What does everybody think about the possibility of an age limit to playing death metal? Or physically demanding music in general?

There must come a point in one's life when one can no longer sustain 16ths at 240bpm or possess the required dexterity to pull off technical riffs a la Suffocation, Nile, et cetera.

I guess when the likes of Jeff and Kerry from Slayer hit 50+ we'll start to get an indication of the effects on the human body - more specifically the wrist and arm - of people who have played fast and physically demanding music for very long periods of time.

What do you think bands will do? Break up? Adapt to their ever decreasing capabilities?

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I would want to break up, if i cant play the music anymore then I wouldnt want to continue on with that style and embariss myself. I would continue music but if your an established band you dont want to ruin that bands name by changing styles

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just look at metallica. thats all i have to say

I'd tend to agree with you there. Or if I was to change styles, I'd insist on calling the band something else so that people can draw a distinction between the two artistic concepts.

I'm dreading the day when I am unable to play Angel Of Death or Churning The Maelstrom or Enraptured By Evil due to physical incapability.

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Well Karl Sanders of Nile will be 42 years young in a few days, and I'd say he's kicking more ass than ever. No signs of stopping either.

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That's more of an artistic decision on there part rather than a physical deficiency that's beyond their control. I should have put a disclaimer in my original post concerning Metallica becasue deep down I knew they'd get brougt into this argument and that wasn't really in my itinery for discussion.

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wow didnt know he was that old
but damn they seem to be getting faster and faster

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Nile have been around for 15 years now under various guises and I want them to have a legacy similar to that of Priest and Maiden, ie 30+ years of material and touring. Will Karl still be able to churn out Black Seeds Of Vengeance with the same ferocity at 57? It'll sure be interesting finding out!

EDIT: Actually, it was seeing that thread at the Nile boards that inspired me to start this thread. I had no idea Karl was in his 40s - I had him pegged at 35, tops.

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Yeah.
I knew he was old, but I thought that just meant he was in his 30's. He definitely looks like he's in his 30's. He must have so super egyptian powers

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according to the mag terrorizer there was a riff on the new nile album that was such a huge stretch or something that it injured karls hand

eventually he gave up and play the riff a different way i guess

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you never properly loose your skills, you get worse for the first 2 weeks of not playing then just stay at that point till you start playing again

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probably while he was learning the song The Burning Pits of the Duat. Thats one crazy song.

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Oh, that could be Wind Of Horus, the intro riff. I know Dallas plays it like this (fingering underneath):



Dallas' fingers are much longer than Karl's and so I would imagine Karl shifts it up onto the 6th string and makes use of the drop tuning.

EDIT: sorry, didn't see 'new album' in your original post.

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So when you're 80 you'll still be able to keep up with Reign In Blood?

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From an aging standpoint I'd say as long as arthritis or some other disablity isn't present I don't see any reason why age should ever be a factor. And just because the fingers don't fly like they used to doesn't mean they can't still write for others who can do it. Jason Becker comes to mind.
As far as Metallica is concerned I think all the hype and b.s. is what made people fade from them. They came on with a bang and then whined. The music just didn't have the down and dirty feel it once had. When you blow your horn too loud people are gonna cover their ears instead of listen after awhile.

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Who knows, if your fit, healthy and don't suffer from any muscular or mental illness its perfectly pheasable.

my vocalists old man is 53 and he plays nile shit like its nothing. so my vote goes to no restrictions as far as age goes.

I think when you cannot physically do it anymore, stop. Save the dignity. But look at Priest, they ALL can still pull it off at that age.

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everyone will break up and quit by the time they hit 50 or so. peoples voices go, they get arthritis, they gain weight, they get families, etc. very few death metal bands will be touring even past 35 id say. i saw with my own eyes that some people (glen benton) should NOT be allowed to play anymore after about 10 years of touring. he looks like a complete pile of shit and sounds like one too

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There has got to be a physical limit after which your stamina, picking speed and dexterity all begin to wane. Obviously it's going to be different for different folk - which is going to mean that quantifying it is going to be difficult - but I still maintain that limitations will exist regardless of arthritis or muscular conditions, particularly when considering stamina.

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+1

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Anybody know how old Trey is?

Between 35 and 40 would be my guess.

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Benton's destroyed himself through drugs and being a dumbass more than touring.

Look at Paco de Lucia. 57 or 58 and still shreds better with his fingers than pretty much any guitar hero you can name. If you're smart about how you play you can last. If you're a dumbass, you'll have arthritic wrists at 25. But I figure the 50s-60s will be the limit.

never heard of Paco. must be a flamenco type?

and yeah, bentons a complete slob. but there are a lot of slob personalities waiting to come out once you hit 30 or so and your body cant keep up

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Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top is 56 and he is already losing his ability to play. I saw him last year and he makes mistakes like crazy. I would think around eighty would be the limit for an extremely healthy individual. Most will probably lose it between 50 and 60.

He is 40. http://angemorbide.free.fr/treybio.html

yeah it was that song

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Age limit on metal Hell no! I'll be playing until the day I die, even if I'm 86. I'll still play or at least try like I was still 15. Playing fast isn't hard for me. I just relax and breath.

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I don't think there is a limit for how old you can be. If you enjoy playing then you should continue with that, even if you get like 60 years old(headbanging grandpa).

Kerry said on the WatW DVD that they would stop when they felt they couldn't do it anymore.

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when i get too old to play death metal, ill gracefully step away from the it. Ill just play classical and stuff... plenty of skill required, but not very physically demanding.

No no no, once you turn 55 you are officially not allowed ro be metal anymore.

Totally. My retirement plan is to be in a mellow groovy jazz type thing playing in an upscale club as the house band. Set a cool mood and pick on all the young stupid fucks that come into the place.

You're right: there isn't an age limit per se, but there are inevitable physical constrictions that will become more evident with age, ie, stamina for sustained tremelo picking or a decrease in general dexterity.

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Well, as long as you can still come up with the riffs, that's all it needs to be. For example When the Necrophagist guys get to old for their shit, they might realise that music dosn't have to be the most inane and complex shit on the history of the universe and they might discover just making simple but great riffs. Like I'm saying that as they get old and can no longer play it, they don't have to give up, just make it less crazy and start working on killer riffs not killing wrists

well is what i think is as time goes on people will be able to play older and older and push the envelope. i mean 35 years ago 200bpm didnt even exist now we have bands doing over 300bpm. so as time goes on things will get more extreme and last longer do to people pushing the envelope. that is how i see it in my eyes.

Iron Maiden is doing just fine.. same with Priest.. just saw them last night.. KICKED ASS.

Age is only a number.

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A number that sometimes causes a beautiful and confident woman to become repulsive and depressed. A number that sometimes causes a young child to unknowingly spread his retardation across the internet. A number that sometimes makes an old man look pretty damn pathetic trying to rock out to his old metal tunes.
If Kerry King has the drooping balls to play a Slayer show at the age of 70 when he is "still kickin' like a buffalo chicken" with his necro skull'n'bones walker and powerchair, then I respect him for making an utter fool of himself just to bring laughter to my voice. Yet I doubt he would do such a thing.

Oh yeah? Says who?

Nah I'm just kidding man lol.

Ozzy's older than 55. Dio is 400, and I'm positive he's more metal than you.

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What bands are doing over 300bpm?

about physical limits, look at what over practising did to Demonaz from Immortal. There was a point in his life where "he couldnt even wash his hair".
Now thats fucked... im so careful now aobut my strap height and not overpracticing, if i wasnt able to play guitar, i would proabaly consider killing myself, its one of the two things that i actually love doing. Tendonitis bad!

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You stole my thoughts and made them your own. For that you shall suffer.
Just kidding, you summed it up pretty good there, man.
BTW, I'd kill to go see that particular Slayer show.
On a side note, has anyone seen that Rammstein video where they're all wearing fat suits and rocking out? Fucking priceless. They look like a bunch of old, fat ass mafiosos jamming out some tunes.
To the guy who said no metal past 55, that's bullshit. I think playing thrash at 55 with the grey hair and everything might look a bit silly, but playing just metal with some deep lyrics, that would be bad ass. Shit, Iommi's been around forever now, and look at him, he's nowhere near stopping. My lead guitarist's dad is in his 50s I believe, and he outshreds us both. I'm thinking about just letting him play guitar, I'll just design the cover for the CD or something.
So, anyway, my point is that age just opens up your eyes and your mind to more things and influences, thereby enhancing your music, it certainly doesn't limit you. It seems to me that playing guitar, or music in general, only has a positive effect on your age, because if you look at all the guitar greats, they hardly ever look their age.
BTW, none of the above applies if your influences include, or are limited to Linkin Park. In this case, by the time you are 55, you can do whatever you want, no one will care. On the bright side, you don't have to worry about losing your playing ability as you get older, because when it comes to skill, you've already hit rock bottom and started digging. It really can't get that much worse.

hahahahaha

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i cant think of any song where a guitar plays straight 16th on 240 bpm through the whole song ( or even nearly). most riffs on that speedlevel are pussy cause they involve thousands of pull of/hammer on shit or even pause with 8th in em.
i never saw i guitaist playing straight 16th on 300 bpm either so ...

anyways the older you get the more problems you will get with your joints. although i guess stamina is the worse problem for a guitar player. it sounds strange but i know that its very taxing to play difficult stuff on stage. apart from all that i would laugh my ass off if someone of bb.kings age would play deathmetal style of music. just would look stupid.

bill gibbons loses his ability to play? maybe he was just inna bad mood the evening u saw him preform.

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I don't know, it actually looks kinda badass seeing an old evil worn out looking bald dude playing metal. How much more twisted does it get then that?

Anyone ever seen a Straping Young Lad video? That dude just looks sinister.

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Devin's not that old... he's just a very very ugly man.

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He's hardly kicking out Smashing The Antiu every night though is he?

55 might well be too early though. BLS raised a good point with Maiden and Priest, however the real acid test will be when Slayer (who are probably the longest serving of the mega-fast picking bands) can no longer perform fast songs like Angel Of Death, Hallowed Point and Raining Blood live. This may well be a good few years off, but the day will approach whether you want to believe it or not.

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its not Kerry and Jeff thats gonna get joint problems, its Toms throat that will pop right out of his neck durring a show... i guarentee it...

but ya, about the Kerry in bones n' skulls walker... i would still buy there CD... if he, Jeff and Tom still shred at 106 il still listen to them... age is nothing...

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Well, I hope age doesn't have anything to do with it. I've started late so I got a long way to go. It's becoming easier to play as time goes on so there is still hope for me.

I believe that age isn't really an issue, it's if the fans make it an issue. You see bands that have had the big show in the past but nowadays, they hardly have anyone on stage to watch them. Evidence: Annihalator

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My dad is 34 and plays drums in a death metal band. I don't see him stopping anytime soon.

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LOL, I seen that video. Bald on top... long ass hair on the side. Looks pretty wicked. They jam though!


I believe we'll all "eventually" settle down, not by change in taste, but human body constraints. argh!!!! I hate the thought of not being able to thrash raging fuckin mad because my body can't keep up with it. Guess I'll just have to pump more meth into my bloodstream! MUWHAWHAWHA!!

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Yeah, he looks like a metalized Mr Burns from the Simsons

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the bezerker, decrepit birth has got to be real close.

That reminds me, does anyone know what drugs Slayer does/has done?

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They are clean now, but Tom said that back in the 80's him and jeff were huge coke heads.

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I think they call that strapping young lad guys hair a "skullet". Makes sense and is fu**ing hilarious.

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That is what I thought would look like one day. At least now I know it looks cool. I would even look like that or just shave my head. Some of us are going to lose our hair like it or not

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a.... skullet!!!

that's some funny ass shit!!!

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http://www.thecountymedicalexaminers.com/bio.htm

The County Medical Examiners is a cool Carcass clone band, not the faggy Carcass either.... they aren't metal scenesters and definitely not your stereotypical met4l dewds because they went to school and have real jobs as medical examiners (they are certified M.Ds)... anyways the bassist has a Ph.D in forensic medicine and is 61 years old. Top that

and no they dont play really fast dextrous stuff, but that shouldnt be the point of the topic, because asking "can sore old decrepit people play guitar as energetically as young people" is a stupid question

Should be normal to lose speed and/or dexterity around the age of 50... it's just in the human body. The body is bound to lose its power at that age.

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That's funny, because that wasn't what I was asking. I was enquiring as to what everybody thinks is the age limit. Most have responded thoughtfully, a select few have responded (ridiculously) with, "There is no age limit" and a few others have missed the point completely, like you.

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I started playing DM at 22 years old, now I'm 24. I'm not an old motherfucker, my life is just begining!

Pat O'Brien is 40 too, these Death Metal cunts are old, damn!

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im playing it right now, and im only 14 Slit Your Guts from Cryptopsy

EDIT: not the solos though... hard shit...

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John. . . I think that is why most of us(metallers/musicians) die young. . . that way we don't have to endure the torment of seeing our bodies break down like that. I could be wrong but hey, how many of us do you see at Pink Floyd's age. I enjoy playing a lot but I doubt I will live long enough to have to worry about an age cutoff, the one for life will catch me first.

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I don't really like to do one word replies, but:

Lemmy.

Perhaps that's because so death metal has only been around for 15-20 years. I;m not sure that made sense. I'm stoned and you seem to appreciate things a lot more, when you are.

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WTF!? Is he 40?

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If a death/metal band comes to the point where they are too old and slow in limbs etc. to keep up with the pace in their songs, they hopefully, and probably, have done their greatest in the past. And they will "break up" in sense of retiring as professional death/black metal performers.

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I'd say the age limit depends on the individual. How insightful eh? I haven't seen anyone else point it out though. Some people deteriorate faster than others, and I'm sure alot of it has to do with personal health and diet. My guess is if you take care of yourself, eat in a healthy manner, and exercise properly you could be playing DM until your early 60s.