I don't know if this was an aberration or the vanguard of a new movement in heavy metal, but my weekly dive into SiriusXM's Liquid Metal channel delivered what may be a chilling look at the form's future. (For those outside the in-crowd, Liquid Metal plays the most volcanic, cutting edge, nihilistic types of metal, where every song sounds like it was written by a guy who just found out his best friend is banging his wife.)
While what I heard may have been cutting edge by Liquid Metal standards, it was anything but volcanic and nihilistic. The first tune featured an easy bop/jazz interlude in the middle of generic semi-trash, which was followed by a tune best described as The National with slightly crunchy guitars. For song three there was plenty of discursive, prog noodling before the guitars finally kicked in at industrial levels and the man started screaming. Then I was home. For those keeping score, that's 2.5 out of three songs that diverged sharply from the Bellevue madness that traditionally informs the playlist - and don't forget that three's a trend.
Prior to this, the worst thing about Liquid Metal was its occasional showcasing of obscure amalgamations of the genre; e.g., an hour featuring the best of Manitoba's heavy metal scene. (Let's stick to the hits, guys!) But that's forgivable in the sense that it seeds future material for the station. But if my 15 minutes were any indication, unborn generations of metal fans may hear something decidedly less metal.
UPDATE (5/23/34): Took another crack at Liquid Metal and all was as it should be for a minute - crunching guitars, screaming - until some Enya type provided an into the mists of Avalon interlude with all the echo and synth that implies. I fear the worst!
Liquid Metal stalwart Cannibal Corpse delivering bodies.
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