A great song needs to groove, have some melody, technical playing and brutality.

Since i am the most into thrash metal for me good song need enrgy,few kick ass riffs,good lyrics and vocals, and in the end solo which will blow you away ,great example for that is Pantera

Written by Guest on 27.12.2008 at 02:28

Lyrics don't mean too much to me...I listen to a lot of death metal and can't understand what the vocalist is saying...a song to me needs kick ass riffs, a great rhythmic growling vocal pattern, killer double bass and really tight and technical drums fills...and well emoted guitar solos...

I agree...lyrics were never that important to me because of what you said, you can't understand the vocals unless you memorize the lyrics usually. If the lyrics just happen to be really cool, then I think of it as an added bonus to the song.

I suppose for bands where you can understand the lyrics, then obviously, they need to be at least halfway decent imo. Sometimes if I hear a song with absurd lyrics, I start laughing and then can't take the song seriously anymore. (Unless the intention was to be silly)

Where are my post
Many thinks like lyrics and idea of song, you cant simply write something stupid abd make a song, you can try but its be bad song, also explanation why you wrie it whats idea about and so on,
Muisc and melody , its what band do, song writes dont do it well
also writer shood be orgibal not only coppy some cheasy band, look how many metal bands are out there but how fiew are orginal and lives forever , idea, talant, some luck, dreams and muisc

I think it would vary stylistically, as alot of people here agree. I mean, For a balad to be great you need emotion and atmosphere in your music. For prog, dynamic and technicality which breaks some kind of barrier (lol) for thrash really fast, in your face, kick ass riffs and solos with a pissed off vocalist, etc. Above all though, for a song to be great, it must have heart. You have to pour yourself into creating it. Maybe naturally like making love and creating a child, or like a painter- putting layer after layer over your creation untill the contrast is perfect.

A beatifull song needs to mix a very good variety of styles and make it a genre!
Not forgetting the lyrics, and, in my opinion, the drum beats need to be at the top, as well as guitar solos!

The key to a good song is feeling. Really, if your being technical or brutal for the sake of it, your songs are going to suck.

Amazing riffs. The solo, the vocals, the lyrics, the drumming, it's all secondary to me. If it doesn't have good riffs then it's not a good song.

I think that there is no magic formula to make great songs, it only must be pretty different from all the tides of 'comon' songs and reach you somehow, by the lirycs or by the sound. Lyrics are important for me.

A song can be great in many ways, but the one thing it has to have (in my opinion) is emotion. Be it anger, determination, depression or anything else, if a song is not emotional enough, it's boring.

... more cow-bell !!

Written by Pazu on 11.11.2010 at 03:19

A song can be great in many ways, but the one thing it has to have (in my opinion) is emotion. Be it anger, determination, depression or anything else, if a song is not emotional enough, it's boring.

Agreed! xD

No shredding, that's a start

Written by Zombie on 11.11.2010 at 03:23

... more cow-bell !!

And yes, for the love of god! I have a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell!

It must have some fucking reason to be made(except money),even to entertain the musician that plays one...
The best songs were made when musician plays things just for himself...

This changes according to genre, but in general a song needs:
1. Good Vocals
2. Catchy Riffs
3. Good Solo(s)
A song that has these is very fine for me.

A B R 3 4 K D 0 W N

Either

A) A collection of quality riffs arranged in a non random part, with some catchy hooks, and enough changes, sometimes subtle to maitain intrest throughout the durration of the song.

B) Make sure that the singer has large bewbs.

....nothing in particular.

Needs ideas and hard work. Anybody who's learned composition and plays an instrument can easily write a mediocre song (which makes bad albums so unforgivable), but only when one feels inspired and is willing to sweat blood to turn that inspiration into something great, will a masterpiece be born. It is not a thing unheard of that some musicians have slept in sleeping bags on the studio floor before finishing the recording of an album (or song).
When it comes to what a song should be like, then I'd prefer an atmospheric intro, followed by a mind-blowing riff that comes crushing in like a tidal wave, followed by a verse that isn't too long and is proceeded by a chorus that builds upon the opening riff. There might also be an atmospheric section in the middle of the song, some good solos (obviously) and an epic conclusion with heavy as hell riffs and maybe an atmospheric outro too.
Good examples of these type of songs (minus a few of the elements I mentioned here and there):

Opeth - The Moor; Blackwater Park
Nightwish - The Poet And The Pendulum
Kamelot - Memento Mori
Sonata Arctica - White Pearl, Black Oceans
Metallica - Fade To Black
Epica - Consign To Oblivion
After Forever - Dreamflight

...a song needs to be Noisy.

Written by Guest on 21.08.2011 at 11:29

...a song needs to be Noisy.

Like....the whole way through? No quiet parts? I suppose if we're talkin death metal/black metal/thrash metal, then yeah...noisy as fuck the whole way though!

Written by Guest on 21.08.2011 at 20:30

I suppose if we're talkin death metal/black metal/thrash metal, then yeah...noisy as fuck the whole way though!

Yeah of course I'm talking about death\black\grind, but I kinda meant the extreme noisy songs like in Emperor, Cryptopsy, Gorerotted, Nile and some others.... there are some really crazy songs in their albums, like "Carrionshine" by Cryptopsy, it's one of my favorite "brain fucking' songs.