I always thought it was because they essentially pioneered the "rock music for commercials" genre

That thunder song was legitimately terrible.

I've got to disagree with this one. Imagine Dragons was synthesized in a lab to be as corporate sounding as possible. The lead singer especially is grating. It's exactly the singing style that Ai would come up with. That's not a random comment, I know because old people show me shitty Ai songs on a regular basis and they sound like Imagine Dragons.

I don't like them because there's no singer, just a guy screaming in an auto tune cranked to 10.

I’ve never listened to any of their songs besides mmm mmm mmm and I still love it so much. Its a defining part of the 90s for me

I saw them at the Fillmore in mid 1999. They were great live.

But what really knocked me out was half way through the second set the singer (sorry don't remember his name) walked up to the mic and said "this song has been in our heads all week and now we're gonna put it in yours."

...And proceeded to play a flawless cover of Hit Me Baby One More Time. The lead singer even did some of Brittny's moves from the video.

I didn't realize they were hated

I did a studio session with them about 20 years ago, when they were still pretty popular and before they were widely considered to be a joke, but I was not a fan. When the studio I was working for called me to do the session, my wife said, “Watch - they will end up being really nice guys and you will end up liking them more because of it.” In reality, they were arrogant dickheads, and I hated them all the more ever since.

I read somewhere once that their agent would book them at any festival that would accept them. That lead to them getting booed a lot where they didn't match the rest of the lineup. People began to anticipate them and became a heel type character to avid concert goers.

Hating them is a meme I guess. I don't mind them.

For me it's "Photograph." Such an aggressively sappy and mediocre song. Every time I hear it, it reminds me of an essay I would have written on the bus on the way to school in 6th grade.

I kind of like "Never Again", it's a bit heavy-handed but it's got crunchy guitar and the message is good, don't put up with abusive shit.

Comedy Central destroyed Nickleback. There was a comedy special or show, I don't remember. Anyway, they promoted the show with a clip from a stand-up bit that was at Nickleback's expense. I you watched The Daily Show, or South Park, you would have seen that ad a hundred times. After that, liking Nickleback was an embarrassment.

What follows is my bad recollection of the joke.

People say that music can incite violence and I think that's true because every time I listen to Nickleback I want to hurt.... Nickleback.

and like, they're not even that bad

Foo Fighters, for some reason, are fucking loved, and yet if you actually listen to their albums, they're just... meh

they got a few good songs and a lot of things I never want to hear again. and that's coming from someone whose favourite band was them for a very long time. not to mention they sound like shit live

I suspect the real reason a lot of people hate them is because they have mastered the earworm. One line from any of their songs will ruin your day.

I don't mind their one song. But that's the thing, they only have one song (they all sound the same).

It's really more the generation that came up thinking Nickleback (and post grunge bands in general) was peak hard rock/grunge/punk or even edgy that's to blame. Nickelback themselves are fine, there's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to have a wide audience for your pop rock band but some semblance of hardness in your sound.

Walkin On The Sun is actually kind of based if you listen to the lyrics.

That album definitely doesn't get enough credit. It's got some surprisingly heavy-hitting songs. Nervous in the Alley? The Fonz? Let's Rock?

It's crazy to me how many commercials used Walking on the Sun for the "So don't delay, act now, supplies are running out" line, considering the broader context of the song.

I was definitely too young to understand most of those songs as a kid.

TBh I loved Astro Lounge (the album that All Star is on). The rest of the album is quite good despite the wearing out of its most famous track.

That album is really great! Road Man has a great tune.

There’s hate for imagine dragons? Or is it just the same Nickelback “ok, but not exciting” hate?

I can’t listen to Ghost because someone said they sounded like Scooby-Doo chase music.

I love ghost. Great songwriting and their mixes are fuckin solid (Andy Wallace of course)

Really? I've never heard anything bad about them, whenever I hear someone talk about them it's always very positive

Seconded. They make good music and seem to have fun doing it.

Have anything to read about them? Never even heard of them

This is because they seem like they would be a metal band but are not. Ghost doesn't claim that but some fans do from time to time and it never fails to rage bait metal fans.

I really like their cover of Avalanche, originally by Leonard Cohen.

I love Ghost’s image, genre and sound. My only complaint is all their songs started sounding the same when I tried to do a straight listen-through of their works.

Anthrax has some really great stuff. But as you said, you have too tread carefully through their catalog. When they are good, they are amazing... When they are bad, they are really bad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlLn0UicWrM

Testament > Exodus

You literally never know what to expect with Anthrax and that's pretty cool. It occasionally ends in a shitty album, but it usually ranges from at least interesting to a classic.

Anthrax get shit on for being silly as fuck and making cheesy ass Thrash, and I love Anthrax.

It should always have been Exodus.

Also, fuck the big 4. There's so much incredibly good thrash from then and right now that gets ignored for these overhyped dildos.

There's a fun heavyweights podcast episode about Moby's childhood friend who lent him the Folkways album boxed set, which Moby used to make Play, and never gave it back :p

His ambient stuff is my happy place

That was the soundtrack to my uni years. It got old after a bit as it was pretty much ubiquitous, but I listened recently and really enjoyed it.

I remember my roommate said they should rename the album from 'Play' to 'Songs for Adverts', as it seemed like every commercial used a track from it at one point, which probably didn't help the overplayed criticism.