I can't unserstand how "Nightwish, Dark Passion Play", the winner of the Biggest letdown, is in second place for 1 vote of difference in the "best power metal album" category.

Written by juanopereira on 13.04.2008 at 20:15

I can't unserstand how "Nightwish, Dark Passion Play", the winner of the Biggest letdown, is in second place for 1 vote of difference in the "best power metal album" category.

Because certain people dont vote for certain categories. Like a black metal fan might not even bother with it, but voted it down in biggest let down because some think its a "worst album" category, so you might get fans from all genres voting that thing down. Thats the best theory I have if it makes sense.

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

Written by VPeter on 14.05.2008 at 00:17

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

Do you know how much mass confusion there would be? and how much more bitching the small percentage of us would end up doing?

It is about time judas priest made it to the top of the top 100, or have they been there a while

I don't participate in anything democratic. Democracy is the triumph of the masses over logic. Fjuck that.

Written by Sonsofsabbath on 06.06.2008 at 06:04

It is about time judas priest made it to the top of the top 100, or have they been there a while

Uhhh....First off, yes, they have had albums in the top 100 as long as I can remember, and Painkiller has been in the number 1 spot a few times. Secondly this is a thread discussing the 2007 metalstorm awards, not the top 100.

Written by VPeter on 14.05.2008 at 00:17

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

I can see absolutely no reason for that. Something like that would imply that we have heard ALL metal albums released. Anyway the 'Biggest Letdown' must be sufficient

Written by GT on 20.06.2008 at 18:17

Written by VPeter on 14.05.2008 at 00:17

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

I can see absolutely no reason for that. Something like that would imply that we have heard ALL metal albums released. Anyway the 'Biggest Letdown' must be sufficient

Yes, it's quite enough.
No need for a 'worst album' I think. It means quite the same for many people anyway.

Written by Darkside Momo on 03.07.2008 at 16:49

Written by GT on 20.06.2008 at 18:17

Written by VPeter on 14.05.2008 at 00:17

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

I can see absolutely no reason for that. Something like that would imply that we have heard ALL metal albums released. Anyway the 'Biggest Letdown' must be sufficient

Yes, it's quite enough.
No need for a 'worst album' I think. It means quite the same for many people anyway.

Agreed, people dont understand the term 'Letdown' I think. Im willing to bet half the people voted for Nightish in the biggest letdown just because they suck, and I agree, they do suck, but thats nothing new, hence why I wouldnt vote for them in biggest letdown, you need to have high expectations to be let down.

Written by Doc G. on 04.07.2008 at 19:54

Written by Darkside Momo on 03.07.2008 at 16:49

Written by GT on 20.06.2008 at 18:17

Written by VPeter on 14.05.2008 at 00:17

I also think there should be an "worst album" category next year.

I can see absolutely no reason for that. Something like that would imply that we have heard ALL metal albums released. Anyway the 'Biggest Letdown' must be sufficient

Yes, it's quite enough.
No need for a 'worst album' I think. It means quite the same for many people anyway.

Agreed, people dont understand the term 'Letdown' I think. Im willing to bet half the people voted for Nightish in the biggest letdown just because they suck, and I agree, they do suck, but thats nothing new, hence why I wouldnt vote for them in biggest letdown, you need to have high expectations to be let down.

We think the same way.
(except about that Nightwish part )

Written by Guest on 12.07.2008 at 18:27

I'd just like to suggest that rather than adding new sub-genres, keep all the current ones and create three (or just two) categories that split bands apart based on their popularity.

Best _______ Album from Well Known Bands: ___________!

Best _______ Album from Moderately Known Bands: ___________! (this one could probably be eliminated)

Best _______ Album from Lesser Known Bands: ___________!

I don't know how much work this takes but that would certainly make more sense. People stuck in the mainstream (term not used negatively) wouldn't swamp a category they're not qualified to vote in and the separation would give them a clearer view of the lesser known bands thus providing an easier decision making process on what bands they ought to check out.

That would be such a mess, not to mention judging what "lesser" and "well" known is is kind of a subjective thing.

Written by Guest on 13.07.2008 at 16:50

Written by Doc G. on 13.07.2008 at 05:33

Written by Guest on 12.07.2008 at 18:27

I'd just like to suggest that rather than adding new sub-genres, keep all the current ones and create three (or just two) categories that split bands apart based on their popularity.

Best _______ Album from Well Known Bands: ___________!

Best _______ Album from Moderately Known Bands: ___________! (this one could probably be eliminated)

Best _______ Album from Lesser Known Bands: ___________!

I don't know how much work this takes but that would certainly make more sense. People stuck in the mainstream (term not used negatively) wouldn't swamp a category they're not qualified to vote in and the separation would give them a clearer view of the lesser known bands thus providing an easier decision making process on what bands they ought to check out.

That would be such a mess, not to mention judging what "lesser" and "well" known is is kind of a subjective thing.

Oh sure, and the current Metal Storm awards lays golden eggs from its feathered butt...

I never said that, whenever you get any awards where the judges are the general public there are going to be a few problems, but were not trying to make it worse. I dont understand the logic behind your idea at all, frankly it seems to be a pretty big waste of time, an album should be judged for what it is, even if your comparing 2 bands of different popularity. On the other hand, the band needs to be known by enough people world wide to make the whole awards thing work, so having a "lesser known" one wouldnt work, because there are lesser known bands putting out albums everyday but are only known by people in their city, a lesser known band in lets say Helsinki may be big enough over there but I would have never heard of them over here. But most of all it would just be a lot of extra pointless work. There is nothing wrong with the awards themselves, just the voters

your suggestions are good, however there are other things for consideration.

(speaking as myself here, not as a representative of staff/mods/elites as a whole)

first off, 2007 was my first full awards process as an elite, so i got to see exactly how much work goes into this process. it is a LOT of work. a LOT of work. my contributions on the 2007 awards compared to other staff were minimal, and i still spent a good 20+ hours on it. there are dedicated staffers who probably logged 10-15 times that amount. (so if you see a staffer at a festival, buy them a beer. they deserve it.)

even the process of selecting 10 albums per genre for inclusion is arduous enough - there are some genres where lots of staff have different opinions and we are trying to stuff 12-15 worthy albums in to 10 slots. in other genres where we don't have as many knowledgeable staff, it can be difficult selecting 10 to begin with.

once done, we have to contact bands and labels, write those short little paragraph reviews of each album, design everything, review everything to avoid mistakes and typos...

trust me, hitting a Feb 1 launch deadline is a bit like the Tour de France - it's a grueling ordeal that lasts for weeks - and quite rewarding when you see your handiwork done and up. (no yellow shirt, nor pretty ladies giving smoochies to staff, though... )

as a staff, we are collectively supportive of smaller bands, even giving the nod to several smaller bands over more well known ones in the 2007 awards. if you look back, carefully, over the lists, you might notice several extremely well known bands that were write-ins, with smaller bands in their place.

the problem with your approach lies in this:

who determines what is well known, who decides what is lesser well known?

what is medium?

your format seems to be write-in based, how do you foolproof it?



the single biggest problem with the voting is that the lesser known bands are simply lesser known than the big bands. there is usually a reason why a band is popular - they are damned good, released quality material, and toured extensively. as a result they are bound to get more votes. it's unavoidable. not everyone has the time, energy, and resources to check out each artist in each category.

to that end, we started in 2007 to link myspace pages of nominated bands in the description, to allow the uninitiated an easy chance to check them out. (zomg myspace is actually good for someting!) we've notified the bands of their nomination, and suggested they make sure a few tracks from their recent album (if not the whole thing) are up on the page so potential voters can give a listen before voting.

as DocRock suggested, the "problem" ultimately is with the voters.

they are the ones who make the call. we have done our best to provide them the tools to explore other artists - from recommendations via our forums to linking the myspace pages of nominated artists directly to their review.

if the voters take the time to explore these avenues, bully for them.

if not, well, they are a metal fan and still entitled to their vote, however much someone else might disagree wit

I have a suggestion. (I don't know if it has been suggested before?)
I think it's good to add a new part to the format of ms awards and that is "best band of year" or something like that, to know which band has done the best performance in 1 years of career..
For example in MS2006 I remember there were bands like Iron maiden, Amon Amarth, Slayer, Cannibal Corpse and Moonspell, which has took the first place in their own genres but not in general. It's good to point that which band has done the best in general.

Written by Hamird on 01.08.2008 at 15:17

I have a suggestion. (I don't know if it has been suggested before?)
I think it's good to add a new part to the format of ms awards and that is "best band of year" or something like that, to know which band has done the best performance in 1 years of career..
For example in MS2006 I remember there were bands like Iron maiden, Amon Amarth, Slayer, Cannibal Corpse and Moonspell, which has took the first place in their own genres but not in general. It's good to point that which band has done the best in general.

It would be to difficult to truly determine what metal band is the best in any given year because there is so much diversity in the genre.

Also...more well known and mainstream bands in more accessable genres like power and heavy metal would always, always win.

So what would be the point?

How can qualify an album to the MS Awards?

Written by Janne on 23.08.2008 at 20:32

How can qualify an album to the MS Awards?

It pretty much comes down to what albums are creating the most buzz, what the staff feels is deserving. For anything else, theres the write-in votes, where the MS non-staffers can write in what they feel is deserving, then people can vote for that one.

I'm not looking forward to the 2008 awards, im very behind on picking up recent albums so I gotta hurry up and buy some so Im not out of the loop when it comes to voting next year.

Written by Doc G. on 24.08.2008 at 09:09

Written by Janne on 23.08.2008 at 20:32

How can qualify an album to the MS Awards?

It pretty much comes down to what albums are creating the most buzz, what the staff feels is deserving. For anything else, theres the write-in votes, where the MS non-staffers can write in what they feel is deserving, then people can vote for that one.

I'm not looking forward to the 2008 awards, im very behind on picking up recent albums so I gotta hurry up and buy some so Im not out of the loop when it comes to voting next year.

so the staff deciede the top 10?

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 10:29

so the staff deciede the top 10?

No, not really. You should see it like this: we gather 10 albums for each category, that we think you should like. we try to provide reviews, myspaces, small texts about the bands and albums, and we hope this will help you in your judgment. BUT, you are entirely free to vote for an album that we did not include in the top 10. you can do this with the so called "write-in" votes. (provided that they are in the right category etc, you obviously cant vote for Hammerfall in the Black metal category)

So the top 10 we assemble is basically to help you vote, you can check if you missed any worthy albums with it.

Written by Lucas on 24.08.2008 at 16:01

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 10:29

so the staff deciede the top 10?

No, not really. You should see it like this: we gather 10 albums for each category, that we think you should like. we try to provide reviews, myspaces, small texts about the bands and albums, and we hope this will help you in your judgment. BUT, you are entirely free to vote for an album that we did not include in the top 10. you can do this with the so called "write-in" votes. (provided that they are in the right category etc, you obviously cant vote for Hammerfall in the Black metal category)

So the top 10 we assemble is basically to help you vote, you can check if you missed any worthy albums with it.

I know what is 'write-in-wote' but IMO most members vote for one from the 10 which was chosen by you...
Where should I lobby to chose an album to the top 10?

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 18:56

Where should I lobby to chose an album to the top 10?

haha, you cant. not officially, anyway. but, if its a famous album we'll probably have it already.

Written by Lucas on 24.08.2008 at 20:39

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 18:56

Where should I lobby to chose an album to the top 10?

haha, you cant. not officially, anyway. but, if its a famous album we'll probably have it already.

the problem is that it's not famous... but it's great, just ppl can't realise that until they listen to it. This is the reason why I want it to be added the top 10!

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 20:42

the problem is that it's not famous... but it's great, just ppl can't realise that until they listen to it. This is the reason why I want it to be added the top 10!

I've thought about it, and came up with a solution. Here you can post all your suggestions.

Written by Lucas on 24.08.2008 at 21:04

Written by Janne on 24.08.2008 at 20:42

the problem is that it's not famous... but it's great, just ppl can't realise that until they listen to it. This is the reason why I want it to be added the top 10!

I've thought about it, and came up with a solution. Here you can post all your suggestions.

wow, that's very nice of you!