Heavy metal is a genre with a really heavy sound. Its origins are in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Bands such as Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath or Deep Purple are considered to be the originators of this genre. At one time they gathered a large number of listeners, and most of their songs have passed to classics of the genre and are still very much listened to. By the end of the 1980s, metal music already had a very large number of loyal fans and even lived to see its own subculture - the metalheads. Traditionally, loud, distorted guitars, an intense rhythm section, pronounced bass and intense vocals are associated with metal music. However, different subgenres incorporate these elements, emphasize or omit some of them. The instrumentation is electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, keyboards (occasionally).… Read more
Several sub-genres have emerged from traditional metal, and here they are:
Black metal
Black metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that emerged in the 1980s. Black metal musically is based on sounds that are heavily distorted, often transitioning to tremolo, fast guitar parts and a fast drum rhythm. Vocalists use a low, throaty, growling or squawking voice known as a growl (this is a very specific vocal technique that is difficult to train and requires years of training). It is very similar to Death metal, from which black metal was born. The traditional themes of death metal are the problems of euthanasia, abortion, crimes against humanity, murder, infanticide; also the depravity of society like incest, consumerism, acts of violence, rape, but they also touch on the Bible, the occult, magic. Satanism also appears but it is more the domain of black metal.
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is another subgenre that emerged in the 1980s and combines features of heavy metal with punk music. The fusion of these two genres resulted in very fast and brutal compositions characterized by simple arrangements, low registers, aggressive vocals, technically advanced solos and frequent rhythm changes, as well as rhythm-breaking drums.
Symphonic thrash
An interesting subgenre both in terms of subject matter and the way the music is performed is symphonic metal. It combines extensive instrumentation or choruses with metal riffs, rhythms and song structures. Vocalists of some of the bands in this genre sing in classical technique, such as Tarja Turunen of Nightwish, who has a lyric soprano that reaches three octaves, or Sharon Janny den Adel of Within Temptation, who has a mezzo-soprano of four octaves. Despite the name, it must be remembered that in this genre of metal, classical elements are very basic. The lyrics are very diverse and usually depart thematically from other subgenres of metal, and are characteristic of the band and form its individual style. The songs are often epic, and even whole albums form a compact whole.