The Grammys 2014

The Grammys and heavy metal have never really gotten along. That being said, the Grammys are tonight and it is still always an honor to be nominated for such a prestigious award. This week on “Into the Pit,” we are going to take a look at the nominees for the one heavy metal-related category in the entire ceremony: Best Metal Performance. There is a pretty interesting batch of bands nominated for the award this year, some of which deserve to be there and others who don’t.

Best Metal Performance

Anthrax - “T.N.T.” (AC/DC cover)

This song doesn’t deserve to be nominated--plain and simple. I have no idea what the Grammy committee was thinking with this choice. Anthrax is a legendary band, no doubt, and they covered a legendary song. However, the cover is nothing special at all. The band did nothing to make it sound unique or fresh. It just sounds like the band recording an easy song that all the members knew how to play. There are much better songs on Anthrax’s Anthems EP that are more worthy of being nominated. The only bright side to all of this is that Rob Caggiano was able to receive one last recognition for his work with the band. But this song really deserves to lose, and there will be a lot of unhappy metalheads if it wins.

Black Sabbath - “God Is Dead?”

Surprise, surprise. Black Sabbath's first new single with Ozzy Osbourne since 1998 is nominated for a Grammy award. In all honesty, the most obvious choice on the list wouldn’t make a bad winner. No one in the heavy metal community would be unhappy if Black Sabbath took home the award this year. “God Is Dead?” is a pretty great song, and even though Rick Rubin’s production isn’t the best, the performance by the band itself is awesome. Black Sabbath’s members are old now, but they still really know how to rock. “God Is Dead?” is my personal second favorite nominee this year and is the song I think will win the award. 

Dream Theater - “The Enemy Inside”

This song was not the best off Dream Theater’s new self-titled record, but it made a very good impression as a first single. A Dramatic Turn of Events was a stale album to say the least, and “The Enemy Inside” brought the band’s fans a huge sigh of relief. The song had more energy than anything off A Dramatic Turn of Events. More than that, it brought back memories of the band’s highly acclaimed album, Train of Thought. It was this reminder of how good Dream Theater could be that got fans really pumped for the band’s self-titled record. The album ended up being a slightly uneven product, but it was an overall good showing for the band, and a fine debut for Mike Mangini as a fully integrated band member. “The Enemy Inside” could easily take home the Grammy award this year, but I personally don’t think it should. The song is good, but not nearly as good as some of the other nominees.

Killswitch Engage - “In Due Time”

I was really happy to see this song nominated for a Grammy this year. I don’t think it should win, but it deserves the honor of just receiving a nomination. This song was a great single, and the best tune Killswitch Engage had released in years. Jesse Leach’s return was a needed dose of energy to the declining band. Killswitch Engage is back at the top of its game, and this song put the band there. It’s a damn good metal song, and I’m thrilled to see it honored. 

Volbeat - “Room 24” (feat. King Diamond)

This is the song I desperately want to take home the Grammy award this year, even though I doubt it will. Volbeat is an amazing band that is just finally starting to receive the recognition it deserves. This song comes off the band’s newest record, Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies, which isn’t the group's best offering, but is still really freaking good. This song is notable for featuring King Diamond, who hasn’t been around for quite some time. King Diamond sounds great on this track and his voice compliments Volbeat’s musical vision very well. The band’s performance on this track is similarly great and Rob Caggiano’s production helps accentuate it. I really hope Volbeat wins this year, and I’m sure I’m not the only metalhead who hopes so too.

Heavy Metal Television Shows

What’s up, metalheads? I hope you all had a killer time welcoming in the new year.

For “Into the Pit’s” first post of 2014 I thought it would be a cool opportunity to talk about heavy metal television shows. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, metal became an extremely popular genre of music around the world, and television stations began to show an interest in programming related to heavy metal music.

In this post I am going to talk about my five favorite heavy metal television shows. Time for another totally sick countdown!

Honorable Mention: The Osbournes. This show is too much of a reality show and not enough of a metal show to be included on the list. It still deserves to be mentioned for bringing some attention to heavy metal’s greatest family. Ozzy Osbourne is the man and documenting his family life made for one hell of a television show. The Osbournes is super funny and totally worth watching even if you have no interest in heavy metal whatsoever. 

5. Metal Evolution.

This show was created by Sam Dunn, the man behind Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey, which is one of my favorite heavy metal documentaries. Metal Evolution takes Dunn’s acclaimed “Heavy Metal Family Tree” and breaks it down. Dunn’s metaphoric tree shows the development of heavy metal through the creation of subgenres. The tree has become extremely famous since the release of Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey and is a great way to take a look at the origins of heavy metal. Dunn capitalizes on its success through Metal Evolution, which talks about a particular subgenre or era of heavy metal in each episode. The show features interviews with famous musicians and takes a close look at the past and how it has led to the present day heavy metal scene. Metal Evolution is very informative and is a good, fast way to learn about how heavy metal has evolved over the past several decades.

4. Supergroup.

Supergroup revolved around five famous heavy metal musicians being forced to live in a mansion together and form a band. The band was called Damnocracy and it consisted of Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Scott Ian (Anthrax), Evan Seinfeld (Biohazard), Ted Nugent and Jason Bonham. The show was a reality show at its core, but it still had some pretty “metal” moments. It revealed a lot about the personalities of the musicians involved, which could be seen as a good and a bad thing. Supergrouop featured some great music and the band definitely had chemistry. Unfortunately, Damnocracy didn’t last beyond the scope of the show, as the musicians involved went their separate ways. Still, Supergroup was a fun experiment that should definitely be tried again in the future.  

3. That Metal Show.

This show has gotten really popular in recent years. Hosted by radio legend Eddie Trunk, along with his pals Don Jamieson and Jim Florentine, That Metal Show is a metal talk show. That Metal Show succeeds because of its well rounded and likable hosts. These guys live and breathe heavy metal, both new and old school, and thus their show features a nice variety of metal musicians. Everyone from Corey Taylor to Axl Rose has made an appearance on That Metal Show because it’s just the cool thing to do. Eddie Trunk has used his connections to develop an awesome television show that is totally worth watching weekly.

2. Metalocalypse.

Metalocalypse is a kickass adult animated show about the fictional death metal band Dethklok. The show is darkly funny, and it features some monstrous music. Metalocalypse’s storyline is fantastic and its characters are incredibly likable. The writing for the show is brilliant, and the music developed for it is expertly composed. The show has taken off, and now creator Brendan Small frequently tours and releases music on its behalf. There are four excellent death metal albums released for the show, which Small has recorded with legendary metal drummer Gene Hoglan. Metalocalypse is among heavy metal’s best programming, and is a show that should not be missed.

1. Headbanger’s Ball.

This is probably the most famous heavy metal show of all time. Initially airing during the late 1980s and early 1990s, Headbanger’s Ball played hard rock and heavy metal videos for the group of music lovers who didn’t care about MTV’s usual content. The show featured appearances from various bands and went through several different hosts. The show was a flagship of MTV’s line-up for a long time, and it helped determine what was cool and popular in heavy metal music. The show abruptly died in 1995, due to the rise of grunge and alternative rock, along with MTV’s lack of interest in promoting metal. The show was revived in 2003, after the grunge scene died down, but it wasn’t the same. It was more scripted and the excitement for the show just wasn’t there. The show still exists, hosted by Jose Mangin, and is now a web-only series. During its prime, Headbanger’s Ball was amazing and its influence on heavy metal was incredible. Headbanger’s Ball is without a doubt my favorite heavy metal television show, and it represents a great era in heavy metal’s evolution.