Good day everyone and welcome to the first installment of Battle of the Bands! This is planned to be a series of articles pitting various genres against each other in no-chords barred match ups. We will look at various groups who started the genre and those that carried the torch. We will define aspects of the music these groups have written and how they perform it, as well as some of the reactions they have garnered.

In this installment, we look at two genres from the 1980's that have quite a few similarities and many differences. These genres are affectionately known as "Thrash" and "Hair" Metal. Each had it's own flagship artists and groups; many of which still enjoy immense popularity today.

In the world of hard-hitting, beer-chugging thrash metal we have the Big 4: Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax. These are the bands that pioneered fast, often galloping style riffs intertwined with lightning-fast guitar solos and drum beats to match. These kids loved the heavy metal of the 1970's; the Black Sabbath's, the Thin Lizzy's, the Deep Purple's and so on. Although these were all great bands and the music was and still is some of the best around, in time everything goes stale. The generation that had feasted on that music as kids could now play instruments of their own and were getting bored with the slow, gloomy riffs.  That's where the Big 4 kicks in.  These bands burst onto the scene around 1981-82 (except for Megadeth who followed in 1986.) The themes of the songs were often about Satan,  death, destruction or deeper political issues.  A lot of this was shock value to rebel against the staunch households ans societies these teens grew up in.  This genre of music caught on quickly, sweeping North America and the world in just a few short years. Of course, as with everything; once it gets popular, more and more people take notice and add their own flavour to the pot. 

Now, the brutality of thrash was not for everyone, and around the mid-eighties it started to change.  With the rise in popularity of metal in general, record execs were looking for more "user-friendly" forms of metal.  One that caught on was a lighter version of what these boys had been doing, which came to be known as "hair" metal.  This was marketed to radio and MTV, with lyrics more focused on love and girls and the likes.  Don't get me wrong, there were still bands who kept it dark and evil, but mixed it in nicely to appeal to everyone. (I'm looking at you Motley Crue...)  This form of metal music rivaled that of thrash in sales and popularity, especially from all the attention these bands were getting from radio and MTV in America.  Another distinguishing point of the bands of "hair", was their choice of wardrobe.  These guys were basically one step away from being drag queens, not metal heads.  A lot of the bands of the era were wearing make-up, teasing their long hair, and wearing bright colours like pink, mixed with tight leather pants.  Yes, for a while, it was "cool" for guys to wear make-up...  and they did so in copious amounts.  Between 1984-87 the Sunset Strip in Hollywood was nothing but guys with long hair and make-up wearing tight leather. 

Musically, these bands couldn't have been farther apart if they were opera and country... ok, maybe they could've.  Thrash was known  for it's fast, blasting beats and rhythms and would mix in classical elements for slower parts.  A great example of this is Metallica. Their bassist at the time, Cliff Burton was a classically trained musician in more than bass guitar, and although he wasn't their primary song writer, he helped a lot when it came to arranging and adding more complex classical style parts.  A good example of this is "The Call of Ktulu" from their 1984 album Ride the Lightning, which is a very eclectic mix of heavy metal and classical music. 

Whereas bands of the "hair" variety were more apt to infuse pop melodies and chord progressions into their songs.  These bands usually opted for a more "feel-good" approach.  A good example of this is Warrant's "Cherry Pie" or Poison's "Every Rose Has It's Thorn".  As mentioned before, this approach was noticed by the bigger media execs and filled the air-time that was available.   The advantage to adding a pop feel to the ripping guitar parts these gents shared with their heavier counterparts, is that they attracted women as well as men; which naturally helped double sales figures.  While the Big 4 of thrash were seeing decent sales on their records, hair bands were literally going gold and platinum overnight. 

Groups in both of these genres were able to make the form of music that they wanted and make a living doing so.  Each had it's own loyal fan base and it's detractors; but when it came down to it, these two groups of rockers were at opposite ends of the spectrum.  Both produced memorable personalities and classic songs.  Thrash had the Big 4, while Hair Metal had bands like Motley Crue, Poison, Ratt and Twisted Sister. 

I personally enjoy music from all of these bands, as well as many more.  What about you?  The purpose of these articles is spark debate, re-kindle passion for music of the past and maybe enlighten a new generation to some of the gems we've seen come and go.  So go forth and spread the word that is... Battle of the Bands!