Welcome everyone! This thread is meant to be a general discussion thread for the genre of heavy metal. Metalhead or non-metalhead, anyone is allowed to participate! I hope that you'll all enjoy your stay!
~Authorized by axumblade
What Is Heavy Metal?
Now, that question should be simple enough, right? Unfortunately, there is no consensus on what heavy metal even is! However, in general terms, it is the hard and well, “heavy” descendant of rock music. There is often a debate on who are even the originators of metal! However, the most common candidate is Black Sabbath, who with their 1970 self-titled album created a dark, down-tuned album that had not really been seen beforehand. Some other bands that were seminal in the progress of metal were Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, who removed the bluesy aspects of the music, Quiet Riot, who had the first-ever number-one heavy metal album in the U.S., and Metallica, who are by far the most popular heavy metal band.
Album of the Week: Loudness - Thunder in the East (1984)
Embed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U7_o7kHm-8
Loudness were the first Japanese metal band to really break through stateside, and this is their most popular of them all!! It's classic 80s metal, and I'd highly recommend it to those who are a fan of the good ol' style of metal. My favourite track on here may be Like Hell, though I'd have to listen to the album a few more times before having a definitive answer.
The Subgenres of Heavy Metal
Now, this is when it gets confusing! There’s so many subgenres of metal, including subgenres of subgenres, that it’s impossible to go through all of them, or even neatly categorize all of them. However, here are some of the more noteworthy ones. Note that it’s often debated which subgenres particular bands belong to, or whether or not certain even exist! Also, these are meant to be short descriptions of the genre, if you’d like more in-depth and detailed summaries, you can check out this link:
https://rateyourmusic.com/genre/Metal/
NWOBHM (new wave of British heavy metal): After the original heavy metal bands like Black Sabbath and Deep Purple, there were new bands that removed a lot of the blues, and gave heavy metal its definitive sound. Ex. Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Motorhead
Thrash metal: heavily influenced by both NWOBHM and hardcore punk, this subgenre sped up the metal, with fast-shredding guitars and shouting vocals. Ex. Metallica pre-Black album, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax
Power metal: This is based more on harmony and melody, with heavy use of strong, clean vocals and a fast tempo. Ex. Helloween, Blind Guardian
Black metal: This subgenre attempts to be more atmospheric, with the production often being intentionally poor, and a wall of sound with tremolo picking and high-pitched screams. Ex. Burzum, Mayhem, Emperor, Immortal
Death metal: Based off of heavier forms of thrash metal, death metal often uses down-tuned, distorted guitars and guttural vocals, with frequent uses of blast beats. Ex. Cannibal Corpse, Death, Suffocation, Immolation
Doom metal: This attempts to have a depressing/despairing atmosphere, with downtuned guitars, repetition and generally long song lengths. Ex. Candlemass, Saint Vitus, Pentagram
Grindcore: Generally a mix of extreme metal and hardcore punk, grindcore focuses on assaulting the listener with short songs and extremely quickly paced guitar riffs, blast beats and harsh vocals. Ex. Terrorizer, Repulsion, Napalm Death
Progressive metal: Generally focuses on long, complex songs that well, “progress”, without adhering to a verse-chorus format. Ex. Dream Theater, Opeth, Queensryche
Groove metal: The riffs are generally slower and groovier than what is in thrash metal, emphasizing that more than outright speed and aggression. Ex. Pantera, Machine Head, White Zombie
Those are some of big ones, but be warned that there are several more! For example, there is stoner metal, sludge metal, folk metal, Viking metal, etc. And as previously mentioned, they can be divided even further: death metal can be split into brutal death metal, technical death metal, melodic death metal, etc. The more you explore, the more you will discover! I will probably also add more genres to the list as time goes on.
VGPolyglot’s Personal Recommendations
Here is a list of albums that should help you delve into heavy metal, featuring a mix of classics, and personal favourites. It’s very hard to make such a list, but I decided that 50 was small enough to not overload too much, but big enough to have a diverse representation. I made a rule to only put 1 album per band.
Band | Album | Year | Genre | Link |
Accept | Balls to the Wall | 1983 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d9bNz2C9D4 |
Agalloch | The Mantle | 2002 | Folk | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnk2-Jctg6A |
Atheist | Unquestionable Presence | 1991 | Technical Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnUZ5xpcKHw |
Black Sabbath | Paranoid | 1970 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kb-OgPxdCeQ |
Bathory | Hammerheart | 1990 | Viking | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YivCnFkjd8U |
Boris | Amplifier Worship | 1998 | Drone | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBwK2s734DQ |
Burzum | Filosofem | 1996 | Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-ZVkESecXk |
Candlemass | Epicus Doomicus Metallicus | 1986 | Doom | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z33VWOaCImQ |
Cannibal Corpse | The Bleeding | 1994 | Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qG5ebfls0o |
Corrosion of Conformity | Deliverance | 1994 | Stoner/Southern | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOrrU6DKuHk |
Cryptopsy | None So Vile | 1996 | Brutal Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3JeaBoBU-c |
Cynic | Focus | 1993 | Death/Jazz Fusion | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHA8JyIzaBE |
Darkthrone | A Blaze in the Northern Sky | 1992 | Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDi99nXhObs |
Death | Human | 1991 | Technical Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzvtfbqJeIY |
Deep Purple | Machine Head | 1972 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwH4nt190YY |
Dio | Holy Diver | 1983 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhGEGIBGLu8 (full album not available) |
Dismember | Like An Ever Flowing Stream | 1991 | Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMi86Dca1QY |
Dissection | Storm of the Light's Bane | 1995 | Melodic Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOGFXD7Z9WE |
Down | NOLA | 1995 | Sludge | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFEDhm3dWkY |
Dream Theater | Images and Words | 1992 | Progressive | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z8uvyn7hDo |
Edge of Sanity | Crimson | 1996 | Progressive/Melodic Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St6lJaiHYIc |
Electric Wizard | Dopethrone | 2000 | Stoner | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaMbKZPBruU |
Entombed | Left Hand Path | 1990 | Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsdWLtPAVqM |
Fear Factory | Demanufacture | 1995 | Industrial | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-RdsIst6p4 |
Godflesh | Streetcleaner | 1989 | Industrial | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfN7OR5q_xw |
Gorguts | Obscura | 1998 | Technical Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1X0Bejwnko |
Helloween | Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 1 | 1987 | Power | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68lwA6EfSAo |
In Flames | The Jester Race | 1996 | Melodic Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Tl3BqLd0uI |
Iron Maiden | Number of the Beat | 1982 | NWOBHM | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNsUyxxn2iU |
Judas Priest | Painkiller | 1990 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYYr9q9F1-E |
Katatonia | Brave Murder Day | 1996 | Doom | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZK9o1lyv_k |
Kyuss | Welcome to Sky Valley | 1994 | Stoner | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUDvRdDMc8k |
Mayhem | De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas | 1994 | Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcS0CVJ1KPg |
Megadeth | Peace Sells...But Who's Buying? | 1986 | Thrash | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEr5d6LpWmg |
Mercyful Fate | Don't Break the Oath | 1984 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnWzCuhrsbE |
Metallica | Master of Puppets | 1986 | Thrash | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HEGGlYg7_Y |
Motorhead | Ace of Spades | 1980 | NWOBHM | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVecmhNYbuQ |
Opeth | Blackwater Park | 2001 | Progressive | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhidUmuWkyg |
Ozzy Osbourne | Blizzard of Ozz | 1980 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHkUdE3BruM (full album not available) |
Pantera | Cowboys From Hell | 1990 | Groove | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzHe9NpYbQw |
Pig Destroyer | Prowler in the Yard | 2001 | Grindcore | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcLwQ0uXYUA |
Queensryche | Operation: Mindcrime | 1988 | Progressive | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTqv59JXMUk |
Rainbow | Rising | 1976 | Heavy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vbugK9N2KU |
Repulsion | Horrified | 1989 | Grindcore | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiHl-Px8fig |
Sepultura | Beneath the Remains | 1989 | Thrash | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6Weg_mc6bk |
Sigh | Ghastly Funeral Theatre | 1997 | Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3S0J8KQx4EE |
Slayer | Reign in Blood | 1986 | Thrash | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn9LMdyc4DI |
Suffocation | Effigy of the Forgotten | 1991 | Brutal Death | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLorNSZjcBI |
Terrorizer | World Downfall | 1989 | Grindcore | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd3HTU2a2mA |
Ulver | Bergtatt: Et eeventyr i 5 capitler | 1995 | Black | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVcjf_p5pDY |