"Trendy" thrash continued

As I surfed around the internet for those expressing condescending language about the new thrash bands being nothing but a bunch of bandwagon-jumping scenesters, I didn't have to look far.

I came across this post over at Yahoo Answers titled Is the new school thrash movement nothing but a worthless trend?

Click on the above link, read it, and then come back here.

Ready? Cool. I would like to go over a few points here.

"…the problem I find with them is that they lack the same 'passion'. Are they really concerned about war or interested in the occult and politics or are they just copying the lyrics they heard on their dad's Nuclear Assault and Slayer records?"

Why wouldn't the young bands have concerns about war or politics? Did war and politics disappear? We had the cold war in the 80s, and today we have concerns with the Middle East, North Korea, China, Russia and Venezuela, just to name a few. We have a divided country in the US, with the left and right wingers tearing into each other. Political strife can be found in all parts of the world, so if you're worried
about the passion that drives the music, please don't concern yourself.

However, let's pretend that most thrash band members haven't a clue about war and politics. Well then, I could not care less if they are copying lyrical ideas from Nuclear Assault or Slayer. Thrash metal is what the new guys grew up on, so if they are to emulate anyone, it is sure to be their idols. Their passion stems from their love, knowledge and obsession with thrash metal. Good enough for me.

"Usually, the bands' riffs have nothing new, they have no statement to make, nothing to say, nothing to be riled up against. The mainstream metal community whole heartedly accepts them and everything is just too easy."

Again, how do we really know where a certain band's passion lies? What make someone think the new bands have nothing to say? That makes no sense, considering such a statement has no real frame of reference nor can it be proven.

Sure, maybe themes of war, religion and politics are an old hat for folks like me, but consider your typical 16 year-old who did not grow up on old school thrash. This stuff is fresh to them. It is fresh for the young bands writing about these topics for the first time.

"To me, a lot of the newer bands seem to be playing thrash now simply because it's completely acceptable. I mean, where were these guys 10 years ago when thrash was in the pits?"

Completely acceptable?? To who?? Is that because Overkill's Ironbound sold over 5,000,000 copies? Is it because Toxic Holocaust has Bruce Dickinson fly them around in their own private jet? The previous statement that says, "…everything is just too easy" is simply ridiculous.

Even some dude over at the TshirtSlayer forum is grasping at straws when he says the following about the band Lich King: "I think Lich King is a trend band cashing in on "Thrash is back" movement going on."

Cashing in. Right. I'm sure the guys in Lich King secretly hate thrash, but they have essentially won the freaking lottery by playing music that is part of such a worldwide cash-grab phenomenon. What sell out scenesters!

I've said it before that underground thrash is not a bread winner, and those who play it do so out of love and passion for the music. If a band can break out and make a comfortable living creating kick-ass music, then more power to them, but to call them trendy kids who play thrash simply to fit in and be cool is almost an insult.

As to where were the new wave thrash bands 10 years ago? They were between 8 to 12 years old, listening to old-school thrash as fuel to rise up a decade later and kick our asses with killer new music!

Amen!