The SFX nostalgia thread

[Paul keohane]

I think people are really forgetting how dirty a term metal became specifically around that time. A lot of the weird records that came about in that era came out of survival or necessity. Bands on majors faced the chop unless they adapted but even then it was no use.

Was there just a point somewhere in the mid 90s where it just  wasnt 'cool' to be a metal head anymore,did irish society just become more conformed for a period etc.

[Eoin McLove]

It wasn't just Irish society,  it was the metal press.  Metal Hammer used to write off anything that wasn't modern sounding.  It was,  in retrospect,  always a really nasty rag of a thing.  Clique-ish, hiphophappening to any shit local band that copied Coal Chamber or Korn. Looking back, the amount of entry level nu metal shit that was getting covered is shocking.  If you looked quirky (blue hair,  piercings,  contacts,  baggies etc) the fact that you couldn't write a song or come up with a single original idea was beside the point.  It's so bizarre. I'm sure it still goes on. I mean there is pressure to fill pages and most music that gets released is ordinary at best,  but at least the tides have turned back to metal mags promoting metal bands. 

[Trev]

I used to read Metal Hammer most months when I started getting into metal back in the late 90s. There was an awful lot of shit being promoted and slagging of the older bands, but I still found a lot of great music through it. I remember they'd a cover cd with Opeth and Katatonia that was pretty mind blowing to hear amongst the usual nu metal stuff that was included, they'd a big piece on SYL that made me go pick up City...

I mean it was still 90% shit bands, but there was some good stuff scattered throughout at times

[Cryptic Stench]

It was,  in retrospect,  always a really nasty rag of a thing

It was dude, I was doing a tidy recently and leafed through a good few copies, the way they spoke to people incredibly disrespectful. Fine if they took that approach with everyone and asked all bands the tough questions but when 3 Colors Red are on the front cover and you're asking Bruce Dickinson to justify Maiden's existence and laughing at him because he thinks Maiden were ready to compete with the likes of Korn and Limp Bizkit.........

[John Kimble]

I can remember two reviews from Metal Hammer around that time which kind of summed up their attitude towards metal. They absolutely adored Korn's Life is Peachy and commended them for being the 'real deal' and avoiding the kind of embarassing metal cliches such as Megadeth's 'gormless mascot Vic Rattlehead'. On the other hand, they absolutely slated Emperor for Anthems... and even dismissed black metal as a fad whose time was coming to an end. I even think it was the same reviewer, Neil Aldis. It really was a horrible rag. Glowing, five-star reviews handed to the abysmal likes of Bullyrag, One Minute Silence, Breed 77, Pulkas, the list is endless.

[Carnage]

Queenryche Operation Mindcrime Tour .... setlist has this as "Empires Tour 1990" .... but I remember seeing them do the entire Operation Mindcrime album in the SFX ... not sure it was 1990 though ... I'll have to look at the old tickets.

That was a special night. The Empire tour. They split the show in two, one half all of Mindcrime, one half Empire+oldies. Sister Mary was the lass from the album.

Judas Priest + Annihilator stands out as another SFX highlight on a great weekend for metal, Easter 1991, Megadeth RIP and Alice In Chains dirt played the Point the night before/after.

Alice In Chains were touring Facelift that night TBH, they were class, first time I'd heard anything by them. I met Staley and Starr after, 2 sound blokes. The Almighty were pretty out of place that night, didn't impress at all.

[Grim Reality]

I think people are really forgetting how dirty a term metal became specifically around that time. A lot of the weird records that came about in that era came out of survival or necessity. Bands on majors faced the chop unless they adapted but even then it was no use.

Was there just a point somewhere in the mid 90s where it just  wasnt 'cool' to be a metal head anymore,did irish society just become more conformed for a period etc.

The dance music thing seemed to take a lot of metallers and potential metallers away from the scene. Prodigy, underworld all that sort of stuff. Yokes, clubbing etc was the cool thing. That's my memory of it.

[Cryptic Stench]

The britpop scene too, overnight everybody was from Manchester and listened to Oasis.

[northside hoop]

I know Bruce had left,but Its actually mad that maiden played to only 600 people.
Judging by the average age (old) of people at gigs here over the last 10/15 years,did people just drift away from metal in the mid 90s and return again at a later stage?.

I don't think Maiden were as big in Ireland in their heyday as they are now anyway. I wasn't there in 1990 but the crowd in 93 wasn't great in the old point, only about half full. I was shocked when they sold out the old point in 03 as I didn't think they had the fanbase in Ireland.

AC/DC at the same era did shite in the Point on the Ballbreaker tour, 15 years later they were Punchestown and Lansdowne Road.

I reckon bands of a certain age go through a mid life crisis in terms of fans interest. They aren't new any more, yet aren't old enough to be legends yet, so kids aren't going and there isn't much of a nostalgia element yet.

[Eoin McLove]

I can remember two reviews from Metal Hammer around that time which kind of summed up their attitude towards metal. They absolutely adored Korn's Life is Peachy and commended them for being the 'real deal' and avoiding the kind of embarassing metal cliches such as Megadeth's 'gormless mascot Vic Rattlehead'. On the other hand, they absolutely slated Emperor for Anthems... and even dismissed black metal as a fad whose time was coming to an end. I even think it was the same reviewer, Neil Aldis. It really was a horrible rag. Glowing, five-star reviews handed to the abysmal likes of Bullyrag, One Minute Silence, Breed 77, Pulkas, the list is endless.

I remember that Emperor review and finding it funny at the time despite liking In the Nightside Eclipse. I ended up not buying Anthems,  but it was normal for me to have one album by a band that I loved and never going further with them so I'm not sure if I'd have bought it on the back of a rave review or not.  Looking back though,  the disdain they had for anything not modern and trendy is shocking. Being a typically callow young lad I swallowed it hook, line and sinker. 

[Cryptic Stench]

You weren't the only one, I was the same. I inexplicably bought copies of some of the shit that is being mentioned here. The thing was back then that was your only source of info, if you were lucky your local newsagent had Kerrang or Metal Hammer.

[heyjoe]

I know Bruce had left,but Its actually mad that maiden played to only 600 people.
Judging by the average age (old) of people at gigs here over the last 10/15 years,did people just drift away from metal in the mid 90s and return again at a later stage?.

I don't think Maiden were as big in Ireland in their heyday as they are now anyway. I wasn't there in 1990 but the crowd in 93 wasn't great in the old point, only about half full. I was shocked when they sold out the old point in 03 as I didn't think they had the fanbase in Ireland.

AC/DC at the same era did shite in the Point on the Ballbreaker tour, 15 years later they were Punchestown and Lansdowne Road.

I reckon bands of a certain age go through a mid life crisis in terms of fans interest. They aren't new any more, yet aren't old enough to be legends yet, so kids aren't going and there isn't much of a nostalgia element yet.

The 90s were horrible in some ways and good in others, it meant you could always get a ticket and sometimes see bands in smaller venues if they were touring.

Maiden played the Point in 1990 with a good crowd from memory ... it was my first time in the Point. By 1993 the metal scene was pretty dead and just a few years later they were in the SFX with Blaze.

AC/DC had the Point packed to the rafters in 1991. I remember the steam coming off the crowd. By Ballbreaker they were almost a nostalgia act.

A lot of the metal crowd from the 80s had mortgages, kids and all that in the 90s too. The 00s and 10s resurgence did coincide with people coming out the other end of that part of life and wanting to bring their kids to see their favorite band again.

[Cryptic Stench]

Just on the Metal Hammer topic, it really was diabolical around 96-97 especially. Look at this end of year list, I thought it was sickening at the time but it reads worse today.

Feeder - Polythene
Entombed - To Ride, Shoot Straight And Speak The Truth
3 Colours Red - Pure
Foo Fighters - The Colour And The Shape
Deftones - Around The Fur
Radiohead - OK Computer
Paradise Lost - One Second
Prodigy - The Fat Of The Land
The Verve - Urban Hymns
Faith No More - Album Of The Year
Sick Of It All - Built To Last
Misery Loves Co. - Not Like Them
Strapping Young Lad - City
Metallica - Re-Load
Kerbdog - On The Turn
Green Day - Nimrod
Reef - Glow
Me First And The Gimme Gimmes - Have A Ball
Oasis - Be Here Now
Life Of Agony - Soul Searching Sun

Basically a mixture of their mates, bands they have to please like Metallica/FNM and a sprinkling of "edgy" contemporary bands to show how broad minded they were.

If you were to be objective, the inclusion of Be Here Now is a complete farce, I'm not a fan but I can say it's not even a good Oasis record.

[Eoin McLove]

Oasis and The Verve  Jesus fucking Christ. From that list there are three albums I'd have any interest in,  Album of the Year (an ok album), Built to Last (a banger) and Soul Searching Sun (loved it at the time,  a bit on the wimpy side but catchy).

[Emphyrio]

Haha Reef. Fuck, remember them. Awful gack.