Metal&Shit Forums

Now, I ain't no big metalcore aficionado, but I won't deny that there are some bands, some songs, some albums even, that I sort of appreciate and enjoy, from time to time, for whatever they are worth, in their own right.

Just over the past weekend, a co-worker was hooked up to his iPod (during a short time-out) when he and I had to finish up on some unfinished, pending work that was due last Monday. I asked what he was rocking out to and he said I needn't know cos I wouldn't care. I persisted, and he blurted out The Black Dahlia Murder. He was defensive about it the moment he said it and insisted that he loved the band, no matter what extremers like me thought or said. I told him, no sweat, to chill cos TBDM are cool enough. I like them too. I seriously do.

But I haven't heard them for a very long time, since the time they broke into the 'scene' back in 2001 (approx) and I did watch them live with a bunch of other bands in '05. So, I asked a cousin of mine (he's a high school junior) if he could lend me Dahlia's last one,--the '07 release, Nocturnal. I already have the prior two discs, Unhallowed and Miasma. I heard through Nocturnal, twice, today. I'd say it's got some sucky moments for sure, but I realise they aren't a sucky band, at all. A lot of the songs are fast, structured, aggressive, catchy and rocking, in a good sense. Besides, I remembered that their other two albums I own and mentioned earlier, aren't half-bad material either.

Alright, to cut to the chase; anybody here dig TBDM? I know of a few other metalcore acts that have their good moments if you pay enough attention and listen without pre-conceived ideas of what they oughta sound like. So, while I may be no huge fan of the genre, overall, it isn't a hopeless, lost cause for me, either. Dig deep, and you might clinch a few nuggets of goodness. As in The Black Dahlia Murder, me thinks.

I have Unhallowed, which is pretty cool. Haven't heard their other stuff. How is Miasma?

Miasma is pretty cool, too. I mean, there is enough 'melody' in all TBDM albums, so that a lot of feckless fans aren't too scared off about what they might hear on a deathcore disc. But man, these guys are unrelenting, from the frantic drumming, the twin guitar attack, the dual vocal assault, that make their material just catchy, intense half-hours of deathcore music. Miasma can sound a little too monotonous at times, as music like this often does, and also the pretty average vocals with not much variety can be a bit annoying. But some of the guitar riffs and breaks, despite the Scandinavian melodic-metal influences, are basically very tight, razor-sharp and cut to the bone, song after song. Miasma (what a cool name---like an orgasm with metal ) is a very good second album you might wanna check out, if you really liked the impressive Unhallowed. Also, try out Nocturnal and A Cold Blooded Epitaph, too, if possible. These are all brief blasts of metal you can swallow whole, in one sitting.

I own Unhallowed. It's pretty sweet and I have heard Miasma and Nocturnal which are both very good as well. I love the artwork for Nocturnal though it's so sweet.

I liked them for about 30 minutes in 2002 or 2003. But I took some meds & thats over with.

But not my thing really. They're extreme, & metal, and seem like decent musicians. But there's just something missing.
If I listened long enough I could figure it out. But thats not gonna happen. I saw them at a Sounds of the Underground a few years ago. Meh. Just didn't win me over.

This is gonna sound retarded but what makes them Metalcore?

^ ha, not at all 'retarded'....The band members have sometimes insisted that they should not be, or cannot be affixed with a specific genre label. When pressed they say they are probably basically "melodic death metal". Now, 'melodic' they certainly are, (with their frequent nods to the Swedecore sound) but they are quite a lot less 'death metal', to my ears. In any case, I reckon the vocals (most of the time), the dominant style of the riffing through a majority of their songs, the obligatory breakdowns etc etc, make most of the band's fans and reviewers, rightly or wrongly, refer to Dahlia as either 'deathcore' or more generally, simply 'metalcore'. Maybe, that's just about fair, overall.

Theyre more like deathcore. Not metalcore at all, actually.
All 3 albums are good, but I want more. Nocturnal is obviously their best record.

A friend burned me Miasma and Nocturnal, I've only given them a few listens, but I really liked selected songs, and throught the rest was still pretty decent.

^ that's great to hear, Butt. That's why I even started this thread. Because I wanted to, for starters, find out if there are other Dahlia fans around, on this board--and if not, to at least spark some interest and get a few guys to try out a bit more of decent deathcore/metalcore, instead of just falling into peer pressure and personal prejudices and dismiss everything of this genre. I know how many people would hardly expect me to like a band like this, but like I said I like a lot of Dahlia's songs on the four highly decent albums they have put out, so far.

Gosh, Butt, I wish I could get you around to begin liking--even loving---Slipknot, as much as I seriously do. LOL

Slipknot only has one good album This coming from a former fan as well.

(07-07-2009 10:01 AM)NapalmKid Wrote: [ -> ]^ that's great to hear, Butt. That's why I even started this thread. Because I wanted to, for starters, find out if there are other Dahlia fans around, on this board--and if not, to at least spark some interest and get a few guys to try out a bit more of decent deathcore/metalcore, instead of just falling into peer pressure and personal prejudices and dismiss everything of this genre. I know how many people would hardly expect me to like a band like this, but like I said I like a lot of Dahlia's songs on the four highly decent albums they have put out, so far.

Gosh, Butt, I wish I could get you around to begin liking--even loving---Slipknot, as much as I seriously do. LOL

Tbh, I'm pretty excited as me and Matt are seeing Bodom, with Black Dahlia Murder (and Skeletonwitch as well) supporting, in September. I'm fucking EXCITED, as I wanna see how awesome the songs I got burned become in a live setting.

Wow, that's terrific for you guys. Although, I ain't no Bodom fan, really, but I wouldn't mind catching them with Skeletonwitch (one of the few good 'new' thrashers) and, of course, the excellent Dahlia for sure.

Hoping you have a swell time watching such quality acts in Sep. Ha, Bodom alone would take you to the ends of the earth, right? LOL Don't miss it, ok?

*hey Warrior, I'm still a strong fan....and I actually think Slipknot had 3 great albums, and one average one. Iowa remains my favourite, and the s-t debut and Vol. 3 are great discs, in my book. I didn't like All Hope Is Gone, initially, but heck, now I think it isn't really bad per se, just not as great as the others. And oh, Live 9.0 is a fantastic effort, too.

I own Live 9.0 and think it's shit tbh Corey sounds out of breath half the time and just mumbles but anyways I actually think their newest All Hope Is Gone is their only good album. There are still some good songs of the others though.