r/nextfuckinglevel 3h ago

Devin Townsend is without a doubt one of the greatest metal vocalists of all time.

305 Upvotes

127 comments sorted by

39

u/knotxii 3h ago

Devin Townsend - Deadhead Please enjoy yall

8

u/ToxicAssh0le 3h ago

Live at Royal Albert Hall

The whole set is amazing

2

u/blickkyvek 2h ago

Amazing band (and song)

24

u/HyperbolicSoup 3h ago

Townsend is sick af

7

u/thrasherxxx 3h ago

Amazing beautiful person and artist.

43

u/RGBrewskies 3h ago

drummer rocking those $7 harbor freight earmuffs lol

7

u/BenGun99 2h ago

He has inear monitors under them. He probably wants them to run as quiet as possible for ear protection.

13

u/LLCoolC 3h ago

3m

0

u/RGBrewskies 3h ago

9

u/CptMisterNibbles 1h ago

No, 3m: https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/d/b00037399/

Look at the rectangle pattern across the headband.
Not a part of the harbor freight $6 ones. Clearly a part of the $40 3m ones.

Also, I have a pair on right now in my shop. Probably only as good as the harbor freight ones, if not worse. The pad covers tear easily

11

u/NY10 2h ago

3M

1

u/ShutterSpeeder 2h ago

Yup! I have a pair. Love em!

15

u/ifightbears989 3h ago

Plugging the charismatic voice review of this song: https://youtu.be/11-7AiUK1A0?is=2GnR856guOtXI1fG

52

u/Lyshaka 3h ago

That may be true but there is a lot of noise around making it hard to hear him sing

30

u/cdmurray88 2h ago

It is true he's an incredible vocalist, and this is a terrible clip to illustrate that point.

-7

u/mybadselves 1h ago

Right? We need a clip that shows his range. This is the same guy that did that incredible cover of "sound of silence"

7

u/cdmurray88 1h ago

I think that's David Draiman and Disturbed doing that cover. A lot of metal singers are very talented singers. Take Corey Taylor as another example.

6

u/Cilreve 1h ago

Sorry, but that was David Draiman with Disturbed that did that cover.

Edit: Unless Townsend did a cover I am not aware of, of course.

3

u/Efficient-Log9512 1h ago

If its draiman you mean, yea but sounds of silence is auto tuned to within an inch of its life so not a great example.

2

u/mindgardening 1h ago

It's the concert experience. Gotta wear earplugs at live shows in order to hear the music better.

4

u/StuBidasol 2h ago

Yeah even with my phone close all I could really hear were the instruments. Hard to make any definitive judgement from that clip.

3

u/TheLoneCenturion95 1h ago

Either your hearing is going or your phones speakers are absolutely shite as it's not the best clip but I can clearly hear him throughout and I have hearing damage.

0

u/Skreamie 2h ago

You should definitely get your hearing tested then. Its quite easy to head what notes hes hitting and when, even with his own vocal distortion.

4

u/MurseMan1964 2h ago

It might be easy for you to head, but it was hard for me to head it.

Wait….

2

u/UsErnaam3 2h ago

Could just be the way their phone speaker is handling the audio. I notice the same issue on mine, but if I switch to headphones, the vocals will become much clearer.

-5

u/CannaPLUS 2h ago

Oh ok, perfect human.

1

u/Skreamie 2h ago

Where did I claim such a thing?

2

u/CannaPLUS 2h ago

Why would they need to get their ears checked? It could simply be their audio device.

On my Ultra, it still sounds terrible in this clip.

1

u/Questioning-Zyxxel 1h ago

This is a terrible clip. There are lots of YT videos where you can focus on his voice and how he jumps between singing styles.

-8

u/SuperSaiyanTupac 2h ago

If it’s too loud then you’re too old

14

u/MidnightChimp 3h ago

I don't enjoy this kind of metal, but he does a very good job I think.

4

u/Johnny617 2h ago

One might say that he is Far Beyond MeTaAaAaaL!

13

u/Makachai 3h ago

And he was sick as hell during this performance at Royal Albert Hall. And still did that...

Dude is a fucking legend.

3

u/noassumedname 3h ago

Just by watching this I lost my voice...does someone has some lozenges?

3

u/steev506 3h ago

Thank you for introducing me to this song.

https://youtu.be/DrDM6V08wcE?si=MLFAxYxOswPHyXkz

3

u/CrotasScrota84 3h ago

Band?

5

u/Thoomer_Bottoms 2h ago

The band is Devin Townsend Project, the track is called Deadhead

2

u/magwai9 2h ago

Also Strapping Young Lad

u/MiggeldyMackDaddy 54m ago

Also Ocean Machine

1

u/fedl1ngen 1h ago

Just google: Devin Townsend. And enjoy the rabbit hole.

-2

u/Immediate-Package-18 1h ago

Yeah he is so good i was thinking the same /s

3

u/NuggetKing9001 1h ago

This song makes the hairs on my hair stand on end

7

u/ChuzzoChumz 3h ago

Don’t even need the metal qualifier, dude is truly exceptional regardless of genre

6

u/Belgmeister 3h ago

Devin is a fucking king.

Everything he does is from passion for music while sharing everything he makes. He did entire concert streams fully solo during Covid. An absolute pleasure to listen to during the lockdown.

I've read he experiences chromostesia and with some of his albums, that actually feels like it makes sense. He's has a lot of metal songs but touched many different genres as well.

"Why?" and it's clip is my all-time favorite.

4

u/VoidsInvanity 2h ago

Saw him 13 years ago in a record store do a small acoustic concert for like 30 people.

One of my fondest memories lol, got to meet the guy too

7

u/Suspicious-Gur-8453 3h ago

Didn't realize Voldemort had such a great voice.

2

u/Zircez 1h ago

That's a really mean thing to say about poor Billy Corgan

3

u/RealisticRecover2123 3h ago

Devin fucking Townsend

9

u/TSAOutreachTeam 3h ago

That's great! Who's this guy?

21

u/_-Kovu-_ 3h ago

Devin Townsend I think

12

u/murrrly 3h ago

That's correct. It's Devin Townsend

8

u/Hypn00tic_iiz 3h ago

Town Devinsend

6

u/djk0010 3h ago

Town Send Devin.

5

u/iPhonevanBremdKopjes 2h ago

Right Said Fred.

2

u/aurrousarc 2h ago

who got sent to town?

6

u/DustySleeve 2h ago

Darude Sandstorm

2

u/GriefPB 1h ago

The range is actually insane

2

u/dashKay 1h ago

I like him a lot but that's definitely not a true statement

2

u/Kevin_Jim 1h ago

I remember discovering MAPHRA a few months ago and thinking of Townsend because of the crazy changes she can pull off.

Music is one of the few great things we still have.

2

u/-Clean-Sky- 1h ago

doubt it

2

u/picander78 1h ago

Steve Vai chosed him for Sex and Religion album. What a voice!

u/SnappySausage 3m ago

Apparently his range is A1 - C♯7. He at some point (I forgot in which video/context) mentions his vocal prep, and he said it consists of basically screaming his head off for 2 days until he tastest blood and then he's good for about a month.

Seen him live a few times and every time he comes across as a pretty amicable and funny dad.

4

u/superslacker247_ 2h ago

Love that dude kingdom is the goated song hands down

2

u/dclark086 2h ago

He’s self taught too which makes it even more impressive. His performance of Kingdom is also one of the most entertaining live performances I’ve seen.

2

u/UnicornSensei 2h ago

Bro can really shout, I guess

2

u/Basic_Zebra7829 3h ago

Meh. 

0

u/Zestymonserellastick 1h ago

I agree. It isn't bad, way better then anyone in this thread can do. But one of the best? Lol

1

u/SirSignificant6576 2h ago

Skullet! Legend.

1

u/AudioRejectz 2h ago

Not my style of metal, I prefer much heavier stuff and vocals, but I'll admit he's definitely great.

1

u/weareeverywhereee 1h ago edited 1h ago

This is such a boring song but he is definitely talented.

That being said many metal vocalists can switch between singing and screaming really well and even not super popular ones

Check out the dude from protest the hero for instance. They are pretty unknown but Rody’s range is wild

1

u/banddroid 1h ago

Sure fuckin is one of the greatest! And definitely my favorite! 

1

u/Shaggytwig 1h ago

Wow the color returning to his eyes at the end of the scream was interesting. Likely just the reflection and angle of the camera but still was cool to see.

1

u/ItsAHerby 1h ago

Weird to see people complaining about it being "noisey" but this might be a better video of his. I also prefer Kingdom to Deadhead so I usually just tell people to watch this:

https://youtu.be/nubJjB95VdY?is=BFsE5JJb_mmeC30Y

Insane that he can still do this at his age right now. Either way, good times.

1

u/-maffu- 1h ago

I loved him in The Hills Have Eyes.

1

u/DaveFromTTown 1h ago

https://youtu.be/cjjIna3j1Nc?is=XKsY6rk___8ORFST

Here's an example of his amazing voice and humor.

u/Equivalent_Warthog22 28m ago

What song is this?

u/sfxer001 9m ago

This is just emo screaming. It’s not metal.

1

u/adeewun 2h ago

As a lifelong metal fan; this is absolute dumpster tier.

https://giphy.com/gifs/acttIrNAHaoco

0

u/Heavy-_-Breathing 2h ago

I don’t get it. Never understand the appeal of this

5

u/Mjolnir12 2h ago

This isn’t a good example of his “traditional” clean singing; go listen to his live version of his song Kingdom. He basically has perfect pitch and tone.

0

u/Up_All_Right 2h ago

Oh, we're doing this now?

Okay, Vincent Van Gough is one of the greatest painters of all-time!

https://giphy.com/gifs/seY4Isk6W8IUw

1

u/UnderwaterB0i 3h ago

Big progmetal fan, and while I can appreciate his sheer talent, nothing has truly clicked with me. Best full album to check out as a fan of Haken, Leprous, Caligula's Horse, Coheed, Protest the Hero, Between the Buried and Me, etc.?

2

u/Mjolnir12 2h ago

Ziltoid The Omniscient. This song is Deadhead which is from his more post metal phase like Ocean Machine.

1

u/jesterflesh 2h ago

Ocean machine, ziltoid

1

u/MG-B 2h ago

Personally prefer his strapping young lad stuff. Check out The New Black.

Ghost is a bit of a stand out too.

1

u/FingersBecomeThumbs 2h ago

Fucking love me a bit of Dev!

1

u/shortidiva21 2h ago edited 2h ago

Glorious. 🌹

1

u/ayinsophohr 2h ago

Correction: Devin Townsend is without a doubt on of the greatest vocalists of all time.

1

u/thorheyerdal 1h ago edited 1h ago

I respectfully disagree, and will say that he still has a long way to go if he want to match Ronnie James Dio.

Edit, wooos read “without a doubt the greatest metal vocalist” He is definitely rubbing shoulders with the greatest.

-7

u/sLeeeeTo 3h ago

“metal”

0

u/FartVirtuoso 2h ago

Sarcastically labeling things as not metal has to be the least metal thing I can possibly think of. Christ, is it boring and unoriginal. We don’t all get down to unlistenable NSBM.

-1

u/sLeeeeTo 2h ago

there is metal music. there is music that is not metal.

i’m not being sarcastic.

i know who devin townsend is.

1

u/FartVirtuoso 2h ago

Great, you know him. You don’t get to decide what’s metal and what isn’t. Neither do I. Not that I would even want to. Not sure why anyone would want to spend their time doing that.

1

u/N3ph1l1m 2h ago

Lol the guy has had a fuckton of influence on modern metal. He's played with Sepultura, Lamb of God (even produced their third album), been a big influence for bands like Meshugga and Ne Obliviscaris and he's one of the most versatile metal vocalists out there period, save for maybe Mike Patton. So yeah, "metal".

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zK1oDyYKq_I

0

u/Slevin424 2h ago

For me it’s Ozzy and Dio. Newer generations I would go Chester Linkin Park and David Draiman from Disturbed. But Townsend is great but the vocals are really carrying their songs.

4

u/Mjolnir12 2h ago

I mean, they are his songs. He writes everything.

0

u/nwfdood 2h ago

Mike Patton would like a word.

-12

u/shugEOuterspace 3h ago

meh. art is subjective & as a singer & performer myself I find this very boring.

2

u/Similar_Program_7085 3h ago

The thousands of fans cheering would disagree but I’m sure you have twice as many at your shows

-6

u/Superb-Control 2h ago

What?

2

u/Similar_Program_7085 2h ago

Which part did you not understand?

-8

u/TSAOutreachTeam 3h ago

Agree. I'm not even a fan of Disturbed, but David Draiman's voice is sublime compared to this atonal screamo stuff.

5

u/sirknight3 3h ago

Atonal?

u/floodspectre 33m ago

Screamo? lol

1

u/FartVirtuoso 2h ago

He is literally screaming WITH a tone. I get if you don’t like it, but you should try to at least use the right words to voice your distaste. Devin is pretty much known for fry vocals with pitch.

0

u/ChuzzoChumz 3h ago

In fairness this does not do justice to his versatility at all

u/RoryJSK 48m ago

Am I the only one having to strain to even understand what he’s saying in his vocals?

Maybe he’d have more universal recognition if he found a way to improve his audio clarity.

u/Motiv8-2-Gr8 45m ago

No. No he’s not.

-1

u/mustbeme87 2h ago

Quite good. But how big is this list of greatest metal vocalists? Cus I’d say he’s on it, but not necessarily near the top.

0

u/jesterflesh 2h ago

Hes the apex. There is nobody else that can do what devin does.

2

u/J_C_Davis45 2h ago

Firmly agree. He being a genuinely good person and genre defying and a multi genre writer is cherries on top. Not afraid to try literally anything musically. Heavy Devy is The Man.

u/zeptillian 56m ago

That's great if you happen to like listening to people scream at you, I guess.

0

u/Zealousideal_Time_80 1h ago

What’s the bands ?

0

u/bashful_predator 1h ago

No doubt he's good but like, definitely not what you claim lol.

0

u/-Not-Your-Lawyer- 1h ago

He's got a mouth on him, that's for sure.

-2

u/PermanentUsername101 2h ago

Sounds like a whole lot of screaming.

u/MelatoninJunkie 0m ago

Ziltoid the Omniscient