I’m constantly astounded by the inherent hypocrisy of metal. The genre seems naturally limited—I mean screaming and raucous guitar can only go so far, I mean. There’s a sense of communal purity to the music as well; deviations from the established course are grounds for derision, mockery, and cries of ‘that’s not real metal!’ But despite that, I dare you (this is really happening, I’m actually daring you) to find a genre that’s sprouted such an incredibly diverse litter of subgenres. For as puritanical as the scene is, it’s also insanely multifaceted—often to the point of actual frustration. I know it better than anybody—to a little bopping indie kid like high-school me (whose ‘heaviest’ interest was the Chili Peppers) the world of metal was a terrifying and stupefying realm of upside-down crosses and burly, bearded men.
It’s a highly rewarding scene, though, full of a wide spectrum of bands with varying ideals and sonic pursuits—there’s more to it than Hair Metal and Black Sabbath. So, with that in mind, I’ve taken the liberty of throwing together a little handy-dandy guide to the more exceptional spheres of metal. I’m by no means an expert—my word is miles away from gospel—but at the very least I hope I can shed a little light on what’s frequently a misunderstood and highly underrated culture.
First up is Black Metal, probably the most accessible of the more esoteric metal branches- and almost certainly the most critically lauded one, too. The genre is typified by simplicity over complexity. Gone are the absurd shredding of technical death metal, gone are the ridiculous drum fills. Instead there’s an extreme importance placed on atmosphere—repetitive riffs and blast beats (that is, manic 16th-note drumming with more concern for noise than rhythm) under screamed vocals with off-kilter subject matter (death, dying, satan, the despair of eternity—metal things, you know).
The scene may have divorced itself from them (since they’re not black metal, they’re hipster metal), but Liturgy are still a fantastic place to start with this particular niche. Past that, there’s Venom (whose album Black Metal basically birthed the scene), Burzum, Dissection, Wolves in the Throne Room, Agalloch and so on and so forth. It’s a tremendous scene and one that gets bigger by the day and certainly one of my favorites.
On the contrary, Grindcore and Doom Metal (and Doom Metal’s weird cousin, Doom Drone) are arguably the least approachable subgenres. They rely on incendiary speed and almost painfully glacial pacing, respectively. Grindcore straddles the fine line between hardcore punk and metal- furious pace, screamed vocals, anarchistic and nihilistic tendencies and extreme distortion are hallmarks.
Inaccessibility isn’t a side effect, it’s basically the ambition; grindcore hates life and it hates you. Famous grindees include The Locust, Pig Destroyer, and Napalm Death, all of whom I highly recommend listening to once and then never again.
Meanwhile, Doom Metal is basically everything that Grindcore isn’t; speed and anger are replaced by trudging instrumentals tuned so low it actually might constitute as man infringing on God’s domain (and also more anger). The intention’s right there in the title—an impending sense of doom and terror is the modus operandi. Doom tends to overlap with a lot of subgenres, and mainstayers like Electric Wizard, Isis, Sunn O))) and Boris all tend to frequent other heavy, melody-less branches of metal. Drone Doom is similar but distinct in its approach; just like Doom, Drone Doom utilizes immobilizingly dark instrumentals and macabre lyrical themes, but, true to its name, it tends to meld said traits with (very) long passages of droning noise. Earth were the forerunners of the scene, but acts like Corrupted, Jesu and Melvins have followed in their footsteps since.
And, of course, there’s Sludge Metal, my own entry point into the scene. Again, the name really kind of tells you all that you need to know. Sludge metal, go figure, has an inherantly sludgy, mucky, gross sound. It’s one of Doom Metal’s many offspring, again putting a predominant importance on atmospherics and long, grinding passages of mega-distortion. Unlike Doom, however, Sludge has a much punkier flair; fewer Satanic chants, more grunting, more riffage, more overtly political themes, etc etc.
Bands like Harvey Milk, Northless (of Milwaukee fame) and Isis are fine examples, and, if it means anything to you, all three rank among my favorite bands. Sludge Metal, in turn, bred Stoner Metal, a genre spotlighted by the emergence of Kyuss (Queens of the Stone Age’s drugged up forefathers) in the early ‘90s. It’s kind of exactly what it sounds like; sludge metal’s slow brooding intensity mixed heavily with psychedelic music and the drug culture.
