25 Metal Bands That Never Sold Out

[Punkinhead]

http://www.the-trukstop.com/articles/20 ... _true.html

Interesting article for the metal heads.

[f.sciarrillo]

That is pretty cool. It is also cool to see the Christian Metal bands Demon Hunter, Living Sacrafice and Sacred Reich on there as well ....

As a note: I agree that Metallica is one of the biggest sell outs ever. And, that list could have included Megadeth and Manowar on it ,,,

[onegunguitar]

No EXODUS?

[metalchurch]

yeah no Exodus? WTF? No Priest? they certainly did not sell out.
Lamb of God? I see their shirts on everyone, from teenage girls to guys in their 30's come on I don't like them to begin with, but it seems like they are a little more 'mainstream' than that list lets on.
Who made that list anyway?
Testament and OverKill are 2 bands that stayed true.
Still pretty cool regardless.
Thanks Punkinhead.

[Plastered Bastards]

No Priest?

Then what was Turbo? ahh a sellout record
That album was so mainstream and lame. That is what a sell out is

[bassist_25]

Testament

Alex Skolnick was pushing for a more accessible sound around the time they recorded The Ritual, though that album wasn't really all that mainstream sounding. I think that is was part of the reason he left. While I'm a pretty big Skolnick fan, I actually really enjoy James Murphy's work in Testament just as much.

[metalchurch]

Turbo was shit, I agree, but they were experimenting I guess? Then they followed up with Ram It Down, and of course Painkiller, which in my eyes redeemed themselves and anyone who would deny that is a fuckin fool.
Every band has a shitty album, EVERYONE. That was theirs.
I don't recall hearing anything off of Turbo on the radio every ten minutes anyone else? That is selling out. Not changing your style for one album.
And most people don't even think about Turbo when they think Priest, they all say British Steel, or Screaming for Vengeance.
Same as Metallica, most people say the Black album, which in my eyes was shit.
I'm not trying to start a fight, just explaining my idea about what is selling out.

[metalchurch]

Check this out. They didn't even make the TOP 100 of 1986, so it couldn't have sold that much.

http://www.cylist.com/List/400300147/

[onegunguitar]

No Anthrax on that list either.

[Bag]

Nice to see my Overkill boys get some respect and praise.

[313]

No Anthrax on that list either.

As much as I like some of Anthrax's music, when they started doing the rap/rock thing I immediately labeled them a sell-out.

I think someone has already mentioned that Manowar probably deserves a spot on the list. I'll second that nomination.

[Killjingle]

Punkinhead;

I never cared for when ppl said a band sold out.. I always kind of considered those bands to sell UP;

in ur heart of hearts... FTW... would u submit to record label pressure? Would u sell UP? I def think Metallica just quit bein Metallica.. no sell up or sell out... they wanted to sound completely different and make bacon

I can honestly say I dont know what I would do given that scenario... any band that ever sold UP or OUT depending on the terminology one uses still prob plays music for a livin vs a stupid day job that they would prob end up hating... I see Carcass on that list and a lot of ppl thought they sold out with Heartwork and Swansong... but I love those albums cuz the production was 10x better and there were SONGS rather than RIFFS

this is by no means comin after ur opinion... Im just interested in what another metal luvin guy thinks

PS... if anyone ever thinks I sold out or up; fuck 'em... I make music that I wanna hear and I wont make apologies about that

-Chad

[bassist_25]

No Anthrax on that list either.

As much as I like some of Anthrax's music, when they started doing the rap/rock thing I immediately labeled them a sell-out.

How would they be a sell out when Scott Ian was a big rap fan? That's why I always wince a little when these "sell out" discussions take place. I do believe that there is a such thing as selling out, but in my experience, when someone says that an artist has sold out, 9 times out of 10 it isn't very true.

And I agree 100% with everything Chad just said. And to add to that discussion, I bet that many of our favorite artists' material isn't as good as it is without the influence of a producer. Something to think about. Unless you are completely independent and never sign a record contract, then you're probably going to "sell out" a little. And even so, you probably have signed contracts with booking agencies and managers. It doesn't matter if you're in the popular local cover band or you're selling thousands of records. You must likely had to comprimise something along the way. Sorry, but that's reality. These cliche philosophies that "artist" wax usually just seem to get in the way of making progress and are used by failed musicians to justify their positions in the musical foodchain.

[313]

No Anthrax on that list either.

As much as I like some of Anthrax's music, when they started doing the rap/rock thing I immediately labeled them a sell-out.

How would they be a sell out when Scott Ian was a big rap fan? That's why I always wince a little when these "sell out" discussions take place. I do believe that there is a such thing as selling out, but in my experience, when someone says that an artist has sold out, 9 times out of 10 it isn't very true.

I guess we are using different definitions for "selling out" then. I consider a "sell-out" to be when a band make a deliberate effort to change their style in order to gain to industry approval or much broader consumer acceptance. To me, it does not matter if Scott Ian was a big rap fan or not. Through their first two releases, Anthrax was a thrash metal band - no rap. Their 1987 EP was a major departure in style for them and was viewed as an attempt to become more MTV friendly. The "MTV Bungholes" (thanks for that terminology Songsmith) not surprisingly embraced the rap-rock song "I am the Man" and played the video every 10 minutes. The EP goes platinum. Four years after releasing this platinum EP, about the same time that grunge is gaining a foothold, Anthrax attempt to cash in yet again by remixing the same song for their 1991 CD. That constitutes a sell-out by the definition I am using.

The Kiss disco song "I was Made for Loving You" is often used as an example of sell-out. That one is hard to argue with. By your argument, since Gene Simmons liked disco, that was not a sellout.

[bassist_25]

I guess we are using different definitions then. I believe that someone's selling out when they are doing something that their heart's just not into.
I really don't think an artist sells out just because they take a different musical direction for a number of reasons. First, I can't get into their heads and try and figure out why they wrote a certain song or produced a certain album. Second, I want bands I like to evolve, and yes, sometimes evolving means slicker production and writing better song hooks (i.e., having a more mainstream sound). I like AC/DC as much as the next guy, but they've pretty much been releasing the same album for the past 25 fucking years. Third, I'm all for paying your dues and what not, but if you've been out on the road for ten years, you may be eating Ramen noodles for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Not to mention, there's a good chance that you're in debt up to your eyeballs. I don't think having a hit record at the cost of shortening up your arrangements is such a bad deal if you're in that position. Lastly, it really doesn't matter if a band's sold out or not. If I dig the music I listen to it. I'm not so caught up in any particular band that it would rub me the wrong way if they released an album that was a radical depature from the ones that I liked.

Actually, I'm not really sold on the Kiss analogy. From a band that has marketed their names on everything from condoms to funeral caskets (and did it unapologetically), I don't think that releasing a song with a disco beat would be grounds to call a them a sell out.

[PanzerFaust]

Check this out. They didn't even make the TOP 100 of 1986, so it couldn't have sold that much.

http://www.cylist.com/List/400300147/

I love priest and one of my first concerts was Screaming with Maiden opening so don't flame me on this.. I'm just as pissed but look what the Doofus on Wiki said about Turbo...

*Turbo was released in 1986. This was a time when hair bands were popular, and to keep up with the times, Priest changed their look to a more colourful band. Their sound was more poppy as well, with synthesisers to accompany the playing. The album also went Platinum and had a very successful tour in support, but many hail this album to be their sellout release. A live album recorded on the tour, titled Priest... Live!, was released the next year, offering fans live tracks from their 80s era.
**
**


Personally, I think they just got the new synth guitars which were just out and only THEY could afford and just loved playing with them..

Hell I'd have been the first to have a synth guitar in 1985 if I had a million $$$

Sure looking back from 2007 they weren't as cool as we thought they were but who here didn't have an acid washed jean jacket either !! haha...

[313]

Actually, I'm not really sold on the Kiss analogy. From a band that has marketed their names on everything from condoms to funeral caskets (and did it unapologetically), I don't think that releasing a song with a disco beat would be grounds to call a them a sell out.

I cited that example because the disco songs were released on 1979's Dynasty album. That album is considered by many to be the band's point of "selling out" (although others cite the 1976 ballad "Beth"). The marketing of Kiss condoms and caskets occurred in 2001 and 2002 - more than 20 years after the disco blunder. In 1979, the Kiss sellout was still being debated by fans - in 2001 there's no argument.

[rockaway]

a cool video.. anyone with more info them?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=dPcnR3AewJ0& ... er&search= = devildriver

[Punkinhead]

Punkinhead;

I never cared for when ppl said a band sold out.. I always kind of considered those bands to sell UP;

in ur heart of hearts... FTW... would u submit to record label pressure? Would u sell UP? I def think Metallica just quit bein Metallica.. no sell up or sell out... they wanted to sound completely different and make bacon

I can honestly say I dont know what I would do given that scenario... any band that ever sold UP or OUT depending on the terminology one uses still prob plays music for a livin vs a stupid day job that they would prob end up hating... I see Carcass on that list and a lot of ppl thought they sold out with Heartwork and Swansong... but I love those albums cuz the production was 10x better and there were SONGS rather than RIFFS

this is by no means comin after ur opinion... Im just interested in what another metal luvin guy thinks

PS... if anyone ever thinks I sold out or up; fuck 'em... I make music that I wanna hear and I wont make apologies about that

-Chad

The only one that really bothered me was Metallica because the music now sucks (and that's more of saying something about the shitty songs). As long as I dig the music I could care less what people say about what. It's pretty much only about the music for me.

Pertaining to the list, I was curious to Lamb of God being on it. Granted, they kick ass and have not "sold out" in any way but, my question was whether they (yet) warrant being held in the same vein as bands like Slayer and Cannibal Corpse who have many, many albums and have done it for a lot longer of time.

[DirtySanchez]

Lamb of God has been around since the early nineties ( at least 15 years).
They used to be called Burn The Priest, and were actually an instrumental only group for a few years.

[Lifer]

BTP days were the daysss, man. That shit is 10 times heavier. 10 times more technical. 10 times more awesome.

[Punkinhead]

Yes, I am familiar with Burn the Priest and have been for quite some time. I don't think Lamb of God is on the same plateau as a band like Slayer, which is more of what I was saying.

My point really was, that if I were to make a list like this, I would probably take what I consider the top 25 all time metal bands that have never been considered to have sold out but, they didn't really do that.

[EyesOfAnguishbassist]

I think Killjingle hit the nail on the head... bands can't help that they get popular, just because more ppl wear there shirts and they get more recognized doesn't really mean they "sold out" unless of course they totally change their sound or something, some bands choose to try to go for a different sound

[bassist_25]

I think Killjingle hit the nail on the head... bands can't help that they get popular, just because more ppl wear there shirts and they get more recognized doesn't really mean they "sold out" unless of course they totally change their sound or something, some bands choose to try to go for a different sound

Exactly! I've always been under the impression that the idea of creating music is for people to hear it. If I want to stroke my own ego, I'll sit on my on my front porch and play. It's pretty funny when people don't want their favorite bands to get popular. Even though this thread's primarily about metal, I think that Green Day's a good example. A lot of the "OG" Green Day fans threw a fit when the band signed to a major label, and of course, Dookie just blew up the charts. Like a lot of kids my age, that album defined my life when I was 15 years old. I think it's pretty fucking selfish of some fans to not want a band to expand its fan base.

And I know it's hard to believe for some people, but things like album recording, CD duplication, hiring pro sound reinforcement, and keeping tubes in your amp cost money.

[Merge]

I actually heard someone say "I liked ( band that will remain nameless, lol) until they sold out"?? I asked her what they did to sell out, and her exact words were "They signed with a major label and had a video on MTV". That's one of most retared things I've ever heard a person say. If signing a major label deal and shooting a video for MTV is selling out, where do I sign.