Melodic death metal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Melodic death metal | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins: | Death metal, power metal, European classical music |
| Cultural origins: | Early 1990s Sweden |
| Typical instruments: | Guitar - Bass guitar - Drums - Keyboard |
| Mainstream popularity: | Underground in early to mid-1990s, increased popularity in recent years.
<tr><th align="center" bgcolor="#BB0022" colspan=2 valign="top">Fusion genres</th></tr><tr><td align=center colspan="2" valign="top">Melodic deathcore</td></tr><tr><th align="center" bgcolor="#BB0022" colspan=2 valign="top">Regional scenes</th></tr><tr><td align=center colspan="2" valign="top">Scandinavia - North America</td></tr> |
Melodic death metal (sometimes referred to as Gothenburg metal or melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal, a form of extreme metal. It contains more melodic guitar riffs and solos, which are sometimes acoustic, and also occasional 'clean' singing as opposed to traditional death grunt vocals. The song structures are generally more progressive, using diverse themes throughout the song. Death and Morbid Angel, often considered the "godfathers" of death metal, are primary influences on the genre, and its progenitors include At the Gates, In Flames, and Carcass, with the release of their Heartwork album. Sentenced is also often credited with creating the first melodeath album with the release of North from Here. Some credit In Flames as the band which popularised the sub-genre, some even credit them for inventing the subgenre. Amorphis are also worth noting, because of their 1994 Tales from the Thousand Lakes album. Opeth, from Sweden, have effectively combined melodic death metal with progressive rock music. Melodic death metal, though from the same geographic area as black metal, rarely speaks of Satanism or the downfall of Christianity, but has more poetic themes, which vary greatly. Traditionally, lyrics deal with more expressionist themes.
One extremely important piece of the melodic death jigsaw puzzle is the Gothenburg style, named after the city from which it originated. It is not certain what band originally started the Gothenburg sound, but it is widely accepted that In Flames, At the Gates, and Dark Tranquillity are the three major popularizers of the style, and some of the only widely known bands to practice it, with newer bands such as Arch Enemy and The Haunted being offshoots of Carcass and At the Gates respectively.
Most melodic death metal bands are from the Scandinavian and Northern European regions, especially from Sweden and Finland, notable Finnish examples include Norther and Kalmah, and to a lesser extent Children of Bodom, whose exact style is a subject of debate amongst fans, however they are more often than not classified as melodic death metal.
However in recent years, the genre has gained somewhat of a popularity boost, acquiring a small underground status in the North American areas of Florida, New York, Tennessee. California, and some parts of Canada, especially among North American fans of the Scandinavian bands which still pioneer the genre today but are looking for some closer-to-home bands.
[edit] See also
cs:Melodic death metal da:Melodisk dødsmetal de:Melodic Death Metal es:Melodic death metal fr:Death mélodique it:Melodic death metal nl:Melodieuze death metal ja:メロディックデスメタル pl:Melodic death metal pt:Death metal melódico ro:Death metal melodic sv:Melodisk death metal zh:死亡旋律金屬
