25 Ocak 2010 Pazartesi

The Rise of Behemoth

2009 has been a great year for metal, as we have listened to one great album after another. There are many yet-not-thoroughly-listened albums that have the potential to upturn everybody's favorites lists. What's more, I am sure there are many buried gems of 2009 out there that we may discover months, maybe years later. All these point to the fact that metal creativity is alive and well.
On the commercial side, the new darling of labels is definitely varieties of drone-stoner-prog-rock, a genre I fail to appreciate except a few shining examples, which give me the impression that Black Sabbath music is being revisited and reproduced at a different level. The result of such soul-searching is, I must say, surprisingly good in exceptional circumstances.
Nevertheless, the path Mastodon has opened is now full of young bands, mainly from the US, as labels have started encircling above the genre, having feasted on metalcore with dazzling speed. As metalcore listeners may be witnessing now, when the dust settles, this new genre will have matured enough to put forth solid musicians. But for now, prepare for an influx of bad music, among which listeners will have to search for true gems. Is Baroness one of them? For Decibel, they have produced the album of the year. I listened to it a few times but could not get what Decibel people have obviously gotten. I may be willing to give the "Blue Record" a few more spins, so to speak, but not more, I am afraid.
Maybe I am getting old, but in the aftermath of the metalcore wave, this stoner wave is making me think whether this "distortion" of "good old metal" will have a permanent negative effect on the music we cherish.
But then, that is the United States. The Old Continent, meanwhile, has unleashed great, moving, thought-provoking and aggressive music upon us throughout the year, as black and death blended with other musical forms of expression, conquered them all and created unique listening experiences.
On to the hall of fame, then. Among the many excellent albums I was able to listen, four were truly exceptional.

Behemoth, Evangelion
The ninth studio album of the Polish masters is their best, and probably one of the best albums of the past decade. For me, as Behemoth moves closer to the depths of death metal, combining that with its black past, it exceeds itself further. Excellent music, excellent lyrics, crisp production and the best metal video of the decade! Nergal, Orion and Inferno continue to reflect on the war of humanity against humanity. I can't wait to see the band live in Istanbul in March!

Fragments Of Unbecoming, The Everhaunting Past Chapter IV, A Splendid Retrospection
I was sort of emotional in not declaring FoU's latest as the album of the year, but Behemoth accepts no competition there. "The Everhaunting Past" is not the best offering from the German melodic death band. It, in fact, pales in comparison to the 2004 and 2006 albums. Nevertheless, it is one of the best metal albums of the past year, simply because of the fact that FoU have uncovered the secret to reflect opposing emotions in a single song, an art so few have mastered. Just listen to "Deadlight" and you will know what I mean. Since listening to this band for the first time in 2006, I have been searching for a melodic death band that has similar depth, to no avail. Melodic death metal of today is, sadly, corrupted by record labels and FoU is probably the only band that defies commercialization. "The Everhaunting Past" may not be its best effort as the band has sort of "spoiled" us listeners by their excellent albums in the past, but it is one of the best melodic death albums of the past decade, with the upper slots also invaded by this band!

Fleshgod Apocalypse, Oracles
Brutal death is not my cup of blood, save a few exceptions. But this Italian band has the most original concept of all time: Combining brutal death with classical music. Surprisingly, it works great! Aptly, "Oracles" is a testimony to enlightenment, the human intellect and positivism, a declaration of war against the obsession of superstition that has become stronger as humankind loses hope for the future. The brilliant "In Honour Of Reason" tells it all. I have to say that it has become some sort of a game for me to observe with awe the classical partitions and influences throughout the songs. The most original album of the year, definitely.

Klabautamann, Merkur
This is the third offering of this German band and the first time I've heard of it. Their Myspace page describes the band as 'black, progressive, folk.' I would say progressive black metal at its finest. Never heard of such a brilliant record in this vein since Enslave's Ruun. "What Rush would sound like if they were black metal," says a reviewer at metal-archives.com. Well put.

Of course, I have to mention other brilliant releases of the year.
Slayer's World Painted Blood, the band's 11th studio offering, took me completely by surprise. The longevity of this record, for me, makes it the 28-years-old band's best since 1994's Divine Intervention. I would like to point toward the "relaxed" drumming of Dave Lombardo, as he plays with the attitude of a drummer who has nothing to prove to no one and is captivated by the “sounds” he produces, not complexity or speed. Tom Araya's voice somehow becomes more impressive as he gets old. I've been listening to this nearly every day now, and the album keeps growing within, unlike “Christ Illusion” (2006) that amazed me at first listen, but wore off too quickly.
Candlemass' Death Magic Doom, though not as good as 2007's King Of The Grey Islands, was a solid offering that cemented Rob Lowe's position as one of the best metal vocals of all time. A few songs sounded too commercial, but those such as The Bleeding Baroness and Clouds Of Dementia more than make up for that.
Paradox's Riot Squad is also an excellent album, with "Nothingness" standing out as one of the best metal songs of the 2000s. Great musicianship and a balanced melodic thrash that grips you from the first note. The Germans have done it again!
Black Sun Aeon's Darkness Walks Beside Me becomes this year's "Cherno" for me: excellent atmosphere, grandoise musicianship and a smooth-moving album is enough to declare this offering from the Finns one of the best of 2009.
After all these artful metal, Necrophobic's Death To All might leave a bitter taste in your ears, and that is exactly what the band is trying to achieve. Another death-black offering here, which derives its power from excellent riffing. Necrophobic reminds all the basics of this music.The Swedish satanic quintet ranks a few steps below the almighty Dissection, Behemoth and Watain. "Wings Of Death" is one of the best metal songs I've ever listened to. I hope they get the praise they deserve soon.
Heaven and Hell's The Devil You Know should be there in all personal favorite charts, as it captures perfectly the glory of the Dio years in Black Sabbath. Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice; those are the guys that we owe this music most. And they are all here in this album.
Gotthard's Need To Believe might be a weird choice for a guy who likes Behemoth, but this Swiss hard rock band reminds all how rock should be. They have never released a mediocre album and "Need To Believe" ranks among their best offerings.
Finally, Lamb of God’s Wrath deserves special mention. I don’t care whether this is their “weakest” record to date. This is Lamb of God. Enough said.

24 Kasım 2009 Salı

Overkill: What Thrash Metal Is Really About


Having listened over and over again to "Ironbound," the soon-to-be-released album by Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and co., I can safely say Overkill is back with a vengeance. Before somebody else let me say it that this album may be the best of the band since the unforgettable "Years of Decay."
So what makes Ironbound their best album for the past 20 years? Brilliant riffing? You bet. Trademark bass hammering by D.D. Verni? More than ever. Vocals oozing with power and rage? It's all there.
But for me, what makes Ironbound a classic even after a few listens is the thrash attitude, something that sadly seems lacking from today's resurgent thrash, even if these new bands prove over and over again with their musicianship that they are more than capable of carrying the genre forward.
The attitude reminded by Overkill is one that smells of backstreets and alleys, one that brilliantly catches the spontaneous rage of "the man on the street," something that builds up throughout all these brilliant songs and throws your soul to the wall unexpectedly. It is only this thrash attitude that can shout a "Fuck The Limit, Fuck The Sky!" (Give A Little) to the empty and loathsome consumerist slogans that try to dominate our lives.
"Ironbound" reminds all that thrash is much more than riffing and shredding.

Ironbound
Release date: Jan 2010
01. The Green And Black
02. Ironbound
03. Bring Me The Night
04. The Goal Is Your Soul
05. Give A Little
06. Endless War
07. The Head And Heart
08. In Vain
09. Killing For A Living
10. The SRC

19 Temmuz 2009 Pazar

An evening with Ashmedi of Melechesh

Ashmedi and Taylan having a good time at Dorock Bar.

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to meet Ashmedi, the brains behind Melechesh, probably the most original metal act of the 2000s.
For those who do not know, Melechesh, a Middle Eastern band, brilliantly infuses riff-rich black metal with the pain-filled music of the Middle East, with lyrics that reflect a keen interest on Sumeria and Mesopotamian mythology in general. Some call it “Mesopotamian black metal” while some say it is “Oriental black metal.” I say it is futile to try to describe this original music, as one may grasp layers and layers of various, even conflicting aspects in this band that performs complex extreme metal.
He told me the difficulty of creating a balance between the fluctuant Mideast Oriental music and the discipline metal requires, noting that one could be ridiculed for diluting metal or trying to make a buck out of Mideast music if the balance is not correct. The balance they found is, I believe, similar to what Sepultura has achieved with 'Roots' and 'Against,' an album that I still listen and discover new layers despite all negative criticism.
A part of Ashmedi’s origins are in Turkey, as his Armenian grandfathers probably fled to Syria from Turkey. A vital part of his family is in Jerusalem and most of his life was spent there. Now, he lives in Amsterdam in a situation that he calls “voluntary exile.”
The band’s latest offering, the brilliant Emissaries, is dated 2006, but it had so great impact on metal communities that the band still performs at various festivals. Ashmedi told me the album sold 25,000 copies worldwide, an astounding success for an extreme metal band.
Melechesh is now preparing its new album, hopefully to hit the shelves this year. Ashmedi gave no clue, but what I hope to listen is a deepening of Emissaries, which stands among my all-time favorite albums.
One cannot easily separate politics from the Middle East, but what I observed was Ashmedi is trying his best to do so. That is probably because as a musician he wishes to reach beyond borders and not alienate listeners. And that is understandable. When I asked him about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, for example, he said he “only counts the dead.” But then, it was also evident that he feels the disparity of power between parties and I noticed a slight but on-the-mark sympathy toward the Palestinian suffering.
Ashmedi stayed in Istanbul for nearly a week, but I could only see him once, due to pressing journalism business. Too bad. One day after we met and talked for a couple of hours at Dorock Bar, the main spot for Istanbul’s metalheads, he was at the “Jazz Stop,” jamming on stage with Harun Kolçak, a talented Turkish pop-jazz musician with whom Ashmedi talked over the net before. You can see what I – and you - missed here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibQYQ_q8cmQ
His mother had been telling Ashmedi that he should visit Istanbul one day, and he was proud to have done this at last. Having inhaled Istanbul once, I think he will have trouble containing himself not to come back. So, Ashmedi, hopefully I will see you next time! And don’t forget to lend an ear to Fragments of Unbecoming!


11 Nisan 2009 Cumartesi

A Fine Example of Doom Metal!



One gem from 2008 that I was able to notice only this year, thanks to a recommendation from a friend, is Finland's Kypck - read Kursk. One listen to their debut Cherno is all it takes to see that doom metal is alive and well, and has much more to offer than today's despicable "whining metal" - "ağlak metal," as we say in Turkish.

"Cherno" is doom at its best, with a great vocalist, a drummer that knows how to control his limbs and heavy, dark riffs. The second thing to be noticed has to be how the Russian language fits perfectly into doom metal. Yes, the band has opted for making music in Russian, and the album is a celebration of this originality. "Rozhdestvo v Murmanske," or "Christmas In Murmansk," for example, has to be one of the most powerful doom metal songs ever.
Having said that, the album is not "a gem from the past," as former Sentenced members remind all that this is a music of our age. I have no symphathy for today's "doom metal," to be frank, and Sentenced is arguably one of the bands that contributed much to that scene. So, here and there, one feels the "whining" that is absolutely absent from, say, Candlemass.
Dealing with and describing pain without complaining was - Paranoid - and is - Emperor of The Void - what gives its soul to doom metal.
Still, the "Sentenced effect," mostly observed in arpeggio parts and especially in the second half of the album, is not confusing or annoying, as it never rises above the general "doominess" of the music. It can even be seen as an original touch to doom metal, one that manages to display a fine act of balance.

On the conceptual level, Kypck is creating an atmosphere of the Soviet times and Soviet wars, which makes their music all the more interesting.

At first I thought Kypck was a Russian band whose members moved to Finland to "reach out to the West," and frankly was a bit concerned that the Finnish music scene would "soften them out." Apparently this was a misunderstanding, and there is nothing to lose for these fine musicians.
If you haven't listened to them yet, have a try at www.myspace.com/KYPCK. You won't be dissapointed.

14 Ocak 2009 Çarşamba

Turkish Band Rises From The Underground

Another article of mine, published in the Turkish Daily News, Oct. 31, 2007.

An experienced underground band, consisting of Turkish musicians, with countless concerts and festivals up their sleeve, 'False In Truth,' has finally unleashed their first album, 'Denial of Facts' after 13 years.

Imagine a band that has existed for no less than 13 years, but has not had the chance to release a single album, or even a demo, all these years. Impossible? Welcome to the Turkish metal scene!
That band is Istanbul's False In Truth, which executes old school death metal imbued with thrash metal. Founded in 1994 at the Istanbul Technical University, the original line-up has changed so much that founder-vocalist Toygar Naiboğlu might have a hard time counting them all. But all of their labor is felt in the long-awaited debut. Yes, Turkey's most experienced underground band, with countless concerts and festivals up their sleeve, have finally unleashed their first album, "Denial of Facts" (2007) to an indifferent world.

As the album reflects a band which has been on the scene for more than a decade, it will sound odd to even the most experienced metal ear: Moving from song to song, one remembers the "good old days," of the ‘80s, during which bands that inspired Naiboğlu such as Death and Kreator had released their rawest and most aggressive albums. Have a go at "Never Again," or "Death Side Story," for example. Then one feels the precision and maturity of the ‘90s in tracks such as Social Lies and the socially conscious "Puppets In The Sand," a furious mourning for Iraq (Greed in your eyes / Oil in your minds / Peace in your words / The mask of all your lies). With its catchy but powerful riffing, "Lost" embodies how the metal of the 2000's affected Turkey, a top-notch piece that has as much class as a, say, Lamb of God or Dew-Scented song.

The only area False In Truth have not ventured into is the intricacies of technical death, and for good reason: As a band that bases itself on the punk-influenced thrash of the ‘80s, Naiboğlu and co. like their sound raw and simple, their message of all-round skepticism as straightforward as it gets. Their legendary concerts echo this attitude, as when they can, they invite listeners to the stage to headbang with them, only to end in stagedives. Naiboğlu stagedives with them whenever possible. Their gala concert, held in the sweaty and stuffy atmosphere of Istanbul's Dorock Bar in October, testified to that, as "comrades" from other Turkish metal acts such as Catafalque and Murder King went onstage, took over the equipment and all played Six Feet Under's "Manipulation" while those in the crowd tried walking on the ceiling.

But, as said before, this is about attitude. "False In Truth" consists of fine musicians, and that shows in the album. Stage-master Toygun Naiboğlu on lead guitars, the grindcore-influenced Orçun Sartpolat on rhythm guitars, Fatih Balcı on bass and Özgür Erdovan on drums. Now that they have made their ultimate statement to the world, they plan to promote their album, tour wherever possible, and spread the word of "False In Truth."

10 Ocak 2009 Cumartesi

Wolverine Blues

An article of mine, published in the “Deli Kasap” Turkish webzine May 1, 2006.

Wolverine, the unyielding animal of the north and a symbol of freedom, was the subject of Entombed’s “Wolverine Blues” back in 1993. But as death metal became a toy of the “marketplace” and lived hell in those days, Wolverine had to suffer, too!

Do you know the wolverine? A rare animal of the northern lands, the wolverine has been a subject of intense interest for scientists, but nobody knows much, as it is hard to even spot it. “Think of a weasel,” says Ernest Thompson Seton. “Many of us know of this little devil of destruction, this small but cruel quintessence of courage. Weasel is the symbol of slaughter, restlessness and unrelentness. Think of that devilish brat of rage. Now, multiply it with 50. That is the wolverine.

Known for its extraordinary strength and ruthlessness, Inuits describe wolverine as the trickster. Indeed, wolverine knows very well when to act, when to retreat, how to react under given circumstances and when to be “invisible.” It is a good hunter, but in essence, wolverine is a scavenger.Under the harsh conditions of the icy north, it utilizes everything it can find. To find food, it is known to travel as long as 65 kilometers in one day. An adult wolverine may have a domination area of as big as 1,500 square-kilometers. Weighing at most 30 kilograms, the wolverine is observed to kill a deer; that is how strong it is.

Wolverine is a loner and a monogamist. Due to its precious fur, it faces the threat of extinction. It mostly lives in Alaska, Northern Canada, Siberia and Scandinavia. As an expert in survival, the wolverine is the stuff of legends. In native mythology, it is a cunning hero but also the link to the spiritual world. Inuits have countless tales on the wolverine. One tale depicts it as such: “Trickster is at one and the same time creator and destroyer, giver and negator, he who dupes others and who is always duped himself. He wills nothing consciously. At all times he is constrained to behave as he does from impulses over which he has no control. He knows neither good nor evil yet he is responsible for both. He possesses no values, moral or social, is at the mercy of his passions and appetites, yet through his actions all values come into being.” (Radin, 1956)


Features attributed to wolverine, such as loneliness, independence, survival and strength, were not of interest only to Inuits. Entombed, the European vanguard of the second wave of death metal and the originator of death’n’roll, named its 1993 album after it: “Wolverine Blues.”
The album is considered as a step away from the band’s death metal roots, an effort labeled by many as commercialization.But Entombed witnessed such events with “Wolverine Blues” that the young band firmly understood the market cares about neither wolverine nor death and exists only to maximize profits in defiance of young musicians, trampling upon their creativity.

“Wolverine Blues” is the first album that Entombed released after being “discovered” at the main market, the United States. Thus, the band realized a “dream,” by signing to Columbia/Sony through Earache Records. Not only Entombed, of course, companies such as Columbia and Geffen, increasingly aware of the “storm of death in the underground,” were busy binding small firms which have “knowledge of the scene,” such as Earache, to themselves. Carcass, Deicide, Morbid Angel and even Napalm Death: Bands that would not believe if they saw themselves earning money from this music in their dreams, were signing deals considered as record for such an extreme genre, being handed over to “best” producers and sent off to make new albums at “polished” studios, with budgets of tens of thousands of dollars. It was time to be spoilt for death metal!


The spoiling came to be a disaster for Wolverine Blues. As might be guessed, the band was telling the story of the wolverine in the title song:

I'm a misanthropical breed / insatiable in my need to feed
Utterly fearless / for your luscious flesh
I've got an appetite like a war / and I always hunger for more
Vicious mammal / the blood is my call
Pound for pound / I am the most vicious of all

To put a wolverine into a cage is “to put it to an end,” the band also tells in the song, an ironic prophecy for the then-future of death metal.
Drummer Nicke Andersson says the inspiration for the song came from a novel by James Ellroy, one that tells the tale of a murderer who identifies himself with the wolverine.
But the marketing team of Columbia was oblivious to either the lyrics nor the novel. Seeing the word “wolverine,” they, with the "creativity" of a marketer, remembered the Marvel Comics character. Why not sell Entombed music to kids through Wolverine?


Without bothering to even notify the band, Columbia gets in touch with Marvel, which in turn allows the Wolverine character to be used in the cover of the first edition of the album. Using the character to the promotional video “Wolverine Blues” also gets the nod.
After learning what has happened, Andersson says it was as if “a tank had rolled over them.” (Choosing Death, Albert Mudrian, pg. 191) “We could not say anything,” he says. “None of us had even read that comic. But they had this grand marketing idea. We could only ask, ‘Are you sure it is a good idea?’ "
Thus, Wolverine Blues meets the listener with a campaign that has nothing to do with its idea and an American-style parody of a video.

“Wolverine Blues” is the first important death metal album after the genre is “discovered” by the market. Then comes “Heartwork” by Carcass. Both albums infuriate the fanbase of the bands. Though far away from the “market ear,” Wolverine Blues is a mid-tempo “death’n’roll” album closer to influences of punk.

Sony/Columbia had “bought” many bands after they sold tens of thousands of albums through a couple of days recording in shitty studios and now, it was expecting much more from Entombed. The “marketer mind” is recognizable: Here is a talented band that created its own fan base, a band whose name is circulating in the underground. Imagine the success when such a band gets the backing from a giant company!

But the result was far from that. Two years after its launch, Wolverine Blues stood at 40,000, while Columbia was expecting sales surpassing 100,000. The same was also true for Carcass and Napalm Death albums.
To tell the truth, Wolverine Blues is a damn good piece of music. But it also represents a radical departure from Entombed’s previous style.
So, was this departure a natural outcome of the band’s internal dynamics and development? Entombed members say they had more or less prepared the album before the Sony deal.
But according to the book “Choosing Death,” Columbia manager Jim Welch had pressured Entombed and Carcass to “write a song that could be played on radio.” (pg. 192)

As the company could not reach the sales target, Entombed’s contract was canceled. In 1996, the band had to sign a bad deal with East/West Records. A year later, it passed on to UK’s Music For Nations.
Gathering clouds over the band caused founding member Nicke Andersson to call it quits. In 1997, Andersson closed the Entombed book and with garage-rock band The Hellacopters, went on creating music.

Death bands that shook the world in early ‘90s had to go through similar things. As the fan base increasingly felt death was “being commercialized,” legendary bands fell from grace. Meanwhile, a new genre, claiming to be the “real underground” was gathering speed. But black metal’s commercialization less than a decade later would be with much curious antics and go much deeper.

Who is left standing? To give Entombed credit, it continues to make great music: Just lend an ear to Serpent Saints (2007). Napalm Death also comes to mind. Under intense market pressure, Napalm Death had entered the studio Oct. 1993 and left it May 1994 with its “most commercial” album, “Fear, Emptiness, Despair.”
The band retaliated six years later, with the aptly-titled “Enemy of The Music Business” and continues to make uncompromising music.
What also stand from those days are the words of Jo Bench, the Bolt Thrower bassist. “We thought going under the management of Columbia was a death kiss for Earache. We were happy of not being a part of all this. When big companies enter a genre, they generally kill it and get out. But they could not drag Bolt Thrower.” (Choosing Death, pg. 190)

7 Ocak 2009 Çarşamba

Has album become a dying god?

Scene from the "A Dying God Coming Into Human Flesh" video, Celtic Frost


Just had a look at today's Wall Street Journal and read a story on Apple's iTunes. To cut a long story short, Apple is changing its "song selling" strategy to one of three-tiered pricing: Instead of the current 99 cents, songs will cost 69 cents, 99 cents or $1.29.
So, who is going to decide on how much a song is worth? The answer is the "invisible hand" of the so-called "free market," of course. Quoting WSJ: "... people familiar with the matter said the most sought-after-songs, which generate most of the sales on the service, will likely cost $1.29."
Now, iTunes, though still alien to many metalheads that like to feel and touch their music, is not a joke. It has sold 6 billion songs since 2003. All in all, digital music retailers in the US sold more than 1 billion songs last year alone.

The real question here is, are users downloading albums or songs? As the "product" is presented as a song, it is a safe bet to assume that individual "songs" are being downloaded and listened, who would want to download those "fillers" instead of purchasing an extra single from whatever band?

Thus, atomization, the trademark of capitalist mass culture, has started working its way into albums themselves. (Another disturbing sign would be that cute "Shuffle" button at your WinAmp, or that ominous iPod Shuffle device.) Cultural atomization presents "standardized, formulaic and repetitive" products into the "market," destroying any traces of authenticity or originality. That is only natural, because the driving force behind this "culture" is not the creation of culture, but the creation of "marketable" culture.

Having done a small Googling on the issue, I am pleased to see there are others out there who are worried. One asks: "Does the 'concept album' (aka The Who’s Tommy and Quadrophenia; Pink Floyd’s The Wall, etc.) ever stand a chance of resurfacing? Will more artists move to 'unit marketing' where they push the smallest possible pieces of content into a marketplace that mixes, matches, and rearranges (even more so that today)?" Another one gazes to a key point: "... there is a perceived notion that music criticism is no longer necessary." And Chuck Klosterman is really, really pessimistic: "… Chinese Democracy is (pretty much) the last Old Media album we’ll ever contemplate in this context - it’s the last album that will be marketed as a collection of autonomous-but-connected songs, the last album that will be absorbed as a static manifestation of who the band supposedly is, and the last album that will matter more as a physical object than as an Internet sound file."

The moral of the story comes from a blogger at The Independent:
"Our listening habits have effectively become one long, self-created compilation album. Whereas in the past you might listen to an album and establish which are your favourite tracks, your less favourite ones might well become favourites later on, because you'd listen to the album as a unit. No longer; we can easily discard the tracks we don't want - and, indeed, with iTunes or illegal downloads, never have to buy them in the first place. So the tracks we end up liking are informed by the judgement of others."

Having said all these, metal is still far away from the threat and if any genre is to protect its integrity, that would be metal. And for two reasons: First, the "marketability" is relatively low and second, its listeners are much better armed, either by instinct or by knowledge or by both, against the "invisible hand."
Still, something has to be done against the atomization, the fragmentation of music, through dismantling the concept of album itself. I would say that first the issue and the severity of it should be discussed and assessed. I hope such a platform to debate this mass culture of bastardization will be formed, by musicians in the first place, as the threat gets more visible.

Until then, we listeners should at least "ban" that shuffle button and listen our music the way it is meant to be listened. I, for one, will start with the mighty Dreamweaver!