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This one hurts me dearly. This is the second time KATATONIA have been put on trial, here. Are they secretly the Melania Trump of metal bands? Ugh, nearly puked just now. Anywho, let’s do what must be done.

Take a listen to this sound bite and let me know which category you think this example falls into:

  1. This is a rip-off! Some bastard stole some other bastard’s jam!
  2. This is an homage. This is too similar. The artist is merely giving a wink and nod to a predecessor.
  3. This is a coincidence. Louis Daguerre and Henry Fox both invented photography independent of each other, after all. There are only so many ways to make music.
  4. This is an accident. Yeah, it’s probably inspired by the older piece, but they probably didn’t even realize it.
  5. You are smoking. Don’t even see it.

GODSMACK – “Bad Religion” vs. KATATONIA – “The Night Subscriber” (to Godsmack Ideas magazine, apparently)

Okay. That’s over with. It had to be done, and if you don’t like it, you can get back! Keep away from me! Better fuckin’ go away! I stand alone, you greedy little…baaaaaaabbbbbbyyyy. I’m doing the best that I can. I’m doing the best I ever did, frankly.

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5. MASTODON – Hushed and Grim

Overall, a nicely groovy, proggier Mastodon album. It definitely has it’s blemishes, like the country westerny parts of “The Beast” that really bother me, but even that track is largely redeemable. Unfortunately, too much of Grim drags or sounds too domestic to really be special. I find myself skipping a lot of sections. You’ve got 15 tracks on there, and some of them aren’t good, or are half good. Do some editing. I feel like they are casting too wide of a net here, trying to appeal to people who aren’t me. The nerve. It’s good, overall, though.

Favorite Track: “Eyes of Serpents”

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With the overwhelming success of 2018’s Where Owls Know My Name, Pennyslvania’s Rivers of Nihil could not have set expectations much higher for a subsequent release. 2021’s The Work proves to be an extremely polarizing album—one which will meet those expectations for some and fall far short for others.

The album is unique in its focus on both simple, clean interludes and extremely avant garde, industrial experimentation. The problem is, both styles miss the mark, and often come off pretentious, relying on mixing techniques and dense layering to create new sounds where inspired melodies might have been. Instead, we are lost in a labyrinth of casual stoner rock and simple, droning riffs that lack the melodic spine that carried Owls so confidently. Though the album is not without its gems, even the more realized tracks feel lost amongst the rest. The one consistent element of the album is the lyrical theme, which we are incessantly badgered with. As a whole, the album is vexing in that it is either overly ambitious, or is far too lazy, with experimentation generating both the truly awesome as well as pitifully dull.

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Noticed this immediately on my first listen. I’ve been wondering if anyone else has.

Take a listen to this sound bite and let me know which category you think this example falls into:

  1. This is a rip-off! Some bastard stole some other bastard’s jam!
  2. This is an homage. This is too similar. The artist is merely giving a wink and nod to a predecessor.
  3. This is a coincidence. Louis Daguerre and Henry Fox both invented photography independent of each other, after all. There are only so many ways to make music.
  4. This is an accident. Yeah, it’s probably inspired by the older piece, but they probably didn’t even realize it.
  5. You are smoking. Don’t even see it.

KANSAS – “Carry on My Wayward Son” vs. RIVERS OF NIHIL – “Subtle Change”

Enjoy this one, and don’t forget to smash that like button!

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This is surely the most famous controversy I’ve entertained thus far. People outside my circle have noticed and commented on this before. But I definitely think it’s worth exploring even more.

Take a listen to this sound bite and let me know which category you think this example falls into:

  1. This is a rip-off! Some bastard stole some other bastard’s jam!
  2. This is an homage. This is too similar. The artist is merely giving a wink and nod to a predecessor.
  3. This is a coincidence. Louis Daguerre and Henry Fox both invented photography independent of each other, after all. There are only so many ways to make music.
  4. This is an accident. Yeah, it’s probably inspired by the older piece, but they probably didn’t even realize it.
  5. You are smoking. Don’t even see it.

LED ZEPPELIN – “Kashmir” vs. COHEED AND CAMBRIA – “Welcome Home”

Tell me what you think, and then I’ll drop my two cents in the comments.

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Okay, maybe not the most serious offering here, but we do this for the fun, right?

Take a listen to this track, and let me know which category you think this example falls into:

  1. This is a rip-off! Some bastard stole some other bastard’s jam!
  2. This is an homage. This is too similar. The artist is merely giving a wink and nod to a predecessor.
  3. This is a coincidence. Louis Daguerre and Henry Fox both invented photography independent of each other, after all. There are only so many ways to make music.
  4. This is an accident. Yeah, it’s probably inspired by the older piece, but they probably didn’t even realize it.
  5. You are smoking. Don’t even see it.

DEVIN TOWNSEND – “Ziltoidia Attaxx” vs. CHAOS DIVINE – “False Flags”