Well, back when Faith No More were hitting their stride, I would say that Metal was more perceived as the kind of music dominated by bands like Guns and Roses at the time. And I'm all for the evolution of music; it's one of my favorite ideas.
Yeah, Bungle's first studio album had the most "metallic" breakdowns and segues, but their earlier work before their Warner Brothers debut was 90% straight-up Death Metal. And there are definitely heavy-as-**** segments on Disco Volante and California, albeit much more sparse.
I still wouldn't call FNM a metal band, and I would hate to force them into a sub-genre like Funk Metal or something like that. I think they were more open-ended that all that. Hence, Rock band. Seeing as how Rock and Roll has all the incorporated genres open to a band classified as such.

While I also agree that GnR and its ilk, like Poison and Warrant, were getting called 'metal' in the mainstream, Metallica had also finally burst through the underground to score a major hit with One around the same time as well. Anyone with half a clue was already familiar with the two big Ms back then, Slayer and Anthrax weren't that far behind either.

I think we can all agree on FNM being one of the first 'real' alternative rock bands before that term became the catchall for anything released in the 90s.

No, it really wasn't. Bowel of Chiley and Goddammit I Love America! were very much in the vein of their Warner Bros. debut, though slightly less heavy, and in fact contain early versions of most of the tracks on the s/t. If anything there's more ska, funk and jazz influence on those albums than there is metal, and nary a death metal track to be found between them. I've never heard OU818, but of the pre-record deal releases I have, The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny is their heaviest, though even that isn't anything I'd describe as death metal.

Here are the full albums of Bowel of Chiley and Goddammit I Love America! on YouTube if you're interested in giving them a listen. PM me if you want a DL. :)

Heh, yeah, about one or two of those segments per album. :laughing:

Well, like I said before, during FNM's heyday metal was a kind of rock so, sure, they're rock in the same sense that all metal of that era was rock. The great thing about them though, as you've pointed out, is that they went so far beyond their foundation.

Well put, sir.

@ Janszoon
I must admit, you've called my bluff, sir. As far as the earlier Bungle recordings, what I've heard was pretty much 50% earlier takes on their WB debut and the other 50%, very warbly, heavy, poorly recorded stuff... at least that's what the copies I found sounded like. But what else can be expected of an independent high school project in the mid-80s? But I digress. I feel like where we're at is basically a difference in opinion over what "Metal" actually is (or was, rather). Former sub-genre? Genre unto itself? Doesn't much matter, I believe. As it stands, I think Faith No More was one of the most ingenuitive and unfortunately overlooked bands from their era. Particularly regarding the vast improvement they underwent by adding Mike Patton. I'm not sorry, but their first vocalist was terrible.

PS - It's good to have some feedback from people that know their music again.

Faith No More appear set for permanent return to music | Consequence of Sound

All this news for my favorite band of all time.

I was listening to them yesterday and I still dig them especially the song Epic which is still my favorite.

Faith No More to Release First Album in 18 Years | Rolling Stone

omgomgomgomgomgomgomgomgomgomg I can't contain it

Hell yes I was just coming in here to post that myself. Awesome sauce indeed.

I've always had trouble choosing favorite bands, picking one over the other and stuff, but when it comes down to it, FNM is honestly my #1 forever.

faith no more - motherfucker

new track