The Metal subgenre argument thread!

**RustyWaffle** · Joined: 15 Apr 2007 Posts: 796

Everyone who listens to metal has argued over what subgenre a metal band belongs to. Everyone who has argued over what a subgenre of metal is has researched it on Wikipedia for hours on end. This topic is to argue over the characteristics of each subgenre, along with examples (Well not argue, but I hope to create some sort of archive or reference of the different subgenres and what gives them their characteristics.) Mostly, the point of this thread is to expose yourself to different genres of music, and discover new bands that appeal to your tastes. I'll start off with a couple which I have a general knowledge of defining (I welcome corrections and suggestions. I'd love to gather up as much knowledge as possible.)

Metalcore: (Sometimes categorized as Hardcore)
Generally, metalcore consists of tons of breakdowns and 808 bass drops. For those who don't know, an 808 bass drop is when a band either uses a sampling pad or a studio mixer to add in an extremely low frequency sound. Depending on your sound system or equalizer settings, some may be able to hear them better than others. This is also why subwoofers come in handy; to shake the living shit out of anything within a mile's radius. These normally go at the beginning of a breakdown. Anyway, back to metalcore. A lot of metalcore bands use "chugging" riffs and are in dropped guitar tunings (drop C, most frequently). They also include singers who are able to both scream, and sing clean. This subgenre mostly appeals to teenagers for some reason, and often have lyrical themes about Christianity. In fact, a very good amount of metalcore bands consider themselves Christian metalcore bands. That's not what gives it the genre of course, but it's just a little bit of irony. Some examples of metalcore bands are:
For Today - Seraphim
The Word Alive - The Wretched (You know them from RBN)
August Burns Red - Crusades

Also see:
The Devil Wears Prada
Dr. Acula
Bring Me the Horizon
Asking Alexandria
Old Avenged Sevenfold

(I don't listen to much metalcore bands so I only listed a couple popular ones, but add to the list if you wish and I'll edit the OP.)

Deathcore:
This is where it gets complicated. Deathcore is a mix of metalcore and death metal, resulting in the name. Deathcore is very similar to metalcore in ways, but very different. Both deathcore and metalcore have a good amount of breakdowns, but deathcore songs are often faster and more technical (with exceptions of course). Usually, deathcore drummers will use more blast beats and straight-up bass patterns than metalcore drummers, who prefer to follow the chugging riff of the guitarist. Deathcore lyrical themes tend to be darker, and less often are there clean vocals. Like metalcore, many bands used dropped guitar tunings, or they tune to a lower standard tuning (Black Dahlia Murder plays in D Standard, for example.) Examples of deathcore bands are as follows:

Job For A Cowboy - Entombment of a Machine
As Blood Runs Black - My Fears Have Become Phobias
The Black Dahlia Murder - Moonlight Equilibrium

Also see:
Whitechapel
As I Lay Dying
After the Burial
Born of Osiris

Progressive Metal:
Progressive metal is, in a nutshell, progressive rock, but heavier. Progressive metal bands have philosophical, well-thought out lyrical themes. They often use complex song structures and odd time signatures. Bands like Dream Theater have been known to include parts of their other songs in their music, such as Octavarium using the melody from The Answer Lies Within. Progressive metal bands often consist of a keyboardist, alongside a guitarist, bassist, and a drummer with an unnecessarily large drum set. They're usually extremely experienced at their instruments and are able to write complex parts and rhythms. Examples of Progressive Metal bands are:
Between the Buried and Me - Ants of the Sky
Mastodon - Crystal Skull
Liquid Tension Experiment - Acid Rain

Also see:
Dream Theater
Opeth
Symphony X

This is all I'll be writing for now. Again, feel free to add to my descriptions and write your own.
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**RustyWaffle** · Joined: 15 Apr 2007 Posts: 796

Opinion's an opinion. Personally I like Progressive Metal more than anything else. I don't like metalcore that much and only a couple deathcore bands appeal to me. Mathcore has always appealed to me though.
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ShadoWolf wrote:

HellAshes wrote:

Everyone hates Nihilanth. I enjoyed making that guitar chart. D:

Fuck you HellAsses you fucking fucker

**Eastwinn** · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 2:59 am Post subject:

Screamo is distinct from metalcore. Sounds more like this. Don't add that to your list though, because it's emo/punk, not metal.
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**EmoArbiter** · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 4:09 am Post subject:

I think Asking Alexandria is more Post-Hardcore then Metalcore, but that might just be me. Imo Metalcore doesn't have many breakdowns and has more clean singing then screaming. Bands like As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, old A7X are what I consider Metalcore. Post-Hardcore has a lot more unclean vocals, breakdowns, and generally the clean singing is very high-pitched. Post-Hardcore is also faster than Metalcore. Bands like A Day To Remember, Asking Alexandria, Enter Shikari, Chiodos, etc. are Post-Hardcore

also inb4slipknot
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**FreeXBird** · Joined: 24 Mar 2007 Posts: 2485

this thread will be very helpful, thank you, as it all ready is :p

can anyone define what genre(s) Mastodon and Tool are? ive never listened to Tool, but everyone compares their drummer to Brann Dailor, so i might give them a listen and it would be beneficial for future reference what to classify them as [correctly]

**GarageMetal468** · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 6:02 pm Post subject:

**SeaMoney** · Joined: 24 Jun 2008 Posts: 750 Location: East Lansing, MI

**CloudFuel** · Joined: 06 Dec 2006 Posts: 1030 Location: Houston, TX

Waffle - great idea!

My only worries are going to be:

* The "definition" of each type of genre and subgenre
* Bands that evolve or have a lot of songs with different styles (ie A7X)

It's pretty easy to classify something once you have solid definitions. Either the band/song fits that definition or it doesn't... the problem is going to be having the definitions crystal clear. A lot of these subgenres are so similar that only minor differences separate them and thus one person might say band A is subgenre A but another says they fit more closely to subgenre B...

The other thing is for bands that don't put out the same type of music on every cd. You have some that vary their styles up a little bit, but overall have the same "motif" each time, while others have drastic differences (see a7x unholy confessions, beast and the harlot, sidewinder, a little piece of heaven, dear god, fiction, and save me). How do you classify a group like that? Do you take the whatever category the majority of their songs fits into? Do you go cd by cd? song by song? Or do you just say they are mostly subgenre A with some songs in subgenres B, D, & F?

Sorry to question so much - just curious.

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**ganondorf901** · Joined: 28 Jul 2008 Posts: 846 Location: VA all the way

Bands that encompass a variety of genres throughout their carrier should have those genres tagged to them with respect to chronological order. But if your referring to a band in its current state, make it easier on yourself and just say their current genre.

And A7X is Alternative Metal. Imho, their stylistic changes aren't large enough to constitute a genre change
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**toddles822** · Posted: Fri Jul 22, 2011 7:02 pm Post subject:

**Nubnut** · Joined: 07 Jun 2008 Posts: 2078 Location: Denver, CO

**dogtownzboy1** · Joined: 24 Aug 2008 Posts: 1118 Location: Chicago

Post Hardcore?? Okay

At The Drive In is a must. Also when I first came on here everyone was going bat shit crazy about The Fall of Troy. Never listened to them then. Boy was I missing out. Downloaded the self-titled album a while ago. So good. Inspired me to start playing harder shit on the guitar. Thomas Erak is amazing.

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