this may seem like a stupid suggestion, and i'm unsure if its been suggested previously, but i think the site would be greatly improved by having more extensive band bios. the structure and information on many bands is great; Formed in, when, labels, personnel, past members, and of course, the discography sections, but often, its not quite enough to really find out what you may really want to know. dont get me wrong, the site is great but i think this would be an awesome new addition.

i know, i know, theres tens of thousands of bands, but if us metal-enthusiasts can find time to discuss and recommend bands etc in forums, add bands and album art images, and write reviews, im sure we could manage at least two-paragraph bios on SOME of the many bands out there.

if this has previously been discussed please point me to the appropriate thread. i dont really seem to have much luck using the search feature.


cheers.

I think if you reach Veteran status, that allows you to edit the page and rewrite your own epic bios.

Could be wrong though.

Well, that is correct but to an extent. They have to be created with potentially the whole internet in mind, and not because one thinks they did an epic job. Filling in missing information, and correcting any potential errors in the bio's is what Veteran's are to do - basically keeping the page neat. Of course, if a bio is not there already, any user can throw one up regardless of rank.

okay, had no idea about this.

why arent written and approved bios part of the usual band pages?

When the information for a certain band is present, we will do our best to gather that information to make an accurate biography, but when we're dealing with more obscure bands, that information can be very hard to come by, thus making it difficult to create a biography.

Also, band biographies are neither approved nor disapproved. Members put them up and if they are there and there is a mistake with it, you can report it or change it yourself (if you're a Veteran) to make it the most complete and informative biography it can be.

There's nothing wrong with writing a band bio, but taking a band bio from somewhere and pasting it on the band page is a different matter. That counts as plagiarism and a copyright infringement, so don't do that. So, if you wish to include one, and think you can make a good job of it, go ahead, but make sure it is completely your own work. I think the few bios we have on famous bands were written bt UltraBoris a long time ago.

Don't overdo it, and keep the style "encyclopaedic", though.

http://www.metal-archives.com/board/vie ... 06#1146606

I would like to throw this into the debate. To write them is rather easy, but to backup the claims is more difficult.

thanks for your input.

so where there is ample information, or even sufficient information (LP and CD sleeves, threads, books, official sites, fansites, magazine interviews, VHS and DVD releases, etc, etc. is it possible to have a written bio section on a bands page? or would it be possible to make this happen in the near future. sometimes there's info about bands that you cant find anywhere on the web and it would be great to have that stuff on here, hence there would be no real reason to visit other sites pertaining to finding out about metal bands.....

some more correctly than others ... apparently, Overkill never actually raised a real actual dead. it was just a song. whether they really caused world peace is an open question at this time ........

Once I reach Veteran status, I plan on doing some various biographies for local bands, and then onwards to some more famous acts, as I, too, have noticed a lack of decent biographies on this site....

Just have to finish my university exams over the next couple of weeks, and then get going on some planned reviews (Woods of Ypres, most of the local scene here in Winnipeg) plus 4 bands are releasing CDs in the next 3 weeks, 3 of which aren't on the archives so I should hit the 500 mark very soon