All The Tropes

Surprisingly Gentle Song: Difference between revisions

Page Discussion

Surprisingly Gentle Song (view source)

Revision as of 17:08, 8 April 2014

399 bytes removed ,  10 years ago
m
Mass update links
VisualWikitext
m (Mass update links)
m (Mass update links)
Line 1:
{{trope}}
So, you have a band. They have a tendency to need to be [[Careful Withwith That Axe]]. Their songs tend to be loud, aggressive, hardcore. Whether they lean toward [[Three Chords and Thethe Truth]] or [[Epic Rocking]], they are [[The New Rock and Roll]]. [[Moral Guardians]] hate them. They go crazy with the guitars, they go wild on the drums, the music is always played at top volume...
 
Wait, what? A slow, quiet, gentle piece? Beautiful and soft, it may be [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|heartwarming]] or [[Tear Jerker|heartbreaking]], but the defining characteristic is that it is far less aggressive a piece than you would ''ever'' expect from this band. May be a [[Black Sheep Hit]], but differs from that trope in that it's not necessarily a hit, and ''only'' applies to normally aggressive bands. Compare [[Playing Against Type]] and [[Scary Musician, Harmless Music]].
Line 18:
** And don't forget "Low Man's Lyric".
* Scary Kids Scaring Kids has "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN81CbkD5wg Watch Me Bleed]".
* [[Megadeth (Music)|Megadeth]]'s "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEEwK_H2ixQ Promises]" , which is a beautiful power ballad, complete with string arrangements and being based around a Romeo And Juliet theme. If someone else was singing it, you would never know Dave Mustaine had written this song.
* "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emsQZ69OUE4 Beth]" by [[Kiss]].
** Same goes for [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHnkMlCOl50 Forever] and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_cNiz97V68 We Are One]
Line 36:
** "Swimming Home" is this to their [[Self-Titled Album]] and "Good Enough" is this for The Open Door.
* "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFQbxTvyzq4 Gasoline]" by Moist, for you Canadians.
* [[Rammstein (Music)|Rammstein]] often has one toward the end of an album: e.g. "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGHldRJfTxY Roter Sand]", "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8ZlCL9pyDg Nebel]", "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSL62BUyY0U Ohne Dich]" and "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haKSfQKbPXE Ein Lied]."
* "Heal" by Buzzov-en from ''At a Loss''. They're a Sludge Metal group. This is probably the only non-angry song in their entire discography. (If the [[Wiki Magic]] could cough up a link, that'd be great.)
* [[Linkin Park]] tends to have one or two of these per album, ranging from [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqgAAqCqiBI "My December"] to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLYiIBCN9ec "Iridescent"].
Line 45:
* "Speak My Name" by IQ.
* ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsXdMr0YQCQ Sabrina]'' by Inkubus Sukkubus
* [[Pantera (Music)|Pantera]]'s cover of "Planet Caravan" by [[Black Sabbath (Music)|Black Sabbath]] - enough so that the ''Far Beyond Driven'' liner notes include a short message from Phil Anselmo explaining to fans (who might not be familiar with the original) that they're just covering a song they like, not attempting to have a pop hit.
** The [[Black Sabbath (Music)|Black Sabbath]] version itself also qualifies - While Ozzy was singing, their albums almost always included a token ballad like "Changes" and/or a short, pretty acoustic instrumental like "Orchid".
** Pantera themselves are not immune to writing gentler songs, "Cemetery Gates" is Pantera's attempt at a Power Ballad and Suicide Note Part 1 is extremely subdued and depressing.
* [[The Who]], normally known as "The World's Loudest Rock Band," have a touching ode to the [[Anti-Villain]] called "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9-3RZkzpwM Behind Blue Eyes]."
Line 54:
* "Metaphor" by In Flames is an example of them writing an actual gentle song rather than the folk passages they used on early albums to give the listener's a break. Gentle, understated, melancholic but [[Lyrical Dissonance|very bitter and resentful lyrically.]]
** They also have "Come Clarity". "Take me somewhere/don't wanna live/in this dream one more day."
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_tORtmKIjE "The Bard's Song"] by [[Blind Guardian (Music)|Blind Guardian]] qualifies with its medieval folk sound contrasted against the blazing, speedy, [[Power Metal]] sound they normally have.
** They tend to have one per album; there's also [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxOZMpuGBjI "A Past And Future Secret,"] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lWspOLN5rY "The Eldar,"] (except for the [[Metal Scream]]) [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24PJnBflzmI "Harvest of Sorrow,"] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3_S1Q40HZo "Skalds and Shadows"] and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmAjzJ-62ag "War of the Thrones".]
* Bad Brains have some, mostly due to their reggae influences coming to the forefront: Their self-titled album, for instance, consists of [[Hardcore Punk]] interspersed with a few down-tempo reggae songs ("Jah Calling", "Leaving Babylon", and "I Love I Jah" specifically).
Line 65:
* Glassjaw, normally an extremely loud and aggressive band, has two of these songs on their [[wikipedia:El Mark|El Mark]] Digital EP. "''The Number No Good Things Can Come Of''", a piano and drums piece, and "''Oxycodone''", a Lounge-sounding tune with the lead vocalist singing in improvisation.
** And now, their latest work, "''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KiwmbHMSgk Daytona White]''" and "''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOGMKYwBsac&feature=related Stations of the New Cross]''" also count. In fact, most of their ''Coloring Book'' album (from which these two songs come from) is this compared to some of their previous work.
* "Louder Than Thunder" by [[The Devil Wears Prada (Musicband)|The Devil Wears Prada]], sung entirely by guitarist/clean vocalist Jeremy Depoyster.
* The last two tracks off of the album ''Abducted'' by [[Death Metal]] band, Hypocrisy, are mellow [[Pink Floyd|Pink Floyd-esque]] [[Progressive Rock]] tracks. This is in sharp contrast to the rest of the album and their discography.
* [[Dream Theater (Music)|Dream Theater's]] "Vacant" is the Surprisingly Gentle Song off of ''Train of Thought,'' which is an 8+ on the [[Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness]] , since it's slow and melancholy, and just piano, cello, and vocals.
* [[Kyuss]] has "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-PqRgmL4Xg Space Cadet]" on the ''Welcome to Sky Valley'' album, where it comes between the much heavier "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lnfyMGBi6w 100]" and "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLdOlzIRCdk Demon Cleaner]", though Demon Cleaner's still a tad lighter than the rest of the album.
* Showbread has "The Missing Wife". "Matthias Replaces Judas" starts off as one of these, but gradually builds up in intensity.
Line 73:
* "Lead Sails (And A Paper Anchor)" by Atreyu.
* "Tears Go By," "Dandelion," and "She's a Rainbow" by [[Rolling Stones]]
* The Melvins are largely associated with grunge and sludge metal, but have a few gentle songs in their repertoire: "Black Bock" is lightly psychedelic folk-rock (albeit with some serious [[Lyrical Dissonance]]). ''The Crybaby'' includes a pair of straight country covers featuring [[Hank Williams III (Music)|Hank Williams III]] ([[Hank Williams (Music)|Hank Williams]]' "Ramblin' Man" and [[Merle Haggard]]'s "Okie From Miskogee"). And "PG x 3" is an eerie, mostly a capella version of the folk song "Peggy Gordon", inspired by it's use in ''[[The Proposition]]''.
* [[Lady Gaga (Music)|Lady Gaga]]: "Brown Eyes", "Again Again", and "Speechless"
** "Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" is much calmer than her normal style.
** Don't forget "Fooled Me Again (Honest Eyes)", which was actually pulled from The Fame because she thought it was upsetting the the albums central theme
** "You and I" is this on Born This Way...
* [[Judas Priest (Music)|Judas Priest]]: "Angel," "Lost and Found," "Before the Dawn," "Epitaph", "Last Rose of Summer"
* [[Bad Religion]]: "Million Days" off of the [[Canon Dis Continuity]] album Into the Unknown.
** "Slumber" from ''Stranger Than Fiction'' may also qualify - it resembles an alternative rock song of the loud-soft-loud variety more than it does a [[Power Ballad]], but the verses are surprisingly soft.
* [[Angel Beats (Anime)|Angel Beats]] anime band, Girls Dead Monster, usually plays loud and hard (as part of their band's 'distraction creating' intent, but many of their songs do have a quieter version on CD.
** The original band leader pulls this off the best with her final song {{spoiler|before she disappears}} with a ballad played on a special acoustic guitar, instead of her normal. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV6WkcMKLFw& My Song]
* [[Danzig]]'s [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_kehhT_qQU Sistinas]. While it's technically credited to Glenn Danzig & The Power Fury Orchestra, there's also [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6EieqgGA-8 "You And Me"], from the soundtrack to ''Less Than Zero''. Both are Roy Orbison-influenced ballads that show off Glenn Danzig's crooning vocal style, rather than the dark metal he's commonly associated with.
* "''Darkness''" by [[Disturbed (Music)|Disturbed]], a soft, acoustic dirge with a cellist section of all things. This from the band who an album earlier provided the world with "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0JBlUm2KMY#t=3m27s No, Mommy! Don't do it again!]".
** Even though it's much heavier, "Overburdened" would count as well.
* A few of the Paper Chase's songs depart from their usual highly confrontational noise-rock/post-hardcore approach in favor of more melodic, introspective songs, though titles such as "Out Come the Knives" and "At the Other End of the Leash" show that the mood isn't necessarily any different.
Line 91:
* [[Eminem]] has a few. "Mockingbird", "When I'm Gone", etc.
* [[Metalcore]] band Demon Hunter seems to pile on more and more of these with every album, but they'd be hard pressed to top their first notable one, the EPIC [[Tear Jerker]] "My Heartstrings Come Undone".
* [[Underoath (Music)|Underoath]] are usually placed around Level 7-8 on [[Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness]]. But of course, being a Christian band, have a good number of these spread across their discography. Most notably, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZOwB_gaJ1A "Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape"] and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63EetspU6Is&ob=av3n "Too Bright To See, Too Loud To Hear"]. These were sung almost entirely by former drummer and [[Soprano and Gravel|clean vocalist]] [[Fiery Redhead|Aaron Gillespie]], with occasional peppering in by [[Metal Scream|screamer]] Spencer Chamberlain.
* Gentleness is hardly a surprise coming from [[Christian Rock]] band Disciple nowadays thanks to [[Lighter and Softer]], but "After The World" and "No End At All", both tender [["God Is Love" Songs]], stuck out like a sore thumb on their mostly heavy album ''Scars Remain''.
* "Flower Sun Rain" by Japanese [[Doom Metal]] band Boris is very relaxing until the very end, when it builds into a scorching guitar solo accompanied by heavy drum fills.
Line 97:
* [[Me Without You]]'s Catch For Us Foxes, after eleven tracks of blistering and screaming soundscapes, concludes with "Son of a Widow", which is rather quiet and tender.
* The Hives are mostly known for high speed garage rock, but their album ''Veni Vedi Vicious'' throws in "Find Another Girl", a pretty faithful cover of a 60's R&B ballad by Jerry Butler. It sticks out quite a bit in the middle of the album.
* [[Christian Rock|Christian]] [[Heavy Metal (Music)|Metal]] band East West's [[Black Sheep Hit]] "She Cries."
* [[Power Metal]] bands usually feature at least one ballad per album.
* [[Modest Mouse]], whose songs typically consist of shrieking existential crises [[Word Salad Lyrics|in the form of really elaborate metaphors]], also produced "Little Motel," a sober reflection after the loneliness "earned" after destroying a relationship.
Line 104:
* Black Label Society has [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv3HJSPRCL8&feature=related Spoke in the Wheel], a very mellow and depressive song that contrasts with other songs sung and composed by bearded, foul-mouthed, pinch-harmonic-crazed Zakk Wylde.
** The Black Label Society album ''Hangover Music Vol. VI''' is made up mostly of softer songs that utilize acoustic guitar and piano, meaning that the album really ''is'' good music to listen to while hungover.
** "In This River", from their ''Mafia'' album, was a quiet ballad Wylde dedicated in memory of [[Pantera (Music)|Darrell Abbott]] (he'd actually written it months before Abbott's death.
* Akercocke has a few parts with clean vocals in their otherwise extremely heavy blackened death metal, but the last song off the album Antichrist - [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajJAm3RSmZw Epode] - is fully mellow, beautiful (and is about [[Lyrical Dissonance|Satan himself]].)
* "Spit on a Stranger" by indie rockers [[Pavement]] is a ballad (albeit a rather bizarre one) from a band who usually did uptempo songs with [[Word Salad Lyrics]].
* [[Godsmack (Music)|Godsmack]] have "Serenity" off their ''Faceless'' album.
* [[Jimi Hendrix]] had "Castles in the Sand", "The Wind Cries Mary","Sweet Angel", and "Little Wing".
* "More Than Words" by Extreme, which ironically is their biggest radio hit.
Line 120:
** "Where Are You Now" on Oops, "Everytime" / "Shadow" during In The Zone, "Why Should I Be Sad" at the end of Blackout, "Unusual You" / "Out From Under / "Blur" / "My Baby" on Circus and "Trip To Your Heart" on Femme Fatale
* [[The Pretty Reckless]] have this in the form of You on their debut album, about an unrequited crush.
* The [[Foo Fighters (Music)|Foo Fighters]] have many. The very first was "Big Me" (which causes some [[Mood Whiplash]] on the album it's on), and then come "Walking After You", "Aurora", "Tired Of You", "Stranger Things Have Happened", [[Distinct Double Album|the entire second disk of]] ''In Your Honor''...
* [[Memetic Mutation|There's also]] [[Insane Clown Posse (Music)|Insane Clown Posse]] 's [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-agl0pOQfs&ob=av3e Miracles], which differs rather significantly from their [[Ax Crazy|normal fair.]]
* While ''[[Lyriel (Music)|Lyriel]]'' is a [[Symphonic Metal]] band that tends towards the softer side of the genre, their album Paranoid Circus contains the track [[Exactly What It Says Onon the Tin|"Lullaby" which is exactly what the tittle suggests]]. This track is preceded and followed by tracks that feature aggressive drumming.
* [[Blur (Musicband)|Blur]] give us "Tender" and [[Tear Jerker|"Sweet Song"]]. And from Damon Albarn again, in [[Gorillaz]] we have El Manana from Demon Days (though [[Wham! Episode|the video]] is [[Soundtrack Dissonance|far from gentle]]) and Cloud of Unknowing in Plastic Beach ([http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S02Sb_KnndQ and again]). On Melancholy Hill is fairly mellow and has very sweet lyrics, so it could fit, but is perhaps too upbeat for this.
* [[Five Finger Death Punch (Music)|Five Finger Death Punch]] has a few, especially with "Remember Everything". "Walk Away" and "Far From" are a couple more.
 
{{reflist}}
Retrieved from "https://allthetropes.org/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/902066"