After doing some digging on the wayback machine I came across this:
https://web.archive.org/web/20160706101806/http://www.metalireland.com/community/viewforum.php?f=14 (https://web.archive.org/web/20160706101806/http://www.metalireland.com/community/viewforum.php?f=14)
Most of threads are surprisingly viewable. I just read through the Creation's Tears thread and almost every page was visible. A very quick flick through the Philfest thread and it seems most of it is viewable too.
For those of you who've always craved getting another gander at some classic threads (and also Dave Mustaine's gaff) this should give you enough of a little hit of nostalgia to relive some of the glory days.
EDIT: sometimes the first page doesn't work but most of the rest will. Nearly the entire infamous Claire28 thread is viewable too, but page 1 doesn't work.
Second edit: I actually got it to work. Page 1 doesn't work if you click on it from the main page, but if you click on it from a different page (say, from page 4 of the thread) then it loads. This does seem to be a niggly workaround to get some other pages to load that wouldn't initially.
I had a look at a thread and saw one or two posts of my own from 2011. That's more than enough for me :-[
Pagan Shite featuring Ian the Tank, legendary stuff :laugh:
Have spotted this before, if you select different dates over the years back you will be able to access more or other pages of the threads. Have read back through a few of the HOF ones, a couple of gig ones.
Had the intention one time of pulling some of the funnier threads and reconstructing them into a smaller site but also could not be fuckin arsed when they are on the archive anyway :laugh:
I have had the conversation with the lads in work about travelling back in time and meeting your younger self, and how fucking cringe-inducing it would be. That's what this feels like to me :laugh:
Quote from: Eoin McLove on August 01, 2025, 10:07:37 PMI have had the conversation with the lads in work about travelling back in time and meeting your younger self, and how fucking cringe-inducing it would be. That's what this feels like to me :laugh:
Yeah I stumbled across another forum from when I was 18 there a few years back and my blood curdled from my own posts, deleted my whole account off it lol, Fuck that
:laugh: sometimes it's better to leave the past in the past.
Quote from: Eoin McLove on August 01, 2025, 10:20:58 PM:laugh: sometimes it's better to leave the past in the past.
I was thinking the exact same thing as I read through it, there might be a lot of embarrassment from people reading 15yr old posts of themselves :laugh:
Tell you what though I've been having a great lazy Friday afternoon at work reading through some of these. Not so much for the pile ons (though some of them are still entertaining), but more just the sheer nostalgia trip of it. All the half-forgotten forum users and their avatars, the web layout, just the general mood of the times, great stuff. I might just be old but the forum era was way more enjoyable than the social media era.
Was there a thread where Averill was giving out about vegans?
That definitely showed up on a few different boards at the time😂
Forums are infinitely better than Facebook etc. No doubt about it.
Quote from: Sworntothecans on August 01, 2025, 10:48:47 PMWas there a thread where Averill was giving out about vegans?
That definitely showed up on a few different boards at the time😂
If it's there it's not obvious from the titles.
Can anyone remember what the Ian the Bassist thread was about? It's not obvious from the titles either but I seem to remember that one being a classic.
Quote from: Mooncat on August 01, 2025, 10:57:01 PMCan anyone remember what the Ian the Bassist thread was about? It's not obvious form the titles either but I seem to remember that one being a classic.
Yeah his band was supporting Sepultura, someone said they weren't impressed by them and it spiralled out from there
Are any of the "From The Vaults" write ups available on this? (I'm too scuttled to check lol).
Quote from: ochoill on August 02, 2025, 12:10:25 AMQuote from: Mooncat on August 01, 2025, 10:57:01 PMCan anyone remember what the Ian the Bassist thread was about? It's not obvious form the titles either but I seem to remember that one being a classic.
Yeah his band was supporting Sepultura, someone said they weren't impressed by them and it spiralled out from there
Found it. Still absolutely wild.
I've read through about 5 or 6 threads now and they all follow the formula of me being vicariously mortified for everyone at the start, then getting into the flow and enjoying it, then telling myself that's enough, then starting another thread. I'm embarrassed for myself at this point.
Very vaguely related but speaking of old threads and nostalgia, isn't it crazy that Metal Warfare has been around almost seven years already? Seven! I would have guessed like two or three :laugh: it's already been around itself for about half of MI's lifetime.
That is freakin nuts alright
That's crazy, really doesn't seem that long at all. Had a quick gander at what I was listening to back in the day and it really hasn't changed much.
Quote from: Sworntothecans on August 01, 2025, 10:48:47 PMWas there a thread where Averill was giving out about vegans?
That definitely showed up on a few different boards at the time😂
Jesus, that must have made Verminous Serpent practice fun.
Whatever about the threads, I went back to see if I could find some old reviews, no joy. Did find the "from the Vault" ones though, those were cool. Wish I'd done more of them.
Quote from: Eoin McLove on August 01, 2025, 10:07:37 PMI have had the conversation with the lads in work about travelling back in time and meeting your younger self, and how fucking cringe-inducing it would be. That's what this feels like to me :laugh:
Yeah Jesus just seen my account there and my join date I would have been 15 and had 3k+ posts, I shudder to think what I was posting 😬 :laugh:
A loada familiar names on there having a look now, some fellas I haven't seen in probably 10 years.
But fuck I miss when there was a bitta drama on the forums. Seems like there was a thread with someone having murder on MI with 20+ pages every week in its heyday :laugh:
Oh just saw Ducky's post re the FTV features, have at it my friend:
https://web.archive.org/web/20170606061652/http://www.metalireland.com/tag/ftv/
I can't say I miss the 20 page rows at all tbh. They and the lack of writers were what killed the site I reckon. It just became absolutely tedious.
Quote from: Pentagrimes on August 02, 2025, 10:42:59 AMOh just saw Ducky's post re the FTV features, have at it my friend:
https://web.archive.org/web/20170606061652/http://www.metalireland.com/tag/ftv/
I can't say I miss the 20 page rows at all tbh. They and the lack of writers were what killed the site I reckon. It just became absolutely tedious.
Of course the pedo did a Trivium write up.
Quote from: ochoill on August 01, 2025, 10:10:27 PMQuote from: Eoin McLove on August 01, 2025, 10:07:37 PMI have had the conversation with the lads in work about travelling back in time and meeting your younger self, and how fucking cringe-inducing it would be. That's what this feels like to me :laugh:
Yeah I stumbled across another forum from when I was 18 there a few years back and my blood curdled from my own posts, deleted my whole account off it lol, Fuck that
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
I'd love to know which it was
Oh Jesus what a flashback with the H Nazi scandal thread :laugh:
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 02, 2025, 10:57:51 AMOf course the pedo did a Trivium write up.
:laugh:
I seem to recall him having a hissy fit because CT wouldn't publish a Stormzone review he wrote, because he was friends with the band, or something.
Took me a second to recall who "pedo" referred to :-X
Didn't he paste the Stormzone review into a post then..? I think so. Obviously never directed at me, but he sure did have a knack for sycophancy. Ultimately seems he turned that knack in the wrong direction and all :-\
Sicko-fancy, wha
Quote from: Black Shepherd Carnage on August 02, 2025, 03:10:53 PMSicko-fancy, wha
In the Creation's Tears thread there's a moment where he vouches for Eddie Apathy's character, which seems like an even bigger oof now.
Side note, I've only read like 6 threads and there's already been multiple instances of him absolutely hating you :laugh:
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 02, 2025, 10:41:46 AMQuote from: Eoin McLove on August 01, 2025, 10:07:37 PMI have had the conversation with the lads in work about travelling back in time and meeting your younger self, and how fucking cringe-inducing it would be. That's what this feels like to me :laugh:
Yeah Jesus just seen my account there and my join date I would have been 15 and had 3k+ posts, I shudder to think what I was posting 😬 :laugh:
A loada familiar names on there having a look now, some fellas I haven't seen in probably 10 years.
But fuck I miss when there was a bitta drama on the forums. Seems like there was a thread with someone having murder on MI with 20+ pages every week in its heyday :laugh:
I was thinking about that too, the tone of Metal Warfare is quite different. Mainly I guess it's just because we're all older now and a wave of young kids (as far as I can tell) hasn't moved in after us. I'm kind of glad to have moved on from that but also miss it too a bit, it all felt so vital back then!
Ah fuck, the thread looking for the lead guitarist that starts off like a completely normal classified until the point they ask for €500 investment. 17 pages of madness ensues. Remember it like it was yesterday :laugh:
Jesus, just gone through the two Creation's Tears ones, great fucking days, lads. Whatever happened to the scene anyway?
The Mask Mantra/Skot Fury thread is top tier as well.
CT should just send across the forum database so Hambeast can import/archive it all here :abbath:
Quote from: The Butcher on August 02, 2025, 10:44:18 PMThe Mask Mantra/Skot Fury thread is top tier as well.
CT should just send across the forum database so Hambeast can import/archive it all here :abbath:
That would be awesome, but given the nature of the way he closed the site and threatened legal action I kinda doubt it would happen.
I love that the Gumtree ad in the Mask Mantra thread is still active. Almost tempted to reply to it.
Quote from: Mooncat on August 02, 2025, 10:59:44 PMQuote from: The Butcher on August 02, 2025, 10:44:18 PMThe Mask Mantra/Skot Fury thread is top tier as well.
CT should just send across the forum database so Hambeast can import/archive it all here :abbath:
That would be awesome, but given the nature of the way he closed the site and threatened legal action I kinda doubt it would happen.
I love that the Gumtree ad in the Mask Mantra thread is still active. Almost tempted to reply to it.
What was the legal action stuff? I don't remember that! I wasn't posting much towards the end so probably missed a lot of the closure drama.
Is the thread with Tom G Warrior's stalker talking mad shit in there? Probably the most memorable one for me.
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 03, 2025, 12:11:13 AMQuote from: Mooncat on August 02, 2025, 10:59:44 PMQuote from: The Butcher on August 02, 2025, 10:44:18 PMThe Mask Mantra/Skot Fury thread is top tier as well.
CT should just send across the forum database so Hambeast can import/archive it all here :abbath:
That would be awesome, but given the nature of the way he closed the site and threatened legal action I kinda doubt it would happen.
I love that the Gumtree ad in the Mask Mantra thread is still active. Almost tempted to reply to it.
What was the legal action stuff? I don't remember that! I wasn't posting much towards the end so probably missed a lot of the closure drama.
Ah not really any drama, he just threatened legal action on anyone who tried to continue MI. Basically closing it suddenly, not offering the community the chance to continue it, and threatening to pursue legal action against anyone who did. He contributed massively to the local scene for years so he always has that credit, but that end left a sour taste. It was bigger than just him.
Ah what a cunt, I thought he was a wanker before reading that but that cements it.
Quote from: jpm4 on August 03, 2025, 12:41:23 AMIs the thread with Tom G Warrior's stalker taking mad shit in there? Probably the most memorable one for me.
It never made it into the HOF but I remember it well, bar the thread title so it can be searched for.
If you can find any thread on there and the date of the last post, then find that date on Internet archive of the site version, you will generally find a more complete version of the thread too. Same if you are missing middle pages on larger threads, find the last readable date going backwards and search again on that date on IA.
I had a bunch of my MI interviews and articles online for a bit after the site went down and I certainly didn't hear of any legal action.
Quote from: Pentagrimes on August 03, 2025, 02:30:36 PMI had a bunch of my MI interviews and articles online for a bit after the site went down and I certainly didn't hear of any legal action.
I don't think he meant specifically people couldn't use their interviews.
Quote from: ochoill on August 03, 2025, 06:30:47 AMQuote from: jpm4 on August 03, 2025, 12:41:23 AMIs the thread with Tom G Warrior's stalker taking mad shit in there? Probably the most memorable one for me.
It never made it into the HOF but I remember it well, bar the thread title so it can be searched for.
If you can find any thread on there and the date of the last post, then find that date on Internet archive of the site version, you will generally find a more complete version of the thread too. Same if you are missing middle pages on larger threads, find the last readable date going backwards and search again on that date on IA.
When you say search that date on internet archive, do you mean go to the Wayback machine, search metal Ireland,and then go to the date from there?
Quote from: ochoill on August 03, 2025, 06:30:47 AMQuote from: jpm4 on August 03, 2025, 12:41:23 AMIs the thread with Tom G Warrior's stalker taking mad shit in there? Probably the most memorable one for me.
It never made it into the HOF but I remember it well, bar the thread title so it can be searched for.
If you can find any thread on there and the date of the last post, then find that date on Internet archive of the site version, you will generally find a more complete version of the thread too. Same if you are missing middle pages on larger threads, find the last readable date going backwards and search again on that date on IA.
Not too sure how the search works but the thread was probably called "Burning Oak" as that was the festival Triptykon were playing.
I certainly didn't like the way CT abruptly pulled the plug on the website, but to be fair to the guy the legal stuff was probably just his way of asserting his ownership over the site, which was his entitlement.
Equally though, he could have just 'handed it over' in some form or another as there was undoubtedly a few mods who could have taken it on without much fuss.
There was definitely a bit of ego at play as well and I think he over-estimated it's worth as a 'brand'.
Re-treading well-trod ground but yeah, that's the long and short of it. The domain and name were proposed to certain other scene pillars for a princely tag of several thousand. That strategy having failed........
Yes, that sounds about right now that you mention it. I couldn't recall if that was just a vicious rumour or whether there was actual substance to that story. Several thousand for a forum is shyster stuff. I know the site generated the odd bit of revenue from ads but I'd imagine that was a relative pittance.
Fair enough I guess if an attempted sale was his reasoning. There's just bitterness (from me too) that he just made the decision on everybody's behalf in the end to remove a living, breathing document of 15yrs of a particular aspect of life that was important to a lot of people.
Completely understandable and I think a lot of the old heads shared those sentiments as well. It was proprietary to one person but its success (not in a monetary sense) was dependent on the contributions of so many. Thankfully it found a spiritual successor here, but yeah, some of those threads were great craic.
I was just impressed with how quickly Hambeast got it back up and running again tbh
And it's less argumentative here for the most part. The old forum had a kind of thing going where lads would jump on the bandwagon at the slightest hint of a pile on
That's cause we're all far more mature now and low on piss n vinegar :abbath:
Quote from: The Heretic on August 04, 2025, 01:48:55 PMThat's cause we're all far more mature now and low on piss n vinegar :abbath:
The word you're looking for is "old".
There just aren't bands of the quality of Alaskan Death Jacket to get so excited about anymore.
So has the quantity of young new metal bands gone down overall or just the bad quality kind? More inclined to think it's an overall thing + coupled with the fact younger people probably don't communicate via forums like this, seen as archaic? Will metal bands survive the decades to come?
Looking at the list of local death metal bands- the vast majority of whom I had never even heard of- who were getting played on that radio show advertised on the main forum made me realise just how small and enclosed this eco-system is. Forums might be irrelevant to the younger metal head. Then again the idea of bands promoting themselves on tiktok repulses me so I'm happy to remain ignorant.
Quote from: The Butcher on August 04, 2025, 06:30:44 PMSo has the quantity of young new metal bands gone down overall or just the bad quality kind? More inclined to think it's an overall thing + coupled with the fact younger people probably don't communicate via forums like this, seen as archaic? Will metal bands survive the decades to come?
The youth have Discord/Telegram etc for groups nowadays. Plus due to the playlist way they get music they listen to a bit of everything. Whether it sticks is up to them.
Quote from: jpm4 on August 03, 2025, 12:41:23 AMIs the thread with Tom G Warrior's stalker talking mad shit in there? Probably the most memorable one for me.
Been searching for this one but no luck, wasn't she posting a load of other forums as well if I remember right?
Whatever happened to Desert father?
Did he not think he was the second coming or some genius, or was it a gimmick poster? I never could tell.
Quote from: Kunt 4 Life on August 05, 2025, 06:22:11 PMWhatever happened to Desert father?
Did he not think he was the second coming or some genius, or was it a gimmick poster? I never could tell.
Also known as Progfather! I don't think it was a gimmick, I think he was genuinely just one of those classic MI posters that lacked self-awareness and coping mechanisms. In fairness half the people on the other side were just as bad. Reading through some of those threads it's always the same pattern: someone posts something a bit suspect or off-colour and a few people kind of call him out on it in a mature enough way, the responses to that continue to lack self-awareness but still aren't anything too bad, then some forum user just steams in with two feet calling him a complete spa deliberating poking the bear, then about 14 pages of chaos ensues :laugh:
I seem to remember some ridiculous thread with a poster called Reuben the Rocker as well, but I don't see that one either.
EDIT: the more I think about it, I do seem to remember the desert father thought very highly of himself. Was he a drummer?
Quote from: Mooncat on August 05, 2025, 09:14:37 PMQuote from: Kunt 4 Life on August 05, 2025, 06:22:11 PMWhatever happened to Desert father?
Did he not think he was the second coming or some genius, or was it a gimmick poster? I never could tell.
Also known as Progfather! I don't think it was a gimmick, I think he was genuinely just one of those classic MI posters that lacked self-awareness and coping mechanisms. In fairness half the people on the other side were just as bad. Reading through some of those threads it's always the same pattern: someone posts something a bit suspect or off-colour and a few people kind of call him out on it in a mature enough way, the responses to that continue to lack self-awareness but still aren't anything too bad, then some forum user just steams in with two feet calling him a complete spa deliberating poking the bear, then about 14 pages of chaos ensues :laugh:
I seem to remember some ridiculous thread with a poster called Reuben the Rocker as well, but I don't see that one either.
EDIT: the more I think about it, I do seem to remember the desert father thought very highly of himself. Was he a drummer?
I've seen him play drums on YouTube video, him and Leather Mike were always fighting over something
The drumming thing sounds familiar.
I now remember I actually worked with a guy years ago who was a lurker on the old metalreland who sold a few CDs to Desert father but when he turned up he (Desert father) was going to pay with a hundred pound note and was a bit funny that the guy didn't have change for a 3 quid deal.
He was far along the spectrum, always felt sorry for him.
I wonder is the Metal Warfare name and the lack of irish-ness part of the reason we don't get many lunatics coming through here. I'm sure any Google search relating to Irish metal/metal in Ireland/Metal gigs Ireland would have brought up MI pretty quickly.
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 06, 2025, 04:13:42 AMI wonder is the Metal Warfare name and the lack of irish-ness part of the reason we don't get many lunatics coming through here. I'm sure any Google search relating to Irish metal/metal in Ireland/Metal gigs Ireland would have brought up MI pretty quickly.
I was genuinely thinking it's just the age thing; we're all older now and no new generation of young uns in behind us who use forums. Some of those hall of fame threads aren't
that long ago though :laugh:
It's a shame young folks don't use the forums though as it was a centralized place everyone gathered and felt like a scene. Now it's all insular with each band having their own page etc. Seems to fragment everything somewhat so there's less a sense of community and discussion.
It's all Facebook pages and tic toc things kids use. And Reddit. You can jump from board to board without having to make a new account each time.
The day of the internet forum is coming to an end it seems. I'm surprised they still exist
Grateful for this site most of the above you've listed are completely vacuous. Reddit maybe an exception but no sense of community. Zero discussions on insta/facebook - all emojis and likes. Endless pictures of vinyls etc "Friday Night Spins" "This Banger" "Out for a Pint" and a photo of a pint blah blah. I actually come here as a first port of call 99% of the time.
I'm surprised there's the odd forum myself but there's still a place for them I think. Just that MI was brought up it would be great if there were some reviews here, I do miss them the way they were done on MI, I think on the whole they were objective* and sparked discussion. It wasn't just Ciaran Tracey either, I thought the standard of writing across the board was excellent- I know it was floated before here and there wasn't much uptake but maybe things have changed for people timewise?
*Except that one time the first Steel Tormentor album inexplicably got 5/5 from Herr Tracey. He was so sparing with 5 star reviews, that fuckin thing had tuning/timing issues etc.
Speaking of CT, there were some posters only too happy to boost his ego. I remember when he had his alter ego, some posters reacted as if he was a comedic genius. I also remember the time he declared black metal dead after listening to Rotting Christ's latest release at that time. It was pure attention seeking on his part.
It's one thing to be grateful to him for the site and all it did for local bands in particular, but the fawning by some posters was off putting . The way he ended the site abruptly didn't surprise me, because it was always about him
Yeah it's one thing I've noticed the past 15 years or so - just across the board that whole "no sense of community" - even with kids now there's no centralised events of sorts (did you see the new episode of Father Ted last night example) that they can all chat about. Everything is kinda fragmented now.
I did offer to Hambeast re: doing reviews, I did the odd live gig reviews on MI. But seems to be no traction on it. I do think it would bring more people to the site if there was a chance of a review/rating/comments like on MI. Doesn't have to be that either - could just be those "from the vaults" type reviews or whatever people fancy writing about.
Just put Thorn on review duties. Sher he's pretty much at it already. Just give him a bottle of Buckfast every week.
Quote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 09:14:11 AMGrateful for this site most of the above you've listed are completely vacuous. Reddit maybe an exception but no sense of community. Zero discussions on insta/facebook - all emojis and likes. Endless pictures of vinyls etc "Friday Night Spins" "This Banger" "Out for a Pint" and a photo of a pint blah blah. I actually come here as a first port of call 99% of the time.
I'm surprised there's the odd forum myself but there's still a place for them I think. Just that MI was brought up it would be great if there were some reviews here, I do miss them the way they were done on MI, I think on the whole they were objective* and sparked discussion. It wasn't just Ciaran Tracey either, I thought the standard of writing across the board was excellent- I know it was floated before here and there wasn't much uptake but maybe things have changed for people timewise?
*Except that one time the first Steel Tormentor album inexplicably got 5/5 from Herr Tracey. He was so sparing with 5 star reviews, that fuckin thing had tuning/timing issues etc.
Jesus, Steel Tormentor, forgot about them. 5/5 he reckons! Flawless!
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Also on reddit, possibly the worst place to discuss metal. The biggest metal sub on there doesn't actually even allow any discussion posts, only YouTube links which is ridiculous.
Quote from: Cailleach on August 06, 2025, 09:44:52 AMSpeaking of CT, there were some posters only too happy to boost his ego. I remember when he had his alter ego, some posters reacted as if he was a comedic genius. I also remember the time he declared black metal dead after listening to Rotting Christ's latest release at that time. It was pure attention seeking on his part.
It's one thing to be grateful to him for the site and all it did for local bands in particular, but the fawning by some posters was off putting . The way he ended the site abruptly didn't surprise me, because it was always about him
People always gave Hexxed too much credit too.
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 06, 2025, 10:01:30 AMQuote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 09:14:11 AMGrateful for this site most of the above you've listed are completely vacuous. Reddit maybe an exception but no sense of community. Zero discussions on insta/facebook - all emojis and likes. Endless pictures of vinyls etc "Friday Night Spins" "This Banger" "Out for a Pint" and a photo of a pint blah blah. I actually come here as a first port of call 99% of the time.
I'm surprised there's the odd forum myself but there's still a place for them I think. Just that MI was brought up it would be great if there were some reviews here, I do miss them the way they were done on MI, I think on the whole they were objective* and sparked discussion. It wasn't just Ciaran Tracey either, I thought the standard of writing across the board was excellent- I know it was floated before here and there wasn't much uptake but maybe things have changed for people timewise?
*Except that one time the first Steel Tormentor album inexplicably got 5/5 from Herr Tracey. He was so sparing with 5 star reviews, that fuckin thing had tuning/timing issues etc.
Jesus, Steel Tormentor, forgot about them. 5/5 he reckons! Flawless!
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Also on reddit, possibly the worst place to discuss metal. The biggest metal sub on there doesn't actually even allow any discussion posts, only YouTube links which is ridiculous.
Jaysus, forgot how bad that was :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Steel Donator
I remember Scobes telling me he wished CT hadn't given For Ruin's album 5/5 precisely because it made it reek of non-music related motivations (suffice to say, nonetheless, that FR's album was objectively much better than Steel Tormentor's :laugh: )
Quotef non-music related motivation
You've just reminded me - Steel Tormentor hired CT to do their website for them.
(https://frinkiac.com/meme/S04E01/1247029.jpg?b64lines=IFRIRVkgRFJPVkUgQSBEVU1QIFRSVUNLCiBGVUxMIE9GIE1PTkVZIFRPIE1ZCiBIT1VTRS4gSSdNIE5PVCBNQURFIE9GCiBTVE9ORS4=)
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 06, 2025, 10:01:30 AMQuote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 09:14:11 AMGrateful for this site most of the above you've listed are completely vacuous. Reddit maybe an exception but no sense of community. Zero discussions on insta/facebook - all emojis and likes. Endless pictures of vinyls etc "Friday Night Spins" "This Banger" "Out for a Pint" and a photo of a pint blah blah. I actually come here as a first port of call 99% of the time.
I'm surprised there's the odd forum myself but there's still a place for them I think. Just that MI was brought up it would be great if there were some reviews here, I do miss them the way they were done on MI, I think on the whole they were objective* and sparked discussion. It wasn't just Ciaran Tracey either, I thought the standard of writing across the board was excellent- I know it was floated before here and there wasn't much uptake but maybe things have changed for people timewise?
*Except that one time the first Steel Tormentor album inexplicably got 5/5 from Herr Tracey. He was so sparing with 5 star reviews, that fuckin thing had tuning/timing issues etc.
Jesus, Steel Tormentor, forgot about them. 5/5 he reckons! Flawless!
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Also on reddit, possibly the worst place to discuss metal. The biggest metal sub on there doesn't actually even allow any discussion posts, only YouTube links which is ridiculous.
Yeah, audio and text do not correspond
https://web.archive.org/web/20110101105134/http://www.metalireland.com/2004/07/01/steel-tormentor-roi-unleashed/ (https://web.archive.org/web/20110101105134/http://www.metalireland.com/2004/07/01/steel-tormentor-roi-unleashed/)
QuoteI had absolutely no idea this band existed until last week
No way, Hexxed were excellent. Transgression holds up very, very well indeed apart from the drum production which I don't like.
That was a quote from the CT review of the Steel Tormentor record.
Hexxed were indeed the business. I like their subsequent material too but after maybe Synapse definitely should've changed the name. Hidden Graphs was a great EP but so far away from where they started, and not in an Anathema way where the change was gradual from record to record.
Would anyone here have known CT personally to ask what he was at just knocking the whole thing on the head?
Obviously old news at this point, but going back through the old threads on the archive has stirred up the anger again! :laugh: So much good stuff just lost!
Speculating here but I always thought the timing coincided with his progression into a role as an Investigative Journalist at the BBC.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01qnkwq
I thought the way the site was completely gutted meant it was a stained bib for him. I can't think of any other reason that you'd toss away all that hard work. Holding my hands up though, speculation.
Quote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 10:56:33 AMQuoteI had absolutely no idea this band existed until last week
This. And my world was better for it. Awful muck.
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 06, 2025, 10:11:17 AMQuote from: Cailleach on August 06, 2025, 09:44:52 AMSpeaking of CT, there were some posters only too happy to boost his ego. I remember when he had his alter ego, some posters reacted as if he was a comedic genius. I also remember the time he declared black metal dead after listening to Rotting Christ's latest release at that time. It was pure attention seeking on his part.
It's one thing to be grateful to him for the site and all it did for local bands in particular, but the fawning by some posters was off putting . The way he ended the site abruptly didn't surprise me, because it was always about him
People always gave Hexxed too much credit too.
Yes. Hexxed were good, but the praise by some was over the top. They were saying Hexxed's material was on par with Death and that Ciaran and Owen were the best metal guitarists in Ireland. Awful cringe shite to read through.
Ah yeah, that was complete nonsense. It was a very promising EP but that's about it, never truly followed up on it or built on it (As far as that style went)
I think the two boys on the Transgression demo were untouchable in the country. I can't think of two better and more complimentary players in the early 00s metal scene who were playing with the level of dexterity or creativity. The song writing was really good, and yeah you could point out the influences, but I think that had they managed a full length in that specific style, with the mix of brutality, melodic fluidity and the dark atmospheric elements combined, and recorded it in a studio that could have boosted the production, they could easily have released a local classic album. As it stands we are left with one classic, albeit imperfect, demo. I think some people let their hard feelings towards CT get in the way of their appreciation of his musical contributions. He was an interesting character. I can't say I knew him all that well but did meet him a few times and dealt with him directly through my contributions to MI over the years and only ever had positive experiences. Did I agree with his taste in music? Generally not, but he did point me towards a few classics that hold up for me today (The Sham Mirrors, Vare and The Mantle spring to mind). He maybe took himself a bit seriously at times but that sense of seriousness shone through in his best music. And look, here we are still discussing MI years later so that contribution at least deserves some respect regardless of whether you liked him or not. I dunno, he was just another dude making a contribution to the scene so the dislike (to put it mildly) that I've seen flung his way over the years has always confused me a bit.
Absolute no need whatsoever to hate on the guy, and to be fair, I don't think anyone really is...maybe it's more a case that the abrupt end of MI left a bit of a sour taste. Like most of us, the lad had a job, he got older and his priorities changed. Hexxed finished up and he had that Winding Stair group (who for me were grand, but not particularly interesting). There was a tendency for a lot of bang-average alt-metal bands to get glowing reviews, then you had him slating the Zom release, which kinda suggested that the interest wasn't really there anymore.
I had countless negative run-ins with CT, all of which I've blathered on about at length in years previous.
Ciaran and Owen were imo undoubtedly among the best guitarists active on the Irish metal scene.
Think that's something of a romantic viewpoint. We all have our plusses and minuses.
Quotebetter and more complimentary players in the early 00s metal scene who were playing with the level of dexterity or creativity
Maybe, if you're purely looking at it within the parameters of that context.
"The song writing was really good, and yeah you could point out the influences, but I think that had they managed a full length in that specific style, with the mix of brutality, melodic fluidity and the dark atmospheric elements combined, and recorded it in a studio that could have boosted the production, they could easily have released a local classic album"
I agree with you 100% here. Every time I listen to it I am just left with the want for more of it.
Don't think anyone's "hatred" or "dislike" got in the way of acknowledgement of anything, I mean most people are bemoaning the fact that he threw away all that great writing - both his own and others here. He did wonders for local acts and the scene in general - don't think it's any harm people pointing out some of the negatives. I'd mixed experiences and run ins myself but still bought the albums and went to see them any time they played. They were absolutely awesome live too, if they'd ventured a little further than Auntie Annies they might've gained more traction for sure.
Read through a couple of old threads there. Lethal banter and some great characters that just seemed to disappear well before MI ran out of steam. I think I joined in 2007 and peak years seemed to be around 09/10. Always found it weird that most of the active posters abandoned it for FB, a thoroughly vacuous and unsatisfying medium.
I always found the "elitist MI cunts" chat hilarious and the fact that regular mainstream metalheads were afraid to join in case snatchgrabber or the likes tore strips off them :laugh:
The site definitely helped foster a sense of community or make the scene more active. I met loads of people off MI but have never heard anyone ask if you were on MW. That said I'm only at a fraction of the gigs I was at in the MI heyday.
I think the strength of it was, if someone thought something was shit, they'd say so, which has become more and more out-of-step as time has moved on. The amount of bands who'd arrive out of the blue having never contributed to the forum, never once doing anyone else the favour of listening to their stuff, expecting everyone to give time to first listen and then worship them as if they were the second coming and, instead, be told exactly what their level was, was always a source of great entertainment. Social media allows lads to exist in a vaccuum of unlimited likes and approval and, sadly, the truth can hurt which they're no longer prepared for. Hence, the elitist shite and the "you're killing the scene, maaaaaaan" nonsense.
This is the last forum left which I participate in. I was active in another more muso-ish one up to a few weeks ago but the spread of social media look-at-me shite, the parasites who only want to drum up traffic for their youtube or facebook pages without ever contributing, the awful humblebrag types and cliquey "scene" shitehawkery has made it no longer tolerable. Everybody pretending they like each other is a shit buzz. The strength of this forum, and MI before it, is people are prepared to sling shit and tell it like it is, regardless of the reaction. May it never change :abbath:
Quote from: Bürggermeister on August 06, 2025, 02:50:10 PMI think the strength of it was, if someone thought something was shit, they'd say so, which has become more and more out-of-step as time has moved on. The amount of bands who'd arrive out of the blue having never contributed to the forum, never once doing anyone else the favour of listening to their stuff, expecting everyone to give time to first listen and then worship them as if they were the second coming and, instead, be told exactly what their level was, was always a source of great entertainment. Social media allows lads to exist in a vaccuum of unlimited likes and approval and, sadly, the truth can hurt which they're no longer prepared for. Hence, the elitist shite and the "you're killing the scene, maaaaaaan" nonsense.
This is the last forum left which I participate in. I was active in another more muso-ish one up to a few weeks ago but the spread of social media look-at-me shite, the parasites who only want to drum up traffic for their youtube or facebook pages without ever contributing, the awful humblebrag types and cliquey "scene" shitehawkery has made it no longer tolerable. Everybody pretending they like each other is a shit buzz. The strength of this forum, and MI before it, is people are prepared to sling shit and tell it like it is, regardless of the reaction. May it never change :abbath:
The first paragraph of this post made me think of Eddie from the band( Creation Tears?). That stuff was comedy gold.
Just looking at that wayback thing. The 10/11 football thread with 57 pages, and it only January 2011... ???
Quote from: Cailleach on August 06, 2025, 03:32:20 PMQuote from: Bürggermeister on August 06, 2025, 02:50:10 PMI think the strength of it was, if someone thought something was shit, they'd say so, which has become more and more out-of-step as time has moved on. The amount of bands who'd arrive out of the blue having never contributed to the forum, never once doing anyone else the favour of listening to their stuff, expecting everyone to give time to first listen and then worship them as if they were the second coming and, instead, be told exactly what their level was, was always a source of great entertainment. Social media allows lads to exist in a vaccuum of unlimited likes and approval and, sadly, the truth can hurt which they're no longer prepared for. Hence, the elitist shite and the "you're killing the scene, maaaaaaan" nonsense.
This is the last forum left which I participate in. I was active in another more muso-ish one up to a few weeks ago but the spread of social media look-at-me shite, the parasites who only want to drum up traffic for their youtube or facebook pages without ever contributing, the awful humblebrag types and cliquey "scene" shitehawkery has made it no longer tolerable. Everybody pretending they like each other is a shit buzz. The strength of this forum, and MI before it, is people are prepared to sling shit and tell it like it is, regardless of the reaction. May it never change :abbath:
The first paragraph of this post made me think of Eddie from the band( Creation Tears?). That stuff was comedy gold.
That guy really shot himself in the foot with that gig post he made. From what I can remember their album was actually quite good too. Saying that I haven't heard it in a long time.
Was some craic reading through some of those threads.
Does anyone remember Morax? I think that's what they were called anyhow. The singer was wearing a 3 piece suit and doing the splits and stuff onstage. Tjink they were doing Sepultura and Chuck Berry covers.Seemed like great craic altogether!
Quote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 09:14:11 AMGrateful for this site most of the above you've listed are completely vacuous. Reddit maybe an exception but no sense of community. Zero discussions on insta/facebook - all emojis and likes. Endless pictures of vinyls etc "Friday Night Spins" "This Banger" "Out for a Pint" and a photo of a pint blah blah. I actually come here as a first port of call 99% of the time.
I'm surprised there's the odd forum myself but there's still a place for them I think. Just that MI was brought up it would be great if there were some reviews here, I do miss them the way they were done on MI, I think on the whole they were objective* and sparked discussion. It wasn't just Ciaran Tracey either, I thought the standard of writing across the board was excellent- I know it was floated before here and there wasn't much uptake but maybe things have changed for people timewise?
*Except that one time the first Steel Tormentor album inexplicably got 5/5 from Herr Tracey. He was so sparing with 5 star reviews, that fuckin thing had tuning/timing issues etc.
I remember he also gave Prong - Power of the Damager an absolute rave 5/5 review too and it was such an average album :laugh: On the whole I enjoyed his reviews though, and everybody else's. Came across a live review of Sorrowfall (with Devilmakesthree) right after their album had come out. That one took me back.
With regards to forums, they were mainly killed off a good decade ago, but there's a surprising amount of them that still seem to be thriving. There's a number of guitar related ones that are still as busy now as they were back in the day. I wouldn't be surprised if forums start to make a comeback as people crave community. Online tear-down culture is stronger than ever so I'm sure you'd get your fair share of 'classic' threads too...
Quote from: Cailleach on August 06, 2025, 09:44:52 AMSpeaking of CT, there were some posters only too happy to boost his ego. I remember when he had his alter ego, some posters reacted as if he was a comedic genius. I also remember the time he declared black metal dead after listening to Rotting Christ's latest release at that time. It was pure attention seeking on his part.
It's one thing to be grateful to him for the site and all it did for local bands in particular, but the fawning by some posters was off putting . The way he ended the site abruptly didn't surprise me, because it was always about him
What alter ego? I don't remember that. Though I agree there was a bit of brown-nosing went on. He was a key figure in the scene at the time though so I get why young bands would do that. A bit of MI hype could boost your status in the local scene for sure. I can remember going to Rock at Katy Daly's most Saturday afternoons and if there had been a particularly glowing or scathing local review (or a particularly hyped thread), everybody would be talking about it.
The alter ego was the Speckled Pig or something along those lines. It was mildly amusing at best.
On the topic of forums, yeah I think social media killed a lot of the interest but I was surprised to see that some are still going strong. Would have posted on the People's Republic of Cork and Boards back in the day and both seem to be still relatively active. Couldn't be arsed these days getting into political back and forths, so prob why I avoid stuff like the Donald Trump thread here.
Boards is a ghost town these days. They've got a funding appeal going or it's going to die
https://keepboardsalive.com/
Good. It was a horrible site. Same as PROC. Had a quick check there today and the most active thread seemed to be one about Immigration. And before anyone jumps to any conclusions about what side of the fence I sit on, like most things I'm an unashamed fence-sitter and believe that any debate calls for a bit of nuance and appreciation of both sides of the argument, something that is next to near impossible on the Internet. Hence why I just couldn't be arsed.
The sheer daftness :laugh:
:laugh:
The auld classifieds section used to be the business for picking up a bargain
Quote from: Mooncat on August 06, 2025, 07:30:28 PMThe sheer daftness :laugh:
I forgot about Tommy. And what about Brush :laugh: I got a laugh out of The Speckled Pig. Was it ever actually verified that it was CT? There was a sense of nuttiness to all of those characters that added some fun to the place alright.
I think that most posters here who were around in the 00s and 10s on MI are past the endless youthful cynicism and cuntery that made MI such a hoot in its day. The endless flaming of poor eejits seems a bit undignified when you're in your 40s :laugh:
Brush was the business - remember him trying to audition for Pagan Riot/Shiot? :laugh:
Quote from: Pagan Saviour on August 06, 2025, 07:52:40 PMThe auld classifieds section used to be the business for picking up a bargain
Going
way back here, but remember that guy Tcat (think it stood for Thin Lizzy Cat) who was this pure Delboy character on the forum, always wheeling and dealing? Talking about how he could hook you up :laugh:
What about the Me Wana Banana guy
I'm terms of killing forums, obviously Facebook was a big thing but I think discord has actually had a bigger part to play than anything else currently.
Quote from: Grim Reality on August 06, 2025, 02:08:32 PMThe site definitely helped foster a sense of community or make the scene more active. I met loads of people off MI but have never heard anyone ask if you were on MW. That said I'm only at a fraction of the gigs I was at in the MI heyday.
That's true actually, at its peak I would be drunkenly chatting shit to strangers in the smoking area at gigs and nearly always ask them their MI username, because nearly everyone was on there. Rarely did anyone say they didn't at least have an account they didn't use much. I was very invested at the time and MI was the law. I'm crimging now looking back but I met a load of people from it and it pretty much shaped my listening habits. I essentially grew up on MI. Which is why I probably why I sound a bit bitter in regards to CT even though I appreciate his effort.
**My Hexxed comment wasn't a sly dig, I actually didn't rate them as high as people seemed to praise them
Quote from: Mithrandir on August 06, 2025, 09:39:06 PMI'm terms of killing forums, obviously Facebook was a big thing but I think discord has actually had a bigger part to play than anything else currently.
Never got the move across to FB groups in the early 2010s - always thought they were designed for the quick hit, disposable, list type posts "who here likes Metallica? Give me your top 3 albums!" etc - the strength of forums still holds true, can pick up the conversation easily through threads and re-read past discussions easily.
Sure, everything has it's moment in time but I don't think it's just different social media mediums that kill off forums like this, it's music getting devalued over the past 20 years - younger demographics prefer to use their time elsewhere, be it gaming/other apps/internet etc - music is just a footnote, some background noise, if they do focus on listening to music and nothing else then they are a clear minority. Niche music forums are kept alive by the older demographics, eventually MW will go the way of MI (hopefully not in the same manner) and I don't think there will be a new one to replace it at that stage considering the trends and I still haven't seen anything else to convince me otherwise. Let's enjoy the final ride straight to hell, hopefully we pick up a morax or downcoil along the way :abbath:
Funny, I bumped into Nekroculchie at Beyond the Gates last week and we had a good natter about some of the shenanigans on MI and at gigs over the years.
It was a great resource and I wouldn't have a fraction of the number of mates/contacts in the scene were it not for spending a bit too much time on there.
Quote from: Bürggermeister on August 06, 2025, 05:44:46 PMBoards is a ghost town these days. They've got a funding appeal going or it's going to die
https://keepboardsalive.com/
I hope it dies. Absolute car crash of a site. Impossible to browse it (much less use it) with such heavy-handed moderation. Zero room for nuance or letting a proper conversation run on even if it went a wee bit off topic. Unpaid internet janitors are like that though, I guess.
Yeah, for all the reasons above I hope it fucks off but also because most of the people that use it are fucking arseholes.
Think Leinster Rugby Brigade, Worst of the Celtic Tiger Generation, Brown Shoes with a grey jumper with a shirt underneath it.
I've never actually been on Boards. I remember people talking about it a lot back in the day but I mainly used MI and Fastfude. Fastfude is another one I miss, but it was never anywhere near as busy and thriving as MI. Its window of relevancy was much, much shorter too, probably just a few years in the early 2000s.
Funnily enough Fastfude reminds me of the indie band era in Belfast where there were skinny jeans and poser types everywhere. I absolutely hated that movement and its music at the time, but what I wouldn't give for any rock-based huge youth culture movement now...
Does anyone remember a shortlived, Irish, metal-oriented social media site along the lines of Myspace? Going back around 20 years, it was only around for a year or two. Fucked if I can remember what it was called, but when I lived in Galway I met a fair few heads through it.
Forgot about fastfude - spot on about it but it was ok, made some decent connections out of it and found out about some good bands
Quote from: Carnage on August 07, 2025, 06:00:50 PMDoes anyone remember a shortlived, Irish, metal-oriented social media site along the lines of Myspace? Going back around 20 years, it was only around for a year or two. Fucked if I can remember what it was called, but when I lived in Galway I met a fair few heads through it.
Oh yeah!! I'm getting a flashback of that now. Can't remember the name for the life of me though.
Does anyone remember that young kinda Indian looking kid that used to turn up to the gigs with the black shiny Halloween wig on, mental corpse paint and fingerless gloves?
Haha, that is digging deep!
Actually, speaking of old scene heads, it turned out a few weeks ago that one of my metal head mates here in France was best friends with "Heavy metal jump!" Luke when they were kids. Anyone know anything about him these days? I said I'd ask on here but then promptly forgot.
Quote from: Black Shepherd Carnage on August 07, 2025, 06:54:43 PMActually, speaking of old scene heads, it turned out a few weeks ago that one of my metal head mates here in France was best friends with "Heavy metal jump!" Luke when they were kids. Anyone know anything about him these days? I said I'd ask on here but then promptly forgot.
I got an email from Luke a couple of years ago. I think he's back living in Australia. That's the Luke you mean, yeah?
Quote from: Carnage on August 07, 2025, 06:00:50 PMDoes anyone remember a shortlived, Irish, metal-oriented social media site along the lines of Myspace? Going back around 20 years, it was only around for a year or two. Fucked if I can remember what it was called, but when I lived in Galway I met a fair few heads through it.
It wasn't Dvblinia, was it?
No, that wasn't it. It'll come to me. It was similar to Myspace, mainly aimed at a younger crowd, I wasn't very active on it.
Bebo?
No, not that young.
Metal Éireann or Metal Éire are ringing a bell but I'm not sure it was either.
Quote from: Eoin McLove on August 07, 2025, 08:43:02 PMQuote from: Black Shepherd Carnage on August 07, 2025, 06:54:43 PMActually, speaking of old scene heads, it turned out a few weeks ago that one of my metal head mates here in France was best friends with "Heavy metal jump!" Luke when they were kids. Anyone know anything about him these days? I said I'd ask on here but then promptly forgot.
I got an email from Luke a couple of years ago. I think he's back living in Australia. That's the Luke you mean, yeah?
Yeah, that's the one: half Ozzie, half Frog, all mental :laugh:
I almost made this my avatar...
As dumb as it is, I genuinely would wear a t-shirt with this :laugh:
Quote from: Mooncat on August 08, 2025, 10:59:34 PMAs dumb as it is, I genuinely would wear a t-shirt with this :laugh:
:laugh: ah fuck I forgot about that yoke
Few pages of interviews still viewable here too which is pretty cool.
https://web.archive.org/web/20160529125817/http://www.metalireland.com/category/interview/
Edit:
Doesn't seem to be working, try this (https://web.archive.org/web/20160529125817/http://www.metalireland.com/category/interview/)
@Mclove I showed Kris/Imprecator your Witchrist interview and he said he remembers meeting you back in 09/10 when he was here with Diocletian/Witchrist :)
The poor man. Is he OK? :laugh:
Well he's lost a thumb since so I can't help but feel like you're to blame.
Oh yes, I'm sure it's my fault somehow. I take full responsibility.
Don't point the finger at yourself, man.
Looks like a certain person might have gotten wind of this thread and shut 'er down...
If you search for it on Wayback Machine now you get this message:
A propos: why don't we have an eye-roll emoticon on the forum? :) :abbath:
Shit buzz
:laugh: What a total fuckin bitch!? Not surprising really.
Some of it is still working for me, following the link in the first post in this thread anyway. Not all of it mind.
Maybe keep that on the DL for now
Fucking childish carry on.
Dang
Pathetic.
Summon the Nordys!
We need Skot Fury updates!
Quote from: Mooncat on August 29, 2025, 05:09:37 PMLooks like a certain person might have gotten wind of this thread and shut 'er down...
If you search for it on Wayback Machine now you get this message:
There's no foul play here. The Internet Archive will take snapshots of pages multiple times on multiple dates ("665 Captures" in your image). At the top of your image you'll see you're looking at an archive of the site from 10th July 2025. If you look at the actual site now you'll see it displays the same "no longer available" message. You'll need to use the bar at the top to view an archived date before MI shut down (Nov 2018)
7 years already! Jesus. Okay, so no need for the eye-roll emoticon after all :laugh:
Just for you
:eyeroll:
Whaddya mean 'just for me'!? :eyeroll:
:laugh:
He's still a prick.