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TrooperEd
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2004 6:18 pm
Posts: 2115
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Feb 12, 2018 12:58 pm 
 

SweetLeaf95 wrote:
Little shoutout to TrooperEd; after reading like 3 in a row, I can't say I always agree/like them, but they're always entertaining to read because of how much personality is there. Really dug the "Slaughter Of The Soul" review.


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Diamhea
Eats and Spits Corpses

Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2007 7:46 pm
Posts: 9275
Location: At the Heat of Winter
PostPosted: Tue Feb 13, 2018 4:43 pm 
 

ThrashFanatic: ~40 reviews in less than a month. average rating is mid-upper 90s (save for one statistic outlier), reviews incessantly call bands/albums "amazing" "perfect" "best ever" "underrated," rarely using tangible description, regurgitates Borisite nonsense in review titles and sometimes in the reviews themselves (i.e. "RANDOM LYRICAL EXCERPT!!!"), surprisingly throws some obscure stuff in there, but hits lots of obvious targets that don't need more reviews, adheres to the same format for all reviews, with an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory, then goes right into the first track and basically does a track by track rundown, with the lines blurred mainly by the ranting nonsense. Metal_Thrasher90 salutes you, and has possibly vacated his throne here. A job well done.

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flexodus
Metalhead

Joined: Sun May 10, 2009 4:16 am
Posts: 2369
PostPosted: Tue Feb 13, 2018 6:18 pm 
 

Diamhea wrote:
an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory

this is the worst shit ever. We aren't writing 5 paragraph essays anymore, boys. There's nothing worse than checking out a review and immediately getting the urge to skip to the second paragraph; this is necessary with almost every hells_unicorn review IMO (content is still good but yeah). Though I'm just personally a fan of short, punchy writing that gets to the point. No reason to jerk me around with 6 sentences explaining the history of the genre and grocery shopping habits of the band members. If it's really important, it can be incorporated into the review rather than being left as an obstacle to overcome at the beginning.
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hells_unicorn
Veteran

Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 8:32 pm
Posts: 3056
Location: United States
PostPosted: Tue Feb 13, 2018 9:12 pm 
 

flexodus wrote:
Diamhea wrote:
an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory

this is the worst shit ever. We aren't writing 5 paragraph essays anymore, boys. There's nothing worse than checking out a review and immediately getting the urge to skip to the second paragraph; this is necessary with almost every hells_unicorn review IMO (content is still good but yeah). Though I'm just personally a fan of short, punchy writing that gets to the point.


:lol: Last time I checked, most of my stuff these days is 4 paragraphs. Sorry to have subjected you to the worst shit ever on a sustained basis (actually I'm touched by the hyperbole, passionate disapproval is its own reward), I'm just one of these guys who takes a look at just about every other review that happens to be on a given band's discography and sees the description starting in sentence one and the band's name getting dropped in the first 4 words and says "How about I do things a bit different". Don't worry, won't let that happen again. :-P
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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:17 am 
 

flexodus wrote:
Diamhea wrote:
an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory

this is the worst shit ever. We aren't writing 5 paragraph essays anymore, boys. There's nothing worse than checking out a review and immediately getting the urge to skip to the second paragraph; this is necessary with almost every hells_unicorn review IMO (content is still good but yeah). Though I'm just personally a fan of short, punchy writing that gets to the point. No reason to jerk me around with 6 sentences explaining the history of the genre and grocery shopping habits of the band members. If it's really important, it can be incorporated into the review rather than being left as an obstacle to overcome at the beginning.



Not everyone is so well versed in the history of heavy metal and every single metal band, so a very brief history can be useful for those who have no prior knowledge of a band and their discography.

If you're well versed in the back catalogue of every metal band, I just need to point out that others are not so well versed.

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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:18 am 
 

Thrashfanatics fucking scoring system–arhhhh!!

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BastardHead
Worse than Stalin

Joined: Thu Aug 18, 2005 7:53 pm
Posts: 10857
Location: Oswego, Illinois
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 6:58 am 
 

Giving some brief history is fine in theory, but the thing Dia is talking about is when somebody basically gives the first paragraph of a wiki page to a band as huge and well known as Metallica or Slayer or something. That doesn't provide context, it doesn't share any interesting trivia, it's just filler that amateurs use for a crutch because they don't know any other way to write an introduction. It's pretty easy to differentiate when somebody knows what they're doing and when somebody is super green and just writes pointless info that everybody knows already just to add to the word count.
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Derigin
The Mountain Man

Joined: Sun Jan 01, 2006 6:25 am
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Location: Canada
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 8:49 am 
 

On top of that, relying too much on background or on history takes away from the review being about the music of the album. I wrote about something similar in another thread, actually:

Quote:
First, we require that reviews describe, above all, the music of the album. There isn't really a threshold as far as what "describe" in that context means, but it usually implies that the reviewer spends the majority of the review explaining their opinion on how the album sounds, and that the opinion they give is backed up and contextualized. I find that reviews typically tend to be rejected for one of two reasons, or both:

(1) the review is short on musical description, and ends up reiterating basic facts about the album (eg. the album has 6 tracks and is named X; these tracks are good; the lyrics are about fantasy creatures; production is solid; I like turtles, and this album too). It's not bad mentioning these things, obviously, but if that's what constitutes the entire review then it's not really a review - it's just restating stuff you can already find on the album's page. A good rule of thumb is as follows. If the reader of the review is going to sit there and think "why" or "in what way" to any of the statements you make, then it's worth elaborating on those statements. For instance, if you simply claim something on the album is "good," inevitably the person reading will want to know why it was good. The same is true if you make a blanket statement about something on the album being "solid" or telling us what the lyrics are all about. The inevitable questions asked in response would be "in what way" and "why does this matter?"

(2) the review may have musical description, but the vast majority of the review is not about the music of the album. This is a bit more tricky than the situation described in (1). Reviews come in many shapes and sizes, but one of the biggest fallacies a reviewer of an album can make is making the review about the band, or about the genre, or something else, and not so much about the album itself. A classic example of this would be a review on Pantera's "Metal Magic" album that is instead primarily an essay-long rant about "Glamtera," "Glam Metal" and the state of heavy metal in general in the 1980s. It's absolutely, 100% OK to provide context to your review - in fact that is what makes many of our best reviewers so great. It is not OK when a review for an album is simply used as an excuse to review the band, a genre, or something else entirely. People who read your review will want to know about the album; what it sounds like, what your opinion on it is, and even where it might fit in the context of the band's work or even the genre. However, the latter should never outweigh a focus on the album. Many reviewers, novice and "expert" suffer from this fallacy. It's a habit that can be hard to break, especially when you as a reviewer have a point you want to make about a bigger issue you think is important about the band as a whole. The key - and it's a challenging one - is being able to link that bigger issue with the music of the album you're reviewing. In other words, being able to describe the forest through its trees.
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~Guest 414160
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Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 4:52 pm 
 

It's Ezra's Dystopia review; he writes, '"The Threat is Real" and "Post American World" espousing xenophobic statements, and even the groovy chugs in "Lying in State" can't make up for the ignorant lyrics.'

It absolutely infuriates me when people misinterpret the lyrics to suit or project their own political agenda. I had to refute the same incorrect interpretations with another person, recently. 'The Threat is Real' has nothing to do with immigration or xenophobia. My opposite number on that occasion was a gentlemen, who was university educated – gay, and an advocate of liberal politics, gay marriage, and multiculturalism, but his politics in themselves was not an issue; the issue is that they misinterpret Dystopia and Mustaine to suit their own ideology. Ultimately, the review is just critical because of the incorrect perspective.

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EzraBlumenfeld
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2017 12:50 pm
Posts: 450
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:05 pm 
 

Psyche_Dome wrote:
It's Ezra's Dystopia review; he writes, '"The Threat is Real" and "Post American World" espousing xenophobic statements, and even the groovy chugs in "Lying in State" can't make up for the ignorant lyrics.'

It absolutely infuriates me when people misinterpret the lyrics to suit or project their own political agenda. I had to refute the same incorrect interpretations with another person, recently. 'The Threat is Real' has nothing to do with immigration or xenophobia. My opposite number on that occasion was a gentlemen, who was university educated – gay, and an advocate of liberal politics, gay marriage, and multiculturalism, but his politics in themselves was not an issue; the issue is that they misinterpret Dystopia and Mustaine to suit their own ideology. Ultimately, the review is just critical because of the incorrect perspective.


You can write your own reviews for once if you don't like the ones other people write. I see you've never written one, at least not on this account. There are plenty of other reviews on there that talk positively about the album.
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~Guest 414160
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Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:15 pm 
 

The point is that if someone wrote, 'Judas Priest's Sad Wings of Destiny has some good guitar parts, and that's why I haven't given this racist and xenophobic album a 0%. It gets 40% for the great guitar parts', then you're shitting on an album because you interpret it as racist and xenophobic, but it's neither, and neither is Dystopia. Dystopia has nothing to do with racism, immigration, or xenophobia. Therefore, you're critical of an album based on misinterpretation.

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EzraBlumenfeld
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2017 12:50 pm
Posts: 450
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:17 pm 
 

Psyche_Dome wrote:
The point is that if someone wrote, 'Judas Priest's Sad Wings of Destiny has some good guitar parts, and that's why I haven't given this racist and xenophobic album a 0%. It gets 40% for the great guitar parts', then you're shitting on an album because you interpret it as racist and xenophobic, but it's neither, and neither is Dystopia. Dystopia has nothing to do with racism, immigration, or xenophobia. Therefore, you're critical of an album based on misinterpretation.


So you're gonna PM me telling me my review is wrong and then go on a forum to whine about me? Write your own shining review about it talking about how the album is "misinterpreted" if it's such a big deal to you.
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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:32 pm 
 

EzraBlumenfeld wrote:
Psyche_Dome wrote:
The point is that if someone wrote, 'Judas Priest's Sad Wings of Destiny has some good guitar parts, and that's why I haven't given this racist and xenophobic album a 0%. It gets 40% for the great guitar parts', then you're shitting on an album because you interpret it as racist and xenophobic, but it's neither, and neither is Dystopia. Dystopia has nothing to do with racism, immigration, or xenophobia. Therefore, you're critical of an album based on misinterpretation.


So you're gonna PM me telling me my review is wrong and then go on a forum to whine about me? Write your own shining review about it talking about how the album is "misinterpreted" if it's such a big deal to you.


Once a review is posted, then it's there to be praised or criticized; that's the way it works. I'm just critical of what I perceive to be a misinterpretation of the lyrical content.

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EzraBlumenfeld
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2017 12:50 pm
Posts: 450
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:33 pm 
 

Psyche_Dome wrote:
Once a review is posted, then it's there to be praised or criticized; that's the way it works. I'm just critical of what I perceive to be a misinterpretation of the lyrical content.


Okay. But you could also just write your own if you think other people do a poor job of summarizing the album.
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Twisted_Psychology
Metal freak

Joined: Sat May 16, 2009 8:22 pm
Posts: 6260
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 5:35 pm 
 

I did write a review about this album so my opinion does matter. My issue with the review is based more of the "metalcore" tag than anything. I get that the production is incredibly polished and there are degrees of sampling and such involved, but the actual compositions are incredibly rooted in thrash.

That said, even as a liberal type, I do find the whole hating the album based on its lyrics to be a bit much. I posted on the political lyrics thread about this too but I swear the lyrics on Post American World and Lying in State among others are as applicable to Trump's actions as they are to whatever anti-globalist, Antichrist Obama crap Mustaine originally wrote them about.
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Diamhea
Eats and Spits Corpses

Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2007 7:46 pm
Posts: 9275
Location: At the Heat of Winter
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 6:03 pm 
 

EzraBlumenfeld wrote:
Okay. But you could also just write your own if you think other people do a poor job of summarizing the album.


He doesn't have to, and not doing so doesn't invalidate his criticisms at all. Getting super defensive over critiques of your writing is never a good look.
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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 6:07 pm 
 

With regards to "The Threat is Real", it's the "No one controlling who comes through the door" line that seems to rattle those who subsequently shout, "right wing xenophobic!"

You could treat "The Threat is Real" as ambiguous, like a lot of Mustaine's lyrics, although, in my opinion, "The Threat" is in relation to the American politicians trying to pull the wool over the citizens eyes. They implement new policy, like anti-terrorism laws, which are, on the surface, there to protect the people, for the people, by the people, however, in reality, these policies are being misused-where the authorities can use these laws to enter your homes, taking away your constitutional rights. It's now "Justified obliteration" of your constitutional rights, by "the Messiah, part murderer", with "meetings and rendezvous", "No controlling who comes through the door"-it's the "final act" and "The Threat is Real".

It's got nothing to do with immigrants or xenophobia.

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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 6:58 pm
Posts: 35178
Location: Where the dead rule the night
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 6:20 pm 
 

Yeah the lyrics of Dystopia aren't really all that xenophobic - mostly because they're very vague and general, which I find makes them weak in their own way - plus the general hysterical paranoia and negativity just don't work for me at all. I always hated Mustaine's views on everything pretty much.

This guy is right that Dystopia is a bad album though. It could pretty much be any generic random modern metal band.

The previous two negative reviews before this one actually articulate why it's bad much better I think. You are mostly praising the album except for the lyrics, which makes it an uneven review.
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~Guest 135946
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Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
Posts: 741
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 6:39 pm 
 

Psyche_Dome wrote:
With regards to "The Threat is Real", it's the "No one controlling who comes through the door" line that seems to rattle those who subsequently shout, "right wing xenophobic!"

You could treat "The Threat is Real" as ambiguous, like a lot of Mustaine's lyrics, although, in my opinion, "The Threat" is in relation to the American politicians trying to pull the wool over the citizens eyes. They implement new policy, like anti-terrorism laws, which are, on the surface, there to protect the people, for the people, by the people, however, in reality, these policies are being misused-where the authorities can use these laws to enter your homes, taking away your constitutional rights. It's now "Justified obliteration" of your constitutional rights, by "the Messiah, part murderer", with "meetings and rendezvous", "No controlling who comes through the door"-it's the "final act" and "The Threat is Real".

It's got nothing to do with immigrants or xenophobia.


This is a great example of sticking to the issue while the person he's talking to tries to deflect.

Now that I've had some time to digest that review, I'd have to say the only "Lesson in Eye Rolling" I've had from this review is my own with this reviewer's pedantic and less than elaborate hit at Mustaine's lyrics while simultaneously describing his intrepid blacklist of bands to automatically hate. Wouldn't it be more constructive and conducive to learning to have a list of bands that you want to listen to rather than a list of no-goes? It really makes me wonder how anyone can enjoy music if he cannot separate the music from the musician, especially when cultivating a list of black metal bands to shy away from. That's going to leave what academics call a 'knowledge gap' in the zeitgeist of such a controversial music style.

According to this person's profile they're fourteen years old. So I really doubt that hard-headed 'liberalism' is going to last if they're being forthright about their age. Really, this seems to put Ezra Blumenfeld's responses to Psyche_Dome into perspective. How can you try to Beeteljuice away a longtime contributor to the forums by thrice saying 'write your own review' as though Psyche_Dome hasn't been anything but respectfully critical? It's a real show of disrespect to not even attempt to agree to disagree but to dismiss solely because you refuse to take on any view that isn't so outwardly politically motivated, let alone only on your side.

I miss the live and let live that politics somewhat had not too long ago, now we have little hard-liners who barely have pubes calling Nazi and Trump like boys used to cry wolf.

Open mindedness is a good thing, so is confronting ideas that make you uncomfortable. Heavy metal is sometimes (a lot of times) an uncomfortable kind of music. How can someone be so dismissive of a cutting edge style of music for being edgy to the point of cringe at times? How can someone claim to be liberal while being so totally closed minded? It's astounding how the hard left's brainwashing mirrors the hard right's.

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CHAIRTHROWER
Methed-burnt rogue babelfish

Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2015 7:10 pm
Posts: 1028
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 8:14 pm 
 

On a lighter note (though I agree with the above), I'd like to point out a few fancy-tickling reviews this past week which warrant a read, if only for their playful metaphors/comparisons and in-depth atmospheric detail:

-Trooper Ed's Rush_Hemispheres review (esp. dug the Mega Man reference);
-NausikaDalazBlindaz's Sunsunmoon's Daemons In Medieval TImes;
-Five_Nails' Sagittarius_Fragmente II...haha, dig this second and last sentence from his opening paragraph:

"Additional musicians make this once silent study, sat at a solitary piano, overflow with companionship to serve as a cross between putting on a party in the parlor of a bachelor of marginal nobility and mourning a recent loss at a graveside."

Some stag!

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~Guest 135946
MUH BOTH SIDES!

Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
Posts: 741
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 10:02 pm 
 

Thanks CHAIRTHROWER. I was racking my brain and hating that long sentence while searching for the phrase 'lesser noble' but it didn't come to me until just a moment ago.

Either way, glad you're picking up what I'm putting down.

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TrooperEd
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2004 6:18 pm
Posts: 2115
Location: United States
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 11:27 pm 
 

CHAIRTHROWER wrote:
On a lighter note (though I agree with the above), I'd like to point out a few fancy-tickling reviews this past week which warrant a read, if only for their playful metaphors/comparisons and in-depth atmospheric detail:

-Trooper Ed's Rush_Hemispheres review (esp. dug the Mega Man reference);


You have no idea how happy I am that it was this reference you cited.

Also, queue mods, I resubmitted my Power Trip review because I got the unit of measure wrong. lol, sorry.
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ThrashFanatic
Metal newbie

Joined: Mon Nov 06, 2017 4:27 pm
Posts: 36
PostPosted: Wed Feb 14, 2018 11:39 pm 
 

Diamhea wrote:
ThrashFanatic: ~40 reviews in less than a month. average rating is mid-upper 90s (save for one statistic outlier), reviews incessantly call bands/albums "amazing" "perfect" "best ever" "underrated," rarely using tangible description, regurgitates Borisite nonsense in review titles and sometimes in the reviews themselves (i.e. "RANDOM LYRICAL EXCERPT!!!"), surprisingly throws some obscure stuff in there, but hits lots of obvious targets that don't need more reviews, adheres to the same format for all reviews, with an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory, then goes right into the first track and basically does a track by track rundown, with the lines blurred mainly by the ranting nonsense. Metal_Thrasher90 salutes you, and has possibly vacated his throne here. A job well done.

Spoiler: show
Image


Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them. Also, if you have nothing nice to say, it's better to just not say anything at all. I praise these albums for a reason, because I love the stuff I listen to. I only review the stuff that I have NICE THINGS to say about (with the exception of Infernal Overkill, which is the most overrated pile of garbage). Instead of being hard on me, you could at least give me some advice on how to make my reviews better, instead of trash talking on my reviews. I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to give some insight on what could of been said or how the post could have been reworded. I've only been on the archives for like 3 months, and you've been on here for more than 10 years. I think a veteran could AT LEAST try to treat the newcomers with a bit of respect. Remember the golden rule, treat others the way you want to be treated.

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TrooperEd
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2004 6:18 pm
Posts: 2115
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:04 am 
 

ThrashFanatic wrote:
Diamhea wrote:
ThrashFanatic: ~40 reviews in less than a month. average rating is mid-upper 90s (save for one statistic outlier), reviews incessantly call bands/albums "amazing" "perfect" "best ever" "underrated," rarely using tangible description, regurgitates Borisite nonsense in review titles and sometimes in the reviews themselves (i.e. "RANDOM LYRICAL EXCERPT!!!"), surprisingly throws some obscure stuff in there, but hits lots of obvious targets that don't need more reviews, adheres to the same format for all reviews, with an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory, then goes right into the first track and basically does a track by track rundown, with the lines blurred mainly by the ranting nonsense. Metal_Thrasher90 salutes you, and has possibly vacated his throne here. A job well done.

Spoiler: show
Image


Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them. Also, if you have nothing nice to say, it's better to just not say anything at all. I praise these albums for a reason, because I love the stuff I listen to. I only review the stuff that I have NICE THINGS to say about (with the exception of Infernal Overkill, which is the most overrated pile of garbage). Instead of being hard on me, you could at least give me some advice on how to make my reviews better, instead of trash talking on my reviews. I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to give some insight on what could of been said or how the post could have been reworded. I've only been on the archives for like 3 months, and you've been on here for more than 10 years. I think a veteran could AT LEAST try to treat the newcomers with a bit of respect. Remember the golden rule, treat others the way you want to be treated.


I'm all for positivity and giving high marks to great work but that many 100s? I could understand if the archives rating system was 1-10 but all those 100s just indicates a lack of attention to fine detail. I could easily give Rust In Peace, Blazon Stone, Blessed Are The Sick, etc., 100s but I feel it will make whichever album does get the 100 mean that much more, but it will also put 90s and even 80s rankings in a more favorable light to readers. Hell even 70s are good rankings in my book!

Here's an Ultraboris quote that nobody seems to remember "What would you give a 56 rating to?"
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~Guest 135946
MUH BOTH SIDES!

Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
Posts: 741
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:16 am 
 

ThrashFanatic wrote:
Diamhea wrote:
ThrashFanatic: ~40 reviews in less than a month. average rating is mid-upper 90s (save for one statistic outlier), reviews incessantly call bands/albums "amazing" "perfect" "best ever" "underrated," rarely using tangible description, regurgitates Borisite nonsense in review titles and sometimes in the reviews themselves (i.e. "RANDOM LYRICAL EXCERPT!!!"), surprisingly throws some obscure stuff in there, but hits lots of obvious targets that don't need more reviews, adheres to the same format for all reviews, with an opening paragraph that touches in ephemeral backstory, then goes right into the first track and basically does a track by track rundown, with the lines blurred mainly by the ranting nonsense. Metal_Thrasher90 salutes you, and has possibly vacated his throne here. A job well done.

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Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them. Also, if you have nothing nice to say, it's better to just not say anything at all. I praise these albums for a reason, because I love the stuff I listen to. I only review the stuff that I have NICE THINGS to say about (with the exception of Infernal Overkill, which is the most overrated pile of garbage). Instead of being hard on me, you could at least give me some advice on how to make my reviews better, instead of trash talking on my reviews. I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to give some insight on what could of been said or how the post could have been reworded. I've only been on the archives for like 3 months, and you've been on here for more than 10 years. I think a veteran could AT LEAST try to treat the newcomers with a bit of respect. Remember the golden rule, treat others the way you want to be treated.


You have to admit though, ThrashFanatic, that Diamhea has a point and is already showing his displeasure in having to accept so many reviews while pointing out the lack of growth necessary to make a reviewer flourish. Fact of the matter is, sticking to a single style stagnates a reviewer's output. You have a formula laid forth, one that has already been done and has frustrated a moderator who has seen the same from the same kind of reviewer of the same style before.

What can you do to be yourself rather than another 'Metal_Thrasher90'? We get it, you can headbang to thrash and worlds burn.

The criticism wasn't constructive, I'll give you that, but at least you weren't rejected with prejudice. It really just means that you were so by-the-book as to annoy after so many boiler plate reviews within a month. Forty forays into the same sound? I'm already overwhelmed and most people would be bored, especially with the descriptions that Diamhea already laid out.

I'm no Boris, never will be, but at least I try to say what I feel from an album while writing about it and I try to spread my tastes out while being somewhat genuine. You like thrash, good on you, but do you understand how giving such high scores to a ton of thrash albums within a month may be simply bewilderingly useless and diluting the worth of 100% along with the few examples Diamhea provided to show a lack of design and description in each review?

If someone told you how to write reviews, that would backfire and we'd all be the same. Diamhea may have an issue with your style being too generic and standardized. To make a difference, maybe just try to hold back a bit on a review and really suss it out. Numbers aren't as important as quality if you're a good writer. Most people remember good writers from a single story, book, or poem, not from a lengthy and ridiculous repertoire.

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~Guest 282118
Argentinian Asado Supremacy

Joined: Sat Dec 24, 2011 2:16 pm
Posts: 8300
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:27 am 
 

ThrashFanatic wrote:
Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them. Also, if you have nothing nice to say, it's better to just not say anything at all. I praise these albums for a reason, because I love the stuff I listen to. I only review the stuff that I have NICE THINGS to say about (with the exception of Infernal Overkill, which is the most overrated pile of garbage). Instead of being hard on me, you could at least give me some advice on how to make my reviews better, instead of trash talking on my reviews. I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to give some insight on what could of been said or how the post could have been reworded. I've only been on the archives for like 3 months, and you've been on here for more than 10 years. I think a veteran could AT LEAST try to treat the newcomers with a bit of respect. Remember the golden rule, treat others the way you want to be treated.

"If you don't like it, don't read it" is a policy that isn't gonna earn you any friends here. Reviews are posted, read, and praised/criticized; that is the way things go. By publishing your reviews in a public platform, you are implicitly agreeing to have them scrutinized and, yes, possibly criticized by your peers. People are gonna read your stuff, and if they don't like it, they will complain; there's nothing you can do about that, save for fully withdrawing from writing reviews in general. The only way to escape all criticism is to not be on anyone's radar to begin with.

With that said, I do agree that this here forum tends to be rather hostile to newcomers who cut their teeth on classics and give too many high scores. I've been guilty of such hostilty myself, and because I'd much rather have a new reviewer improve than fuck off, I'll tell you the following; this backlash you're experiencing? It's very, very common. Not because everyone here is a joyless hardass or smug elitist, but because high scored, newbie reviews of classics are dime a dozen here, and people are tired of seeing the same thing over and over again. Do you want to stand out? Be praised rather than dismissed? Then do something worth noticing and praising. Go for more obscure releases. Vary your scores. Avoid superfluous history lessons in favour of interesting insights and commentary. Develop your own voice.

If you can do all of that, you'll quickly see how derision and condescension are replaced by sincere praise and compliments. People here are generally harsh, and you need a thick skin if you want to stick around, but the same folks who call you out now will be quick to congratulate you if they see you improve. You just have to make the effort to actually do so. And if you feel like you aren't quite up to the challenge right now? Then come back some other time, with the grit of additional listening experience and more substantial writing by your side.

Of course, you can always decide to simply not deal with this whole shebang and fuck off. It's your choice. Which one do you think suits you best?

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~Guest 135946
MUH BOTH SIDES!

Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
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PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:43 am 
 

Well put Xlxlx.

Also, isn't it funny how active this forum is on Valentine's Day?

Love you all. :P Here's some easy listening for such a wondrous holiday! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8gi_yLF8r8

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Diamhea
Eats and Spits Corpses

Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2007 7:46 pm
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Location: At the Heat of Winter
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:54 am 
 

ThrashFanatic wrote:
Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them.


Not an option. I have to moderate your submissions because nobody else dare come near them! Others have already made my point better than I could in any further discourse on the matter. If you stick around, you'll end up thanking me down the road at some point.
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ThrashFanatic
Metal newbie

Joined: Mon Nov 06, 2017 4:27 pm
Posts: 36
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:58 am 
 

Diamhea wrote:
ThrashFanatic wrote:
Hey man, not to sound like a douche, but to be honest if you don't like the way I write my reviews, then it's better to not read them.


Not an option. I have to moderate your submissions because nobody else dare come near them! Others have already made my point better than I could in any further discourse on the matter. If you stick around, you'll end up thanking me down the road at some point.


Alright. I'm sorry if I sounded rude or disrespectful, I just put a lot of time and effort into my reviews. I'll try to do better next time in the future

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ThrashFanatic
Metal newbie

Joined: Mon Nov 06, 2017 4:27 pm
Posts: 36
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:01 am 
 

You have to admit though, ThrashFanatic, that Diamhea has a point and is already showing his displeasure in having to accept so many reviews while pointing out the lack of growth necessary to make a reviewer flourish. Fact of the matter is, sticking to a single style stagnates a reviewer's output. You have a formula laid forth, one that has already been done and has frustrated a moderator who has seen the same from the same kind of reviewer of the same style before.

What can you do to be yourself rather than another 'Metal_Thrasher90'? We get it, you can headbang to thrash and worlds burn.

The criticism wasn't constructive, I'll give you that, but at least you weren't rejected with prejudice. It really just means that you were so by-the-book as to annoy after so many boiler plate reviews within a month. Forty forays into the same sound? I'm already overwhelmed and most people would be bored, especially with the descriptions that Diamhea already laid out.

I'm no Boris, never will be, but at least I try to say what I feel from an album while writing about it and I try to spread my tastes out while being somewhat genuine. You like thrash, good on you, but do you understand how giving such high scores to a ton of thrash albums within a month may be simply bewilderingly useless and diluting the worth of 100% along with the few examples Diamhea provided to show a lack of design and description in each review?

If someone told you how to write reviews, that would backfire and we'd all be the same. Diamhea may have an issue with your style being too generic and standardized. To make a difference, maybe just try to hold back a bit on a review and really suss it out. Numbers aren't as important as quality if you're a good writer. Most people remember good writers from a single story, book, or poem, not from a lengthy and ridiculous repertoire.[/quote]

I agree and admit it, I have to change and try something new with my formula when writing reviews. Now that I think about it, my band history thing that I write in my first paragraphs is kind of lame and not needed. I'll try something new next time. Thanks for the advice! \m/

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ThrashFanatic
Metal newbie

Joined: Mon Nov 06, 2017 4:27 pm
Posts: 36
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:04 am 
 

[/quote]
"If you don't like it, don't read it" is a policy that isn't gonna earn you any friends here. Reviews are posted, read, and praised/criticized; that is the way things go. By publishing your reviews in a public platform, you are implicitly agreeing to have them scrutinized and, yes, possibly criticized by your peers. People are gonna read your stuff, and if they don't like it, they will complain; there's nothing you can do about that, save for fully withdrawing from writing reviews in general. The only way to escape all criticism is to not be on anyone's radar to begin with.

With that said, I do agree that this here forum tends to be rather hostile to newcomers who cut their teeth on classics and give too many high scores. I've been guilty of such hostilty myself, and because I'd much rather have a new reviewer improve than fuck off, I'll tell you the following; this backlash you're experiencing? It's very, very common. Not because everyone here is a joyless hardass or smug elitist, but because high scored, newbie reviews of classics are dime a dozen here, and people are tired of seeing the same thing over and over again. Do you want to stand out? Be praised rather than dismissed? Then do something worth noticing and praising. Go for more obscure releases. Vary your scores. Avoid superfluous history lessons in favour of interesting insights and commentary. Develop your own voice.

If you can do all of that, you'll quickly see how derision and condescension are replaced by sincere praise and compliments. People here are generally harsh, and you need a thick skin if you want to stick around, but the same folks who call you out now will be quick to congratulate you if they see you improve. You just have to make the effort to actually do so. And if you feel like you aren't quite up to the challenge right now? Then come back some other time, with the grit of additional listening experience and more substantial writing by your side.

Of course, you can always decide to simply not deal with this whole shebang and fuck off. It's your choice. Which one do you think suits you best?[/quote]

Thanks for the advice, I admit that my reviews are getting boring and have a redundant formula. I will try to put some unique personality into it and try new ways to arrange the way I discuss the albums. How often should I give an album 100%? Is it okay if I give a classic such as Pyracanda's "Two Sides Of A Coin" an 90% or something around there or is that too much?

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~Guest 135946
MUH BOTH SIDES!

Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
Posts: 741
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:08 am 
 

Good luck to you bud and please don't feel as though anyone's ripping out your throat here. I wasn't at least. Like xlxlx said, it's on you to improve. There's an entire forum topic dedicated to improving your style and I'm sure if you vary your strengths with some reaches into some other writing styles you can work well and become more than a run-of-the-mill thrash guy. Good luck but also, it's your journey and there are tons of people here who are active in the forums to help you with things.

Also, since you just asked. No one should tell you how to rate an album or how many percentage scores to give. Your all should be in the writing, not the score. If you feel it's a 100% album, then make damn sure you show that in your review, don't just give it that score and give it a run down that everyone else has done. How many loads do you blow to it? How many synapses in your brain or tendons in your neck has it ripped? That is where the 100% lies. It's not in where a strong score comes, it's in where you feel strongly about the score that really makes a review work.

One song in a 40% album can have me completely losing my sanity and I'll talk all day about it, describing every moment of glory, even though the other twelve songs ruin that experience. The content of each review matters more than the score but diluting your scoring system so ridiculously also dilutes your language and languishes as you try to keep everything on an even keel of perfection without enough criticism or praise to make anything stand out enough.

It's ballsy to say you're not a fan of a well-renowned riff but it's not unheard of. It's just too safe to play things as though you like everything of every album you've heard and don't see how they could improve in little increments to truly reach Valhalla.


Last edited by ~Guest 135946 on Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Diamhea
Eats and Spits Corpses

Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2007 7:46 pm
Posts: 9275
Location: At the Heat of Winter
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:15 am 
 

I think it is most important to develop a consistent personal rating scale so returning readers know what to expect. There are some prolific reviewers on the site that rate too high, too consistently. That said, arguments against a particular writer shouldn't wholly revolve around the scores themselves. In TF's case, the review content itself was equally as unnecessarily hyperbolic.
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nuclearskull wrote:
Leave a steaming, stinking Rotting Repulsive Rotting Corpse = LIVE YOUNG - DIE FREE and move on to the NEXT form of yourself....or just be a fat Wal-Mart Mcdonalds pc of shit what do I give a fuck what you do.

Last.fm

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~Guest 135946
MUH BOTH SIDES!

Joined: Fri Dec 14, 2007 1:34 pm
Posts: 741
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 1:23 am 
 

I'm guilty of doing the high school rating scale for albums rather than something more realistic (starting at 60 as "not failure"). Still, the number isn't the issue as Diamhea said. It's the content of the review that makes it. If you give a zero, you can still have a stellar review. Some amazing reviews absolutely rape an album with all sorts of lubeless butt stuff and still give a 70. It always depends on the reviewer but at least it shows that the reviewer is being true to his own craft rather than taking the community too much to heart. This is an instance where the community obviously wants to see a reviewer grow and progress without discouraging his zeal. Keep it up and try to reach out of your element. The Review Feedback Workshop should be your new home for a little while as you work on quality over quantity.

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~Guest 282118
Argentinian Asado Supremacy

Joined: Sat Dec 24, 2011 2:16 pm
Posts: 8300
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 2:38 am 
 

ThrashFanatic wrote:
Thanks for the advice, I admit that my reviews are getting boring and have a redundant formula. I will try to put some unique personality into it and try new ways to arrange the way I discuss the albums. How often should I give an album 100%? Is it okay if I give a classic such as Pyracanda's "Two Sides Of A Coin" an 90% or something around there or is that too much?

Oi, it's fine. It always takes a bit of stones to admit that you're doing wrong and need to step up for real.

As others have said, no one will dictate how often you should give score X, Y or Z. Don't miss the forest for the trees though; rather than focusing on whether you're giving so and so score too often, think to yourself "why do I use scores X, Y or Z?". Try to make the points you ascribe to an album mean something. Don't just give out a 90% because you got really hyped listening to something you just discovered; take the time to ruminate, analyze and dissect the music, and then put that number out. However, scores are but a small part of what being a reviewer means, and it would be a mistake to focus only on them. A review is, after all, a piece of writing, so if the writing isn't any good, it doesn't matter how many people agree with your score; the review is still shit.

I will also suggest that you visit the Review Feedback Workshop. There are quite a few patient, helpful fellows over there who are more than willing to give a helping hand to any upstarts who are feeling lost and in need of guidance. Follow their advice, and you'll see just how quickly you can improve.

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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 4:10 am 
 

Empyreal wrote:
Yeah the lyrics of Dystopia aren't really all that xenophobic - mostly because they're very vague and general, which I find makes them weak in their own way - plus the general hysterical paranoia and negativity just don't work for me at all. I always hated Mustaine's views on everything pretty much.

This guy is right that Dystopia is a bad album though. It could pretty much be any generic random modern metal band.


Even previous reviews are bemoaning these nonexistent xenophobic lyrics; the reviews sound like an attack on an individual, rather than an informed critique of an album.

ThrashFanatic wrote:
I agree and admit it, I have to change and try something new with my formula when writing reviews. Now that I think about it, my band history thing that I write in my first paragraphs is kind of lame and not needed. I'll try something new next time. Thanks for the advice! \m/


I did point out to you a week or so ago about your score system. Note the positives and remove marks for the negative aspects of an album.

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TrooperEd
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2004 6:18 pm
Posts: 2115
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 10:51 am 
 

Quote:
Okay, it's true, there are some catchy choruses and stuff. But Mustaine has to ruin that too by throwing in his insolently bigoted lyrics that showcase his narrow-minded worldview. I'm all for musicians writing about politics, but not in a pro-Trump way. I have recently been boycotting Pantera due to Phil's actions at Dimebash, and I've created a list of black metal bands to avoid based on if they're openly racist.


As a left-leaning person I have to say this is incredibly stupid. You're basically saying it's only ok to write about politics if they agree with yours. Kai Hansen pontificating about the Illuminati, NWO and FEMA death camps wasn't exactly kosher, but No World Order was still a great metal album.

Someone could compile a dossier about every actual atrocity Trump and the Republican party have committed into song form. If it's a mess of detuned jumpdafuckup grooves and rapping, I'm going to call it trash because it is trash.
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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
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PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 11:54 am 
 

Politics


Last edited by ~Guest 414160 on Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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~Guest 414160
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 04, 2017 3:31 am
Posts: 135
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:06 pm 
 

TrooperEd wrote:
I'm a left-leaning person I have to say this is incredibly stupid. You're basically saying it's only ok to write about politics if they agree with yours. Kai Hansen pontificating about the Illuminati, NWO and FEMA death camps wasn't exactly kosher, but No World Order was still a great metal album.


I think Mustaine's lyrics are more about social justice; they're just formulated better than say, Havok or Machine Head, who basically deliver their lines, as if they were talking to a group of intellectually challenged people.

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CHAIRTHROWER
Methed-burnt rogue babelfish

Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2015 7:10 pm
Posts: 1028
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:12 pm 
 

Dimhea stated: "There are some prolific reviewers on the site that rate too high, too consistently."

I am one of the guilty parties concerned but I think I've found a (rather stringent) way of basing scores;
Say, (like on Windows Media Player), you rate each song from said album on a 1 to 5 star scale (with half-stars i.e. 3.5 for example), then figure the average star rating (still on 5), then multiply by 20 and voila! You have you % rating!

It looks great on paper but also harms albums which include brief, light interludes. In other words, even one 2 star or less track will severely bring down the overall score. For example.

Let's say you take Megadeth's Rust In Peace; I would rate it thus:

Holy Wars - 4 stars
Hangar 18 - 5
Take No Prisoners - 2.5
Five Magics - 2.5
Poison Was The Cure - 3.5
Lucretia - 5
Tornado of Souls - 5 (6 if I could)
Dawn Patrol - 2 (said cheesy interlude)
Rust In Peace - 3

Total Score: 32.5 divided by 9 (tracks) = 3.61 X 20 = 72.2, or rather 72% (rounded off)...

Man, talk about a strict rating system - as it is I'd have to dock 20 percentage points off my current score of 92%!
So, yeah, I don't know if I'm ready to make the switch yet but I can see how it would work for bona fide pro-raters!
(thus, the only way an album could rate 100% was if every was a full blown killer 5!

...

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