What is a deal breaker in metal for you?

I voted for gratuitous soloing.

hmmmm of course most of these can be bad depending on how its used/how blatant

But my vote has to be pig squeals.
I can tolerate a lot but that is honestly a deal breaker. Even IF I was liking the music that would make me turn it off instantly. Fuckin pig squeals.


Drum Machines may be #2. Again, depending on how bad it may range from kind of annoying to  I can't stand it.

There is several up there worth a vote, but I had to go for...

I obviously went with pig squealing, which is probably the most annoying thing ever to me. But here are some comments on all the other options:

Cheesy synths (or synths with weird instruments): well, I have no problems with synths in metal per se, so it's not an all-or-nothing thing. But, yes, if the keyboardist decides to pick something from the soundbank that I consider cheesy - and especially if the synths are too dominant in the, then I tend to get allergic reactions.

Fadeout endings: I've never had problems with fadeout endings.

Intro/Narration/Transition tracks: this is really a case-by-case thing. With intros and transition tracks, I do not mind if I think that they are good and stuff like that, but if it seems to obvious to me that it's really just filler material, then I tend to skip through them. As for narration, I often think that is is pointless, and that it easily becomes very cheesy - especially narration voicing over the music. But then again, there are cases where narration or spoken word works perfectly, and then I appreciate it of course. There are other cases where it is so ridiculously cheesy that it becomes appreciable in a sort of kitschy and campy fashion.

Gratuitous soloing: I don't mind a lot of guitar solos, but, of course, I prefer variation so it is not just shredding all the way.

Extensive vamping and same chord progressions: if it works, it works, and sometimes this approach works very well, so I actually do not mind this (especially not when it serves to sort of build up a tune) - except of it's overdone, of course.

Production that's too loud: well, if the entire album is mastered such that it is loud, then I just turn down the volume - so no problem there. But if it is a case of some instruments being too loud in the mix, then it can be a problem.

Genre hopping: no problem. Metal is a bastard child created from many different genres anyway.

Samples (of movies, speeches etc.): again this really depends on how it's done. In some cases, the sample just fits the track perfectly, in which case I love it. That being said, I always skip through all the intro samples on "Necroticism" so I can get to the music itself.

Blastbeats through the entire song: I think that blastbeats lose their brutality if they are used too much, so, I guess that blastbeats through the entire song would be a dealbreaker for me..... except in microsongs of course.

Reliance on breakdowns: if the breakdowns are crushingly heavy or have other qualities to them that I appreciate, then I have no problems with a lot of breakdowns. Also, I do not hate metalcore.

Drum machines/obvious synth instruments: okay, this can get to me - especially the drum machines. I prefer human drummers. However, I do not mind some electronica elements, or electronic drum beats and other things like that every now and then.

Frequent time changes: love it

Songs that are too long/too short: well, I don't mind long songs or short songs, but there's a 'too' in the question, which kind of already provides the answer.

Overt technicality: I don't mind a lot of technicality. However, there are cases where the technicality is so central that other elements become disturbing. Take Braindrill, for instance, where the music is so technical that the vocals actually end up being the annoying part - Braindrill would, I think, be much better if they were an instrumental outfit.

Poor mixing: yeah, if some instruments are too dominant, then mixing issues can become dealbreakers.

I voted for reliance of breakdowns.  It's the reason why I do not like most deathcore.

Pig squeals. By far. 

When I think of drum machines I think of disco, synth pop, dance pop, techno and electro. Maybe it's my age but the use of a drum machine in metal is blasphemy. I know there is few artists that use it like Ministry which I've never heard.

Wilytank wrote: cannon wrote: When I think of drum machines I think of disco, synth pop, dance pop, techno and electro. Maybe it's my age but the use of a drum machine in metal is blasphemy. I know there is few artists that use it like Ministry which I've never heard. What about one man bands who can't play real drums?

Maybe Mirrorthrone was a bad example...

Voted for "other". I can�t stand the fusion of (metal)bands with a symphony orchestra. I either want metal or a classic symphony. The last Blind Guardian output is an example of that mixture that I find highly irritating.