B.Y.O.B (Bring Your Own Ballot) | The Nu Metal Rate | Winner Revealed

If this is start of a cull for this band's songs in the rate, then rate cancelled! Either way, this result is a disappointment!





#41

























































Deftones | My Own Summer (Shove It) | 6.706 (+0.059 / +0.95 points)

Highest: 10x4 (@Ana Raquel, @Ironheade, @DominoDancing, @DJHazey) 9x1 (@Maki)

Lowest: 0x1 (@berserkboi) 3x1 (@If You Go)

Album: Around the Fur - 1997

Charting: 29

According to thedeftones.com, this was written in Seattle during the hot summer of 1994. Trapped inside of his room by the heat and sun, Chino Moreno boarded up his windows with aluminum foil and wished for "An apocalyptic-type thing" where all of the people on the streets would disappear and the sun would go away. He called this dream world "his own summer," which is where the song title comes from.

The video features a great white shark. Chino Moreno told NME: "I paid the bill for the director to go to Australia to collect footage to put in the video. The actual sharks in the video were mechanical except the footage they CGIed in at the end."

A version of the song was featured on the soundtrack for The Matrix.

I'm always going to love everything from Deftones's first three albums more than anything else I've ever heard from them, especially when they were at their rawest - Adrenaline and Around the Fur. Listening to songs like this, Bored, Engine No 9, Lotion, Headup, Minus Blindfold, and 7 Words compared to their later output is like two separate entities. They always were experimental, but I feel like they drifted away from heavy metal as they went along. I've haven't really heard much of their most recent stuff though, so I could be wrong. I had to include this to show off Deftones at their youngest though, showcasing how flexible of a vocalist that Chino is. The band's early sound reminds me of one of my first girlfriends. We bonded on the fact that we both loved nu metal, but I really floored her when I said I was obsessed with Deftones, which won me a ton of clout with her. To her, they were kind of underground still, compared to the rest of genre taking off with mainstream media. She was one of those cool skater chicks, that I felt I was out of her league and not cool enough so that is a strong memory for me. Probably why I made my first email address and AOL messenger name as 'deftones341' or translated as 'deftones - iloveyou spelled backwards - 341 instead of 143' which was both a statement of loving the band and this girl because we felt we were the two biggest Deftones stans in the state of Maine. She always loved when I'd sing Deftones songs to her over the phone. That's so late 90's/early 000s' it's not even funny! I'm old, etc.

Commentary

Time to find out that the haters really hated Chino's screams in the chorus, am I right?

@berserkboi - 0 - Non!

Okay, time to not hold back with my french rate commentary/scores then!

@If You Go - 3 - Versus sound good, but the shrieking in the chorus grates too much

But the verses are a 10/10, so this doesn't add up.

@unnameable – 5.5 – they distorted the vocals too far

@Maki - 9 - This is such a grower and the guitar riff is so memorable. I love how they combine atmospheric/moody with angry sections. Quite trippy, actually.

I dare you to listen to their first two albums, it's going to blow your mind. Another all-time favorite deep cuts is "MX" which I think you'd love, which was one of those secret tracks that goes on for like 45 minutes and I'm always mad when streaming sites don't shorten it so I can get the scrobble on Last.FM without having to listen to dead air for at least 22 and half minutes.

@DominoDancing - 10 - I'll say this, Chino's vocals in general take getting used to. But they are absolutely unique in this genre with the way their ethereal quality. The guitar riff on this is already amazing, things get even better when the descending bass line kicks in, and then all hell breaks lose. One of the few bands that actually just got better over the course of their career.

Yes Stephen Carpenter on guitars and Chi Cheng on bass (R.I.P.) crank out classic riffs with this song and "Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)" which almost made the rate. It was a toss up as they're both anthems.

Songs

This and "My Own Summer" were both equally huge for Deftones from Around the Fur.

My deep cut favorite I suggested for @Maki.

Another song I haven't mentioned from this album, without any screaming parts on it so there's that too. What a dark and trippy means to literally just detach from the world around you and escape to another planet.

​

 

Okay this hurts, as this could have been my 11.
As mentioned in my comment, I think the band only got better over time, and became more and more able to write quite good vocal melodies without giving up their heaviness. Diamond Eyes has a simple, but super catchy chorus for example.

It's a bit unfortunate that Stephen Carpenter revealed himself to be a flat-earther anti-vax consipracy nut end of last year, which apparently left Chino a bit helpless:

 

Okay so I knew this band was doomed before I even thought about starting this rate, but I didn't know it was going to go this badly.





#40











































Limp Bizkit | Rollin' | 6.847 (+.141 average / +2.25 points)

Highest: 10x2 (@Sprockrooster, @DJHazey) 9x1 (@iheartpoptarts)

Lowest: 2x1 (@DominoDancing) 4x1 (@CorgiCorgiCorgi)

Album: Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water - 2000

Charting: 1 65

"Rollin'" was the lead single from the album (not counting "Take A Look Around," released months earlier as a single and on the Mission: Impossible 2 soundtrack).

Two versions of this song appear on the album: "Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)" and "Rollin' (Urban Assault Vehicle)." The "Air Raid" version is just the band, but "Urban Assault Vehicle" is a remix featuring hip-hop artists DMX, Redman and Method Man, and produced by Swizz Beatz. This hip-hop version is how the song was conceived.

"Rollin' was originally going to be just a straight hip-hop song," said guitarist Wes Borland, "But after we heard it, we were like, 'No, man, we've got to turn this into a rock song.' We liked both versions so much that that's what it ended up being, two versions: a hip-hop version of the song and a rock version of the song."

"Rollin'" was the biggest chart hit for Limp Bizkit, reaching #65 in America and #1 in the UK. In America, the "Urban Assault Vehicle" remix was the charting version, but in the UK it was the "Air Raid Vehicle" version.

"Rollin'" features in The Fast And The Furious, the first film in the franchise, released in 2001.

The music video cost $3 million to make, a budget justified because Limp Bizkit were huge on MTV. It shows frontman Fred Durst cruising in his Bentley Azure, along with shots of a helicopter swooping round New York, weaving around the Statue Of Liberty and the roof of the World Trade Center, where the band is seen playing. Durst's Hollywood pals Ben Stiller and Stephen Dorff make cameo appearances at the beginning of the clip when they mistake the singer for a valet (an easy mistake with his red hat) and give him the keys to their Bentley. The video was filmed just one year before the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The band received a letter from the World Trade Center the day before the Twin Towers were destroyed, thanking them for featuring the towers in the clip. Durst recalled in Kerrang! January 29, 2011: "I had the helicopters buzzing all around me, my band were rocking out and I remember thinking, 'This is beyond anything I could ever have imagined.'" The video received the award for Best Rock Video at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards.

Explaining his guitar technique on this song, Wes Borland said he used a Floyd Rose tremolo system. "That's when I was really getting into using that as a part of riffs, to make things dive and come back up, and using it to give guitar riffs the bar on the guitar," he said in an interview. "Instead of using it like a Van Halen style technique, I was actually using it on lower strings and chords, like how you can make the riffs sound when playing with the drums - give riffs this suction push and pull sound that makes everything sound more snappy."
​

I still remember this being the peak of nu metal's popularity and how my circle of friends stanned for them so badly at the time. We all got out of school the day the album was released and drove straight to Bull Moose Music to buy the CD. Then we rode straight to my friend Mike's house and played the entire album on repeat the rest of the afternoon. This is easily my favorite kind of sound from Limp Bizkit and I'm talking about the Air Raid Vehicle version of course. Miss me with the hip hop version. The style Borland refers to above, I'm no guitar technician but whatever he was doing on this album; it was masterclass. Songs like this, My Generation, and My Way had it in spades. Combined with the effortless way these songs flow, they're built to really put you in a great mood. Then you add songs with darker aggression like Full Nelson, Hot Dog, Take a Look Around, and Boiler, and this becomes one of my favorite albums of all-time.

Commentary

@DominoDancing - 2 - Not as vile as Break Stuff, "just" dumb and nothing I want anything to do with.

@Maki - 5.25 - Just slightly better than the other track. Still undeniably annoying.

Some of the best bops are dumb bops, don't forget that.

@berserkboi - 5.5 - Once a zero, this has grown on me some over the years! Ddd

The reverse "Push It" effect, I guess dd.

@unnameable – 8 – like Nickelback or Maroon 5, no-one confessed to liking them but everyone would dance to this song and sing along.

I'm sorry Limp, I'm sorry you had to see this comparison, but yes they weren't the first band you'd list when someone asked for some favorites.

Sprockrooster - 10 - Limp Bizkit should have been much bigger than they were than Chocolate Starfish and Behind Blue Eyes, but Eat You Alive should have smashed just as much. Results May Vary is way too underrated.

Never a million years did I think anyone would champion "Eat You Alive" because well, you know the song's lyrical content and let's just say it would never go over well on Popjustice. Massive bop though.

Songs

The Urban Assault Vehicle verison.

In case you've never heard their Mission Impossible song, it deserves it. Quite possibly their best song, objectively.

The song "Eat You Alive" mentioned by @Sprockrooster. It may come as a tough listen for fresh ears, but the lyrics are meant describe the animalistic sexual desire at its rawest form. Remember it's all an artistic expression, one way or another.

​

 

It doesn't bop quite as hard as 'Break Stuff' (the more over-the-top the better for me) but I'm sad to see it go! 'My Way' is pretty great too.

 

45 Slipknot // Wait and Bleed 4
44 Incubus // Pardon Me 4
43 Saliva // Click Click Boom 8
42 Disturbed // Down With the Sickness 5.2
41 Deftones // My Own Summer (Shove It) 2
40 Limp Bizkit // Rollin' 8

The mention of Puddle of Mudd brings back Blurry:

I have never managed to watch The Matrix.
Since it's the band's last song in this rate, I want to add that I'll always associate Fred Durst with two words: nookie and agreeance.
Two words he uttered at two award ceremonies if I remember correctly.

 

If Blurry will be part of a rate it will be very hard for me to resist giving it my 11.

 

Did everyone do it all for the nookie? I thought the nookie was lovely.

 

Not so fast, because I'm not a particular fan of the song as it is and feel their hits didn't age too well.

I only didn't have Nookie in the rate because I wanted to have one song from each of their two big albums and feel like Break Stuff was slightly more deserving from Significant Other, though certainly an argument could be made.

 

Also, can I just say talking about Nookie reminded of this parody gem from the time. Any other Star Wars fan outta love this.

 

So now it's my lowest score in the whole rate and back-to-back 10's for @Sprockrooster.




#39
























































P.O.D. | Alive | 6.950 (+.103 average / 1.65 points)

Highest: 10x2 (@livefrommelbs, @Sprockrooster) 9.2x1 (@Untouchable Ace)

Lowest: 1x1 (@DominoDancing) 5x1 (@DJHazey)

Album: Satellite - 2001

Charting: 19 41

This song is about not taking anything for granted, living each day as if it was your last. P.O.D. lead singer Sonny Sandoval, who wrote the lyrics, told the story of how it all together: "We were recording in Valley Village, and I was going back home for the weekends to San Diego. So I'd literally leave late Friday night and then come back late Sunday night. And then hit the studio on Monday. But it was my turn to start laying down vocals. And my daughter was very young - she was not even one yet. And so here I was supposed to record the song 'Alive' on Monday, and I hadn't even finished the lyrics yet. So it's a funny story. My wife's driving so I can sit and just kind of concentrate. I always know what I want to say, and I work better under pressure. So here we are, it's nighttime, we're driving late Sunday on the 405 freeway. It's dark, and from the traffic light, I look back and I look at my daughter. And I don't know if you have kids or not, but you always hear people say, 'He looks just like you,' and 'She looks just like you.' And like forever I never saw that. And everybody's like, 'Oh, she's the spitting image, she looks exactly like you.' And I just didn't see it, because it's just my little baby. And for some reason with the traffic light shining in, I look at her and for the first time I see myself in her. I can finally see it now. And it was like, wow. That was just the moment. That's almost completely what the song's about. For the very first time I see myself in my daughter. It was a beautiful moment. I see me."

Lead vocalist Sonny Sandoval is a Christian who speaks openly about his faith. While this song was inspired by a specific incident in his life, he sees it as having a universal theme. Sandoval said, "It's just whatever moment that is for anybody. If I'm talking of faith, it has to do with my faith in God. We always keep it open for interpretation, because I never want to sound religious or preachy. It's kind of like a painting: 20 people can look at a piece of art and have 20 different interpretations. I believe it's supposed to speak to your soul. So the same thing with our music. I've had kids come up to me and tell me what my songs mean to them, and I'm like Wow. You know what, you just spoke to me, because I'm blown away right now. That's amazing. But it's the way they heard it. It's their life, it's their situation. It could be one or two words, it could be a phrase."

I think this captures perfectly the idea that I tend to love a lot of "Christian pop" because I don't interpret them to be religious sermons the way others do and just love the generic positive message of it all.

This was the first single from P.O.D.'s album Satellite, which was released on September 11, 2001. The day happened to be a Tuesday and since many albums liked to release on Tuesdays, that day happened to have many releases. The timing of the release with the attacks on the World Trade Center probably gave it an unintended push on the charts that year.

The music video, directed by Francis Lawrence, depicts an accident on the Los Angeles freeway where a bus crashes into the protagonist's car, with the band playing nearby. Lawrence killed off the character, but was forced to bring him back to life when the label thought the original ending was too dark. The crew also encountered some real-life violence when a driver who was upset the freeway was closed for the shoot pulled a gun, but thankfully drove away. Lawrence is also a film director who helmed three of The Hunger Games movies.​

Is this really a 5/10? I don't know, maybe not, but it's closer than I realized until I listened to it against the rest of the playlist. I love this genre and felt like I needed at least one or two mediocre scores sprinkled in to add variety. Maybe if this was in a multi-genre rate, I would throw it higher score but definitely not a 9 or 10. To me, the chorus reminds me of some of the worst stuff from Creed or a similar band. Or a nu metal version of Katy Perry's "Firework", a song for some soccer Mom's Facebook page and not my enjoyment. I loved a couple of their more energetic songs from their debut a lot more. Give me "Southtown" or "Rock the Party (Off the Hook)" from The Fundamental Elements of Southtown any day over this. It shows off their knack for good rap metal than "Alive" or even "Youth of the Nation" (the other huge hit from Satellite). P.O.D.'s best song for my money though is from the Little Nicky soundtrack, a banger called "School of Hard Knocks" which I know @Twitch Mo would agree since it was always in our air guitar/lip sync lineup.

Commentary

@DominoDancing - 1 - Ddddd lyrics straight from a calendar of inspirational quotes. Laughable.

Yup, but as you can see, I'm always more lenient about bad lyrics.

@berserkboi - 7 - Another one that doesn’t piss me off anymore with years apart!

You having a song 'piss you off'? I don't buy it.

@Maki - 7.5 - Serving cartoon opening/soundtrack realness. It's fine.

A cartoon during Sunday School, maybe.

@livefrommelbs - 10 - I've always loved the sentiment in this one, which has been a rock fave since I first heard it. It's really uplifting and that chorus is unforgettable.

It is unforgettable, unfortunately for me it became overbearing over the years.

@Sprockrooster - 10 - Satellite is one of the best albums from the zeroes fuelled by the amazing singles where Youth of the Nation leads that pack. Very much ahead of their time in message.

I knew I might disappoint you by not having that in the rate, but felt like I already have enough soft moments in the rate that weren't really 'metal' songs persay. Glad I still included another 10 for you though.


Songs

The aforementioned Youth of the Nation. A song that talks about real-life tragedies that young people face. It's a tough listen sometimes.

Spoiler: Trigger Warning

Sometimes when I contemplated taking my own life, at least at the time, hearing the lyric

It's kind of hard when you ain't got no friends
He put his life to an end
They might remember him then

and thinking it sounds like a decent concept. That was heavy.

Their first hit in the nu metal scene, Southtown, which represents their hometown of San Diego California.

​

 

All I remember from Nookie was that hot grungy blonde guy being grungy hot! Ddd

 

I agree. Youth might be a bit too soft.

But I will not allow this flop opinion of Blurry being dated. The way it transcended time and perhaps got even better.

 

I'm gonna need System of a Down to start losing songs soon. Seeing these 0s and 1s makes me think I've been too generous with my scores.

 

The pantomime song of theirs that got a 2 from me - let’s lose that!

 

First Kimbra and Bic Runga, now System of a Down?

Now you're working together?

*shakes my head*

 

Why am I SO out of sync with you all? Alive almost got my 11, haha!

 

P.O.D. // Alive 7
I like the chorus of Youth of the Nation for its anthemic aspect. I didn't know it was from them.

 

For the first time in quite a while, no 10's were given, but also for the first time it's just @Twitch Mo and I with the highest scores.




#38



































Sevendust | Praise | 6.972 (+.022 average / 0.35 points)

Highest: 9x2 (@Twitch Mo, @DJHazey) 8x3 (@Ana Raquel, @Ironheade, @If You Go)

Lowest: 5x2 (@CorgiCorgiCorgi, @Sprockrooster) 5.5x1 (@livefrommelbs)

Album: Animosity - 2001

Charting: -- (#15 on Mainstream Rock)

The band first gained success with the release of their second album Home in 1999, after their self-titled debut got them some recognition for their heavy riffs, thrash-like drumming, and angry vocals from frontman Lajon Witherspoon. Songs "Black" and "Bitch" from that debut album were standouts in early nu metals circles, especially "Black" which speaks about Witherspoon being black in a genre that has historically been dominated by white people.

For this reason, I almost put "Black" in the rate but balked on the idea because it was not a hit like most other songs on the list. Well, neither is "Praise", but at least it was more of a hit for Sevendust from a more commercially prominent album. Home included songs with guests vocals from Deftones's Chino Moreno on "Bender" and Skunk Anansie's Skin on "Licking Cream", that latter is one of my favorite songs on the album. I almost included "Denial" since you could argue it's their most well known song. Unfortunately, despite being a banger, it has a few choice lyrics, so I chose a song that had less of a chance of being attacked on that front.

Sevendust is really one of my favorite bands as far as the music they put out during this era. Animosity, which "Praise" comes from, is one of my favorite albums of all-time for any genre of music. "Trust", "Crucified", "Xmas Day", "Dead Set", and "Live Again" would all be in discussion if I made a all-time longlist for songs. I have a lot of strong memories attached to each of these songs and where I was when I first heard them and/or connected with them on another level. I even entered "Xmas Day" to PJ00s one time recently to help promote the rate. Sometimes I think about entering their ballad "Angel's Son" as well. Lajon's vocals are often mentioned as some of the best in nu metal and I 100% agree. I'm not surprised Sevendust didn't go any further than #38 because I figured they'd be a new entity for most voters, but I can't say I'm not disappointed they didn't become a new obsession for anyone. I whole-heartedly believe they deserve more.

Please take a minute out to play some of the songs I list below for a more encompassing sample of what this glorious band has to offer.

Commentary

@DominoDancing - 6.5- Vocally, this definitely stands out in its genre and in this rate, and the break is musically unexpected. But for the most part, a lot of this is just a lot of generic dropped tuning palm muted chugging.

I think you'd be in for a treat then, if you play the songs I link below.

@berserkboi - 6.5 - Alright as far as these latter day songs are concerned ddd

@Twitch Mo - 9 - This song came out right as I was really starting to get into Sevendust.

I used to play songs like "Denial" all the time for him, but he never thought much of Sevendust until he heard "Praise" and ended up stanning for Animosity about as much as I did.

Songs

Their first cornerstone song and one that is a strong social justice statement from Lajon.

"Dead Set", like so many other songs from this album, has extraordinary story-telling and world-building, with lyrics that cut like a knife. It's so easy to put this album on and just teleport somewhere else entirely.

"Xmas Day" being the best example of it and my personal favorite.

And lastly, here "Licking Cream" which includes vocals from Skunk Anansie's Skin.

​

 

Now, as we cross over the 7.0 average mark, we lose our first >10 score. A 10.5 for one of the era's most recognizable songs.



#37



















































Drowning Pool | Bodies | 7.059 (+.087 average / +1.4 points)

Highest: 10.5x1 (@iheartpoptarts) 10x1 (@Sprockrooster)

Lowest: 1x1 (@berserkboi) 4.5x1 (@DominoDancing)

Album: Sinner - 2001

Charting: 34 119

This song is a mosh pit anthem. Whenever Drowning Pool played this live, the mosh pit went crazy. The lyrics are very simple, but the song is fun and full of energy. While it may not seem meaningful on the surface, the band has explained that it is about the mosh pit code of honor and the passion of the fans. This got a lot of exposure when Drowning Pool played Ozzfest in 2001. They were a huge hit with the crowd, and quickly moved up from the third to the second stage, even getting the main stage for some shows.

Guitarist C.J. Pierce came up with the riff, and lead singer Dave Williams added the line "Let The Bodies Hit The Floor," which became the basis for the song.

Jared Loughner is a mentally unstable mass murderer who shot dead six people and critically injured US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Tuscon, Arizona in January 2011. The killer favored this song on his YouTube channel, leading some media commentators to speculate over whether the killer was influenced by the tune. In a statement posted at Drowning Pool's website, the band responded: "We were devastated this weekend to learn of the tragic events that occurred in Arizona and that our music has been misinterpreted, again. 'Bodies' was written about the brotherhood of the mosh pit and the respect people have for each other in the pit. If you push others down, you have to pick them back up. It was never about violence. It's about a certain amount of respect and a code."

The World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) named this the official theme song of Summerslam. It got a lot of play on the WWF shows.

82-year-old former aerospace engineer John Hetlinger auditioned with a performance of "Bodies" on the 2016 series of America's Got Talent. Hetlinger's rendition elicited huge cheers from the studio audience, shocked the judging panel and swiftly went viral. CJ Pierce spoke to Liudwire about Hetlinger's performance shortly afterwards, saying, "I am so entertained by it. It's awesome to just see an 82-year-old man get out there and just belt out some metal - whether it was our song or any song, it was just killer to see him do that. Obviously he had a great time with the song and we have a great time with the song every night so it would be awesome to have him onstage with us."

Always a fun song to me, but as the 8/10 indicates it was never a super-huge favorite of mine, nor was the band to be honest. Nu metal might be looked at as basic by nay-sayers, but I always viewed Drowning Pool as being on the basic side of the genre and never made a big connection because of it. The 'mosh pit anthem' aspect of the "Bodies" makes a whole lot of sense because I do know @Twitch Mo went to a concert tour here in Maine one time that had Drowning Pool, Linkin Park, and Disturbed. I remember he broke his arm because someone shoved him into the mosh pit unwillingly. His Mom tried to sue the venue for damages but I don't think they ever won.

Commentary

@berserkboi - 1 - Pretty terrible!

What if they sung it in French?

@DominoDancing - 4.5 - The high guitar parts with the wah-wah sound kinda cool, and its recognizable, but apart from that this might be - especially the chorus - the dumbest sounding song in the whole rate.

There you go Limp Bizkit, consider this a victory lap.

@CorgiCorgiCorgi - 5 - Not a fan of this, honestly, but it truly is iconic. +2 points for cultural influence.

Yeah, that's fair and probably why I still gave an 8/10 even though I have stronger feelings towards most everything else.

@unnamebale – 6.5 – helped metallers learn to count

'metallers' is what you call them overseas? It's metalheads here.

@livefrommelbs - 6.5 - Was this on Need For Speed Underground or something? Sometimes it's a little too rough on the vocals for me, but there are some highlights too

I'm only finding that it was on a Guitar Hero game.

@Twitch Mo - 8 - great song, it was a tragedy that the lead singer passed after this album, they were definitely going to be big.

For sure, R.I.P. Dave Williams

@Maki - 9 - The intro is probably the most iconic thing in the entire rate, huh? A banger nonetheless.

"Flooooooooor!" is up there for sure.

@iheartpoptarts - 10.5 - I saw the artist/title and I was not at all looking forward to whatever this was because I expected miserable disturbing murder etc. but then I bopped so so so hard. Love it, major banger, will stan forever and play on a loop.

I'm always worried the vocals are going to be too hard/rough/grating etc. for people but then this proves there's room for loud metal in everybody's life. Makes the world better.

Songs

Another great mosh pit anthem from a relatively unknown nu metal band I liked at the time, Shuvel.

Of course most people know "Bawitdaba" which was really mosh pit anthem too. To me, Kid Rock isn't really nu metal but this song definitely was.

​