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Hair metal/ Glam metal


metallikole1999

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Where are the hair band threads at? Just because a lot of people don't like it doesn't mean that everybody doesn't like it. I dont really care if there's a thread about it on here or not, but I figured I post one anyway. What do you guys think of Motley Crue, Tesla, Guns N' Roses, Skid Row, Poison, Cinderella, or other 80s hair bands? Who's your favorite? What are the best glam albums?

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  • 1 month later...

Hair metal/ Glam metal First 2 Motley Crüe albums; RATT Out Of the Cellar; the Dokken, LA Guns & WASP debuts are all absolute classic. Bands like Dokken, WASP post-debut Skid Row often get thrown in with the hair metal tag for no reason other than they were alive and kicking in the 80s; were not thrash or power metal. All 3 were much heavier than that. Tesla has no place in a hair metal discussion and neither do Guns n Rose for that matter. Icon, Malice, Warrior are all other examples of strong 'metal' bands that get included in these discussions incorrectly. The 'hair metal' tag was really directed at the 2nd and 3rd generation bandwagon jumpers who flooded the labels & airwaves with no musical talent or integrity; and had a certain look that MTV pushed. They carried guitars and such but we're not metal. Shit like Poison (although the debut is cool but have a look at them for gods sake); Trixter, Tuff and too any others to mention. So statement like "universally dreadful" might be true of actual hair metal - but let's be mindful of who we characterise by hair metal and who we don't. Unfortunately everything that came before MTV turned everyone into commercial whores and was decent metal still gets thrown in with that rubbish which is not accurate or fair.; but 30 years later it's just easier to lump it ALL together. Then grunge came ( well for about 3 years before it had served its purpose and was 'done') and washed it all away.

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At a new years eve party the hostess put on a pandora station of 80's metal ballads, and when "talk Dirty to Me" by Poison came up, she sang every word. It was delightful, and I could totally see her as that girl who wrote out all the lyrics in a notebook dotting every I with a heart. Some bitches are going to have to come to grips with the reality that the 80's was the definitive decade for pop culture, and since then no other decade has had the heart to coalesce into any sort of identity. All subsequent decades have cowered in the shadow of the 80's because they are weak and live in fear of the awesomeness of the 80's, so eat that bitches! I personally fucking love "Crystal Eyes" by the L.A. Guns, Though I imagine True belief would say it was not hair metal, that tune is beautiful. It is Glam I guess. Glam is fun, anyway I think so. I also played the original "Still of the Night" video along with an old Popeye cartoon before a movie night last week, and folks love either enjoying it, or in one case loved hating it. Whitesnake... a metal band or a Hard Rock band with metal trimmings? Funk it I don't know, someone else can explain what is what, and I will be interested. Iceni one time explained that something was AOR, maybe that is what Whitesnake is as well. Right, it was later Scorpions he was talking about. I enjoy commercial, image obsessed, every so lightly shocking pseudo-metal shlock, in case anyone was wondering.

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I think this thread needs to be in the heavy/tradition section. A lot of awesome albums and bands from the 80's rock n' roll decade. Of course it went downhill late 80's because of MTV's commercialism, but still there were decent releases even then. Classic albums: Motley Crue: too Fast for Love & Shout at the Devil & DR. Feelgood Ratt: Out of the Cellar & Invasion of your Privacy Quiet Riot: Metal Health Dokken: Tooth and Nail & Under Lock and Key WASP: WASP & Last Command Cinderella: Night Songs Skid Row: Skid Row Winger: Winger Twisted Sister: Stay Hungry Van Halen: 1984 David lee roth: Eat ' Em and Smile Vixen: Vixen Def Leppard: Pyromania & Hysteria Hanoi Rocks: their '81 and '84 Albums were great (plus they were the band that kinda started the whole movement) I might be forgetting some, but oh-well. Worth mentioning: A lot of bands changed their sound in the 90's and still did excellent work Ratt: Detonator & Reach for the Sky Motley Crue: Saints of L.A. (Heavy metal album) Cinderella: Long cold Winter & Hearbreak station (Awesome rock n' roll with Blues elements) Winger: Better days coming WASP: Crimson Idol / Headless Children / Babylon Skid Row: Slave to the Grind (much heavier than their debut album) There are more but can't post em all now ;P Nowdays acts: Steel panther are a parody band with joke lyrics, but they play decent music in many songs. Sweden has started also a glam metal movement in the mid 2000's. Crashdiet is probsbly the most famous band that plays 80's rock n' roll nowdays. Check their album Rest in Sleaze.

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I like Guns 'n Roses' date=' but I consider them hard rock, not metal. The rest are just an embarrassment to the scene, and also mostly play hard rock, not metal, but I suppose it's a fine line.[/quote'] Not liking the genre is one thing, but come on, an "embarrassment" to the scene?! Most of the bands I mentioned were/are super talented bands, that played hard rock/ traditional metal. They were also minding their own business, and did not call "gay" everyone who didn't come on stage with jeans and battle jackets. An "embarrassment" to the scene is having Lars Ulrich showing his complex by throwing darts at Kip Wingers picture in an official video clip of the band........... The whole hating on 80's rock n' roll bands was just a marketing trend of the time. Even members of thrash bands admited that years later...
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I think this thread needs to be in the heavy/tradition section. A lot of awesome albums and bands from the 80's rock n' roll decade. Of course it went downhill late 80's because of MTV's commercialism, but still there were decent releases even then. Classic albums: Motley Crue: too Fast for Love & Shout at the Devil & DR. Feelgood Ratt: Out of the Cellar & Invasion of your Privacy Quiet Riot: Metal Health Dokken: Tooth and Nail & Under Lock and Key WASP: WASP & Last Command Cinderella: Night Songs Skid Row: Skid Row Winger: Winger Twisted Sister: Stay Hungry Van Halen: 1984 David lee roth: Eat ' Em and Smile Vixen: Vixen Def Leppard: Pyromania & Hysteria Hanoi Rocks: their '81 and '84 Albums were great (plus they were the band that kinda started the whole movement) I might be forgetting some, but oh-well. Worth mentioning: A lot of bands changed their sound in the 90's and still did excellent work Ratt: Detonator & Reach for the Sky Motley Crue: Saints of L.A. (Heavy metal album) Cinderella: Long cold Winter & Hearbreak station (Awesome rock n' roll with Blues elements) Winger: Better days coming WASP: Crimson Idol / Headless Children / Babylon Skid Row: Slave to the Grind (much heavier than their debut album) There are more but can't post em all now ;P Nowdays acts: Steel panther are a parody band with joke lyrics, but they play decent music in many songs. Sweden has started also a glam metal movement in the mid 2000's. Crashdiet is probsbly the most famous band that plays 80's rock n' roll nowdays. Check their album Rest in Sleaze.
Crashdiet are great, Hardcore Superstar, Crazy Lixx etc also good.
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Yep' date=' even Slayer started out in spandex and eye liner....[/quote'] I shouldn't even have to say this, but the clothes don't make the music. The difference between Slayer and glam bands is that glam bands forgot about that fact and decided to put image first, and that they played mildly metallic pop/rock. The title "glam metal" comes from an association between bands that play in that style of music using similar image marketing tactics, but even where bands like GNR toned back the makeup, they still fit the title musically.
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Not liking the genre is one thing, but come on, an "embarrassment" to the scene?! Most of the bands I mentioned were/are super talented bands, that played hard rock/ traditional metal. They were also minding their own business, and did not call "gay" everyone who didn't come on stage with jeans and battle jackets. An "embarrassment" to the scene is having Lars Ulrich showing his complex by throwing darts at Kip Wingers picture in an official video clip of the band........... The whole hating on 80's rock n' roll bands was just a marketing trend of the time. Even members of thrash bands admited that years later...
Yes, when people walk around dressed as clowns with dead poodles on their heads I am embarrassed to be associated with them. And who said anything about calling anyone gay? I certainly didn't.
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Indeed. So did Overkill :D I have a pic somewhere with Boby Blitz and DD Verni with ripped clothes and leather spandex [emoji14] Will post it later, can't find it now. Well, there are shitty glam bands, and awesome glam bands. There are shitty bands on every single genre. its just the fact that in glam there are way more examples, because the genre was full legit mainstream for 8 years. Bands like Ratt, might have looked way over the top, but come on, who can deny the awesome riffs and solos of Warren DeMartini and Robin Crosby. They definatelly had the music as #1 factor, even if they had hours of make up and fashion collection clothes before each live. Plus they did the whole appearance & lyric theme thing, to draw the attention of more female audience to the band and the genre. Thing that sadly died in the 80's.
Indeed, the same can be said of any genre, especially if you're just talking in comparative terms. Some of the heavier glam bands wrote a couple of decent riffs/songs, showing that they did have some potential, but they put them into pop/rock context and surrounded them with lame ballads and songs with sugary hooks. While I have heard a couple of glam songs that I can stand to listen to or even enjoy (Live Wire, Under the Blade, and Slave to the Grind come to mind), I have yet to hear a glam album that doesn't shit all over whatever small amount of metal that they brought to the table with the rest of the songs on the album. I'll say what I have with every other genre of music that I don't enjoy, which is that you can like it if you want, but that doesn't make it metal. I'm not the kind of prick that will delete a thread just because I don't like the content, as there are metal fans that like glam, punk, nu-metal, industrial, or whatever else, but you can't expect non-metal music to receive the same kind of response the metal music will when you're on a metal forum.
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Indeed' date=' the same can be said of any genre, especially if you're just talking in comparative terms. Some of the heavier glam bands wrote a couple of decent riffs/songs, showing that they did have some potential, but they put them into pop/rock context and surrounded them with lame ballads and songs with sugary hooks. While I have heard a couple of glam songs that I can stand to listen to or even enjoy (Live Wire, Under the Blade, and Slave to the Grind come to mind), I have yet to hear a glam album that doesn't shit all over whatever small amount of metal that they brought to the table with the rest of the songs on the album. I'll say what I have with every other genre of music that I don't enjoy, which is that you can like it if you want, but that doesn't make it metal. I'm not the kind of prick that will delete a thread just because I don't like the content, as there are metal fans that like glam, punk, nu-metal, industrial, or whatever else, but you can't expect non-metal music to receive the same kind of response the metal music will when you're on a metal forum.[/quote'] Well yeah, I agree, and I didn't ask for glam metal to recieve the same attention with NWOBHM or death, on a metal forum. But just because something isn't that heavy, it doesn't mean that it's not metal. The so called "hair metal" genre, has elements mostly of rock n' roll, NWOBHM, pop, and classic rock. Metal, non-metal, I don't really care in the end. It's on the rock part of music, not pop nor rap/
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I shouldn't even have to say this' date=' but the clothes don't make the music. The difference between Slayer and glam bands is that glam bands forgot about that fact and decided to put image first, and that they played mildly metallic pop/rock. The title "glam metal" comes from an association between bands that play in that style of music using similar image marketing tactics, but even where bands like GNR toned back the makeup, they still fit the title musically.[/quote'] I can't promise that this post will fascinate anyone, but I wanted to mention about Guns&Roses that I picked up a used CD of Chinese Democracy (that I actually listened to about 10 times before getting too irritated by the overly treble tonality) and the bountiful photos in the insert show them to be pretty Glam at that late date, thought looking a bit more New Wave from the 80's, like Duran Duran with a bit more edge (came off a little retro looking to me, and I liked it, because....have I mentioned that I like Rock and Roll image because I think it is fun). In case I still have any readers left, and they wonder how I could listen to Guns and Roses so much before getting tired of it let me say that the album has a great deal of variety and if a CD makes it into the car CD Player in the gardening season it tends to just repeat and repeat and I just don't take it out, so I'll hear it twice daily for a week or more. That tidbit could have gone in the true facts about me thread.
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Yes' date=' when people walk around dressed as clowns with dead poodles on their heads I am embarrassed to be associated with them.[/quote'] Okay... but does that mean you are emberrassed to be associated with most of Black metal as well? PIC from Mayhem : http://i2.wp.com/ruthlessreviews.com/pics5/bm2/bm4b.jpg?resize=550%2C452 PS: Not hating on mayhem or black metal, just trying to prove a point.
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Well yeah, I agree, and I didn't ask for glam metal to recieve the same attention with NWOBHM or death, on a metal forum. But just because something isn't that heavy, it doesn't mean that it's not metal. The so called "hair metal" genre, has elements mostly of rock n' roll, NWOBHM, pop, and classic rock. Metal, non-metal, I don't really care in the end. It's on the rock part of music, not pop nor rap/
So, by your admission, there are 4 ingredients in the glam formula musically speaking, only one of which is metal, and it's far and away the smallest portion of the equation. Not only would this make glam bands not metal, having pop as one of those ingredients (and a major one at that) pushes it even further away. The image first, music second attitude of these bands is the last nail in the coffin. Again, like whatever you want, but I can't in good conscience call something metal when it is not only used sparingly in the band's/genre's sound, but also the portions that are used are stripped down to the most banal lowest common denominator. The metal elements are all about image too, only existing for appeal to yet another crowd, but they're only there for aesthetics, they possess no depth or personality.
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Well, I just watched, Vixen - Edge Of A Broken Heart On you tube, and if that is metal than so is Jefferson Starship, 'Cus that's what it sounded most like to me. The bass is turned up pretty high in the mix I guess, which seem like a metal thing to do, and the soloing guitar tone is a little on the searing side, but that is not enough. Somehow I didn't really recognize the tune either, for what that is worth. Lastly I just would say about that video, they lack the flair for being glam, they try to be sexy and cool, but they seem real forced and conservative. They never would have been invited onto the Marc Bolan show (even though that was the previous decade). T-Rex is the gold standard for glam by the way.

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