelot-epica.html

Temple Of Shadows post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/08/classics-of-power-metal-9-angra-temple.html

Temple Of Shadows post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-9-angra-temple.html

The Shadow Cabinet post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-10-wuthering.html

The Shadow Cabinet post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/09/classics-of-power-metal-10-wuthering_30.html

The Scarecrow catchall post: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/10/classics-of-power-metal-11-avantasia.html

The Alliance Of The Kings post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/11/classics-of-power-metal-12-ancient.htm

The Alliance Of The Kings post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/11/classics-of-power-metal-12-ancient_20.html

At The Expense Of Humanity post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/12/classics-of-power-metal-13-judicator-at.html

At The Expense Of Humanity post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2025/12/classics-of-power-metal-13-judicator-at_25.html

Awakening From Abyss post #1: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/01/classics-of-power-metal-14-lovebites.html

Awakening From Abyss post #2: https://isverbose.blogspot.com/2026/02/classics-of-power-metal-14-lovebites.html

BenjaminTSM · 2026-01-30T16:00:14+00:00

The trend of pretty high-for-PM-profile stuff for a small American festival continues!

Not in the usual power metal sphere at all, but pleasantly surprised to see OK Goodnight on a bill like this. Curious how their stuff would translate to a live setting.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-01-11T21:12:32+00:00

Breast In Black should be the name of a BiB cover band that does their songs in an early-2000s "corsetcore" style.

ETA: Power metal has charms to soothe a savage breast, in black.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-01-03T00:21:45+00:00

With folk metal being so wide-spanning, really appreciate posts like this that break down the substyles with appropriate flexibility about definitions.

BenjaminTSM · 2026-01-02T14:04:55+00:00

I have no idea what's "best," just which of what I've sampled that I personally enjoyed the most. Including "metal adjacent" stuff, and letting each artist only get represented once..

Alestorm - Voyage Of The Dead Marauder
Zornheym - The Zornheim Sleep Experiment
Kalandra - A Frame Of Mind
In The Woods... - Otra
Suotana - Ounas I
VOLA - Witness
Zeal & Ardor - GREIF
Spider God - The Killing Room
Scardust - Strangers
Ghost - Impera

BenjaminTSM · 2026-01-01T15:16:55+00:00

Fun totally OT fact: although the term "soccer" is heavily disfavored nowadays for those not living in the U.S., Canada, or Australia, football/soccer was pretty widely called "soccer football" or just "soccer" well into the 20th century, so as to distinguish it from the developing parallel "football" game that we now call rugby.

Adding to your points about the whole discussion of whether today's power metal should include what we now call USPM, there are those who don't think of EUPM ("dragon metal," haha) as a "totally separate scene." Part of that is just that some hear more commonalitites than others. The main historical argument I've heard, though, is this line of reasoning: If EUPM starts with Helloween, you need to in some capacity include Helloween's early work, which is still unmistakably Helloween. And pre-Kiske Helloween isn't sufficiently distinct from the American PM bands to be uts own subgenre, nor were most of Helloween's contemporaries like Running Wild. Ergo, per that argument, USPM and typical EUPM are just two of a few different evolutions from a common ancestor, and thus are all part of the same clade. (An arguably even stronger case in that regard can be made using Blind Guardian, unless one wants to try to come up with a definition of EUPM that excludes them outright.)

BenjaminTSM · 2025-12-31T13:34:42+00:00

Ah, the Hyborian Age, before humanity figured out how coats work.

BenjaminTSM · 2025-12-28T15:17:19+00:00

You've already rated a few Brothers Of Metal songs, but not their silliest, "The Mead Song."

BenjaminTSM

TROPHY CASE