Metal Bands
Last time around, I gave you all an introduction to the more commonly known and well-established forms of heavy metal. Today we're taking a look at slightly less mainstream styles of metal, which are generally stranger and more extreme than the classics.
1. Death Metal. Death metal has been around since the late 80's, which can be best described with the phrase “sonic brutality.” Its fundamental properties are its fast, evil-sounding guitar riffs, “blast beat”-style drums, and the vocals — usually a mix of deep growls and high-pitched screams. These are the musical reflections of the typically morbid lyrics. Examples: Morbid Angel, Vader, Deicide, Cannibal Corpse, Behemoth
2. Black Metal. Even the most seasoned metal journalists have trouble pinning this genre down. It is identified just as readily by its dark atmosphere and ideology as it is by the frantic drums and screaming guitars. The vocals can range anywhere from a gutsy snarl to a full-out shriek. It began in the early 80's as a fairly basic form of thrash with an emphasis on a satanic image, but after many years as a strictly underground genre (even for metal), all sorts of elements have crept in. Examples: Venom, Bathory, Mayhem, Emperor, Dimmu Borgir
3. Grindcore. Easily one of the most spastic forms of music that exists today. Even the most basic elements of music such as melody, harmony, and structure are considered optional in grindcore. Vocals are like a more frantic form of those in death metal. Albums are often the reverse of progressive rock groups: rather than six songs making up a 50-minute album, there may be 50 songs on a six-minute album. Examples: Napalm Death, Pig Destroyer, The Locust, Nasum, Carcass
4. Tech/Math Metal. While grindcore sounds chaotic because it is spastic and random, tech/math metal sound chaotic because only the musicians really understand how the song is supposed to go. Songs, melodies, and rhythms are incredibly complex. Both metal and hardcore bands contribute to this genre. Examples: Dillenger Escape Plan, Necrophagist, Converge, Meshuggah
5. Folk/Viking/Pagan Metal. The concept of folk-metal seems quite absurd considering the fundamental concepts of the two genres, but somehow many bands have merged the two and created something excellent. Lyrics, melodies, instruments, and vocal styles are borrowed from both styles. Examples: Bathory, Borknagar, Finntroll, Korpiklaani, Skyforger
6. Power Metal. All the grandest elements of classic metal bands brought to an extreme. Five-minute solos, ear-piercingly high falsetto vocals, and lyrics that often sound as if they were taken directly from the pages of Conan the Barbarian comics or the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Sometimes they actually are. Tends to be a love-or-hate genre, many metalheads consider it far too cheesy while its most intense fans claim that all other metal is “untrue” to the metal tradition. Examples: Manowar, Rhapsody, Dragonforce, Kamelot, Blind Guardian.
1. Death Metal. Death metal has been around since the late 80's, which can be best described with the phrase “sonic brutality.” Its fundamental properties are its fast, evil-sounding guitar riffs, “blast beat”-style drums, and the vocals — usually a mix of deep growls and high-pitched screams. These are the musical reflections of the typically morbid lyrics. Examples: Morbid Angel, Vader, Deicide, Cannibal Corpse, Behemoth
2. Black Metal. Even the most seasoned metal journalists have trouble pinning this genre down. It is identified just as readily by its dark atmosphere and ideology as it is by the frantic drums and screaming guitars. The vocals can range anywhere from a gutsy snarl to a full-out shriek. It began in the early 80's as a fairly basic form of thrash with an emphasis on a satanic image, but after many years as a strictly underground genre (even for metal), all sorts of elements have crept in. Examples: Venom, Bathory, Mayhem, Emperor, Dimmu Borgir
3. Grindcore. Easily one of the most spastic forms of music that exists today. Even the most basic elements of music such as melody, harmony, and structure are considered optional in grindcore. Vocals are like a more frantic form of those in death metal. Albums are often the reverse of progressive rock groups: rather than six songs making up a 50-minute album, there may be 50 songs on a six-minute album. Examples: Napalm Death, Pig Destroyer, The Locust, Nasum, Carcass
4. Tech/Math Metal. While grindcore sounds chaotic because it is spastic and random, tech/math metal sound chaotic because only the musicians really understand how the song is supposed to go. Songs, melodies, and rhythms are incredibly complex. Both metal and hardcore bands contribute to this genre. Examples: Dillenger Escape Plan, Necrophagist, Converge, Meshuggah
5. Folk/Viking/Pagan Metal. The concept of folk-metal seems quite absurd considering the fundamental concepts of the two genres, but somehow many bands have merged the two and created something excellent. Lyrics, melodies, instruments, and vocal styles are borrowed from both styles. Examples: Bathory, Borknagar, Finntroll, Korpiklaani, Skyforger
6. Power Metal. All the grandest elements of classic metal bands brought to an extreme. Five-minute solos, ear-piercingly high falsetto vocals, and lyrics that often sound as if they were taken directly from the pages of Conan the Barbarian comics or the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Sometimes they actually are. Tends to be a love-or-hate genre, many metalheads consider it far too cheesy while its most intense fans claim that all other metal is “untrue” to the metal tradition. Examples: Manowar, Rhapsody, Dragonforce, Kamelot, Blind Guardian.
