In 5 decades plus of rhe music genre is everything to be judged against rhe most recent?
Is what is considered “metal” today the standard that is to be set?
It could be argued there is no definitive difference between hard rock/ metal except to the individual choosing to attribute their personal choices to where on the spectrum it lies.
Having different genres serves an important useful purpose. Trying to wedge a band that is clearly not metal (i.e. Rush) into metal because of a couple songs defeats the usefulness of genres as a way to classify and think about music.
If we are expanding beyond iconic metal riffs here I can post a never ending stream of Industrial Metal and metallic punk that I happen to think is amazing but few of the classic metalheads here will appreciate. Same goes for post-metal.
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If we were to do prog metal, speaking for myself, I would like to include some of the titans of prog metal like Dreamtheater, who get very little press.
Also I thought long and hard about submitting the prog metal band Jinjer, but in the end did not because while Eugene has some of the most sublime bass lines, Tatiana takes all the oxygen in the room. Well, for the first few listens. Didn’t suggest Babymetal for the same reason.
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Yeah I mean if Rush is in, then Ministry, Body Count, and Suicidal Tendencies are definitely in.
And then there’s blackmetal.
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Yeah, Dream Theater should definitely be there if Rush is, plus probably Hawkwind, if we are going to include stuff beyond iconic classic metal.
I totally skipped black metal as I didn’t feel like looking up the lyrics and see what is acceptable to BBs community standards. Seems like one could go astray there.
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Stick with blackgaze and you’ll be fine. Much of blackmetal itself is really problematic/ultra-far right/etc - not my thing at all either, which is why I mentioned it. If we are going to stretch the genres here then there’s some tough choices.
Actually my favorite metal album in the last decade was blackgaze. Amazing stuff, but likely low on the list for most people here. Still, way more metal than Rush 
See also:
LOL challenge accepted
I like Rush, very much actually - they are definitely my favorite prog rock band. I was a huge fan in high school and jr. high. But I would not classify them as producing iconic metal.
Actually I would say Rush’s most metal moment is the version of Witch Hunt on Moving Pictures.
Always loved that song.
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I’m not sure I would consider K-Tel corp. a decent source of genre expertise though. 
Wow, haven’t heard this one since… well, a long time ago. Takes me back, thanks for the reminder.
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Sure, black metal has its portions of right wing idiots, most extreme sides tend to always draw some from that crowd. I do generally feel that concensus in the black metal community is that these things are not ok. Again, you will always have the noise basement dweller praising it, but it’s a very small minority. Most bands that adhere to that ideology are very small time and are shunned from the scene.
The second generation of black metal has plenty of merits, but I think since tonally it’s very low fi, I admit to struggle to find some decent bass lines in it.
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The Scandinavian, continental European, and American variants all seem pretty different to me too. Not an expert though.
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There are quite a few differences, as there should be. The basic formulas are the same but luckily the scene managed to evolve to bring more native inspirations into the mix.
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I get where you’re going here… but there’s also the famous example of Jethro Tull beating out Metallica at the 31st Grammy’s…
Blockquote
The Recording Academy recognized heavy metal music artists for the first time at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards (1989). The category was originally presented as Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental, combining two of the most popular music genres of the 1980s.[3] Jethro Tull won that award for the album Crest of a Knave, beating Metallica, which were expected to win with the album …And Justice for All. This choice led to widespread criticism of The Recording Academy, as journalists suggested that the music of Jethro Tull did not belong in the hard rock or heavy metal genres.[4][5] In response, The Recording Academy created the categories Best Hard Rock Performance and Best Metal Performance, separating the genres.
I agree that genres in music can get exceptionally fuzzy and can be a source of endless online debate as to what is metal or not. But at the end of the day, I tend to believe that since the public establishment of the genre, and artists/bands embracing the genre, that it primarily leans on the artists/bands to identify with it or not… but even this can get somewhat fuzzy as well, especially when you get into the multitude of sub-genres.
The genres are quite fluid. I think it’s a matter of taste. Personally, metal started with Sabbath for me. They are the most important cornerstone in what became heavy metal.
Like I said, genres are fluid; Lemmy always said that Motörhead played rock n’ roll, despite having several pure heavy metal albums under their vest, also many punk inspirations. Although he did proclaim in his book “white line fever” that metal IS rock n’ roll and who am I to argue with a god…
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Not to get off subject, but the R&R HOF has zero credibility in the Metal community. Is Iron Maiden in? Slayer? But Dolly is (though we love Dolly)
I like Rush and Geddy, and not saying a bad thing about them/him, but the HOF is another matter.
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I like your style
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Slipknot Duality for sureeeee
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The bassline to Jinjer’s “Pisces” is a standout (for me) in recent years.
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