You know what I hear more than anything from my contacts on Facebook, and their contacts? “Support the underground!” and “Facebook sucks!” But it is these same individuals who support Facebook by their presence and constant daily activity. It sickens me to hear all of these hypocrites whine and bitch about Facebook and corporate Metal, yet refuse to support underground/independent Metal sites. If it had been any other group, it wouldn’t be a big deal. Most people are sheep, slaves to the machinations of corporate entities that exploit their ignorance and compliance. But I thought Headbangers and Metalheads were better than that, I thought we were wolves!

Facebook founder and owner Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t care about Metal. You know what his musical tastes are? Jay Z, Taylor Swift and Electronica! Myspace is owned by Specific Media and Justin Timberlake. You heard right, Justin Timberlake! Both sites engage in the practice of behavioral targeting, a process by which user data is collected, stored and shared with (or rather sold to) other corporate entities. The information they gather helps them target their ads according to your behavior on social sites, such as likes, groups, fan pages, etc. To put it bluntly, you are nothing more than a dollar sign to these sites.

So what should you do? Whatever you want to do. If you wish to remain at Facebook or Myspace, that is your right. But the constant whining is frigging annoying, and your claims to support the underground sound hollow. The only reason I or Kingdomz X have a presence at both Myspace and Facebook is to build membership for our site. You don’t have to join our site either, there are other similar sites out there, and each of us serve the Metal community in our unique way. Choose the one that best suits your needs.

Here are a few to get you started:

Like 80’s metal? My buddy Rob runs a great site called Mama’s Fallen Angels: www.mamasfallenangels.com

Atmostfear Entertainment has tons of info and media. Music, games, movies and more. You might call it the juggernaut of Metal sites: www.atmostfear-entertainment.com

I like the cleaner (and fast loading) structure of The Metal Review. Their name says it all, and they’ve got great reviews, tour schedules, news and more: www.themetalreview.com

Metal Kulture Radio is a 24 hour Metalfest! They’ve got great DJ’s, and some of the most extreme Metal music on the internet: www.metalkultureradio.com

I happen to be a member at all of the above, by the way. They are not my competition, they are my allies.

Kingdomz X Extreme Arts & Entertainment (www.kingdomzx.com) offer a number of free services to bands, and we will soon add more. We are also user operated, meaning we work to create the kinds of features our members prefer, and we allow for more autonomy and control of our site than anywhere else. No advertisements will ever appear on your profile, and you can fully customize it to your liking.

So make up your mind and do it now. Tell your friends, raise an army, draw the line! Who will you run with, Justin Timberlake and Mark Zuckerberg or your fellow metal brothers and sisters? Will you be sellout or soldier, sheep or wolf? Your horns made of bone and iron, or are they plastic?