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Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of
rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...
that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and
acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, d ...
, heavy metal bands developed a thick, monumental sound characterized by distorted guitars, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats and
loudness In acoustics, loudness is the subjective perception of sound pressure. More formally, it is defined as, "That attribute of auditory sensation in terms of which sounds can be ordered on a scale extending from quiet to loud". The relation of ph ...
. In 1968, three of the genre's most famous pioneers –
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
,
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
and Deep Purple – were founded. Though they came to attract wide audiences, they were often derided by critics. Several American bands modified heavy metal into more accessible forms during the 1970s: the raw, sleazy sound and shock rock of
Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
and
Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
; the blues-rooted rock of Aerosmith; and the flashy guitar leads and party rock of
Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
. During the mid-1970s, Judas Priest helped spur the genre's evolution by discarding much of its blues influence,Walser (1993), p. 6 while
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
introduced a punk rock sensibility and an increasing emphasis on speed. Beginning in the late 1970s, bands in the
new wave of British heavy metal The new wave of British heavy metal (commonly abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that started in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Journalist Geoff Barton coined the term i ...
such as
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
and Saxon followed in a similar vein. By the end of the decade, heavy metal fans became known as " metalheads" or "
headbangers Headbanging is the action of violently shaking one's head in rhythm with music. It is common in the contemporary rock, punk and heavy metal music genres, where headbanging is often used by musicians on stage. Headbanging is also common in trad ...
". The lyrics of some metal genres became associated with aggression and
machismo Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1930s and 1940s best defined as hav ...
,Fast (2005), pp. 89–91; Weinstein (2000), pp. 7, 8, 23, 36, 103, 104 an issue that has at times led to accusations of misogyny. During the 1980s,
glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam ...
became popular with groups such as Bon Jovi, Mötley Crüe and Poison. Meanwhile, however, underground scenes produced an array of more aggressive styles:
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
broke into the mainstream with bands such as Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax, while other extreme subgenres such as death metal and
black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emp ...
became – and remain –
subcultural A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...
phenomena. Since the mid-1990s, popular styles have expanded the definition of the genre. These include groove metal and nu metal, the latter of which often incorporates elements of grunge and hip-hop.


Characteristics

Heavy metal is traditionally characterized by loud distorted guitars, emphatic rhythms, dense bass-and-drum sound and vigorous vocals. Heavy metal subgenres variously emphasize, alter or omit one or more of these attributes. In a 1988 article, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' critic
Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.Pareles, Jon
"Heavy Metal, Weighty Words"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', 10 July 1988. Retrieved on 14 November 2007 The typical band lineup includes a drummer, a bassist, a rhythm guitarist, a lead guitarist and a singer, who may or may not be an instrumentalist. Keyboard instruments are sometimes used to enhance the fullness of the sound.Weinstein (2000), p. 25 Deep Purple's
Jon Lord John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...
played an overdriven Hammond organ. In 1970,
John Paul Jones John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites ( ...
used a Moog synthesizer on ''
Led Zeppelin III ''Led Zeppelin III'' is the third studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 5 October 1970. It was recorded in three locations. Much of the work was done at Headley Grange, a country house, using the Rolling Stones Mobil ...
''; by the 1990s, synthesizers were used in "almost every subgenre of heavy metal". The electric guitar and the sonic power that it projects through amplification has historically been the key element in heavy metal.Weinstein (2000), p. 23 The heavy metal guitar sound comes from a combined use of high volumes and heavy fuzz. For classic heavy metal guitar tone, guitarists maintain gain at moderate levels, without excessive preamp or pedal distortion, to retain open spaces and air in the music; the guitar amplifier is turned up loud to produce the "punch and grind" characteristic. Thrash metal guitar tone has scooped mid-frequencies and tightly compressed sound with multiple bass frequencies. Guitar solos are "an essential element of the heavy metal code ... that underscores the significance of the guitar" to the genre. Most heavy metal songs "feature at least one guitar solo", which is "a primary means through which the heavy metal performer expresses virtuosity". Some exceptions are nu metal and grindcore bands, which tend to omit guitar solos. With rhythm guitar parts, the "heavy crunch sound in heavy metal ... s created by
palm muting The palm mute is a playing technique for guitar and bass guitar, executed by placing the side of the picking hand below the little finger across the strings to be plucked, very close to the bridge, and then plucking the strings while the damp ...
" the strings with the picking hand and using distortion. Palm muting creates a tighter, more precise sound and it emphasizes the low end. The lead role of the guitar in heavy metal often collides with the traditional "frontman" or bandleader role of the vocalist, creating a musical tension as the two "contend for dominance" in a spirit of "affectionate rivalry". Heavy metal "demands the subordination of the voice" to the overall sound of the band. Reflecting metal's roots in the 1960s counterculture, an "explicit display of emotion" is required from the vocals as a sign of authenticity. Critic
Simon Frith Simon Webster Frith (born 1946) is a British sociomusicologist and former rock critic who specializes in popular music culture. He is Tovey Chair of Music at University of Edinburgh. Career As a student, he read PPE at Oxford and earned ...
claims that the metal singer's "tone of voice" is more important than the lyrics. The prominent role of the bass ‍is also key to the metal sound, and the interplay of bass and guitar is a central element. The bass provides the low-end sound crucial to making the music "heavy".Weinstein (2000), p. 24 The bass plays a "more important role in heavy metal than in any other genre of rock". Metal basslines vary widely in complexity, from holding down a low
pedal point In music, a pedal point (also pedal note, organ point, pedal tone, or pedal) is a sustained tone, typically in the bass, during which at least one foreign (i.e. dissonant) harmony is sounded in the other parts. A pedal point sometimes function ...
as a foundation to doubling complex
riffs A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accomp ...
and licks along with the lead or rhythm guitars. Some bands feature the bass as a lead instrument, an approach popularized by Metallica's
Cliff Burton Clifford Lee Burton (February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986) was an American musician who was the bassist for heavy metal band Metallica from 1982 until his death in 1986. He performed on ''Kill 'Em All'' (1983), ''Ride the Lightning'' (1984) ...
with his heavy emphasis on bass ‍solos and use of chords while playing the ‍bass in the early 1980s. Lemmy of
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
often played overdriven
power chord A power chord (also fifth chord) is a colloquial name for a chord in guitar music, especially electric guitar, that consists of the root note and the fifth, as well as possibly octaves of those notes. Power chords are commonly played on ...
s in his bass lines. The essence of heavy metal drumming is creating a loud, constant beat for the band using the "trifecta of speed, power, and precision". Heavy metal drumming "requires an exceptional amount of endurance", and drummers have to develop "considerable speed, coordination, and dexterity ... to play the intricate patterns" used in heavy metal.Berry and Gianni (2003), p. 85 A characteristic metal drumming technique is the
cymbal choke In percussion, cymbal choke is a drum stroke or push which consists of striking a cymbal with a drum stick held in one hand and then immediately grabbing the cymbal with another hand, or more rarely, with the same hand. The cymbal choke produces ...
, which consists of striking a cymbal and then immediately silencing it by grabbing it with the other hand (or, in some cases, the same striking hand), producing a burst of sound. The metal drum setup is generally much larger than those employed in other forms of rock music. Black metal, death metal and some "mainstream metal" bands "all depend upon double-kicks and
blast beats A blast beat is a type of drum beat that originated in hardcore punk and grindcore, and is often associated with certain styles of extreme metal, namely black metal and death metal,Adam MacGregor, '' PCP Torpedo'' by Agoraphobic Nosebleed ...
". In live performance, loudness – an "onslaught of sound", in sociologist Deena Weinstein's description – is considered vital. In his book, ''Metalheads'', psychologist Jeffrey Arnett refers to heavy metal concerts as "the sensory equivalent of war". Following the lead set by Jimi Hendrix,
Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...
and
the Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
, early heavy metal acts such as
Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and ...
set new benchmarks for volume. As Blue Cheer's Dick Peterson put it, "All we knew was we wanted more power."Walser (1993), p. 9 A 1977 review of a Motörhead concert noted how "excessive volume in particular figured into the band's impact". Weinstein makes the case that in the same way that melody is the main element of pop and rhythm is the main focus of house music, powerful sound, timbre and volume are the key elements of metal. She argues that the loudness is designed to "sweep the listener into the sound" and to provide a "shot of youthful vitality". Heavy metal performers tended to be almost exclusively male until at least the mid-1980s, with some exceptions such as
Girlschool Girlschool are a British rock band that formed in the new wave of British heavy metal scene in 1978. Frequently associated with contemporaries Motörhead, they are the longest-running all-female rock band, still active after more than 40 ye ...
. However, by the 2010s, women were making more of an impact, and PopMatters' Craig Hayes argues that metal "clearly empowers women". In the power metal and symphonic metal subgenres, there has been a sizable number of bands that have had women as the lead singers, such as Nightwish,
Delain Delain is a Dutch symphonic metal band formed in 2002 by former Within Temptation keyboardist Martijn Westerholt, intending for the band to be solely a project. Singer Charlotte Wessels was invited to join in 2005. The name of the band comes fr ...
and
Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other inf ...
.


Musical language


Rhythm and tempo

The rhythm in metal songs is emphatic, with deliberate stresses. Weinstein observes that the wide array of sonic effects available to metal drummers enables the "rhythmic pattern to take on a complexity within its elemental drive and insistency". In many heavy metal songs, the main groove is characterized by short, two- or three-note rhythmic figures – generally made up of eighth or 16th notes. These rhythmic figures are usually performed with a staccato attack created by using a palm-muted technique on the rhythm guitar. Brief, abrupt and detached
rhythmic cell The 1957 ''Encyclopédie Larousse''quoted in Nattiez, Jean-Jacques (1990). ''Music and Discourse: Toward a Semiology of Music'' (''Musicologie générale et sémiologue'', 1987). Translated by Carolyn Abbate (1990). . defines a cell in music as a "s ...
s are joined into rhythmic phrases with a distinctive, often jerky texture. These phrases are used to create rhythmic accompaniment and melodic figures called
riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or acc ...
s, which help to establish thematic hooks. Heavy metal songs also use longer rhythmic figures such as
whole note A whole note (American) or semibreve (British) in musical notation is a single note equivalent to or lasting as long as two half notes or four quarter notes. Description The whole note or semibreve has a note head in the shape of a hollow o ...
- or dotted quarter note-length chords in slow-tempo
power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romance (love), romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn m ...
s. The tempos in early heavy metal music tended to be "slow, even ponderous". By the late 1970s, however, metal bands were employing a wide variety of tempos, and as recently as the 2000s, metal tempos range from slow ballad tempos (quarter note = 60
beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...
) to extremely fast blast beat tempos (quarter note = 350 beats per minute).


Harmony

One of the signatures of the genre is the guitar power chord. In technical terms, the power chord is relatively simple: it involves just one main interval, generally the perfect fifth, though an octave may be added as a doubling of the
root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the su ...
. When power chords are played on the lower strings at high volumes and with distortion, additional low-frequency sounds are created, which add to the "weight of the sound" and create an effect of "overwhelming power". Although the perfect fifth interval is the most common basis for the power chord, power chords are also based on different intervals such as the
minor third In music theory, a minor third is a musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval number). The minor third is one of two com ...
,
major third In classical music, a third is a Interval (music), musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number, Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four semitones.Allen Forte, ...
,
perfect fourth A fourth is a musical interval encompassing four staff positions in the music notation of Western culture, and a perfect fourth () is the fourth spanning five semitones (half steps, or half tones). For example, the ascending interval from C to ...
,
diminished fifth Diminished may refer to: *Diminution In Western music and music theory, diminution (from Medieval Latin ''diminutio'', alteration of Latin ''deminutio'', decrease) has four distinct meanings. Diminution may be a form of embellishment in which ...
or minor sixth. Most power chords are also played with a consistent finger arrangement that can be slid easily up and down the
fretboard The fingerboard (also known as a fretboard on fretted instruments) is an important component of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument. The st ...
.


Typical harmonic structures

Heavy metal is usually based on riffs created with three main harmonic traits: modal scale progressions,
tritone In music theory, the tritone is defined as a musical interval composed of three adjacent whole tones (six semitones). For instance, the interval from F up to the B above it (in short, F–B) is a tritone as it can be decomposed into the three adj ...
and chromatic progressions, and the use of
pedal point In music, a pedal point (also pedal note, organ point, pedal tone, or pedal) is a sustained tone, typically in the bass, during which at least one foreign (i.e. dissonant) harmony is sounded in the other parts. A pedal point sometimes function ...
s. Traditional heavy metal tends to employ modal scales, in particular the Aeolian and Phrygian modes. Harmonically speaking, this means the genre typically incorporates modal chord progressions such as the Aeolian progressions I-♭VI-♭VII, I-♭VII-(♭VI), or I-♭VI-IV-♭VII and Phrygian progressions implying the relation between I and ♭II (I-♭II-I, I-♭II-III, or I-♭II-VII for example). Tense-sounding chromatic or
tritone In music theory, the tritone is defined as a musical interval composed of three adjacent whole tones (six semitones). For instance, the interval from F up to the B above it (in short, F–B) is a tritone as it can be decomposed into the three adj ...
relationships are used in a number of metal chord progressions.Dunn, Sam (2005)
"Metal: A Headbanger's Journey".
Warner Home Video (2006). Retrieved on 19 March 2007 In addition to using modal harmonic relationships, heavy metal also uses "
pentatonic A pentatonic scale is a musical scale (music), scale with five Musical note, notes per octave, in contrast to the heptatonic scale, which has seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale). Pentatonic scales were developed ...
and blues-derived features". The tritone, an interval spanning three whole tones – such as C to F# – was considered extremely
dissonant In music, consonance and dissonance are categorizations of simultaneous or successive Sound, sounds. Within the Western tradition, some listeners associate consonance with sweetness, pleasantness, and acceptability, and dissonance with harshness ...
and unstable by medieval and Renaissance music theorists. It was nicknamed the ''diabolus in musica –'' "the devil in music". Heavy metal songs often make extensive use of
pedal point In music, a pedal point (also pedal note, organ point, pedal tone, or pedal) is a sustained tone, typically in the bass, during which at least one foreign (i.e. dissonant) harmony is sounded in the other parts. A pedal point sometimes function ...
as a harmonic basis. A pedal point is a sustained tone, typically in the bass range, during which at least one foreign (i.e., dissonant) harmony is sounded in the other parts. According to Robert Walser, heavy metal harmonic relationships are "often quite complex" and the harmonic analysis done by metal players and teachers is "often very sophisticated". In the study of heavy metal chord structures, it has been concluded that "heavy metal music has proved to be far more complicated" than other music researchers had realized.


Relationship with classical music

Robert Walser stated that, alongside blues and R&B, the "assemblage of disparate musical styles known ... as ' classical music'" has been a major influence on heavy metal since the genre's earliest days, and that metal's "most influential musicians have been guitar players who have also studied classical music. Their appropriation and adaptation of classical models sparked the development of a new kind of guitar virtuosity ndchanges in the harmonic and melodic language of heavy metal." In an article written for '' Grove Music Online'', Walser stated that the "1980s brought on ... the widespread adaptation of chord progressions and virtuosic practices from 18th-century European models, especially
Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
and Antonio Vivaldi, by influential guitarists such as
Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guita ...
,
Marty Friedman Marty Friedman (born December 8, 1962) is an American guitarist, best known for his tenure as the lead guitarist for thrash metal band Megadeth from 1990 to 2000. He is also known for playing alongside Jason Becker in Cacophony from 1986 unti ...
,
Jason Becker Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He w ...
,
Uli Jon Roth Uli Jon Roth (born Ulrich Roth; 18 December 1954) is a German guitarist who became famous for his work with the hard rock band Scorpions and is one of the earliest contributors to the neoclassical metal genre. He is also the founder of Sky Aca ...
, Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads and
Yngwie Malmsteen Yngwie Johan Malmsteen ( ; born Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck, 30 June 1963) is a Swedish guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical playing style in heavy metal, and has released 22 studio albums in a career spanning ov ...
." Kurt Bachmann of Believer has stated that "if done correctly, metal and classical fit quite well together. Classical and metal are probably the two genres that have the most in common when it comes to feel, texture, creativity." Although a number of metal musicians cite classical composers as inspiration, classical and metal are rooted in different cultural traditions and practices – classical in the
art music Art music (alternatively called classical music, cultivated music, serious music, and canonic music) is music considered to be of high phonoaesthetic value. It typically implies advanced structural and theoretical considerationsJacques Siron, ...
tradition, metal in the
popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...
tradition. As musicologists Nicolas Cook and Nicola Dibben note: "Analyses of popular music also sometimes reveal the influence of 'art traditions.' An example is Walser's linkage of heavy metal music with the ideologies and even some of the performance practices of nineteenth-century
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
. However, it would be clearly wrong to claim that traditions such as blues, rock, heavy metal, rap or dance music derive primarily from "art music.'"


Lyrical themes

According to David Hatch and Stephen Millward, Black Sabbath and the numerous heavy metal bands that they inspired have concentrated lyrically "on dark and depressing subject matter to an extent hitherto unprecedented in any form of pop music." They take as an example Black Sabbath's second album, ''
Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy c ...
'' (1970), which "included songs dealing with personal trauma—'
Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy c ...
' and ' Fairies Wear Boots' (which described the unsavoury side effects of drug-taking)—as well as those confronting wider issues, such as the self-explanatory '
War Pigs "War Pigs" is an anti-war protest song by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released in 1970, it is the opening track from the band's second studio album '' Paranoid'' (1970). Overview The original title of "War Pigs" was "Walpurgis", ...
' and ' Hand of Doom.'" Deriving from the genre's roots in blues music, sex is another important topic – a thread running from Led Zeppelin's suggestive lyrics to the more explicit references of glam metal and nu metal bands. The thematic content of heavy metal has long been a target of criticism. According to
Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.e bulk of the music is stylized and formulaic." Music critics have often deemed metal lyrics juvenile and banal, and others have objected to what they see as advocacy of
misogyny Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practice ...
and the occult. During the 1980s, the
Parents Music Resource Center The Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) was an American committee formed in 1985 with the stated goal of increasing parental control over the access of children to music deemed to have violent, drug-related or sexual themes via labeling albums ...
petitioned the U.S. Congress to regulate the popular music industry due to what the group asserted were objectionable lyrics, particularly those in heavy metal songs.See, e.g., Ewing and McCann (2006), pp. 104–113 Andrew Cope stated that claims that heavy metal lyrics are misogynistic are "clearly misguided" as these critics have "overlook dthe overwhelming evidence that suggests otherwise". Music critic Robert Christgau called metal "an expressive mode
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
it sometimes seems will be with us for as long as ordinary white boys fear girls, pity themselves, and are permitted to rage against a world they'll never beat". Heavy metal artists have had to defend their lyrics in front of the U.S. Senate and in court. In 1985,
Twisted Sister Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band originally from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York. Their best-known songs include " We're Not Gonna Take It" and " I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with ...
frontman Dee Snider was asked to defend his song "
Under the Blade ''Under the Blade'' is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Twisted Sister, released on Secret Records on September 18, 1982. It was produced by UFO/ Waysted bassist Pete Way and featured an aggressive and hard-hitting sound, whi ...
" at a U.S. Senate hearing. At the hearing, the
PMRC The Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) was an American committee formed in 1985 with the stated goal of increasing parental control over the access of children to music deemed to have violent, drug-related or sexual themes via labeling albums ...
alleged that the song was about sadomasochism and
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
; Snider stated that the song was about his bandmate's throat surgery. In 1986,
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
was sued over the lyrics of his song " Suicide Solution". A lawsuit against Osbourne was filed by the parents of John McCollum, a depressed teenager who committed suicide allegedly after listening to Osbourne's song. Osbourne was not found to be responsible for the teen's death. In 1990, Judas Priest was sued in American court by the parents of two young men who had shot themselves five years earlier, allegedly after hearing the subliminal statement "do it" in the band's cover of the song "
Better by You, Better than Me "Better by You, Better than Me" is a 1969 song by the English rock band Spooky Tooth. The song appeared on the album ''Spooky Two'' and was composed by keyboardist Gary Wright. In 1990, a 1978 cover version by heavy metal band Judas Priest w ...
". While the case attracted a great deal of media attention, it was ultimately dismissed. In 1991, U.K. police seized death metal records from the British record label
Earache Records Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
, in an "unsuccessful attempt to prosecute the label for obscenity".Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', Oxford: Berg, 2007, . p. 28 In some predominantly Muslim countries, heavy metal has been officially denounced as a threat to traditional values, and in countries such as Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon and Malaysia, there have been incidents of heavy metal musicians and fans being arrested and incarcerated. In 1997, the Egyptian police jailed many young metal fans, and they were accused of "devil worship" and blasphemy after police found metal recordings during searches of their homes. In 2013, Malaysia banned Lamb of God from performing in their country, on the grounds that the "band's lyrics could be interpreted as being religiously insensitive" and blasphemous.Weber, Katherine. "Malaysia Bans 'Lamb of God', Grammy-Nominated Heavy Metal Band, Says Lyrics are Blasphemous". ''The Christian Post''. 5 September 2013 Some people considered heavy metal music to being a leading factor for mental health disorders, and thought that heavy metal fans were more likely to suffer with a poor mental health, but study has proven that this is not true and the fans of this music have a lower or similar percentage of people suffering from poor mental health.


Image and fashion

For many artists and bands, visual imagery plays a large role in heavy metal. In addition to its sound and lyrics, a heavy metal band's image is expressed in album cover art, logos, stage sets, clothing, design of instruments and
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
s. Down-the-back long hair is the "most crucial distinguishing feature of metal fashion". Originally adopted from the hippie subculture, by the 1980s and 1990s, heavy metal hair "symbolised the hate, angst and disenchantment of a generation that seemingly never felt at home", according to journalist Nader Rahman. Long hair gave members of the metal community "the power they needed to rebel against nothing in general". The classic uniform of heavy metal fans consists of light-colored, ripped, frayed or torn blue jeans, black T-shirts, boots, and black leather or denim jackets. Deena Weinstein wrote, "T-shirts are generally emblazoned with the logos or other visual representations of favorite metal bands." In the 1980s, a range of sources – from punk rock and
goth music Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...
to horror films – influenced metal fashion.Pospiszyl, Tomáš
"Heavy Metal".
''Umelec'', January 2001. Retrieved on 20 November 2007. Many metal performers of the 1970s and 1980s used radically shaped and brightly colored instruments to enhance their stage appearance.Thompson (2007), p. 135 Fashion and personal style was especially important for glam metal bands of the era. Performers typically wore long, dyed, hairspray-teased hair (hence the nickname "hair metal"); makeup such as lipstick and eyeliner; gaudy clothing, including leopard-skin-printed shirts or vests and tight denim, leather or spandex pants; and accessories such as headbands and jewelry. Pioneered by the heavy metal act
X Japan was a Japanese rock band from Chiba, formed in 1982 by drummer and pianist Yoshiki and lead vocalist Toshi. Starting as a predominantly power/speed metal band with heavy symphonic elements, they later gravitated towards a progressive soun ...
in the late 1980s, bands in the Japanese movement known as
visual kei is a movement among Japanese musicians that is characterized by the use of varying levels of make-up, elaborate hair styles and flamboyant costumes, often, but not always, coupled with androgynous aesthetics, similar to Western glam rock. Some ...
, which includes many non-metal groups, emphasize elaborate costumes, hair and makeup.


Physical gestures

When performing live, many metal musicians – as well as the audience for whom they're playing – engage in
headbanging Headbanging is the action of violently shaking one's head in rhythm with music. It is common in the contemporary rock, punk and heavy metal music genres, where headbanging is often used by musicians on stage. Headbanging is also common in tradi ...
, which involves rhythmically beating time with the head, often emphasized by long hair. The ''il cornuto'', or "devil horns", hand gesture was popularized by vocalist Ronnie James Dio during his time with the bands Black Sabbath and Dio. Although Gene Simmons of
Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
claims to have been the first to make the gesture on the 1977 ''
Love Gun ''Love Gun'' is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Kiss, released on June 30, 1977. Casablanca Records and FilmWorks shipped one million copies of the album on this date. It was certified platinum and became the band's first top ...
'' album cover, there is speculation as to who started the phenomenon. Attendees of metal concerts do not dance in the usual sense. It has been argued that this is due to the music's largely male audience and "extreme heterosexualist ideology". Two primary body movements used are headbanging and an arm thrust that is both a sign of appreciation and a rhythmic gesture. The performance of
air guitar Air guitar is a form of dance and movement in which the performer pretends to play an imaginary rock or heavy metal-style electric guitar, including riffs and solos. Playing an air guitar usually consists of exaggerated strumming and picking m ...
is popular among metal fans both at concerts and listening to records at home. According to Deena Weinstein, thrash metal concerts have two elements that are not part of the other metal genres:
moshing Moshing (also known as slam dancing or simply slamming) is an extreme style of dancing in which participants push or slam into each other, typically performed to "aggressive" live music such as heavy metal and punk rock. Moshing usually happen ...
and stage diving, which "were imported from the punk/hardcore subculture". Weinstein states that moshing participants bump and jostle each other as they move in a circle in an area called the "pit" near the stage. Stage divers climb onto the stage with the band and then jump "back into the audience".


Fan subculture

It has been argued that heavy metal has outlasted many other rock genres largely due to the emergence of an intense, exclusionary and strongly masculine subculture. While the metal fan base is largely young, white, male and blue-collar, the group is "tolerant of those outside its core demographic base who follow its codes of dress, appearance, and behavior". Identification with the subculture is strengthened not only by the group experience of concert-going and shared elements of fashion, but also by contributing to metal magazines and, more recently, websites. Attending live concerts in particular has been called the "holiest of heavy metal communions". The metal scene has been characterized as a "subculture of alienation" with its own code of authenticity."Three profiles of heavy metal fans: A taste for sensation and a subculture of alienation", Jeffrey Arnett. In ''Qualitative Sociology''; Publisher Springer Netherlands. . Volume 16, Number 4 / December 1993. pp. 423–443 This code puts several demands on performers: they must appear both completely devoted to their music and loyal to the subculture that supports it; they must appear uninterested in mainstream appeal and radio hits; and they must never "
sell out Sell Out may refer to: * Selling out, the compromising of principles in exchange for success * ''Sell Out'' (Halfcocked album), 1998 *'' $ell Out'', a 1999 album by Pist.On *'' The Who Sell Out'', a 1967 album by the Who * "Sell Out" (Reel Big Fish ...
". Deena Weinstein stated that for the fans themselves, the code promotes "opposition to established authority, and separateness from the rest of society". Musician and filmmaker Rob Zombie observed, "Most of the kids who come to my shows seem like really imaginative kids with a lot of creative energy they don't know what to do with" and that metal is "outsider music for outsiders. Nobody wants to be the weird kid; you just somehow end up being the weird kid. It's kind of like that, but with metal you have all the weird kids in one place."Dunn, "Metal: A Headbanger's Journey" B000EGEJIY (2006) Scholars of metal have noted the tendency of fans to classify and reject some performers (and some other fans) as " poseurs" "who pretended to be part of the subculture, but who were deemed to lack authenticity and sincerity".


Etymology

The origin of the term "heavy metal" in a musical context is uncertain. The phrase has been used for centuries in chemistry and metallurgy, where the periodic table organizes elements of both
light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 te ...
and heavy metals (e.g., uranium). An early use of the term in modern popular culture was by
countercultural A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...
writer
William S. Burroughs William Seward Burroughs II (; February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist, widely considered a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodern author who influenced popular cultur ...
. His 1961 novel '' The Soft Machine'' includes a character known as "Uranian Willy, the Heavy Metal Kid". Burroughs' next novel, ''
Nova Express ''Nova Express'' is a 1964 novel by American author William S. Burroughs. It was written using the 'fold-in' method, a version of the cut-up method, developed by Burroughs with Brion Gysin, of enfolding snippets of different texts into the nove ...
'' (1964), develops the theme, using "heavy metal" as a metaphor for addictive drugs: "With their diseases and orgasm drugs and their sexless parasite life forms—Heavy Metal People of Uranus wrapped in cool blue mist of vaporized bank notes—And The Insect People of Minraud with metal music." Inspired by Burroughs' novels, the term was used in the title of the 1967 album ''Featuring the Human Host and the Heavy Metal Kids'' by
Hapshash and the Coloured Coat Hapshash and the Coloured Coat was an influential British graphic design and avant-garde musical partnership in the late 1960s, consisting of Michael English and Nigel Waymouth. It produced popular psychedelic posters, and two albums of underg ...
, which has been claimed to be its first use in the context of music. The phrase was later lifted by
Sandy Pearlman Samuel Clarke "Sandy" Pearlman (August 5, 1943 – July 26, 2016) was an American music producer, artist manager, music journalist and critic, professor, poet, songwriter, and record company executive. He was best known for founding, writing for, ...
, who used the term to describe
the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...
for their supposed "aluminium style of context and effect", particularly on their album ''
The Notorious Byrd Brothers ''The Notorious Byrd Brothers'' is the fifth album by the American rock band the Byrds, and was released in January 1968, on Columbia Records. The album represents the pinnacle of the Byrds' late-‘60s musical experimentation, with the band bl ...
'' (1968). Metal historian
Ian Christe Ian Christe (born 1970 in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland) is an author, disc jockey and the publisher of Bazillion Points Books. He attended Mynderse Academy, The Clarkson School's Bridging Year, and Indiana University Bloomington (1987-1990). Christe ...
describes what the components of the term mean in " hippiespeak": "heavy" is roughly synonymous with "potent" or "profound", and "metal" designates a certain type of mood, grinding and weighted as with metal. The word "heavy" in this sense was a basic element of beatnik and later
countercultural A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...
hippie
slang Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-g ...
, and references to "heavy music" – typically slower, more amplified variations of standard pop fare – were already common by the mid-1960s, such as in reference to
Vanilla Fudge Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' " You Keep Me Hangin' On". The band's original line–up—vocalist ...
.
Iron Butterfly Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit " In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal musi ...
's debut album, which was released in early 1968, was titled ''
Heavy Heavy may refer to: Measures * Heavy (aeronautics), a term used by pilots and air traffic controllers to refer to aircraft capable of 300,000 lbs or more takeoff weight * Heavy, a characterization of objects with substantial weight * Heavy, ...
''. The first use of "heavy metal" in a song lyric is in reference to a motorcycle in the Steppenwolf song "
Born to Be Wild "Born to Be Wild" is a song written by Mars Bonfire and first performed by the band Steppenwolf. The song is often invoked in both popular and counter culture to denote a biker appearance or attitude. It is most notably featured in the 1969 f ...
", also released that year: "I like smoke and lightning / Heavy metal thunder / Racin' with the wind / And the feelin' that I'm under". An early documented use of the phrase in
rock criticism Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
appears in Sandy Pearlman's February 1967 ''
Crawdaddy The Crawdaddy Club was a music venue in Richmond, Surrey, England, which opened in 1963. The Rolling Stones were its house band in its first year and were followed by The Yardbirds. Several other notable British blues and rhythm and blues acts a ...
'' review of
the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
' '' Got Live If You Want It'' (1966), albeit as a description of the sound rather than as a genre: "On this album the Stones go metal. Technology is in the saddle—as an ideal and as a method." Another appears in the 11 May 1968 issue of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'', in which Barry Gifford wrote about the album ''
A Long Time Comin' ''A Long Time Comin is the first album by American rock band the Electric Flag, released in 1968. The album has a mix of musical styles, including soul along with blues and rock, with a horn section. It opens with an updated take on the Howli ...
'' by U.S. band
Electric Flag The Electric Flag was an American soul rock band, led by guitarist Mike Bloomfield, keyboardist Barry Goldberg and drummer Buddy Miles, and featuring other musicians such as vocalist Nick Gravenites and bassist Harvey Brooks. Bloomfield f ...
: "Nobody who's been listening to
Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...
—either talking or playing—in the last few years could have expected this. This is the new soul music, the synthesis of white blues and heavy metal rock." In the 7 September 1968 edition of the ''Seattle Daily Times'', reviewer Susan Schwartz wrote that
the Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
"has a heavy-metals blues sound". In January 1970, Lucian K. Truscott IV, reviewing ''
Led Zeppelin II ''Led Zeppelin II'' is the second studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 22 October 1969 in the United States and on 31 October 1969 in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Records. Recording sessions for the album took place ...
'' for the ''Village Voice'', described the sound as "heavy" and made comparisons with
Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and ...
and
Vanilla Fudge Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' " You Keep Me Hangin' On". The band's original line–up—vocalist ...
. Other early documented uses of the phrase are from reviews by critic Mike Saunders. In the 12 November 1970 issue of ''Rolling Stone'', he commented on an album put out the previous year by the British band Humble Pie: "'' Safe as Yesterday Is,'' their first American release, proved that Humble Pie could be boring in lots of different ways. Here they were a noisy, unmelodic, heavy metal-leaden shit-rock band with the loud and noisy parts beyond doubt. There were a couple of nice songs ... and one monumental pile of refuse." He described the band's latest, self-titled release as "more of the same 27th-rate heavy metal crap". In a review of
Sir Lord Baltimore Sir Lord Baltimore was an American heavy metal band from Brooklyn, New York City, formed in 1968 by lead vocalist and drummer John Garner, guitarist Louis Dambra, and bassist Gary Justin. Some have cited the 1971 review of their debut record, ...
's '' Kingdom Come'' in the May 1971 edition of ''
Creem ''Creem'' (often stylized in all caps) is a monthly American music magazine, based in Detroit, whose main print run lasted from 1969 to 1989. It was first published in March 1969 by Barry Kramer and founding editor Tony Reay. Influential crit ...
'', Saunders wrote, "Sir Lord Baltimore seems to have down pat most all the best heavy metal tricks in the book." ''Creem'' critic
Lester Bangs Leslie Conway "Lester" Bangs (December 14, 1948 – April 30, 1982) was an American music journalist, critic, author, and musician. He wrote for '' Creem'' and ''Rolling Stone'' magazines, and was known for his leading influence in rock music ...
is credited with popularizing the term via his early 1970s essays on bands such as Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. Through the decade, "heavy metal" was used by certain critics as a virtually automatic putdown. In 1979, lead ''New York Times'' popular music critic
John Rockwell John Sargent Rockwell (born September 16, 1940) is an American music critic, dance critic and arts administrator. According to '' Grove Music Online'', "Rockwell brings two signal attributes to his critical work: a genuine admiration for all ...
described what he called "heavy-metal rock" as "brutally aggressive music played mostly for minds clouded by drugs" and, in a different article, as "a crude exaggeration of rock basics that appeals to white teenagers". Coined by
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
drummer Bill Ward, "downer rock" was one of the earliest terms used to describe this style of music and was applied to acts such as Sabbath and Bloodrock. ''
Classic Rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prima ...
'' magazine described the downer rock culture revolving around the use of
Quaaludes Methaqualone is a hypnotic sedative. It was sold under the brand names Quaalude ( ) and Sopor among others, which contained 300 mg of methaqualone, and sold as a combination drug under the brand name Mandrax, which contained 250 mg met ...
and the drinking of wine. The term would later be replaced by "heavy metal". Earlier on, as "heavy metal" emerged partially from heavy psychedelic rock, also known as
acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, d ...
, "acid rock" was often used interchangeably with "heavy metal" and " hard rock". "Acid rock" generally describes heavy, hard or raw psychedelic rock. Musicologist Steve Waksman stated that "the distinction between acid rock, hard rock, and heavy metal can at some point never be more than tenuous", while percussionist John Beck defined "acid rock" as synonymous with hard rock and heavy metal. Apart from "acid rock", the terms "heavy metal" and "hard rock" have often been used interchangeably, particularly in discussing bands of the 1970s, a period when the terms were largely synonymous. For example, the 1983 edition of the ''Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll'' includes the following passage: "Known for its aggressive blues-based hard-rock style, Aerosmith was the top American heavy-metal band of the mid-Seventies". "The term 'heavy metal' is self-defeating," remarked
Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
bassist Gene Simmons. "When I think of heavy metal, I've always thought of elves and evil dwarves and evil princes and princesses. A lot of the
Maiden Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
and
Priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
records were real metal records. I sure as hell don't think Metallica's metal, or Guns N' Roses is metal, or Kiss is metal. It just doesn't deal with the ground opening up and little dwarves coming out riding dragons! You know, like bad Dio records."


History


Antecedents: 1950s to late 1960s

Heavy metal's quintessential guitar style, which is built around distortion-heavy riffs and power chords, traces its roots to early 1950s
Memphis blues The Memphis blues is a style of blues music created from the 1910s to the 1930s by musicians in the Memphis area, such as Frank Stokes, Sleepy John Estes, Furry Lewis and Memphis Minnie. The style was popular in vaudeville and medicine shows a ...
guitarists such as
Joe Hill Louis Joe Hill Louis (September 23, 1921 – August 5, 1957), born Lester Hill, was an American singer, guitarist, harmonica player and one-man band. He was one of a small number of one-man blues bands (along with fellow Memphis bluesman Doctor Ross) ...
, Willie Johnson and particularly
Pat Hare Auburn "Pat" Hare was a Memphis electric blues guitarist and singer. His heavily distortion (music), distorted, power chord–driven electric guitar performances in the early 1950s is considered an important precursor of heavy metal music.Robert P ...
, who captured a "grittier, nastier, more ferocious electric guitar sound" on records such as
James Cotton James Henry Cotton (July 1, 1935 – March 16, 2017) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career. ...
's " Cotton Crop Blues" (1954). Palmer, Robert. "Church of the Sonic Guitar", pp. 13–38. In: DeCurtis, Anthony: ''Present Tense'',
Duke University Press Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 D ...
, 1992., pp. 24–27. Other early influences include the late 1950s instrumentals of Link Wray, particularly " Rumble" (1958); the early 1960s surf rock of
Dick Dale Richard Anthony Monsour (May 4, 1937 – March 16, 2019), known professionally as Dick Dale, was an American rock guitarist. He was a pioneer of surf music, drawing on Middle Eastern music scales and experimenting with reverb. Dale was known a ...
, including "
Let's Go Trippin' "Let's Go Trippin'" is an instrumental by Dick Dale and The Del-Tones. It is often regarded as the first surf rock instrumental and is credited for launching the surf music craze. First played in public in 1960 at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balb ...
" (1961) and "
Misirlou "Misirlou" ( el, Μισιρλού < tr, Mısırlı 'Egyptian' < ar, مصر ''Miṣr'' 'Egypt') is a folk song from the Eastern Mediterranean region. The original author of the song is not known, but Arabic, Greek, and Jewish musicians we ...
" (1962); and
The Kingsmen The Kingsmen are a 1960s rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States. They are best known for their 1963 recording of R&B singer Richard Berry's "Louie Louie", which held the No. 2 spot on the '' Billboard'' charts for six weeks and ...
's version of "
Louie Louie "Louie Louie" is a rhythm and blues song written and composed by American musician Richard Berry in 1955, recorded in 1956, and released in 1957. It is best known for the 1963 hit version by the Kingsmen and has become a standard in pop and ...
" (1963), which became a garage rock standard. However, the genre's direct lineage begins in the mid-1960s. American
blues music Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
was a major influence on the early
British rock British rock describes a wide variety of forms of music made in the United Kingdom. Since around 1964, with the "British Invasion" of the United States spearheaded by the Beatles, British rock music has had a considerable impact on the develop ...
ers of the era. Bands like
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
and
The Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell ...
developed blues rock by recording covers of classic blues songs, often speeding up the
tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...
s. As they experimented with the music, the U.K. blues-based bands – and in turn the U.S. acts they influenced – developed what would become the hallmarks of heavy metal (in particular, the loud, distorted guitar sound).
The Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhyt ...
played a major role in popularising this sound with their 1964 hit "
You Really Got Me "You Really Got Me" is a song written by Ray Davies for English rock band the Kinks. The song, originally performed in a more blues-oriented style, was inspired by artists such as Lead Belly and Big Bill Broonzy. Two versions of the song were ...
". In addition to The Kinks'
Dave Davies David Russell Gordon Davies (born 3 February 1947) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, which also featured his elder brother Ray Davies. He was in ...
, other guitarists such as
The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
's
Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Townsh ...
and The Yardbirds' Jeff Beck were experimenting with feedback. Where the blues rock drumming style started out largely as simple shuffle beats on small kits, drummers began using a more muscular, complex and amplified approach to match and be heard against the increasingly loud guitar.Walser (1993), p. 10 Vocalists similarly modified their technique and increased their reliance on amplification, often becoming more stylized and dramatic. In terms of sheer volume, especially in live performance, The Who's "bigger-louder-wall-of-
Marshalls Marshalls is an American chain of off-price department stores owned by TJX Companies. Marshalls has over 1,000 American stores, including larger stores named Marshalls Mega Store, covering 42 states and Puerto Rico, and 61 stores in Canada. M ...
" approach was seminal to the development of the later heavy metal sound. The combination of loud and heavy blues rock with psychedelic rock and
acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, d ...
formed much of the original basis for heavy metal. The variant or subgenre of psychedelic rock often known as "
acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, d ...
" was particularly influential on heavy metal; acid rock is often defined as a heavier, louder or harder variant of psychedelic rock, or the more extreme side of the psychedelic rock genre, frequently containing a loud, improvised and heavily distorted, guitar-centered sound. Acid rock has been described as psychedelic rock at its "rawest and most intense", emphasizing the heavier qualities associated with both the positive and negative extremes of the psychedelic experience rather than only the idyllic side of psychedelia. In contrast to more idyllic or whimsical pop psychedelic rock, American acid rock
garage bands Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...
such as the
13th Floor Elevators The 13th Floor Elevators was an American rock band from Austin, Texas, United States, formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland. The band was together from 1965 to 1969, ...
epitomized the frenetic, heavier, darker and more psychotic psychedelic rock sound known as acid rock, a sound characterized by droning guitar riffs, amplified feedback and guitar distortion, while the 13th Floor Elevators' sound in particular featured yelping vocals and "occasionally demented" lyrics. Frank Hoffman noted that " sychedelic rockwas sometimes referred to as 'acid rock'. The latter label was applied to a pounding, hard rock variant that evolved out of the mid-1960s
garage-punk Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The st ...
movement.... When rock began turning back to softer, roots-oriented sounds in late 1968, acid-rock bands mutated into heavy metal acts." One of the most influential bands in forging the merger of psychedelic rock and acid rock with the blues rock genre was the British power trio
Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...
, who derived a massive, heavy sound from
unison In music, unison is two or more musical parts that sound either the same pitch or pitches separated by intervals of one or more octaves, usually at the same time. ''Rhythmic unison'' is another term for homorhythm. Definition Unison or per ...
riffing between guitarist Eric Clapton and bassist
Jack Bruce John Symon Asher Bruce (14 May 1943 – 25 October 2014) was a Scottish bassist, singer-songwriter, musician and composer. He gained popularity as the primary lead vocalist and ‍bassist ‍of British rock band Cream. After the group disband ...
, as well as
Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and African rhythms and pi ...
's double bass drumming. Their first two LPs – ''
Fresh Cream ''Fresh Cream'' is the debut studio album by the British rock band Cream. The album was released in the UK on 9 December 1966, as the first LP on the Reaction Records label, owned by producer Robert Stigwood. The UK album was released in both ...
'' (1966) and ''
Disraeli Gears ''Disraeli Gears'' is the second studio album by the British rock band Cream. It was released in November 1967 and reached No. 5 on the UK Albums Chart. Search "Cream" in ''Name of Artist'', and No. 1 on the Swedish and Finnish charts. The alb ...
'' (1967) – are regarded as essential prototypes for the future style of heavy metal.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
's debut album, ''
Are You Experienced ''Are You Experienced'' is the debut studio album by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Released in 1967, the LP was an immediate critical and commercial success, and it is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time. The album feature ...
'' (1967), was also highly influential.
Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
's virtuosic technique would be emulated by many metal guitarists and the album's most successful single, " Purple Haze", is identified by some as the first heavy metal hit.
Vanilla Fudge Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' " You Keep Me Hangin' On". The band's original line–up—vocalist ...
, whose first album also came out in 1967, has been called "one of the few American links between psychedelia and what soon became heavy metal," and the band has been cited as an early American heavy metal group. On their self-titled debut album, Vanilla Fudge created "loud, heavy, slowed-down arrangements" of contemporary hit songs, blowing these songs up to "epic proportions" and "bathing them in a trippy, distorted haze". During the late 1960s, many psychedelic singers, such as
Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ak ...
, began to create outlandish, theatrical and often
macabre In works of art, the adjective macabre ( or ; ) means "having the quality of having a grim or ghastly atmosphere". The macabre works to emphasize the details and symbols of death. The term also refers to works particularly gruesome in natu ...
performances that influenced many metal acts. The American psychedelic rock band Coven, who opened for early heavy metal influencers such as Vanilla Fudge and the Yardbirds, portrayed themselves as practitioners of
witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...
or
black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...
, using dark – Satanic or occult – imagery in their lyrics, album art and live performances, which consisted of elaborate, theatrical " Satanic rites". Coven's 1969 debut album, ''
Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls ''Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls'' (also known as simply ''Witchcraft'') is the debut studio album by the American rock band Coven. Released in 1969, it was unusual in that it dealt with overtly occult and satanic themes. It was remove ...
'', featured imagery of skulls, black masses,
inverted cross The Cross of Saint Peter or Petrine Cross is an inverted Latin cross traditionally used as a Christian symbol, but in recent times also used as an anti-Christian and Satanic symbol. In Christianity, it is associated with the martyrdom of Pete ...
es and Satan worship, and both the album artwork and the band's live performances marked the first appearances in rock music of the
sign of the horns The sign of the horns is a hand gesture with a variety of meanings and uses in various cultures. It is formed by extending the index and little fingers while holding the middle and ring fingers down with the thumb. Religious and superst ...
, which would later become an important gesture in heavy metal culture. At the same time in England, the band Black Widow were also among the first psychedelic rock bands to use occult and Satanic imagery and lyrics, though both Black Widow and Coven's lyrical and thematic influences on heavy metal were quickly overshadowed by the darker and heavier sounds of
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
.


Origins: late 1960s and early 1970s

Critics disagree over who can be thought of as the first heavy metal band. Most credit either
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
or
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
, with American commentators tending to favour Led Zeppelin and British commentators tending to favour Black Sabbath, though many give equal credit to both. Deep Purple, the third band in what is sometimes considered the "unholy trinity" of heavy metal along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath fluctuated between many rock styles until late 1969 when they took a heavy metal direction.Charlton (2003), p. 241 A few commentators – mainly American – argue for other groups, including
Iron Butterfly Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit " In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal musi ...
, Steppenwolf,
Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and ...
or
Vanilla Fudge Vanilla Fudge is an American rock band known predominantly for their slow extended heavy rock arrangements of contemporary hit songs, such as their hit cover of The Supremes' " You Keep Me Hangin' On". The band's original line–up—vocalist ...
as the first to play heavy metal. In 1968, the sound that would become known as heavy metal began to coalesce. That January, San Francisco band
Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and ...
released a cover of
Eddie Cochran Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as " Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", " C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desir ...
's classic "
Summertime Blues "Summertime Blues" is a song co-written and recorded by American rock artist Eddie Cochran. It was written by Cochran and his manager Jerry Capehart. Originally a single B-side, it was released in August 1958 and peaked at number 8 on the ''Bi ...
" as a part of their debut album, ''
Vincebus Eruptum ''Vincebus Eruptum'' (; pseudo-Latin) is the debut album of American rock band Blue Cheer. Released on January 16, 1968, the album features a heavy-thunderous blues sound, which would later be known as heavy metal. A commercial and critical su ...
'', and many consider it to be the first true heavy metal recording. The same month, Steppenwolf released their self-titled debut album, on which the track "
Born to Be Wild "Born to Be Wild" is a song written by Mars Bonfire and first performed by the band Steppenwolf. The song is often invoked in both popular and counter culture to denote a biker appearance or attitude. It is most notably featured in the 1969 f ...
" refers to "heavy metal thunder" in describing a motorcycle. In July, the
Jeff Beck Group The Jeff Beck Group was a British rock band formed in London in January 1967 by former Yardbirds guitarist Jeff Beck. Their innovative approach to heavy-sounding blues, rhythm and blues and rock was a major influence on popular music. Firs ...
, whose leader had preceded Page as The Yardbirds' guitarist, released its debut record, ''
Truth Truth is the property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth 2005 In everyday language, truth is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise correspond to it, such as belie ...
'', which featured some of the "most molten, barbed, downright funny noises of all time", breaking ground for generations of metal ax-slingers. In September, Page's new band,
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
, made its live debut in Denmark (but were billed as The New Yardbirds).
The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
' self-titled double album, released in November, included " Helter Skelter", then one of the heaviest-sounding songs ever released by a major band.
The Pretty Things ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'
rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...
'' S.F. Sorrow'', released in December, featured "proto heavy metal" songs such as "Old Man Going" and "I See You".
Iron Butterfly Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit " In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal musi ...
's 1968 song "
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" (derived from "In the Garden of Eden") is a song recorded by Iron Butterfly, written by bandmember Doug Ingle and released on their 1968 album of the same name. At slightly over 17 minutes, it occupies the entire second ...
" is sometimes described as an example of the transition between
acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, d ...
and heavy metal or the turning point in which acid rock became "heavy metal", and both Iron Butterfly's 1968 album ''In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida'' and Blue Cheer's 1968 album ''Vincebus Eruptum'' have been described as laying the foundation of heavy metal and greatly influential in the transformation of acid rock into heavy metal. In this
counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...
period, MC5, who began as part of the Detroit garage rock scene, developed a raw, distorted style that has been seen as a major influence on the future sound of both heavy metal and later punk music.
The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Da ...
also began to establish and influence a heavy metal and later punk sound, with songs such as "
I Wanna Be Your Dog "I Wanna Be Your Dog" is a song by American rock band the Stooges. Released as the group's debut single from the band's 1969 self-titled debut album. The riff is composed of only three chords (G, F♯ and E), is played continuously throughout th ...
", featuring pounding and distorted heavy guitar power chord riffs. Pink Floyd released two of their heaviest and loudest songs to date, " Ibiza Bar" and " The Nile Song", the latter of which being regarded as "one of the heaviest songs the band recorded."
King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
's debut album started with " 21st Century Schizoid Man", which was considered heavy metal by several critics. In January 1969, Led Zeppelin's self-titled debut album was released and reached No. 10 on the '' Billboard'' album chart. In July, Led Zeppelin and a power trio with a Cream-inspired, but cruder sound, called
Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1968 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar), Don Brewer (drums, vocals), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and succ ...
played the Atlanta Pop Festival. That same month, another Cream-rooted trio led by
Leslie West Leslie West (born Leslie Abel Weinstein; October 22, 1945 – December 23, 2020) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the co-founder, guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Mountain. Life and career Early years: 1 ...
released ''
Mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...
'', an album filled with heavy blues rock guitar and roaring vocals. In August, the group – now itself dubbed
Mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...
– played an hour-long set at the
Woodstock Festival Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aquar ...
, exposing the crowd of 300,000 people to the emerging sound of heavy metal. Mountain's proto-metal or early heavy metal hit song "
Mississippi Queen "Mississippi Queen" is a song by the American rock band Mountain. Considered a rock classic, it was their most successful single, reaching number 21 in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1970. The song is included on the group's debut album and se ...
" from the album '' Climbing!'' is especially credited with paving the way for heavy metal and was one of the first heavy guitar songs to receive regular play on radio. In September 1969, the Beatles released the album ''
Abbey Road ''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It is the last album the group started recording, although '' Let It Be'' was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly ...
'' containing the track "
I Want You (She's So Heavy) "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon (credited to Lennon–McCartney). The song closes side one of their 1969 album '' Abbey Road'' and features Billy Preston playing the organ. It ...
", which has been credited as an early example of or influence on heavy metal or doom metal. In October 1969, British band
High Tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...
debuted with the heavy, proto-metal album ''
Sea Shanties A sea shanty, chantey, or chanty () is a genre of traditional folk song that was once commonly sung as a work song to accompany rhythmical labor aboard large merchant sailing vessels. The term ''shanty'' most accurately refers to a specific ...
''.Neate, Wilso
Allmusic Review
/ref> Led Zeppelin defined central aspects of the emerging genre, with Page's highly distorted guitar style and singer Robert Plant's dramatic, wailing vocals. Other bands, with a more consistently heavy, "purely" metal sound, would prove equally important in codifying the genre. The 1970 releases by
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
(''
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
'', which is generally accepted as the first heavy metal album, and ''
Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy c ...
'') and Deep Purple (''
Deep Purple in Rock ''Deep Purple in Rock'' is the fourth studio album by Deep Purple, released on 5 June 1970. It was the first studio album recorded by the Mark II line-up of Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lord and Ian Paice. Work on ''In Rock ...
'') were crucial in this regard.
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
's Black Sabbath had developed a particularly heavy sound in part due to an
industrial accident A work accident, workplace accident, occupational accident, or accident at work is a "discrete occurrence in the course of work" leading to physical or mental occupational injury. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), more tha ...
guitarist
Tony Iommi Anthony Frank Iommi () (born 19 February 1948) is a British musician. He co-founded the pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and was the band's guitarist, leader and primary composer and sole continuous member for nearly five decades. I ...
suffered before cofounding the band. Unable to play normally, Iommi had to tune his guitar down for easier fretting and rely on power chords with their relatively simple fingering. The bleak, industrial, working-class environment of
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, a
manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to ...
city full of noisy
factories A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...
and
metalworking Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on every scal ...
, has itself been credited with influencing Black Sabbath's heavy, chugging, metallic sound – and the sound of heavy metal in general. Deep Purple had fluctuated between styles in its early years, but by 1969, vocalist
Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is a British singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...
and guitarist
Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guita ...
had led the band toward the developing heavy metal style. In 1970, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple scored major U.K. chart hits with "
Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy c ...
" and "
Black Night "Black Night" is a song by British hard rock band Deep Purple, first released as a single in June 1970 and later included on the 25th Anniversary version of their 1970 album, ''Deep Purple in Rock''. It became a hit following its release, pe ...
", respectively. That same year, two other British bands released debut albums in a heavy metal mode: Uriah Heep with '' ...Very 'Eavy... Very 'Umble'' and
UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
with ''
UFO 1 ''UFO 1'' is the debut studio album by British Rock music, rock band UFO (band), UFO. It was first released in the UK by Beacon Records in October 1970. The first US release was on Rare Earth Records/Motown in April 1971. Neither of these releas ...
''. Bloodrock released their self-titled debut album, a collection of heavy guitar riffs, gruff style vocals and sadistic and macabre lyrics. The influential Budgie brought the new metal sound into a power trio context, creating some of the heaviest music of the time. The occult lyrics and imagery employed by Black Sabbath and Uriah Heep would prove particularly influential; Led Zeppelin also began foregrounding such elements with its fourth album, released in 1971. In 1973, Deep Purple released the song "
Smoke on the Water "Smoke on the Water" is a song by English rock band Deep Purple, first released from the band's sixth studio album ''Machine Head'' (1972), which chronicles the 1971 fire at Montreux Casino. In a 2004 publication by ''Rolling Stone'' magaz ...
", whose iconic riff is usually considered as the most recognizable one in "heavy rock" history, as a single of the classic live album '' Made in Japan''. On the other side of the Atlantic, the trendsetting group was
Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1968 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar), Don Brewer (drums, vocals), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and succ ...
, who was described as "the most commercially successful American heavy-metal band from 1970 until they disbanded in 1976,
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
established the Seventies success formula: continuous touring." Other influential bands identified with metal emerged in the U.S. such as
Sir Lord Baltimore Sir Lord Baltimore was an American heavy metal band from Brooklyn, New York City, formed in 1968 by lead vocalist and drummer John Garner, guitarist Louis Dambra, and bassist Gary Justin. Some have cited the 1971 review of their debut record, ...
('' Kingdom Come,'' 1970),
Blue Öyster Cult Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla". The band h ...
(''
Blue Öyster Cult Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla". The band h ...
'', 1972), Aerosmith ('' Aerosmith'', 1973) and
Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
(''
Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
'', 1974). Sir Lord Baltimore's 1970 debut album and both Humble Pie's debut and self-titled third album were among the first albums to be described in print as "heavy metal", with '' As Safe As Yesterday Is'' referred to by the term "heavy metal" in a 1970 review in ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' magazine. Various smaller bands from the U.S., U.K. and Continental Europe – including Bang, Josefus,
Leaf Hound Leaf Hound is an English hard rock band formed in 1969. The band is often cited as pioneers of heavy metal, hard rock, psychedelic rock and stoner rock. The release of their 1971 debut album '' Growers of Mushrooms'' is said to be a mixtu ...
, Primeval,
Hard Stuff Hard Stuff were an English hard rock group which included John Du Cann and Paul Hammond, formerly of Atomic Rooster. Also in the line-up were vocalist Harry 'Al' Shaw, formerly of Curiosity Shoppe and latterly Export, and John Gustafson, f ...
, Truth and Janey,
Dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in ho ...
,
JPT Scare Band JPT Scare Band is an American rock band. It took its name from its members first initials and their "scary" acid rock sound. Although the band did not release their first album until the early 1990s, they had formed in the early 1970s and made ...
,
Frijid Pink Frijid Pink is an American rock band, formed in Detroit in 1967, best known for their 1969 rendition of "House of the Rising Sun". The initial line-up of the band included drummer Richard Stevers, guitarist Gary Ray Thompson, bassist Tom Harri ...
,
Cactus A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Gree ...
, May Blitz, Captain Beyond,
Toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scient ...
, Granicus, Iron Claw, and Yesterday's Children – though lesser known outside of their respective scenes, proved to be greatly influential on the emerging metal movement. In Germany,
Scorpions Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...
debuted with ''
Lonesome Crow ''Lonesome Crow'' is the debut studio album by the German hard rock band Scorpions. It was recorded soon after Scorpions became a fully professional band under the production of Conny Plank, apparently in only six or seven days, and released 9 F ...
'' in 1972. Blackmore, who had emerged as a virtuoso soloist with Deep Purple's highly influential album ''
Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...
'' (1972), left the band in 1975 to form
Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
with Ronnie James Dio, singer and bassist for blues rock band
Elf An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...
and future vocalist for Black Sabbath and heavy metal band Dio. Rainbow with Ronnie James Dio would expand on the mystical and
fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...
-based lyrics and themes sometimes found in heavy metal, pioneering both
power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...
and neoclassical metal. These bands also built audiences via constant touring and increasingly elaborate stage shows. There are arguments about whether these and other early bands truly qualify as "heavy metal" or simply as "hard rock". Those closer to the music's blues roots or placing greater emphasis on melody are now commonly ascribed the latter label. AC/DC, which debuted with ''
High Voltage High voltage electricity refers to electrical potential large enough to cause injury or damage. In certain industries, ''high voltage'' refers to voltage above a certain threshold. Equipment and conductors that carry high voltage warrant sp ...
'' in 1975, is a prime example. The 1983 ''Rolling Stone'' encyclopedia entry begins, "Australian heavy-metal band AC/DC ..." Rock historian Clinton Walker wrote, "Calling AC/DC a heavy metal band in the seventies was as inaccurate as it is today....
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
were a rock 'n' roll band that just happened to be heavy enough for metal." The issue is not only one of shifting definitions, but also a persistent distinction between musical style and audience identification; Ian Christe describes how the band "became the stepping-stone that led huge numbers of hard rock fans into heavy metal perdition". In certain cases, there is little debate. After Black Sabbath, the next major example is Britain's Judas Priest, which debuted with ''
Rocka Rolla ''Rocka Rolla'' is the debut studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, released on 6 September 1974 by Gull Records. It was produced by Rodger Bain, who had made a name for himself as the producer of Black Sabbath's first three ...
'' in 1974. In Christe's description,
Black Sabbath's audience was... left to scavenge for sounds with similar impact. By the mid-1970s, heavy metal aesthetic could be spotted, like a mythical beast, in the moody bass and complex dual guitars of
Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or som ...
, in the stagecraft of
Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
, in the sizzling guitar and showy vocals of
Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
, and in the thundering medieval questions of Rainbow.... Judas Priest arrived to unify and amplify these diverse highlights from hard rock's sonic palette. For the first time, heavy metal became a true genre unto itself.
Though Judas Priest did not have a top 40 album in the United States until 1980, for many it was the definitive post-Sabbath heavy metal band; its twin-guitar attack, featuring rapid tempos and a non-bluesy, more cleanly metallic sound, was a major influence on later acts. While heavy metal was growing in popularity, most critics were not enamored of the music. Objections were raised to metal's adoption of visual spectacle and other trappings of commercial artifice,Walser (1993), p. 11 but the main offense was its perceived musical and lyrical vacuity: reviewing a Black Sabbath album in the early 1970s, Robert Christgau described it as "dull and decadent... dim-witted, amoral exploitation."


Mainstream: late 1970s and 1980s

Punk rock emerged in the mid-1970s as a reaction against contemporary social conditions as well as what was perceived as the overindulgent, overproduced rock music of the time, including heavy metal. Sales of heavy metal records declined sharply in the late 1970s in the face of punk, disco and more mainstream rock. With the major labels fixated on punk, many newer British heavy metal bands were inspired by the movement's aggressive, high-energy sound and "
lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The ...
", do it yourself ethos. Underground metal bands began putting out cheaply recorded releases independently to small, devoted audiences.
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
, founded in 1975, was the first important band to straddle the punk/metal divide. With the explosion of punk in 1977, others followed. British music magazines such as the ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' and ''
Sounds In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
'' took notice, with ''Sounds'' writer Geoff Barton christening the movement the "New Wave of British Heavy Metal". NWOBHM bands including
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
, Saxon and
Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), ...
re-energized the heavy metal genre. Following the lead set by Judas Priest and Motörhead, they toughened up the sound, reduced its blues elements and emphasized increasingly fast tempos. "This seemed to be the resurgence of heavy metal," noted Ronnie James Dio, who joined Black Sabbath in 1979. "I've never thought there was a ''desurgence'' of heavy metal – if that's a word! – but it was important to me that, yet again ''[after
Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
]'', I could be involved in something that was paving the way for those who are going to come after me." By 1980, the NWOBHM had broken into the mainstream, as albums by Iron Maiden and Saxon, as well as Motörhead, reached the British top 10. Though less commercially successful, NWOBHM bands such as
Venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...
and Diamond Head would have a significant influence on metal's development. In 1981, Motörhead became the first of this new breed of metal bands to top the U.K. charts with the live album ''
No Sleep 'til Hammersmith ''No Sleep 'til Hammersmith'' is the first live album by English rock band Motörhead, released on 22 June 1981 via Bronze Records. It peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart. It was followed by the release of the single " Motorhead" (backe ...
''. The first generation of metal bands was ceding the limelight. Deep Purple broke up soon after Blackmore's departure in 1975, and Led Zeppelin split following drummer
John Bonham John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Esteemed for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove ...
's death in 1980. Black Sabbath were plagued with infighting and substance abuse, while facing fierce competition from their opening band,
Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
. Eddie Van Halen established himself as one of the leading metal guitarists of the era. His solo on "
Eruption Several types of volcanic eruptions—during which lava, tephra (ash, lapilli, volcanic bombs and volcanic blocks), and assorted gases are expelled from a volcanic vent or fissure—have been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often ...
", from the band's self-titled 1978 album, is considered a milestone. Eddie Van Halen's sound even crossed over into pop music when his guitar solo was featured on the track " Beat It" by
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
, which reached No. 1 in the U.S. in February 1983. Inspired by Van Halen's success, a metal scene began to develop in Southern California during the late 1970s. Based on the clubs of L.A.'s Sunset Strip, bands such as Mötley Crüe,
Quiet Riot Quiet Riot is an American heavy metal band founded in Los Angeles in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads and bassist Kelly Garni. The original lineup featured Rhoads and Garni with lead vocalist Kevin DuBrow and drummer Drew Forsyth, though th ...
,
Ratt Ratt is an American glam metal band formed in San Diego, California, in the 1970s, that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is bes ...
and W.A.S.P. were influenced by traditional heavy metal of the 1970s. These acts incorporated the theatrics (and sometimes makeup) of
glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam ...
or "hair metal" bands such as
Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
and Kiss. Glam metal bands were often visually distinguished by long, overworked hairstyles accompanied by wardrobes which were sometimes considered cross-gender. The lyrics of these
glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam ...
bands characteristically emphasized hedonism and wild behavior, including lyrics that involved sexual expletives and the use of narcotics. In the wake of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and Judas Priest's breakthrough with '' British Steel'' (1980), heavy metal became increasingly popular in the early 1980s. Many metal artists benefited from the exposure they received on MTV, which began airing in 1981; sales often soared if a band's videos screened on the channel. Def Leppard's videos for ''
Pyromania Pyromania is an impulse control disorder in which individuals repeatedly fail to resist impulses to deliberately start fires, to relieve some tension or for instant gratification. The term ''pyromania'' comes from the Greek word (''pyr'', 'fi ...
'' (1983) made them superstars in America, and Quiet Riot became the first domestic heavy metal band to top the ''Billboard'' chart with ''
Metal Health ''Metal Health'' is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Quiet Riot, released on March 11, 1983. The album spawned the hit singles " Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Metal Health". It was the band's first album to receive a worldwide ...
'' (1983). One of the seminal events in metal's growing popularity was the 1983
US Festival The US Festival (''US'' pronounced like the pronoun, not as initials) was the name of two early 1980s music and culture festivals in southern California, held east of Los Angeles, near San Bernardino. Background Steve Wozniak, cofound ...
in California, where the "heavy metal day" featuring Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen, Scorpions, Mötley Crüe, Judas Priest and others drew the largest audiences of the three-day event. Between 1983 and 1984, heavy metal's share of all recordings sold in the U.S. increased from 8% to 20%. Several major professional magazines devoted to the genre were launched, including ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...
'' in 1981 and ''
Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
'' in 1984, as well as a host of fan journals. In 1985, ''Billboard'' declared: "Metal has broadened its audience base. Metal music is no longer the exclusive domain of male teenagers. The metal audience has become older (college-aged), younger (pre-teen), and more female." By the mid-1980s, glam metal was a dominant presence on the U.S. charts,
music television Music television is a type of television programming which focuses predominantly on playing music videos from recording artists, usually on dedicated television channels broadcasting on satellite, cable, or Streaming Platforms. Music television ...
and the arena concert circuit. New bands such as L.A.'s Warrant and acts from the East Coast like Poison and
Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
became major draws, while Mötley Crüe and Ratt remained very popular. Bridging the stylistic gap between hard rock and glam metal,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
's Bon Jovi became enormously successful with its third album, ''
Slippery When Wet ''Slippery When Wet'' is the third studio album by American rock band Bon Jovi. It was released on August 18, 1986, by Mercury Records in North America and Vertigo Records internationally. It was produced by Bruce Fairbairn, with recording sess ...
'' (1986). The similarly styled Swedish band
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
became international stars with '' The Final Countdown'' (1986), whose
title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may a ...
hit No. 1 in 25 countries. In 1987, MTV launched '' Headbangers Ball'', a show devoted exclusively to heavy metal videos. However, the metal audience had begun to factionalize, with those in many underground metal scenes favoring more extreme sounds and disparaging the popular style as "light metal" or "hair metal". One band that reached diverse audiences was Guns N' Roses. In contrast to their glam metal contemporaries in L.A., they were seen as much more raw and dangerous. With the release of their chart-topping album ''
Appetite for Destruction ''Appetite for Destruction'' is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses. It was released on July 21, 1987, by Geffen Records. The album was released to little mainstream attention in 1987. It was not until the following ...
'' in 1987, they "recharged and almost single-handedly sustained the Sunset Strip sleaze system for several years". The following year,
Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985. The band consists of vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery. Jane's Addiction was one of the first bands fr ...
emerged from the same L.A. hard-rock club scene with their major-label debut, ''
Nothing's Shocking ''Nothing's Shocking'' is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Jane's Addiction, released on August 23, 1988 through Warner Bros. Records. ''Nothing's Shocking'' was well received by critics and peaked at number 103 on the ' ...
''. Reviewing the album, Steve Pond of ''Rolling Stone'' declared, "As much as any band in existence, Jane's Addiction is the true heir to Led Zeppelin." The group was one of the first to be identified with the "
alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. Alternative metal bands are often characterized by ...
" trend that would come to the fore in the next decade. Meanwhile, new bands like New York City's Winger and New Jersey's
Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...
sustained the popularity of the glam metal style.Covach, John
"Heavy Metal, Rap, and the Rise of Alternative Rock (1982–1992)"
. ''What's That Sound? An Introduction to Rock and its History'' (W. W. Norton). Retrieved on 16 November 2007


Other heavy metal genres: 1980s, 1990s and 2000s

Many subgenres of heavy metal developed outside of the commercial mainstream during the 1980s, such as
crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and hardcore punk. Other genres on the same continuum, such as metalcore and grindcore, ...
. Several attempts have been made to map the complex world of underground metal, most notably by the editors of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
, as well as critic Garry Sharpe-Young. Sharpe-Young's multivolume metal encyclopedia separates the underground into five major categories:
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
, death metal,
black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emp ...
,
power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...
and the related subgenres of
doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (born 1934), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitcher * ...
and gothic metal. In 1990, a review in ''Rolling Stone'' suggested retiring the term "heavy metal" as the genre was "ridiculously vague". The article stated that the term only fueled "misperceptions of rock & roll bigots who still assume that five bands as different as
Ratt Ratt is an American glam metal band formed in San Diego, California, in the 1970s, that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is bes ...
, Extreme, Anthrax, Danzig and
Mother Love Bone Mother Love Bone was an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1988. The band was active from 1988 to 1990. Frontman Andrew Wood's personality and lyrics helped to catapult the group to the top of the burgeoning late 1980s/ea ...
" sound the same.


Thrash metal

Thrash metal emerged in the early 1980s under the influence of
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, "Genre—Thrash Metal" Allmusic. Retrieved 3 March 007 particularly songs in the revved-up style known as
speed metal Speed metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) roots.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' (Berg Publishers, 2007), , p. 31. It ...
. The movement began in the United States, with Bay Area thrash metal being the leading scene. The sound developed by thrash groups was faster and more aggressive than that of the original metal bands and their glam metal successors. Low-register guitar riffs are typically overlaid with shredding leads. Lyrics often express nihilistic views or deal with social issues using visceral, gory language. Thrash has been described as a form of "urban blight music" and "a palefaced cousin of rap". The subgenre was popularized by the "Big Four of Thrash": Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer. Three German bands,
Kreator Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Frédé ...
, Sodom and
Destruction Destruction may refer to: Concepts * Destruktion, a term from the philosophy of Martin Heidegger * Destructive narcissism, a pathological form of narcissism * Self-destructive behaviour, a widely used phrase that ''conceptualises'' certain kin ...
, played a central role in bringing the style to Europe. Others, including the San Francisco Bay Area's Testament and Exodus, New Jersey's Overkill, and Brazil's
Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...
and
Sarcófago Sarcófago was a Brazilian extreme metal band formed in 1985. They were fronted by Sepultura's original singer, Wagner Lamounier, and Geraldo Minelli. The front cover of the band's debut album, '' I.N.R.I.'', is regarded as a great influence o ...
, also had a significant impact. Although thrash metal began as an underground movement, and remained largely that for almost a decade, the leading bands of the scene began to reach a wider audience. Metallica brought the sound into the top 40 of the ''Billboard'' album chart in 1986 with ''
Master of Puppets ''Master of Puppets'' is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on March 3, 1986, by Elektra Records. Recorded in Denmark at Sweet Silence Studios with producer Flemming Rasmussen, it was the band's last albu ...
'', the genre's first Platinum record. Two years later, the band's album '' ...And Justice for All'' hit No. 6, while Megadeth and Anthrax also had top 40 records on the American charts. Though less commercially successful than the rest of the Big Four, Slayer released one of the genre's definitive records: '' Reign in Blood'' (1986) was credited for incorporating heavier guitar
timbre In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voices and musica ...
s and including explicit depictions of death, suffering, violence and occult into thrash metal's lyricism. Slayer attracted a following among far-right skinheads, and accusations of promoting violence and
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
themes have dogged the band. Even though Slayer did not receive substantial media exposure, their music played a key role in the development of extreme metal. In the early 1990s, thrash metal achieved breakout success, challenging and redefining the metal mainstream. Metallica's self-titled 1991 album topped the ''Billboard'' chart, as the band established an international following. Megadeth's ''
Countdown to Extinction ''Countdown to Extinction'' is the fifth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on July 14, 1992, through Capitol Records. It was the group's second studio release to feature the "classic" lineup of Dave Mustaine, Marty ...
'' (1992) debuted at No. 2, Anthrax and Slayer cracked the top 10, and albums by regional bands such as Testament and Sepultura entered the top 100.


Death metal

Thrash metal soon began to evolve and split into more extreme metal genres. "Slayer's music was directly responsible for the rise of death metal," according to MTV News. The NWOBHM band Venom was also an important progenitor. The death metal movement in both North America and Europe adopted and emphasized the elements of blasphemy and
diabolism Satanism is a group of Ideology, ideological and Philosophy, philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 19 ...
employed by such acts. Florida's
Death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
, San Francisco Bay Area's Possessed and Ohio's
Necrophagia Necrophagia was an American death metal band. The band is credited as one of the inaugural groups within the death metal genre, along with Possessed and Death. History Early years (1983–1997) Necrophagia was formed by Frank "Killjoy" Pucc ...
are recognized as seminal bands in the style. All three have been credited with inspiring the subgenre's name. Possessed in particular did so via their 1984 demo, ''Death Metal'', and their song "Death Metal", which came from their 1985 debut album, '' Seven Churches''. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Swedish death metal became notable and melodic forms of death metal were created. Death metal utilizes the speed and aggression of both thrash and hardcore, fused with lyrics preoccupied with Z-grade
slasher movie A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as a ...
violence and Satanism.Moynihan, Søderlind (1998), p. 27 Death metal vocals are typically bleak, involving guttural "
death growl A death growl, or simply growl, is an extended vocal technique usually employed in extreme styles of music, particularly in death metal and other extreme subgenres of heavy metal music. Death growl vocals are sometimes criticized for the ...
s", high-pitched screaming, the "death rasp"Van Schaik, Mark
"Extreme Metal Drumming"
''Slagwerkkrant'', March/April 2000. Retrieved on 15 November 2007 and other uncommon techniques. "Genre—Death Metal/Black Metal"
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
. Retrieved on 27 February 2007 Complementing the deep, aggressive vocal style are down-tuned, heavily distorted guitars and extremely fast percussion, often with rapid
double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...
drumming and "wall of sound"–style
blast beats A blast beat is a type of drum beat that originated in hardcore punk and grindcore, and is often associated with certain styles of extreme metal, namely black metal and death metal,Adam MacGregor, '' PCP Torpedo'' by Agoraphobic Nosebleed ...
. Frequent tempo and
time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note va ...
changes and syncopation are also typical. Death metal, like thrash metal, generally rejects the theatrics of earlier metal styles, opting instead for an everyday look of ripped jeans and plain leather jackets.Moynihan, Søderlind (1998), p. 28 One major exception to this rule was
Deicide Deicide is the killing (or the killer) of a god. The concept may be used for any act of killing a god, including a life-death-rebirth deity who is killed and then resurrected. Etymology The term deicide was coined in the 17th century from m ...
's
Glen Benton Glen Benton (born June 18, 1967) is an American death metal musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist and bassist for the death metal band Deicide and was also a part of the band Vital Remains, where he has performed in recording sessions a ...
, who branded an inverted cross on his forehead and wore armor on stage.
Morbid Angel Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considered ...
adopted
neo-fascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology that includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, racial supremacy, populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xenophobia, and anti-immigration s ...
imagery. These two bands, along with Death and Obituary, were leaders of the major death metal scene that emerged in Florida in the mid-1980s. In the U.K., the related style of grindcore, led by bands such as Napalm Death and
Extreme Noise Terror Extreme Noise Terror (often abbreviated to ENT) are a British extreme metal band formed in Ipswich, England in 1985 and one of the earliest and most influential crust bands. Noted for one of the earliest uses of dual vocalists in hardcore,Bon ...
, emerged from the anarcho-punk movement.


Black metal

The first wave of black metal emerged in Europe in the early and mid-1980s, led by the United Kingdom's
Venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...
, Denmark's
Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fat ...
, Switzerland's
Hellhammer Hellhammer was a Swiss metal band from Nürensdorf, active from 1982 to 1984. Although the band's sound and style were heavily criticized and poorly reviewed during their active years, they have been widely praised in retrospect and are often r ...
and Celtic Frost, and Sweden's Bathory. By the late 1980s, Norwegian bands such as Mayhem and Burzum were heading a second wave. Black metal varies considerably in style and production quality, although most bands emphasize shrieked and growled vocals, highly distorted guitars frequently played with rapid
tremolo picking Alternate picking is a guitar playing technique that employs alternating downward and upward strokes in a continuous fashion. If the technique is performed at high speed on a single string or course voicing the same note, it may be referred to ...
, a dark atmosphere and intentionally lo-fi production, often with ambient noise and background hiss. Satanic themes are common in black metal, though many bands take inspiration from ancient paganism, promoting a return to supposed pre-Christian values. Numerous black metal bands also "experiment with sounds from all possible forms of metal, folk, classical music, electronica and avant-garde". Darkthrone drummer
Fenriz Gylve Fenris Nagell (born Leif Nagell; 28 November 1971), known professionally as Fenriz, is a Norwegian musician, part-time music journalist and online radio host (with the show "Radio Fenriz")
explained: "It had something to do with production, lyrics, the way they dressed and a commitment to making ugly, raw, grim stuff. There wasn't a generic sound."Campion, Chris
"In the Face of Death"
''The Observer'' (UK), 20 February 2005. Retrieved on 4 April 2007 Although bands such as
Sarcófago Sarcófago was a Brazilian extreme metal band formed in 1985. They were fronted by Sepultura's original singer, Wagner Lamounier, and Geraldo Minelli. The front cover of the band's debut album, '' I.N.R.I.'', is regarded as a great influence o ...
had been donning corpsepaint, by 1990, Mayhem was regularly wearing it; many other black metal acts also adopted the look. Bathory inspired the
Viking metal Viking metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by a lyrical and thematic focus on Norse mythology, Norse paganism, and the Viking Age. Viking metal is quite diverse as a musical style, to the point where some consider it more a cr ...
and
folk metal Folk metal is a fusion genre of heavy metal music and traditional folk music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. It is characterised by the widespread use of folk instruments and, to a lesser extent, traditional singing styles (for exampl ...
movements, and
Immortal Immortality is the ability to live forever, or eternal life. Immortal or Immortality may also refer to: Film * ''The Immortals'' (1995 film), an American crime film * ''Immortality'', an alternate title for the 1998 British film ''The Wisdom of ...
brought blast beats to the fore. Some bands in the Scandinavian black metal scene became associated with considerable violence in the early 1990s, with Mayhem and Burzum linked to church burnings. Growing commercial hype around death metal generated a backlash; beginning in Norway, much of the Scandinavian metal underground shifted to support a black metal scene that resisted being co-opted by the commercial metal industry. By 1992, black metal scenes had begun to emerge in areas outside Scandinavia, including Germany, France and Poland. The 1993 murder of Mayhem's
Euronymous Øystein Aarseth (; 22 March 1968 – 10 August 1993), better known by his stage name Euronymous, was a Norwegian musician and a founder of and central figure in the early Norwegian black metal scene. He was a co-founder and guitarist of the N ...
by Burzum's
Varg Vikernes Louis Cachet (born Kristian Vikernes; 11 February 1973), better known as Varg Vikernes (), is a Norwegian writer and retired musician best known for his early black metal albums and later crimes. His first five records, issued under the name Burz ...
provoked intensive media coverage. Around 1996, when many in the scene felt the genre was stagnating, several key bands, including Burzum and Finland's
Beherit Beherit is a black metal band from Finland. The band was formed in 1989 by Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance (Marko Laiho), Black Jesus (Arjo Wennström) and Sodomatic Slaughter (Jari Pirinen), with the purpose of performing "the most primitive, sava ...
, moved toward an ambient style, while symphonic black metal was explored by Sweden's
Tiamat In Mesopotamian religion, Tiamat ( akk, or , grc, Θαλάττη, Thaláttē) is a primordial goddess of the sea, mating with Abzû, the god of the groundwater, to produce younger gods. She is the symbol of the chaos of primordial crea ...
and Switzerland's
Samael Samael ( he, סַמָּאֵל, ''Sammāʾēl'', "Venom/Poison of God"; ar, سمسمائيل, ''Samsama'il'' or ar, سمائل, label=none, ''Samail''; alternatively Smal, Smil, Samil, or Samiel) is an archangel in Talmudic and post-Talmudic ...
. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Norway's
Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
and England's Cradle of Filth brought black metal closer to the mainstream.


Power metal

During the late 1980s, the power metal scene came together largely in reaction to the harshness of death and black metal. "Genre – Power Metal" Allmusic. Retrieved on 20 March 2007 Though a relatively underground style in North America, it enjoys wide popularity in Europe, Japan and South America. Power metal focuses on upbeat, epic melodies and themes that "appeal to the listener's sense of valor and loveliness". The prototype for the sound was established in the mid- to late 1980s by Germany's
Helloween Helloween is a German power metal band founded in 1984 in Hamburg by members of bands Iron Fist, Gentry, Second Hell and Powerfool. Its first lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Kai Hansen, bassist Markus Grosskopf, guitarist Michael Wei ...
, who, in their 1987 and 1988
Keeper of the Seven Keys ''Keeper of the Seven Keys'' is a four-part album series by Helloween, composed of the band's second, third, and eleventh full-length studio albums as well as their third live album. Part 1 ''Keeper of the Seven Keys: Part I'' is the second stu ...
albums, combined the power riffs, melodic approach and a high-pitched, "clean" singing style of bands like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden with thrash's speed and energy, "crystalliz ngthe sonic ingredients of what is now known as power metal". Traditional power metal bands like Sweden's
HammerFall HammerFall is a Swedish power metal band from Gothenburg. The band was formed in 1993 by ex- Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak. History Early days (1993–1996) HammerFall was formed when rhythm guitarist Oscar Dronjak quit Ceremo ...
, England's
DragonForce DragonForce are a British power metal band from London, England. The band was formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, and are known for their long and fast guitar solos, fantasy-themed lyrics and retro video game-influenced ...
and the U.S.'s
Iced Earth Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band formed in Tampa, Florida and currently based in Columbus, Indiana. They were formed in 1984 under the name the Rose, then Purgatory, by guitarist and main songwriter Jon Schaffer and original drummer ...
have a sound clearly indebted to the classic NWOBHM style. Many power metal bands such as the U.S.'s
Kamelot Kamelot is an American power metal band from Tampa, Florida, formed by Thomas Youngblood, in 1987. The Norwegian vocalist Roy Khan joined for the album '' Siége Perilous'', and shared songwriting credit with Youngblood until his departure in A ...
, Finland's Nightwish,
Stratovarius Stratovarius is a Finnish power metal band that formed in 1985. Since their formation, they have released sixteen studio albums, five DVDs and six live albums. In its history, the band has gone through many chaotic lineup changes, and after fo ...
and
Sonata Arctica Sonata Arctica is a Finnish power metal band from the town of Kemi, Finland. Created as a hard rock band named Tricky Beans, they later changed to Tricky Means and finally to Sonata Arctica, when they shifted to power metal. The current lineup c ...
, Italy's Rhapsody of Fire and Russia's
Catharsis Catharsis (from Greek , , meaning "purification" or "cleansing" or "clarification") is the purification and purgation of emotions through dramatic art, or it may be any extreme emotional state that results in renewal and restoration. In its lite ...
feature a keyboard-based "symphonic" sound, sometimes employing orchestras and opera singers. Power metal has built a strong fanbase in Japan and South America, where bands like Brazil's Angra and Argentina's
Rata Blanca Rata Blanca ("White Rat" in English) is an Argentine heavy metal band, formed in 1986. History Beginnings The guitarist Walter Giardino replaced Osvaldo Civile in V8 for a little time, and left the band when his songs were rejected. His ...
are popular. Closely related to power metal is
progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...
, which adopts the complex compositional approach of bands like Rush and
King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
. This style emerged in the United States in the early and mid-1980s, with innovators such as
Queensrÿche Queensrÿche is an American heavy metal band. It formed in 1982 in Bellevue, Washington, out of the local band the Mob. The band has released 16 studio albums, one EP, and several DVDs, and continues to tour and record. The original lineup ...
, Fates Warning and Dream Theater. The mix of the progressive and power metal sounds is typified by New Jersey's
Symphony X Symphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey. Founded in 1994, the band consists of guitarist Michael Romeo, keyboardist Michael Pinnella, drummer Jason Rullo, lead vocalist Russell Allen and bassist Micha ...
, whose guitarist
Michael Romeo Michael James Romeo (born March 6, 1968) is an American guitarist and a founding member of the progressive metal group Symphony X. He is one of two members to appear on every Symphony X release (the other being Michael Pinnella). Romeo was ra ...
is among the most recognized of latter-day shredders. "Genre – Progressive Metal" Allmusic. Retrieved on 20 March 2007


Doom metal

Emerging in the mid-1980s with such bands as California's
Saint Vitus Vitus (), whose name is sometimes rendered Guy or Guido, was a Christian martyr from Sicily. His surviving hagiography is pure legend. The dates of his actual life are unknown.Basil Watkins, ''The Book of Saints: A Comprehensive Biographical ...
, Maryland's
The Obsessed The Obsessed is an American heavy metal band from Potomac, Maryland, led by Scott "Wino" Weinrich. The band combines elements of doom metal, stoner rock, and punk rock. Formed in 1980, they recorded a few demos and played a handful of live ...
, Chicago's Trouble and Sweden's Candlemass, the doom metal movement rejected other metal styles' emphasis on speed, slowing its music to a crawl. Doom metal traces its roots to the lyrical themes and musical approach of early Black Sabbath. The Melvins have also been a significant influence on doom metal and a number of its subgenres. Doom metal emphasizes melody, melancholy tempos and a sepulchral mood relative to many other varieties of metal.Wray, John
"Heady Metal"
''New York Times'', 28 May 2006. Retrieved on 21 March 2007 The 1991 release of '' Forest of Equilibrium'', the debut album by U.K. band
Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
, helped spark a new wave of doom metal. During the same period, the doom-death fusion style of British bands Paradise Lost,
My Dying Bride My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. Alo ...
and
Anathema Anathema, in common usage, is something or someone detested or shunned. In its other main usage, it is a formal excommunication. The latter meaning, its ecclesiastical sense, is based on New Testament usage. In the Old Testament, anathema was a cr ...
gave rise to European gothic metal. with its signature dual-vocalist arrangements, exemplified by Norway's
Theatre of Tragedy Theatre of Tragedy was a Norwegian band from Stavanger, active between 1993 and 2010. They are best known for their earlier albums, which influenced the gothic metal genre. History Formation (1993) Theatre of Tragedy was founded on 2 October 19 ...
and Tristania. New York's
Type O Negative Type O Negative were an American gothic metal band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1989 by Peter Steele (bass, lead vocals), Kenny Hickey (guitar, co-lead vocals), Josh Silver (keyboards, backing vocals), and Sal Abruscato (drums, percu ...
introduced an American take on the style. In the United States, sludge metal, which mixes doom metal and hardcore punk, emerged in the late 1980s;
Eyehategod Eyehategod (also abbreviated and referred to as EHG) is an American sludge metal band from New Orleans, Louisiana who formed in 1988. They have become one of the better known bands to emerge from the NOLA metal scene. Their core lineup has r ...
and Crowbar were leaders in a major Louisiana sludge scene. Early in the next decade, California's
Kyuss Kyuss ( ) was an American rock band, formed in Palm Desert, California, in 1987. The band disbanded in 1995, and since then, members of Kyuss have gone on to form or play in several notable bands including Queens of the Stone Age, Fu Manchu, ...
and
Sleep Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefulness by a de ...
, inspired by the earlier doom metal bands, spearheaded the rise of
stoner metal Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Slee ...
, while Seattle's
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
helped develop the
drone metal Drone metal or drone doom is a style of heavy metal that melds the slow tempos and heaviness of doom metal with the long-duration tones of drone music. Drone metal is sometimes associated with post-metal or experimental metal. Characteristics ...
subgenre. The late 1990s saw new bands form such as the Los Angeles–based
Goatsnake Goatsnake is an American stoner/ doom metal band from Los Angeles, California. They have released three studio albums, the first being 1999's '' Goatsnake Vol. 1''. Biography Goatsnake was formed in 1996 after the disbanding of The Obsess ...
, with a classic stoner/doom sound, and Sunn O))), which crosses lines between doom, drone and dark ambient metal; the ''New York Times'' has compared their sound to an "
Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...
raga in the middle of an earthquake".


1990s and early 2000s subgenres and fusions

The era of heavy metal's mainstream dominance in North America came to an end in the early 1990s with the emergence of
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
and other grunge bands, signaling the popular breakthrough of
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
. Grunge acts were influenced by the heavy metal sound, but rejected the excesses of the more popular metal bands, such as their "flashy and virtuosic solos" and "appearance-driven" MTV orientation. Glam metal fell out of favor due not only to the success of grunge, but also because of the growing popularity of the more aggressive sound typified by Metallica and the post-thrash groove metal of Pantera and White Zombie. In 1991, Metallica released their album '' Metallica'', also known as ''The Black Album'', which moved the band's sound out of the
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
genre and into standard heavy metal. The album was certified 16× Platinum by the RIAA. A few new, unambiguously metal bands had commercial success during the first half of the decade – Pantera's ''
Far Beyond Driven ''Far Beyond Driven'' is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera, released on March 22, 1994 by East West Records. Pantera's fastest-selling album, it peaked at number 1 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was certified Platinum ...
'' topped the ''Billboard'' chart in 1994 – but, "In the dull eyes of the mainstream, metal was dead." Some bands tried to adapt to the new musical landscape. Metallica revamped its image: the band members cut their hair and, in 1996, headlined the alternative music festival Lollapalooza, which was founded by
Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985. The band consists of vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery. Jane's Addiction was one of the first bands fr ...
singer Perry Farrell. While this prompted a backlash among some longtime fans, Metallica remained one of the most successful bands in the world into the new century. Like Jane's Addiction, many of the most popular early 1990s groups with roots in heavy metal fall under the umbrella term "alternative metal". Bands in Seattle's grunge scene such as
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yama ...
are credited for making a "place for heavy metal in alternative rock", and
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...
were at the center of the alternative metal movement. The label was applied to a wide spectrum of other acts that fused metal with different styles: Faith No More combined their alternative rock sound with punk, funk, metal and hip-hop; Primus joined elements of funk, punk,
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
and experimental music;
Tool A tool is an object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many animals use simple tools, only human beings, whose use of stone tools dates ba ...
mixed metal and
progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...
; bands such as
Fear Factory Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. ...
, Ministry and Nine Inch Nails began incorporating metal into their industrial sound (and vice versa); and Marilyn Manson went down a similar route, while also employing shock effects of the sort popularized by Alice Cooper. Alternative metal artists, though they did not represent a cohesive scene, were united by their willingness to experiment with the metal genre and their rejection of glam metal aesthetics (with the stagecraft of Marilyn Manson and White Zombie – also identified with alt metal – significant, if partial, exceptions). Alternative metal's mix of styles and sounds represented "the colorful results of metal opening up to face the outside world". In the mid- and late 1990s came a new wave of U.S. metal groups inspired by the alternative metal bands and their mix of genres. Dubbed "nu metal", bands such as Slipknot, Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach, P.O.D., Korn and
Disturbed Disturbed may refer to: Books * ''Disturbed'', a 2011 novel by Kevin O'Brien (author) Film and TV * ''Disturbed'' (film), a 1990 film starring Malcolm McDowell * "Disturbed" (''Numb3rs''), a 2009 episode of ''Numb3rs'' * "The Disturbed", a 2 ...
incorporated elements ranging from death metal to hip-hop, often including DJs and
rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
-style vocals. The mix demonstrated that "pancultural metal could pay off". Nu metal gained mainstream success through heavy MTV rotation and Ozzy Osbourne's 1996 introduction of
Ozzfest Ozzfest is an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy Osbourne, both ...
, which led the media to talk of a resurgence of heavy metal. In 1999, ''Billboard'' noted that there were more than 500 specialty metal radio shows in the U.S., nearly three times as many as 10 years before. While nu metal was widely popular, traditional metal fans did not fully embrace the style. By early 2003, the movement's popularity was on the wane, though several nu metal acts such as Korn or Limp Bizkit retained substantial followings.


Recent styles: mid- to late 2000s, 2010s and 2020s

Metalcore, a hybrid of extreme metal and
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
, emerged as a commercial force in the mid-2000s, having mostly been an underground phenomenon throughout the 1980s and 1990s; pioneering bands include
Earth Crisis Earth Crisis is an American hardcore punk band from Syracuse, New York, active from 1989 until 2001, reuniting in 2007. Since 1993 the band's longest serving members are vocalist Karl Buechner, lead guitarist Scott Crouse, bassist Ian Edward ...
,Mudrian, Albert (2000). ''Choosing Death: The Improbable History of Death Metal and Grindcore''. Feral House. . p. 222–223Ian Glasper, ''Terrorizer'' no. 171, June 2008, p. 78, "here the term (metalcore) is used in its original context, referencing the likes of Strife, Earth Crisis, and Integrity..."
Converge Converge may refer to: * Converge (band), American hardcore punk band * Converge (Baptist denomination), American national evangelical Baptist body * Limit (mathematics) * Converge ICT, internet service provider in the Philippines *CONVERGE CFD s ...
,
Hatebreed Hatebreed is an American hardcore band from Bridgeport, Connecticut, formed in 1994. The band released its debut album '' Satisfaction is the Death of Desire'' in 1997, which gave the band a cult following. The band signed to Universal Records ...
Ross Haenfler, ''Straight Edge: Clean-living Youth, Hardcore Punk, and Social Change'', Rutgers University Press. pp. 87–88 and
Shai Hulud Shai Hulud is an American metalcore band formed in Pompano Beach, Florida, in 1995, and later based in Poughkeepsie, New York. The band is named after the giant sandworms in Frank Herbert's novel ''Dune''. The two mainstay members of Shai Hul ...
. By 2004, melodic metalcore – influenced by
melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavine ...
as well – was popular enough that
Killswitch Engage Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel an ...
's ''
The End of Heartache ''The End of Heartache'' is the third studio album by American metalcore band Killswitch Engage. It was released on May 11, 2004, through Roadrunner Records. It is the first album to feature lead vocalist Howard Jones and drummer Justin Foley. ...
'' and
Shadows Fall Shadows Fall is an American metalcore band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1996. Although Shadows Fall has experienced several line-up changes, for most of its recording career, Shadows Fall has been composed of Jon Donais (lead guitar, ...
's '' The War Within'' debuted at No. 21 and No. 20, respectively, on the ''Billboard'' album chart. Evolving even further from metalcore came mathcore, a more rhythmically complicated and progressive style brought to light by bands such as
The Dillinger Escape Plan The Dillinger Escape Plan was an American metalcore band. The band was formed in 1997 in Morris Plains, New Jersey by guitarist Ben Weinman, bassist Adam Doll, vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, and drummer Chris Pennie. The band's use of odd time si ...
,
Converge Converge may refer to: * Converge (band), American hardcore punk band * Converge (Baptist denomination), American national evangelical Baptist body * Limit (mathematics) * Converge ICT, internet service provider in the Philippines *CONVERGE CFD s ...
and Protest the Hero. Mathcore's main defining quality is the use of odd time signatures, and has been described to possess rhythmic comparability to
free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...
. Heavy metal remained popular in the 2000s, particularly in continental Europe. By the new millennium, Scandinavia had emerged as one of the areas producing innovative and successful bands, while Belgium, the Netherlands and especially Germany were the most significant markets. Metal music is more favorably embraced in Scandinavia and Northern Europe than other regions due to social and political openness in these regions; Finland in particular has been often called the "Promised Land of Heavy Metal", as there are more than 50 metal bands for every 100,000 inhabitants – more than any other nation in the world. Established continental metal bands that placed multiple albums in the top 20 of the German charts between 2003 and 2008 include Finland's
Children of Bodom Children of Bodom was a Finnish melodic death metal band from Espoo. Formed in 1993 as Inearthed, the final line-up of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of Alexi Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals), Jaska Raatikainen (drums), Henkka Sepp ...
, Norway's Dimmu Borgir, Germany's
Blind Guardian Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres.deathcore Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore breakdowns. While there are some precursors to the concept of death metal fused with me ...
emerged. Deathcore incorporates elements of death metal,
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
and metalcore. Deathcore features characteristics such as death metal
riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or acc ...
s, hardcore punk breakdowns, death growling, "pig squeal"-sounding vocals and screaming. Deathcore bands include
Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...
,
Suicide Silence Suicide Silence is an American deathcore band from Riverside, California. The band was established in 2002, and has released six studio albums, three EPs, and nineteen music videos. They were awarded the ''Revolver'' Golden God award for "Bes ...
,
Despised Icon Despised Icon is a Canadian deathcore band from Montreal, Quebec. Formed in 2002, the band is noted for the talent of its drummer, Alex Pelletier, who makes frequent use of the blasting technique, as well as for its dual lead vocalists; Alex E ...
and Carnifex.) The term "retro-metal" has been used to describe bands such as Texas-based
The Sword The Sword was an American heavy metal band from Austin, Texas. Formed in 2003, the band was composed of vocalist and guitarist John D. Cronise, guitarist Kyle Shutt, bassist Bryan Richie and drummer Santiago "Jimmy" Vela III for most of its t ...
, California's
High on Fire High on Fire is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California, that was formed in 1999. Matt Pike, the band's frontman and founder, also plays guitar for doom metal band Sleep. High on Fire won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Metal Perfo ...
, Sweden's
Witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...
and Australia's
Wolfmother Wolfmother is an Australian hard rock band from Sydney. Formed in 2004, the group is centred around vocalist and guitarist Andrew Stockdale, who is the only constant member of the line-up. The band has been through many personnel changes since ...
.Wolfmother
''Rolling Stone'', 18 April 2006. Retrieved on 31 March 2007. The Sword's '' Age of Winters'' (2006) drew heavily on the work of Black Sabbath and
Pentagram A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha, pentangle, or star pentagon) is a regular five-pointed star polygon, formed from the diagonal line segments of a convex (or simple, or non-self-intersecting) regular pentagon. Drawing a circle arou ...
, Witchcraft added elements of
folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers s ...
and psychedelic rock, and Wolfmother's self-titled 2005 debut album had " Deep Purple-ish organs" and " Jimmy Page-worthy chordal riffing".
Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...
, which plays a progressive/sludge style of metal, has inspired claims of a metal revival in the United States, dubbed by some critics the "
New Wave of American Heavy Metal The new wave of American heavy metal (also known as NWOAHM and new wave of American metal) was a heavy metal music movement that originated in the United States during the early–mid 1990s and expanded most in the early to mid-2000s. Some of the b ...
". By the early 2010s, metalcore was evolving to more frequently incorporate synthesizers and elements from genres beyond rock and metal. The album ''
Reckless & Relentless ''Reckless & Relentless'' is the second studio album by British rock band Asking Alexandria. It was released on 5 April 2011 through Sumerian Records and was produced by Joey Sturgis. Announced on 22 December 2009, recording for the album began ...
'' by British band
Asking Alexandria Asking Alexandria are a British Rock music, rock band from York, North Yorkshire, consisting of guitarists Ben Bruce and Cameron Liddell, drummer James Cassells, lead vocalist Danny Worsnop, and bassist Sam Bettley. Initially formed in 2006 ...
, which sold 31,000 copies in its first week, and The Devil Wears Prada's 2011 album ''
Dead Throne ''Dead Throne'' is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada. It was released on September 13, 2011, through Ferret Music. Produced by Adam Dutkiewicz, the record was recorded in several studios across the United ...
'', which sold 32,400 in its first week, reached No. 9 and No. 10, respectively, on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. In 2013, British band
Bring Me the Horizon Bring Me the Horizon (often abbreviated as BMTH) are a British Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2004. The group consists of lead vocalist Oliver Sykes, guitarist Lee Malia, bassist Matt Kean, drummer Matt Nicholls and keyboardis ...
released their fourth studio album, ''Sempiternal'', to critical acclaim. The album debuted at No. 3 on the U.K. Album Chart and at No. 1 in Australia. The album sold 27,522 copies in the U.S. and charted at No. 11 on the ''Billboard'' Chart, making it their highest-charting release in America until their follow-up album, '' That's the Spirit'', which debuted at No. 2 in 2015. Also in the 2010s, a metal style called "
djent Djent () is a subgenre of progressive metal characterised by its use of off-beat and complex rhythm patterns. Its distinctive sound is that of high-gain, distorted, palm-muted, down-tuned strings. The name "djent" is an onomatopoeia of this s ...
" developed as a spinoff of standard
progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...
. (26 June 2011) Djent music uses rhythmic and technical complexity, heavily distorted, palm-muted guitar chords, syncopated
riffs A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accomp ...
"Djent, the metal geek's microgenre"
''The Guardian''. 3 March 2011 and
polyrhythm Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music ( cross-rhyt ...
s alongside virtuoso soloing. Another typical characteristic is the use of extended range seven-, eight- and nine-string guitars. Djent bands include
Periphery Periphery or peripheral may refer to: Music *Periphery (band), American progressive metal band * ''Periphery'' (album), released in 2010 by Periphery * "Periphery", a song from Fiona Apple's album '' The Idler Wheel...'' Gaming and entertainm ...
,
Tesseract In geometry, a tesseract is the four-dimensional analogue of the cube; the tesseract is to the cube as the cube is to the square. Just as the surface of the cube consists of six square faces, the hypersurface of the tesseract consists of e ...
and Textures. Fusion of nu metal with electropop by singer-songwriters
Poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, '' Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug o ...
,
Grimes Claire Elise Boucher (; born March 17, 1988), known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her early work has been described as extending from "lo-fi R&B" to futuristic dance-pop, and has i ...
and
Rina Sawayama is a Japanese–British singer-songwriter, actress and model. Born in Niigata, Japan, she emigrated to London with her parents at age five. She is known for her musical versatility and has been labelled a "musical chameleon". In 2017, she ...
saw a popular and critical revival of the former genre in the late 2010s and 2020s, particular on their respective albums ''
I Disagree ''I Disagree'' is the third studio album by American singer Poppy, released on January 10, 2020, via Sumerian Records. It marks her first release on Sumerian Records following her departure from Mad Decent in 2019, as well as her final collabor ...
,'' '' Miss Anthropocene'' and ''
Sawayama ''Sawayama'' (stylized in all caps) is the debut studio album by Japanese-British singer-songwriter Rina Sawayama, released on 17 April 2020 by the independent record label Dirty Hit. A follow up to her self-released debut EP '' Rina'' (2017), ...
''.


Women in heavy metal

Women's involvement in heavy metal began in the 1970s when Genesis, the forerunner of
Vixen Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...
, formed in 1973. A hard rock band featuring all-female members,
The Runaways The Runaways were an all-female American rock band who recorded and performed from 1975 to 1979. The band released four studio albums and one live album during its run. Among their best-known songs are " Cherry Bomb", "Hollywood", "Queens of ...
, was founded in 1975;
Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...
and
Lita Ford Lita Rossana Ford (born 19 September 1958) is an English-born American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the lead guitarist for the all-female rock band the Runaways in the late 1970s, before embarking on a successful glam metal sol ...
later had successful solo careers. In 1978, during the rise of the
New Wave of British Heavy Metal The new wave of British heavy metal (commonly abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that started in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Journalist Geoff Barton coined the term i ...
, the band
Girlschool Girlschool are a British rock band that formed in the new wave of British heavy metal scene in 1978. Frequently associated with contemporaries Motörhead, they are the longest-running all-female rock band, still active after more than 40 ye ...
was founded and, in 1980, collaborated with
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
under the pseudonym Headgirl. Starting in 1984,
Doro Pesch Dorothee Pesch (born 3 June 1964), known professionally as Doro Pesch or simply Doro, is a German heavy metal singer and the former frontwoman of heavy metal band Warlock. Dubbed the "Metal Queen", Doro's contributions to music and culture mad ...
, dubbed "the Metal Queen", reached success across Europe leading the German band
Warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver" and was given special applicati ...
before starting her solo career. In 1994,
Liv Kristine Liv Kristine Espenæs (born 14 February 1976) is a Norwegian singer who has performed and composed songs mostly for various subgenres of heavy metal music. She started her career in the music industry as a vocalist for the gothic metal band Thea ...
joined Norwegian gothic metal band
Theatre of Tragedy Theatre of Tragedy was a Norwegian band from Stavanger, active between 1993 and 2010. They are best known for their earlier albums, which influenced the gothic metal genre. History Formation (1993) Theatre of Tragedy was founded on 2 October 19 ...
, providing "angelic" female clean vocals to contrast with male
death growl A death growl, or simply growl, is an extended vocal technique usually employed in extreme styles of music, particularly in death metal and other extreme subgenres of heavy metal music. Death growl vocals are sometimes criticized for the ...
s. In 1996, Finnish band Nightwish was founded and featured
Tarja Turunen Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen-Cabuli (born 17 August 1977), known professionally as Tarja Turunen or simply Tarja, is a Finnish heavy metal singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Nightwish. She is a soprano with a three and a half oct ...
's vocals. This was followed by more women fronting heavy metal bands, such as
Halestorm Halestorm is an American rock band from Red Lion, Pennsylvania, consisting of lead vocalist and guitarist Lzzy Hale, her drummer brother Arejay Hale, guitarist Joe Hottinger, and bassist Josh Smith. The group's self-titled debut album was ...
,
In This Moment In This Moment is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed by singer Maria Brink and guitarist Chris Howorth in 2005. They found drummer Jeff Fabb and started the band as Dying Star. Unhappy with their musical direction, they ...
,
Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other inf ...
,
Arch Enemy Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass, Armageddon, Carnage, Mercyful Fate, Spiritual Beggars, The Agonist, Nevermore, and Eucharis ...
and
Epica Epica or EPICA may refer to: * Epica (band), a Dutch symphonic metal band * ''Epica'' (Kamelot album), 2003 * ''Epica'' (Audiomachine album), 2012 * The European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) * The Epica Awards (International Adver ...
among others. In Japan, the 2010s saw a boom of all-female metal bands, including
Destrose Destrose was a Japanese heavy metal band formed in 2007. The group remained an independent band their entire career and experienced frequent line-up changes until going on indefinite hiatus in 2015. Although considered pioneers of the Girls M ...
,
Aldious is a Japanese heavy metal band from Osaka, formed in 2008 by guitarist Yoshi and vocalist Rami. After a few member changes, they released their debut EP ''Dear Slave'' the following year and soon after formed their own record label, Bright ...
,
Mary's Blood was a Japanese all-female heavy metal band from Tokyo, formed in 2009 by four former members of Destrose. It consisted of vocalist Eye, drummer Mari, guitarist Saki and bassist Rio since 2012. After releasing three EPs as an independent band ...
,
Cyntia Cyntia was a Japanese heavy metal band formed in 2011. They are believed to have been the first act from the Girls Metal Band Boom to have signed to a major record label when they joined Victor Entertainment in 2013. Drummer and co-founder Kan ...
and Lovebites. Liv Kristine was featured on the title track of Cradle of Filth's 2004 album, ''
Nymphetamine ''Nymphetamine'' is the sixth studio album by Cradle of Filth. Recorded between February and July 2004, it was released on 28 September by record label Roadrunner. ''Nymphetamine'' marks the first recorded appearance of guitarist James McIlroy ...
'', which was nominated for the 2004
Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards to recording artists for works (songs or albums) containing quality performances in the heavy metal music genre. The Grammy Awards is an annual ceremony, where ...
. In 2013, Halestorm won the Grammy in the combined category of Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance for "
Love Bites (So Do I) "Love Bites (So Do I)" is a song by American rock band, Halestorm. It is the first single from their second album '' The Strange Case Of...'', released April 10, 2012. It is also part of the ''Guitar Hero Live'' soundtrack. Background The band me ...
". In 2021,
In This Moment In This Moment is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed by singer Maria Brink and guitarist Chris Howorth in 2005. They found drummer Jeff Fabb and started the band as Dying Star. Unhappy with their musical direction, they ...
, Code Orange and
Poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, '' Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug o ...
were all nominated in the Best Metal Performance category. Women such as
Gaby Hoffmann Gabrielle Mary Antonia HoffmannStated on ''Finding Your Roots'', November 21, 2017 (born January 8, 1982) is an American actress. She initially found success as a child actress, appearing in ''Field of Dreams,'' ''Uncle Buck,'' and ''Sleeples ...
and Sharon Osbourne have held important managerial role behind the scenes. In 1981, Hoffmann helped
Don Dokken Donald Maynard Dokken (born June 29, 1953) is an American singer and musician. He's best known for being the lead singer, occasional guitarist, and founder of the glam metal band Dokken. He is known for his vibrato-laden, melodic vocal style wh ...
acquire his first record deal, as well as became the manager of Accept in 1981 and wrote songs under the pseudonym of "Deaffy" for many of band's studio albums. Vocalist Mark Tornillo stated that Hoffmann still had some influence in songwriting on their later albums. Osbourne, the wife and manager of
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
, founded the
Ozzfest Ozzfest is an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy Osbourne, both ...
music festival and managed several bands, including Motörhead,
Coal Chamber Coal Chamber is an American nu metal band formed by Dez Fafara and Meegs Rascón in Los Angeles, California in 1993. Prior to Coal Chamber, the two had also created the band She's in Pain, in 1992. The original lineup also consisted of bassist ...
,
The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also referred to as simply Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, bassist D'arcy Wretzky, guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Ch ...
, Electric Light Orchestra, Lita Ford and
Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
.


Sexism

The popular media and academia have long charged heavy metal with sexism and
misogyny Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practice ...
. In the 1980s, American conservative groups like the
Parents Music Resource Center The Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) was an American committee formed in 1985 with the stated goal of increasing parental control over the access of children to music deemed to have violent, drug-related or sexual themes via labeling albums ...
(PMRC) and the
Parent Teacher Association A parent is a caregiver of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is the caretaker of a child (where "child" refers to offspring, not necessarily age). A ''biological parent'' is a person whose gamete resulted in a child, a male t ...
(PTA) co-opted feminist views on anti-woman violence to form attacks on metal's rhetoric and imagery. According to Robert Christgau in 2001, metal, along with hip-hop, have made "reflexive and violent sexism... current in the music". In response to such claims, debates in the metal press have centered on defining and contextualizing sexism. Hill claims that "understanding what counts as sexism is complex and requires critical work by fans when sexism is normalised." Citing her own research, including interviews of British female fans, she found that metal offers them an opportunity to feel liberated and genderless, albeit if assimilated into a culture that is largely neglectful of women. In 2018, ''
Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
'' editor Eleanor Goodman published an article titled "Does Metal Have a Sexism Problem?" interviewing veteran industry people and artists about the plight of women in metal. Some talked about a history of difficulty receiving professional respect from male counterparts. Among those interviewed was Wendy Dio, who had worked in label, booking and legal capacities in the music industry before her marriage to and management of metal artist Ronnie James Dio. She said that after marrying Dio, her professional reputation became reduced to her marital role as his wife, and her competency was questioned. Gloria Cavalera, former manager of
Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...
and wife of the band's former frontman
Max Cavalera Massimiliano Antonio "Max" Cavalera (; born August 4, 1969) is a Brazilian musician. He co-founded the heavy metal band Sepultura in 1984 with his brother Igor Cavalera, and was the band's lead singer and rhythm guitarist until his departure i ...
, said that since 1996, she had received misogynistic hate mail and death threats from fans and that "women take a lot of crap. This whole #MeToo thing, do they think it just started? That has gone on since the pictures of the cavemen pulling girls by their hair."


Notes


References


Bibliography

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Master of Reality ''Master of Reality'' is the third studio album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released on 21 July 1971 by Vertigo Records. It is regarded by some critics as the foundation of doom metal, stoner rock, and sludge metal. Taylor 2006, ...
'' (1971) eview, in '' Christgau's Record Guide''. Ticknor & Fields. . * Cook, Nicholas, and Nicola Dibben (2001). "Musicological Approaches to Emotion", in ''Music and Emotion''. Oxford University Press. . * Du Noyer, Paul (ed.) (2003). ''The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music''. Flame Tree. * Ekeroth, Daniel (2011), ''Swedish Death Metal''. Bazillion Points. * Ewing, Charles Patrick, and Joseph T. McCann (2006). ''Minds on Trial: Great Cases in Law and Psychology''. Oxford University Press. . * Fast, Susan (2001). ''In the Houses of the Holy: Led Zeppelin and the Power of Rock Music''. Oxford University Press. . * Fast, Susan (2005). "Led Zeppelin and the Construction of Masculinity", in ''Music Cultures in the United States'', ed. Ellen Koskoff. Routledge. . * Guibert, Gérôme, and Fabien Hein (ed.) (2007). "Les Scènes Metal. Sciences sociales et pratiques culturelles radicales". ''Volume! La revue des musiques populaires''. N°5-2. Bordeaux: Mélanie Seteun. . * Hainaut, Bérenger (2017). ''Le Style black metal''. Château-Gontier: Aedam musicae. . * Harrison, Thomas (2011). ''Music of the 1980s''. ABC-CLIO. * Hatch, David, and Stephen Millward (1989). ''From Blues to Rock: An Analytical History of Pop Music''. Manchester University Press. . * Kahn-Harris, Keith and Fabien Hein (2007), "Metal studies: a bibliography", ''Volume! La revue des musiques populaires'', n°5-2, Bordeaux: Éditions Mélanie Seteun. . * Kennedy, Michael (1985). ''The Oxford Dictionary of Music''. Oxford University Press. . * Leguay, Stéphane (2006). "Metal Gothique", in ''Carnets Noirs'', éditions E-dite, 3rd edition, . * Lilja, Esa (2009). ''Theory and Analysis of Classic Heavy Metal Harmony''. Helsinki: IAML Finland. . * McCleary, John Bassett (2004). ''The Hippie Dictionary: A Cultural Encyclopedia of the 1960s and 1970s''. Ten Speed Press. . * McMichael, Joe (2004). ''The Who Concert File''. Omnibus Press. . * Moynihan, Michael, and Dirik Søderlind (1998). ''Lords of Chaos'' (2nd ed.). Feral House. . * Nicholls, David (1998). ''The Cambridge History of American Music''. Cambridge University Press. * O'Neil, Robert M. (2001). ''The First Amendment and Civil Liability''. Indiana University Press. . * Pareles, Jon, and Patricia Romanowski (eds.) (1983). ''The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll''. Rolling Stone Press/Summit Books. . * Phillipov, Michelle (2012). ''Death Metal and Music Criticism: Analysis at the Limits'' Lexington Books. * Pillsbury, Glenn T. (2006). ''Damage Incorporated: Metallica and the Production of Musical Identity''. Routledge. * *
Sadie, Stanley Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...
(1980). "Consecutive Fifth, Consecutive Octaves", in ''
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...
'' (1st ed.). MacMillan. . * Schonbrun, Marc (2006). ''The Everything Guitar Chords Book''. Adams Media. . * Sharpe-Young, Garry (2007). ''Metal: The Definitive Guide''. Jawbone Press. . * Strong, Martin C. (2004). ''The Great Rock Discography''. Canongate. . * Swinford, Dean (2013). ''Death Metal Epic (Book I: The Inverted Katabasis)''. Atlatl Press. . * Thompson, Graham (2007). ''American Culture in the 1980s''. Edinburgh University Press. . * Van Zoonen, Liesbet (2005). ''Entertaining the Citizen: When Politics and Popular Culture Converge''. Rowman & Littlefield. . * Wagner, Jeff (2010). '' Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal''. Bazillion Points. . * Walser, Robert (1993). ''Running with the Devil: Power, Gender, and Madness in Heavy Metal Music''. Wesleyan University Press. . * Waksman, Steve (2001). ''Instruments of Desire: The Electric Guitar and the Shaping of Musical Experience''. Harvard University Press. . * Weinstein, Deena (1991). ''Heavy Metal: A Cultural Sociology''. Lexington. . Revised edition: (2000). ''Heavy Metal: The Music and its Culture''. Da Capo. . * Wilkerson, Mark Ian (2006). ''Amazing Journey: The Life of Pete Townshend''. Bad News Press. . * Wiederhorn, Jon. ''Louder Than Hell: The Definitive Oral History of Metal''. It Books, 14 May 2013


External links

* AllMusic entryfor heavy metal {{Authority control American rock music genres American styles of music British rock music genres British styles of music European music English styles of music Music genres Popular music 1970s fads and trends 1970s in music Rock music genres