Lost in promotional...

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

I only noticed today that local bands with new releases, videos, etc., are posting about them in "Promotional" rather than in the main forum, where they would gain much more traction.

Was it desired that local metal bands announce their new music only through this sub-sub-forum? At best, local metal should be the meat and bones of the site, imo.

[Pentagrimes]

True but given the nature of most of the posts is basically posting promotional stuff rather than actual discussion I kinda see why they're in there. Otherwise you end up with multiple threads about the same thing basically (eg the recent Put The Metal On posts before it was decided to just have one thread). MI was full of bands bumping threads by posting every review of their recording without anyone else talking about them so maybe it's to avoid clutter?

[Hambeast]

The original intention was for local bands to post on the main forum and everything else to go in the promotional forum, mostly to avoid random bands joining the forum purely to push their music. I have no issues with non-Irish bands posting with the sole purpose of advertising their music as long as it's in the promotional forum, but I'm happy for local bands to promote themselves in the main since it's more relevant and contributes something to the local scene.

Pentagrimes raises a valid point about "discussion" being important, rather than a thread consisting entirely of band updates. It becomes somewhat of a grey area if it ends up being a popular local band with a promotional thread which then generates a lot of discussion.

The forum descriptions could be updated to help make things clearer. What does everybody think? ALL promotional threads go in the promo forum, or all non-Irish bands go in the promo forum?

[Pentagrimes]

It'd probably be a pain in the hole and I can see what Chris would mean about it detracting from Irish bands being discussed on the main forum..but an "Irish Bands" subforum maybe?

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

True but given the nature of most of the posts is basically posting promotional stuff rather than actual discussion I kinda see why they're in there. Otherwise you end up with multiple threads about the same thing basically (eg the recent Put The Metal On posts before it was decided to just have one thread). MI was full of bands bumping threads by posting every review of their recording without anyone else talking about them so maybe it's to avoid clutter?

No reward without risk! Funnier still is threads in the main forum wondering where the new local metal action is while, apparently, it's ticking over just a couple of inches down the scroll bar.

It's up to the other users to create the discussion, and if bands start abusing, it can be dealt with. No need for a separate forum, not like we've a heaving mass of threads to contend with!

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

Two Tales of Woe, Yurt, Khôra... I can't help thinking there would be a lot more discussion about these if those threads were moved into the main forum. As I said above, it's not like the main forum is hopping about with new topics that this consolidation could possibly be an annoyance. TToW and Yurt especially are established bands in the scene, there's no reason they shouldn't be in the main forum alongside Slomatics, Malthusian, etc. So, yeah, I think it is a bit confusing, and awareness of what's happening in Irish metal on this, the now principal Irish metal forum, is taking the hit, here in any case.

[Hambeast]

I agree. I've updated the descriptions for the boards and I'll move any existing threads across