Tampa rocks heavy metal

If a double bass kick assaulting your solar plexus doesn't soothe you, if a hardcore riff throbbing in your ears doesn't hurt so good, if a synchronized melee does not entice you to join, read no further.

In the early days, the Tampa area was to metal what the Bronx was to hip hop. Back in the early 80s, when thrash was still in full swing, a Brandon band named Nasty Savage was busy melting faces while their front man was smashing television sets over his head. Nasty Savage gained enough attention to sign with the Metal Blade record label, which at the time was working with such legends as Metallica and Slayer, then each only four years old.

Death, a band out of Orlando, began playing Tampa shows with Nasty Savage about the same time, improving on their sound by making it heavier and darker: Death's front man has since been hailed as the "Father of Death Metal."

Younger local bands by the names of Morbid Angel and Obituary shortly joined the emerging scene, followed a few years later by the likes of Deicide.

Temple Terrace recording studio Morrisound rose to prominence by learning how to tame the chaotic sound of each of these bands. Death metal band Cannibal Corpse even moved to the Tampa area from New York to enjoy the higher production quality. Co-founder Tom Morris was quoted to have said, "It was fast everything and loud everything ... there is no space, notes are everywhere."

This brings to mind the story of Mozart's The Abduction from the Seraglio. It was commissioned by Emperor Joseph II, but upon hearing it, he said, "That is too fine for my ears. There are too many notes." Mozart is said to have replied, "There are just as many notes as there should be."

In fact, a 2008 study by Professor Adrian North of Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University found that fans of classical music and heavy metal share strikingly similar personality traits, that "both were more creative than other people, both were not terribly outgoing and they were also quite at ease." That explains quite strikingly how me and my father (professor Skinner, if you weren't aware) are related. "There's also a sense of theatre which is common with both groups," said North. "For heavy metal bands it's about putting on a show."

Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Morbid Angel, Obituary, and Death occupy five of the six top spots for all-time best-selling death metal bands in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. Presumably, each of them put on quite the show during the golden era of Tampa hardcore death metal.

Like all good things, the era came to a close with the advent of grunge in the 90s, and the division of the scene into several subgenres.

Many of the local legends are still touring, however, and will occasionally stop by to play a gig. According to Mike, a member of State Theatre's security personnel for seventeen years, turnout for such events is still heavy. Everyone tries to get in for free because they "know the band."

Outside of such reunions, the area metal scene has died down considerably in recent years. Shows such as the Nov. 26 Unearth, Chimaira, and Skeletonwitch concert may draw crowds of roughly two hundred, compared to upwards of seven hundred for bigger names like Deicide. Mike hypothesized that some bands just tour too often and come through playing the same set every time, but he also blamed the local economy over the past eight years or so.

I caught up with metalcore band Darkest Hour when they stopped by Dec. 7 of last year with Periphery, Veil of Maya, and Revocation. Guitarist Mike Schleibaum similarly described the area as economically "kind of beat-up" as compared to other areas like Orlando or Fort Lauderdale.  After fifteen years of touring, he says he's seen "stores go in and out of business" and remarked that there is "too much real estate and not enough jobs" here. He concluded, "these people love metal, they love music, but there's not a lot of people with a lot of money." Vocalist John Henry said of the glory days of Tampa metal, it's "ancient history at this point."

I am happy to report, however, that despite the dismal support, one can still find quality metal gigs passing through semi-regularly. The Nov. 26 concert in particular was an admirable all-around medley of metalcore, black metal, deathcore, and groove metal, all subgenres with stylistic origins in the death and thrash metal of the 80's. There was a health dose of breakdowns conducive to mosh pits, including one which got out of hand during Unearth's "Endless," necessitating the forcible extrication of a pair of overly violent rabble rousers.

Chimaira's drummer,Austin D'Amond, performed an extended drum solo in the middle of their set, one of the best I've heard. Vocalist Mark Hunter varied between screaming the chorus "I hate everyone" from their single "Pure Hatred," to proclaiming in between songs, "they say LSD causes insanity in those who are not on it."

Such is often the demeanor of metal practitioners I have found: a balance between the extreme and the fun. In between songs and sets they played sections of songs like the Chicken Dance, Cha Cha Slide, and "If you're happy and you know it. "Unearth keyboardist John "Slo" Maggard wore a t-shirt with a built-in equalizer that reacted to the songs he played.

If you are already a metalhead, or have otherwise continued reading despite my suggestion and you perhaps wish to adopt a new, acquired taste in music, there are a few shows coming up which I would recommend taking a look at.

Tuesday, Jan. 17, Swedish melodic death metal band In Flames, who influenced both Darkest Hour and Unearth, will play at The Ritz in Ybor with Trivium, Veil of Maya, and Kyng. Tickets are $28.50 and doors are 7:30. That Sunday, Jan. 22, metalcore act August Burns Red also arrives at The Ritz with Silverstein, Texas in July, and Letlive. Tickets are $21.50 and doors are 7:00.