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What if...? - A Theory On The Decline Of The Bodom Boys


Written by: psykometal
Published: 19.01.2012


What if the reason we have all become so disappointed with Children Of Bodom in recent years is not completely Alexi's fault but inadvertently Alexander's?

Anybody who has been a fan of the band since their days of including neo-classical/shred in their music knows that their style changed drastically immediately after the departure of original rhythm guitarist and founding member Alexander Kuoppolla. We know that Alexi and Alexander shared writing duties but for the most part Alexi and Roope do not (with the exception of Roope getting to play a solo or 2 here and there), we also know that Roope is more than capable of playing on par with the best shredders out there. So what if Alexander was the reason that they included neo-classical/shred in their music and that when he left so did the band's reason to continue to include neo-classical/shred?

Alexi has stated on multiple occasions that he has no desire to return to the complex technical writing style of old and that they will continue to write in their current vastly simpler much less technical style that they adopted for Are You Dead Yet? (coincidentally the first album written and released after the departure of Alexander). Also if you noticed that their technical complex style did decrease a bit on Hate Crew Deathroll, which is the last album that Alexander wrote with the band; he also left the band shortly after its release stating that he was tired of being in a band and touring the world being away from his family (a very noble reason). Now I'm not saying that Alexander is an asshole or anything like that at all because his reason is very noble, understandable and agreeable; better to leave the band and be happy than to continue and perform when you're heart just isn't in it anymore.

Now this is not necessarily what I believe happened nor am I attempting to state this as fact, this is merely a theory however if you take this into consideration and think about the path their career has taken you might see the possibility that there may be a spot of truth in this somewhere...





Guest article disclaimer:
This is a guest article, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.


Comments

Comments: 27   [ 1 ignored ]   Visited by: 340 users
19.01.2012 - 11:14
flamesoficarus

Dude, this has crossed my mind a number of times. Unfortunately i dont think Alexader has recorded anything since leaving, so we cant tell if this style was truely his.
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19.01.2012 - 17:35
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by flamesoficarus on 19.01.2012 at 11:14

Dude, this has crossed my mind a number of times. Unfortunately i dont think Alexader has recorded anything since leaving, so we cant tell if this style was truely his.

No he hasn't, I've looked. Glad to see I'm not the only one who thought of this; I kinda expected to get some flack for writing this. I'm surprised I haven't yet...
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20.01.2012 - 16:29
Shadowcross
The Summoner
Hmmm intriguing idea..
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21.01.2012 - 04:39
Lukas Jax

Thoughts arise!
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24.01.2012 - 23:32
RhaegarTargaryen
Telcontar
I completely agree... not trying to be hipster, but some two years ago I talked with my friend, both of us are huge (old) COB fans, and we somehow came to the conclusion that the COB decline had everything to do with Alexander departing .. especially since thrash influences rises with Roope's arrival.
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But my heart is warm as the darkened sun above me...
Nothing can never take away
What I've seen with these tired eyes
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27.01.2012 - 00:05
Robstar

I must say You are right dude and is not a theory what you mean I will say is a fact!
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30.01.2012 - 02:26
ThunderAxe1989
Account deleted
I've never really noticed that. Good theory.
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31.01.2012 - 04:03
Fredd
Account deleted
I used to like them, but then something happened. Was it peer pressure?
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31.01.2012 - 04:28
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Guest on 31.01.2012 at 04:03

I used to like them, but then something happened. Was it peer pressure?

Did you even read this Fredd or did you just tl;dr it? Lmao. Nobody but CoB knows wtf happened but this makes a lot of sense...if you read it...
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31.01.2012 - 06:40
Fredd
Account deleted
Written by psykometal on 31.01.2012 at 04:28

Written by Guest on 31.01.2012 at 04:03

I used to like them, but then something happened. Was it peer pressure?

Did you even read this Fredd or did you just tl;dr it? Lmao. Nobody but CoB knows wtf happened but this makes a lot of sense...if you read it...

I did, and I meant I used to like their Alexander-era efforts, but then suddenly I lost interest in the band completely.
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31.01.2012 - 06:53
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Guest on 31.01.2012 at 06:40

I did, and I meant I used to like their Alexander-era efforts, but then suddenly I lost interest in the band completely.

Pretty sure a lot of us did...
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31.01.2012 - 06:57
Fredd
Account deleted
Written by psykometal on 31.01.2012 at 06:53

Pretty sure a lot of us did...

What I should have said is "Sounds pretty credible, but not enough mana to give a fuck about this band."
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06.02.2012 - 03:00
Carl Berg
Carl Berg
Written by psykometal on 19.01.2012 at 17:35

Written by flamesoficarus on 19.01.2012 at 11:14

Dude, this has crossed my mind a number of times. Unfortunately i dont think Alexader has recorded anything since leaving, so we cant tell if this style was truely his.

No he hasn't, I've looked. Glad to see I'm not the only one who thought of this; I kinda expected to get some flack for writing this. I'm surprised I haven't yet...


Actually, he has recorded quite a few stuff since. One which I can remember from the top of my head was with Timo Rautiainen on his Sarvivuori album, but I recall him involved in other musical projects.
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06.03.2012 - 01:57
AngelofDeth
Cyborg Raptor
...how did this get this far??? If you simply look at the credits for the composer for each song on their albums this theory is easily disproven. so....

Lets look at some FACTS

Something Wild: Entirely Written by Alexi
Hatebreeder: Every song by Alexi, except Bed of Razors co-written with Alexander
Follow the Reaper: Every song written by Alexi
HateCrew Death Roll: Written entirely by Alexi xcept Chokehold and Lil Blood Red co-written with Alexander.
Are You Dead Yet: Written entirely by Alexi, one song co-written with Roope.
Bloodrunk: Written entirely by Alexi
Relentless Reckless Forever: Written Entirely by Alexi

You can find all this information here
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/children-of-bodom-p293758/discography

Also if you read any interview about writint with Alexi, he states himself he write 90%+ of the material. When other members of the band come to him with material he is very picky and usually denies it, this is why the other members have side projects, Warmen, EveMaster etc.

So Alexander helped write just 3 songs out of the 36 original songs CoB produces while he was a member. And out of those three songs he was still a CO-writer.
Also by looking at the credits for the following albums, we can see that CoB didnt change the role of band members in the writing process. Alexi continues to write most the material, with Roope co-writing just 1 song since he joined.

So the fact that Alexander left, seemingly at the same time appears to be a coincident. Also HCDR already marked a change in the band and Alexander was a part of CoB then.

Ultimately the reason Children of Bodom changed was due entirely to Alexi. He changed and CoB changed with him.

Why he changed? now that would prolly be a better idea for a thread. Here are some brief ideas on that...
In interviews he states he grew tired of playing Neo-classical music. Also he got into drinking and partying alot around the time of HCDR, so perhaps he just wanted to make music thats easier to play while drunk. Maybe his personal music changed and the new music better fits his tastes now. would make sense as i dont know many hardcore partyers into classical music...
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14.09.2012 - 05:24
Urizen367

That's legitimately ponderous.
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I will not reason and compare, my business is to create.
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17.09.2012 - 19:45
jdsony

Despite Alexi writing almost everything I think Alexander's leaving could still have had a big impact on the changes. Myself being a song writer and guitarist in a band I find I have a certain style but it most definitely is influenced by the strengths and weaknesses of the other guitarist. Writing changes with time but when I write riffs I don't just write them for myself, I write them for the band which actually turns out different (for better or worse) than I expected.
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20.11.2012 - 01:09
Guib
Thrash Talker
... Does all of this really matter? -_- It changed, get over it theres nothing no one can do, why is it so important to everyone to have or to try to find a reason for this change ? Who cares if its because of Alexi, Alexander, Jesus or Buddah ?
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Guib's List Of Essential Albums
- Also Thrash Paradise
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20.11.2012 - 01:42
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Guib on 20.11.2012 at 01:09

... Does all of this really matter? -_- It changed, get over it theres nothing no one can do, why is it so important to everyone to have or to try to find a reason for this change ? Who cares if its because of Alexi, Alexander, Jesus or Buddah ?

Not really. Just had a random thought one day and decided to type it up and post it for shits.
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26.12.2015 - 12:22
Zap
Guest
I always thought they changed their sound because Alexi's guitars got stolen after Hate Crew Deathroll and he was really sad about it.
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26.12.2015 - 16:35
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Zap on 26.12.2015 at 12:22

I always thought they changed their sound because Alexi's guitars got stolen after Hate Crew Deathroll and he was really sad about it.

Nah. By his claim it was because he personally was tired of writing and playing in that fast, super technical and intricate style of the first 3 albums.

This theory was written with that in mind, which is why it's a theory, because ya never really know if the press release is completely true or not.
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26.12.2015 - 17:21
Zap
Guest
Written by psykometal on 26.12.2015 at 16:35

Nah. By his claim it was because he personally was tired of writing and playing in that fast, super technical and intricate style of the first 3 albums.

This theory was written with that in mind, which is why it's a theory, because ya never really know if the press release is completely true or not.

I know, I was mostly joking This theory is interesting, and might in some way contribute to the change in style. I think there are probably multiple reasons though, we the listeners can never really know the full reason and we can never know what goes on in the musicians' heads. The statement by Alexi might thus be true but not the whole truth, ya know?
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26.12.2015 - 18:38
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Zap on 26.12.2015 at 17:21

I know, I was mostly joking This theory is interesting, and might in some way contribute to the change in style. I think there are probably multiple reasons though, we the listeners can never really know the full reason and we can never know what goes on in the musicians' heads. The statement by Alexi might thus be true but not the whole truth, ya know?

I've never really felt it was the whole truth.
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27.12.2015 - 18:10
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
This is more of a hypothesis than a theory
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.12.2015 - 00:42
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 27.12.2015 at 18:10

This is more of a hypothesis than a theory

Tomayto, tomahto, potayto, potahto...
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28.12.2015 - 00:52
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Nope. Read up on your science what a theory is, boy?
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.12.2015 - 01:30
psykometal
A staff guy...
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 28.12.2015 at 00:52

Nope. Read up on your science what a theory is, boy?

Quote:
theory
[thee-uh-ree, theer-ee]
noun, plural theories.
1. a coherent group of tested general propositions, commonly regarded as correct, that can be used as principles of explanation and prediction for a class of phenomena:
Einstein's theory of relativity.
Synonyms: principle, law, doctrine.
2. a proposed explanation whose status is still conjectural and subject to experimentation, in contrast to well-established propositions that are regarded as reporting matters of actual fact.
Synonyms: idea, notion hypothesis, postulate.
Antonyms: practice, verification, corroboration, substantiation.
3. Mathematics. a body of principles, theorems, or the like, belonging to one subject:
number theory.
4. the branch of a science or art that deals with its principles or methods, as distinguished from its practice:
music theory.
5. a particular conception or view of something to be done or of the method of doing it; a system of rules or principles:
conflicting theories of how children best learn to read.
6. contemplation or speculation:
the theory that there is life on other planets.
7. guess or conjecture:
My theory is that he never stops to think words have consequences.

Quote:

hypothesis
[hahy-poth-uh-sis, hi-]
noun, plural hypotheses [hahy-poth-uh-seez, hi-]
1. a proposition, or set of propositions, set forth as an explanation for the occurrence of some specified group of phenomena, either asserted merely as a provisional conjecture to guide investigation (working hypothesis) or accepted as highly probable in the light of established facts.
2. a proposition assumed as a premise in an argument.
3. the antecedent of a conditional proposition.
4. a mere assumption or guess.

Quote:

conjecture
[kuh n-jek-cher]
noun
1. the formation or expression of an opinion or theory without sufficient evidence for proof.
2. an opinion or theory so formed or expressed; guess; speculation.

3. Obsolete. the interpretation of signs or omens.
verb (used with object), conjectured, conjecturing.
4. to conclude or suppose from grounds or evidence insufficient to ensure reliability.
verb (used without object), conjectured, conjecturing.
5. to form conjectures.

Quote:
speculation
[spek-yuh-ley-shuh n]
noun
1. the contemplation or consideration of some subject:
to engage in speculation on humanity's ultimate destiny.
2. a single instance or process of consideration.
3. a conclusion or opinion reached by such contemplation:
These speculations are impossible to verify.
4. conjectural consideration of a matter; conjecture or surmise:
a report based on speculation rather than facts.

5. engagement in business transactions involving considerable risk but offering the chance of large gains, especially trading in commodities, stocks, etc., in the hope of profit from changes in the market price.
6. a speculative commercial venture or undertaking.

There's the definitions of 4 different, interchangeable words pulled from Dictionary.com. I've bolded/underlined the applicable relative definitions. Old man. Gotta love ze interwebz...
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05.08.2016 - 03:13
FOOCK Nam

Alexi once stated he had been bored with old stuff, getting tired, and wont play the old stuff again. That could be reason for how he and the band change the style. bands and a lot of musician going tour the world gets tired of old stuff cuz they play show and got monotonous by the sound.
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