Under-rated bands....

[Liam]

Ok, firstly, I wanna point out that I'd prefer if people didn't just post any random/underground band, and be like "zOMG UNDERATED", as thats not the point of this. Also, can you post reasons, as I would like to get some discussion going.

So, I was planning to do this for a small while, and thought I may as well now. What bands do you feel have been under-rated, relevant to maybe the genre they were in, the time they were around, whatever other external factors you can think of? I mean, bands that had decent exposure, but still had the right attributes to do better, or just didn't get the same rub in retrospect as some other bands did at the time.

My 3 examples:

Faith No More

Fair enough, a big band in its time, and one that everyone and thier grandmas namecheck as an influence these days. But still, they seem to be a band that still aren't as big NOW as they could/should be. A lot of people who find FNM, find them through listening to bands who then cite FNM as an influence, but they don't usually get bandied about as how important they were to music (IMO) at the time they were around. It still amazes me a little how many people who like late 90's alt music haven't heard much FNM at all.

Stone Temple Pilots

Able to do funky songs, rock songs, chilled songs, a bit of everything, STP unfortunately got sucked into the grunge genre, and when the grunge genre died, were then seen seemingly as a grunge knock-off. This tag under-mined what, although unspectacular in places, was a talented band, who probably deserved more than they have. Again, I am amazed by the amount of fans of a lot of Post-Grunge bands who haven't heard much STP.

Hundred Reasons

Maybe a slightly weird choice for some, but I think that if Hundred Reasons had released "Ideas Above Our Station" about 3 years later, when the UK Indie/Rock boom was taking place (i.e. now), they'd be oe of the biggest bands in the UK. However, it was probably a case of coming along at the wrong time, and Hundred Reasons now find themselves just another band, having peaked on that first album, seemingly. If they had been lucky enough to get the timing right, they easily had the album to run rings around other UK indie/rock bands at the moment, even though the UK scene is apparently in a "golden" age for it. Shame, really. I highly recommend the Ideas Above Our Station album.

So, who does EWB think is under-rated?

[Skummy]

Sonic Youth

They basically created "alternative rock" as it is today. Them signing to Geffen lead to the Pixies, Nirvana et al getting major label deals...and the rest is history.

[Evil Chase K]

EDIT: Added reasons in since I had the time to now.

Corrosion Of Conformity

Have been around about 20 years and have lead the charge for hardcore music, and now on to southern/stoner metal. Just a terrific band that doesn't get any mainstream press.

Iced Earth

Some of the best metal music being made today. Jon Schaffer has influenced quite a few bands in the metal community.

Faith No More

Very influential. And just a great band that usually gets overlooked.

NIGHTWISH

Not real well known (at least here), but great nonetheless.

THE CLARKS

They're a great rock band from Pittsburgh that not many have heard of. They're huge here and sell out arenas in the area. They have intelligent lyrics, great vocal melodies, and a nice mix of a pop/rock sound mixed with straight up Steel City rock-n-roll made famous by the Jaggerz, Donnie Iris, and Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers.

Brand New Sin

No one blends southern rock and heavy metal as well as BNS (except COC, but they're not so much Southern rock anymore.) IMO, BNS should be way bigger than they are.

Edited October 1, 2005 by SkinMySenses

[Skummy]

NIGHTWISH

I wouldn't say Nightwish are under-rated AT ALL. At least not over here, as they get constant coverage in all the mainstream metal magazines, and pretty much any metal fan will have heard of them.

If you want under-rated, try Within Temptation, who pretty much created that genre, and were the precursor to Nightwish. Mother Earth was Nightwish-lite, The Silent Force is only a bit better, but track down Enter, it's one of the best metal albums of recent years.

[Liam]

Corrosion Of Conformity

Iced Earth

Faith No More

NIGHTWISH

Nevermore

THE CLARKS

Brand New Sin

Also, can you post reasons, as I would like to get some discussion going

So yeah, any reasons, other than "cos I think so", I guess?

[Turbo Yannis]

I know alot of people wil disagree with me here...

CKY

I know that they're hardly flavour of the month with some people here, but I don't think they get the credit they deserve. They're albums aren't to everyone's taste, but they're not meant to be. They try their best to make sure that everyone of their fans gets their moneys worth with CD, DVD and especially live shows. You need to see CKY live to really appreciate what they do. They're brilliant live and always put in 110%

[zero]

I can definitely give you Faith No More, but STP? STP were huge, and while they were first considered nothing but Pearl Jam ripoffs, STP actually went on to surpass them. Just because a lot of younger folks don't know them today doesn't make them underrated. A lot of younger kids today don't know who Frank Sinatra is, but that doesn't make him underrated.

And as for CKY, I wouldn't call them underrated either. They're a niche band, and they have their diehard fanbase. I'd compare them to ICP, not in talent, because CKY far surpasses those clowns (no pun intended), but in just their acceptance in the music world. They're on the fringe, but their small fanbase is one of the most devoted out there.

As for my underrated bands, here we go:

Garbage

Certainly not in Europe, they're huge there. But in the States, Shirley and the boys never quite crossed that upper echelon despite being one of the greatest bands on Earth. On top of the fact they don't really get the credit they deserve; they're always there when Alt Rock is in desperate need and they swoop in and save it. Meanwhile, the floodgates open for other bands who become huge and Garbage just keeps on rocking without really getting the credit. Just take a look at it, Grunge was pretty much dead and rock music was in this weird spot where everyone was just throwing whatever at the wall to see what would stick. Garbage comes out in 95 and certainly changed the way I looked at music, as well as many others. But again, they kinda get lost in the shuffle when the Alt Rock Revival really kicks in. Fast-forward to 98 when the genre was hurting again, and Garbage releases V2.0 and then shortly after we have another Rock Revival. Garbage almost got into that upper echelon around this time because mainstream radio took ahold of "Special" and ran with it. Unfortunately, they fell victim to mainstream pop radio bullshit and were cast aside. Now, I'm not saying Garbage is responsible for the Rock Revival each time, I'm just saying they're always one of the first rocks bands out of the gate with something new and fresh right before we hit the so-called revival period. They kind of get the audience ready for the next big thing, and unfortunately that's never been them, even though they usually are far better than whatever takes that title.

KMFDM

Industrial never really hit the mainstream outside of Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, and to a much lesser extent, Rammstein and Ministry, but KMFDM really should have hit it big. They were just so different, so unique, and saying things that no one else was saying. It really looked like they were going to break through with "Drug Against War," but they just never really hit it that big. It's a damn shame too because to this day, they're still one of the hardest rocking bands out there and I hardly see anyone who knows who the hell they are.

Auf der Maur

Melissa Auf der Maur has been around for quite some time, playing with Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins, yet her solo project got very little attention. What makes this even more offensive is the fact that her debut record was easily better than anything else that came out in 2004. Hopefully her next record will do better and maybe listeners will be ready for it this time.

[Ash J. Williams]

Fear Factory

Fear Factory invented the hard/clean vocal styles that are used by SO many bands today, and not nearly half as effective. So, if you like Mudvayne, Slipknot or anything like that, do yourself a favor and get "Demanufacture", "Obsolete" or "Archetype" next time your at a CD store.

[Disengager]

And as for CKY, I wouldn't call them underrated either. They're a niche band, and they have their diehard fanbase. I'd compare them to ICP, not in talent, because CKY far surpasses those clowns (no pun intended), but in just their acceptance in the music world. They're on the fringe, but their small fanbase is one of the most devoted out there.

[Chris the Human]

Dude, Nightwish are overrated, if anything. Far from underrated. I hear about them everytime I talk to a semi-goth which, admittedly, is my own fault.

[tristy]

Portishead:

When you say trip-hop to someone, usually you get Massive Attack or The Sneaker Pimps in response. Portishead is everything The Sneaker Pimps are, and more. Beth Gibbons' voice is perhaps the most crushingly emotional and beautiful voice I've heard since... well, I don't know when, but that's not the point. They deserve to be bigger than their peers, in my opinion. I know Portishead is probably well known, but they don't get near as enough credit for being a solid band as they should. It's a shame too. Pick up the new album when it's released, too.

Cave In:

Their early sound was out-there space rock (whatever, that's how I think of it), but recently they changed up their sound to get to a wider auidence. And it worked, since I first saw Cave In on FUSE/Much Music USA in, I'd say 2003 with their video for "Anchor". A really good band who's recent work is just as good as their earlier work, which is rare.

I so knew if Zero came in here, he'd list Garbage. I just knew it.

Also, it's funny because KMFDM was on a Nine Inch Nails tribute album. Hahaha.

Edited September 30, 2005 by Tristakushi

[triplexpac]

I'll say Placebo. I'm not sure how big they actually got, but I know I've only heard Every Me Every You and Pure Morning in the media. I think the band is really solid, but slipped through the cracks.

Oh, and Alice in Chains. I've always thought they were better than Nirvana, but people seem to have forgotten about them.

Edited September 30, 2005 by triplexpac

[Guest bukkake]

Faith No More - Influencin' yo moms. The Papa Roach ho tries to sound like Patton.

Alice In Chains - Always overshadowed by shitty Nirvana.

Primus - Everyone's opinion on Primus is always, "HUH WHAT. WHAT ARE THESE LYRICS I DONT LIKE HIS VOICE WTH THIS SUX" Primus is good for you, whore.

[VerbalPuke]

Nomeansno - They've been around since the late 70s, and are as talented as any band you'll ever hear. Despite all that, they've never really recieved any mainstream recognition. They have a rabidly loyal fanbase, but it seems that outside of their fanbase, people will not go out of their way to give these guys a listen. Every person I have ever played these guys for have been extremely impressed with them. Keep in mind I have played these guys for everybody I've come into contact with, be it best friends, co-workers, or even my dear old dad who is a huge fan of this group now. Their albums aren't just pieces of music, but each song feels like an epic story, and each song can convey such a powerful emotion be it anger, lust, greed, happiness, depression, etc.

Link Wray and his Wraymen - I don't think alot of people realize that this guy pretty much invented the power chord. I also don't think people realize what a huge impact he had on later genre's like heavy metal and punk rock. Pete Townshend of the Who credits Link as being one of his major influences when pertaining to his decision to picking up the guitar. Link was breaking barriers with rock music, at a time when rock music was considered "safe". He may be the only artist that had his music deemed to lewd for public airwaves, despite having NO LYRICS. I think alot of people also overlook the fact that "Rumble" and "Ace of Spades" were big parts of the "Pulp Fiction" soundtrack.

The Saints - When people think of 77 style punk, they're usually quick to name off The Sex Pistols, Ramones, Dead Boys, The Damned, or Johnny Thunders. Most people forget about a group from Austrailia that were just as good as any of those bands, maybe better. They unfortunately never seem to get the same amount of recognition as the other bands mentioned. These guys really helped kickstart an amazing punk scene in Austrailia (which in itself deserves an article on how underrated it was with all the great bands that were produced...I digress) with their raw ass rock and roll. They may not appeal to every bit of the masses (which is a god damn shame) but for those that may have a deeper appreciation of punk rock, they are well worth a listen.

Unsane - Guitars that resembled the buzz of a chainsaw, punishing drums, and violent lyrics made these New York rockers a sound to behold. Their only mainstream success came in the form of the song "Scrape", which some only remember as the MTV video with the "Skateboarders falling and hurting themselves". Make no mistake, these guys are much better than their MTV status would indicate. Their songs hit hard, and brutalize your ear drums in a sort of pleasing way. They are really a hard group to label, they are probably closer to being a heavy metal group, but they really do not fit into any of the conventional metal molds. They are truely a unique band, and I have only heard one band that bears any sort of similarity to them, that band being the Cutthroats 9 who are led by the same lead singer (Chris Spencer). The closest I can get to describing them is perhaps a blend of hardcore and metal, but nothing even closely resembling crap like Grindcore, Noisecore, or any other bullshit core you want to throw on a musical genre.

[gunnar hendershow]

KMFDM

Industrial never really hit the mainstream outside of Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, and to a much lesser extent, Rammstein and Ministry, but KMFDM really should have hit it big. They were just so different, so unique, and saying things that no one else was saying. It really looked like they were going to break through with "Drug Against War," but they just never really hit it that big. It's a damn shame too because to this day, they're still one of the hardest rocking bands out there and I hardly see anyone who knows who the hell they are.

Nightwish are anything but underrated. Outside of the U.S. they are quite big.

Fear Factory

Fear Factory invented the hard/clean vocal styles that are used by SO many bands today, and not nearly half as effective. So, if you like Mudvayne, Slipknot or anything like that, do yourself a favor and get "Demanufacture", "Obsolete" or "Archetype" next time your at a CD store.

They weren't the first. They were the first to really get big though.

[Toe]

I'd also say CKY. They are my absolute favorite band, own every CD and I got the Videos DVD the day it was released.....I skipped school to get it. A lot of people associate the band too closely to Bam Margera and Jackass, and they are labelled as "skate punks" or "the Jackass band". Most people won't listen to them at all, I know this from experience, just because of that. But, they are not a punk band. They are rock. They are banned from Rolling Stone magazine and rarely get any press, but they are amazing live ( Toronto, Sept 2nd was the best day of my life ) and have diehard fans ( the CKY Alliance ).

[zero]

I so knew if Zero came in here, he'd list Garbage. I just knew it.

Yeah, who woulda guessed that?

To compare CKY to ICP is absurd, as cKy isn't a gimmicky band, wheras ICP would be nothing without the whole clown gimmick.

Totally not what I was saying, as I pointed out when I first said it. I was comparing them based on rabid fanbases alone, gimmicks and talent had nothing to do with it.

[RPS]

Elliot Smith - for the simple fact he got robbed of the Grammy, plus he crafted some damn good songs that got put in a lot of good movies [Good Will Hunting, Royal Tenenbaums, and now Thumbsucker]. I think added to the fact that after his death he never really got nearly the coverage he deserved really adds to my decision.

[Disengager]

Totally not what I was saying, as I pointed out when I first said it. I was comparing them based on rabid fanbases alone, gimmicks and talent had nothing to do with it.

[GA!]

Fozzy - I'm surprised they're not huge due to Jericho's nametag. Musically, they're great, but they are seriously underrated thanks to how the WWE writing team have put ideas into screaming girls and wiggers' heads (yes, I read the Raw thread) that Fozzy are bad.

Supergrass - Their new material has been excellent, unfortunately people can only remember the days of 'Alright', probably because their newest material - especially 'St Petersburg' has hardly gotten any media coverage.

Also, there are bands that are so hated by people and critics and get no media coverage that they're nothing but underrated due to exactly that. Limp Bizkit is a good example of that these days. Just thought I'd get that note in.