This week I’m looking at some of the more obscure sub-genres of metal. What I think will amaze you is some of the very bands you listen to are actually considered to be in these genres. For the longest time the fans have dictated where a band gets placed so this might even be a surprise to some of the bands where they ended up. In the mean time lets take a look at my Top 10 unusual metal genres:
10 – Viking Metal – I tend to look at the sound of Viking Metal as hardcore thrash, but bands in this element tend to add acoustic pieces and folk pieces. There is a lot of varying speeds and tempos as well. Amon Amarth is considered in the Viking Metal genre.
9 – Drone Metal – this is exactly as it sounds. Very long sustained notes in even longer songs. There is very little beat or rhythm involved in the heart of the music and creates a very monotone like song. To my surprise Earth is considered to be the leaders of the pack in Drone.
8 – Unblack Metal – this one got a WTF from me, but it makes perfect sense once you think about it. Unblack is simply a form of Black Metal dealing with the Christian faith (I wonder if they make fun of Stryper too?). Atestor is one of the better known bands in the genre.
7 – Mathcore – I personally enjoy this genre and it speaks for itself with very, very technical instrumentals and time signatures that set no pattern whatsoever. It branches from Metalcore, but has many differences. Hypno5e from France is one of my personal favorites.
6 – Pagan Metal – this one fuses extreme metal with known Christian or church based melodies. There are non-traditional instruments used in most songs. Primordial has reached significant fame with this genre fueling them.
5 – Funeral Doom – you simply take doom metal and fuse it with the funeral dirge. Who thinks of this stuff? Evokin have taken this genre to new levels with a huge fan base.
4 – Death N’ Roll – bands using traditional death metal take it a step further and incorporate classic rock and roll from the 60s and 70s. A major player on the scene right now is Six Feet Under and they are considered the kings of Death N Roll in my eyes.
3 – Djent – the name is actually the sound that bands in this genre use. The sound is heavy palm muting guitar work and its covered with very technical vocal work. Periphery does this in a manner that could bring the genre to a more mainstream place in metal.
2 – Tuetonic Thrash – this is really only found in certain regions of Germany, but the reason I like it is the traditional thrash elements are cleaned up, but the vocals are more raspy then normal. Kreator has brought this out of the region to thousands of fans.
1 – Nintendocore – nerd metal. Love it! A fusion of metalcore and 8 bit music that is topped off with some classic video game sounds. You have to love how musicians minds work. Minibosses have made some very unusual and quirky material in this genre.
Metal on,
Bill
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Nerd metal sucks. lol \m/
Nintendocore sucks. lol \m/