So, Elite got 3 of the 4 right. As predicted, nobody guessed the 4th member of the band. Anyway, time to wrap this crazy ride up.
NUMBER 1Vocals: Kyo (Dir En Grey)
Here we are. My current (arguably new) favorite singer of all time. Kyo seamlessly blends every single style of vocalization I've ever enjoyed. I really can't stress his versatility enough. Anyone who remains unconvinced should absolutely sample the song associated with this blurb, because it's absolutely monstrous. He has by far the most thunderously low growl I've ever heard (think of a garbage disposal on a murderous rampage), and the most incredibly ear-piercing shrieks to grace tape. To top off all the vocal acrobatics, Kyo has by far the most pure, emotionally vast singing voice I've ever listened to. Seriously, 95% of Dir En Grey's songs are Japanese, and you can easily feel the emotion poured into every word. It's utterly astounding. The song we'll be analyzing as evidence of Kyo's skill is the song from their monumental 2011 release, "Dum Spiro Spero." The song is called Different Sense, and it's easily the most amazing vocal performance I've ever heard from anyone. The things Kyo does with his voice should probably be illegal. Every voice you hear on this song is Kyo. Live, the bass player and rhythm guitar help out here and there. If you can find anyone in the world with a more amazing range, versatility or emotion to his singing, I'm all ears.
Favorite performance:
Different Sense (The best song ever written)Guitar: John Petrucci (Dream Theater)
Simply put, John Petrucci will always be my number 1 guitar idol. The moment I got to shake his hand before a show in Detroit was by far one of the most surreal moments of my life. Every single note JP hits on a guitar is instant perfection in musical form. It's just incredible. Creative riffing, inspired soloing, brain-melting technicality, and pure emotion to back it up. People say JP plays robotically without emotion, but I honestly don't get the accusation. Perhaps they've never heard the song I'm selecting as the example. The song is Wishful Thinking, off of his stupendous solo album, Suspended Animation. The song is a perfect example of how JP can absolutely shred with emotion (as if songs like Spirit Carries On, Hollow Years, and The Best of Times weren't enough). The only aspect of JP's playing that isn't represented with the song is his penchant for excellent riffs, but I'm sure enough people here are familiar with his glory in that department.
Favorite performance:
Wishful Thinking (But special mention for TSCO because that solo absolutely kills too)
Bass: John Myung (Dream Theater)
The god of bass, right here. The notes he doesn't play are just as important as the notes he does play. Early in Dream Theater's career, John Myung's playing was as technical and spotlight-stealing as John Petrucci's guitar. Since then, he's calmed down quite a bit (although some of the basslines on DT12 are up there in terms of showstopping). The fact remains, JMX is a force to be reckoned with in the world of bass guitar. Quiet, soft-spoken, poetic, and humble, John Myung certainly doesn't carry himself like the almighty musician that he most certainly is. It's such a wonder to relisten to older DT songs listening just for the bass and hearing how they could basically be songs in and of themselves. So many rock bass players just sit in the back and are terrified of doing anything that would upstage their fearsome lead guitars. Fortunately for everyone, John Myung takes the term "lead guitar," replaces it with "lead bass," and shits directly down its throat. Our song here is Ytse Jam, which has absolutely ridiculous bass playing throughout the song, and one utterly kicking solo that has been the cause of at least 4 musician suicides.
Drums: Neil Peart (Rush)
Neil Peart is good at hitting drums. That's all there is to say, really. Much like John Myung, he's a very humble individual, seemingly unaware of the undisputable fact that he is the most incredible drummer to ever wield a pair of sticks. Neil seems to be almost universally respected, though I have it on good authority that anyone who hates on Neil Peart scored very poorly on their SATs and probably will never amount to anything in their entire life. The most incredible thing about Neil Peart's drumming is how he manages to play such utterly ridiculous patterns without upstaging the fireworks from the other two members of Rush. Also, his fills are just incredible. I swear every single fill this man has ever played has been stolen by another drummer out of sheer desperation of trying and failing to come up with anything better.
Favorite performance: Any Rush song, seriously.
But this one especially.What would the hypothetical band sound like?: Well, about as good as a band could sound, honestly. JP, JMX, and Peart would fit right in, and I would absolutely love to hear what they'd do no matter who was singing on it. Sadly, I really don't know if Kyo would be even remotely into the style of music that the 3 instrumentalists would produce. Dir En Grey never really tapped into the progressive rock domain, and anything heavy they've done has always been more in the direction of death metal than prog rock. I'm sure JP and JMX could facilitate the heavy edge with some crushing riffs, but since Rush has never gone full-metal, I wonder if Neil would be able to compliment that style or not (he probably could, because he's Neil Peart, but yeah). Either way, Kyo's a vocal mastermind that could probably manage to sing over anything he's tasked with, so this band would still be awesome.
Well, that's it, I suppose. I'll rank the hypothetical bands according to my personal favorites since I can't seem to stop ranking shit (and for fun I'll give them all a silly name since supergroups usually go the humorous route with band names).
1. Radioactive Quiche (Mike Patton, Buckethead, Tony Levin, Blake Richardson please make this happen god it would be so good)
2. Adrenaline Bob (Devin Townsend, Jeff Loomis, Geddy Lee, Mike Portnoy)
3. Definitely Progressive (Kyo, John Petrucci, John Myung, Neil Peart)
4. The Haunted Pudding Castle (Anneke van Giersbergen, Andy LaRocque, Les Claypool, Gavin Harrison)
5. Post Partum Aggression (Ihsahn, Alex Lifeson, Dan Briggs, Gene Hoglan)
6. Michael Jackson's Acid Trip (Eric Nally, Frank Zappa, Trevor Dunn, Brann Dailor)
7. Terrorism of the Bladder (Warrel Dane, Jeff Waters, Robert Wynia, Alex Dontre)
8. That's What She Shed (James LaBrie, Yngwie Malmsteen, Toshiya, Dan Foord)
9. America Sucks (Daniel Gildenlow, Dave Mustaine, Dan Rathbun, Dave Lombardo)
10. Professional Grade Diaper Rash (Hansi Kursch, David Gilmour, Geezer Butler, Dirk Verbeuren)
Topic: UMH's "Top 10 of the Four Main Components of a (Predominately Metal) Band" (1) (Read 12633 times)