Three Styles of Heavy Metal Music
Contents
Heavy metal music comes in many different styles. Here are three of the most popular:
1. Thrash metal – This is the fastest and heaviest type of metal music. It is often very aggressive and intense.
2. Death metal – This style is similar to thrash metal but is even heavier and more extreme.
3. Black metal – This style is characterized by its dark, atmospheric sound. It often includes elements of horror and the occult.
Power Metal
Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the heaviness of metal with the speed and aggression of punk rock. It is usually characterized by fast-paced, often double-bass drumming, and melodic, high-pitched guitars. Power metal is often based on fantasy or science fiction themes, and some bands use keyboards to create an epic or symphonic sound.
Defining characteristics
Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines traditional heavy metal with speed metal and sometimes soft metal to create a more melodic sound. power metal is characterized by fast tempos, highly distorted guitars, and operatic or high-pitched vocals. Power metal is often used interchangeably with speed metal, but the two styles are actually quite different. Speed metal is faster and more aggressive, while power metal is more melodic and epic in nature.
The origins of power metal can be traced back to the early 1980s, when bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest began experimenting with faster tempos and highly distorted guitars. These bands laid the foundation for the power metal sound that would emerge in the 1990s. In the 1990s, power metal experienced a resurgence in popularity, led by bands like Blind Guardian, Sonata Arctica, and Dragonforce.
Power metal is often criticized for being too over-the-top and cheesy, but at its best, it can be an exciting and thrilling genre of music. If you’re looking for some great power metal albums to check out, look no further than the list below.
Notable bands
Power metal is a style of heavy metal music that emphasizes guitar speed, power, and melody. The genre was first popularized in the 1980s by bands such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, and it has since spawned subgenres such as symphonic power metal and progressive power metal. Below are some notable power metal bands.
Judas Priest: One of the most influential bands in the genre, Judas Priest helped to pioneer power metal with their 1974 album, “Rocka Rolla.” The band would go on to release classics such as “Unleashed in the East” (1979) and “Painkiller” (1990), cementing their place as one of the all-time greats.
Iron Maiden: Another hugely influential band, Iron Maiden were one of the first British heavy metal bands to find success in America. Their 1980 album, “Iron Maiden,” is considered a masterpiece of the genre, and they have remained popular to this day with fans all over the world.
Helloween: A German power metal band formed in 1984, Helloween were one of the earliest exponents of the style. They are best known for their 1987 album, “Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I,” which is considered a classic of the genre.
Blind Guardian: Formed in 1984, Blind Guardian are a Germanpower metal band that have gone on to become one of the most successful bands in the genre. They are known for their complex songwriting and intricate arrangements, as well as their use of medieval and fantasy themes in their music.
Death Metal
Death metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that originated in the late 1980s. It is characterized by fast tempos, aggressive musicianship, and dark, often growling vocals. Death metal songs typically deal with topics such as death, dying, violence, and the bleakness of the human condition.
Defining characteristics
Death metal is a style of heavy metal music that typically features fast tempos, brutally intense musicianship, and highly distorted guitars. The genre emerged in the early 1980s, and it was further developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s by bands such as Morbid Angel, Death, and Obituary.
Death metal is characterized by its extremely aggressive sound, which often incorporates guttural growls, high-pitched screams, and blast beats. The genre is also known for its complex song structures, which often include abrupt changes in tempo and rhythm. Additionally, death metal often features cryptic lyrics that explore dark themes such as death, violence, and the occult.
Notable bands
Even though death metal is considered a subgenre of heavy metal, it can be further divided into three styles: deathcore, melodic death metal, and brutal death metal. Many notable bands have emerged from these styles, including As I Lay Dying, Trivium, and Suicide Silence.
Deathcore is a style of music that fuses elements of death metal with hardcore punk. The result is a heavier sound that is characterized by aggressive riffs and breakdowns. Melodic death metal is similar to traditional death metal but with a greater emphasis on melody. This style often features guitar solos and clean vocal sections. Brutal death metal is the heaviest style of music within the genre. It is characterized by extremely fast tempos, guttural vocals, and lyrics that focus on violence and gore.
Doom Metal
Doom metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that originated in the UK in the early 1980s. Doom metal is characterized by its dark and bleak atmosphere, its slow and heavy riffs, and its often-gothic lyrics. The genre is strongly influenced by the work of Black Sabbath, and many doom metal bands have been inspired by Sabbath’s dark and heavy sound.
Defining characteristics
Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much “thicker” or “heavier” sound than other heavy metal genres. Both the music and the lyrics intend to evoke a sense of despair, dread, and impending doom.
The genre is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath, who formed a prototypical doom metal band in 1970. During the first half of the 1970s, other groups such as Witchfinder General, St. Vitus and Pentagram (amongst them being commonly labelled as “the Dopesmoker bands”) established themselves as leaders of the new style. wraps up with a look at some of the more influential moments and bands in doom metal’s history
Notable bands
Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much “thicker” or “heavier” sound than other heavy metal genres. Both the music and the lyrics intend to evoke a sense of despair, dread, and impending doom.
The genre is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath, who formed a prototype for doom metal with songs such as “Black Sabbath”, “Electric Funeral” and “Into the Void”. During the first half of the 1980s, a number of bands defined themselves as doom metal, including Saint Vitus, Pentagram, Witchfinder General and Trouble.
In 1990, British musicians Justin Broadrick (ex-Napalm Death) and Mick Harris (ex-Scorn) founded Godflesh—one of the most influential bands in extreme metal—and incorporated elements of sludge metal and industrial music to create a more “modern” sound. Other important bands that later bridged the gap between black metal and doom metal include Winter, Candlemass (featuring former Mercyful Fate bassist Hank Shermann), Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Anathema.
In the 1990s there was increased interest in doom metal thanks largely to critical acclaim for Paradise Lost’s Icon (1993) album and My Dying Bride’s The Angel and the Dark River (1995) album. In 1996, Thergothon disbanded after releasing just one album—Stream from the Heavens—and is now considered by some to be one of the most influential doom metal bands of all time.
In recent years there has been something of a revival in traditional doom metal thanks largely to an increasing interest in vintage sounds and 1970s culture. Bands such as The Order of Israfel, Spirit Caravan (featuring former Wasted guitarist Scott “Wino” Weinrich), The Wounded Kings and Conclave have all been inspired by early Black Sabbath recordings.
