| Melodic death metal | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Death metal, NWOBHM, thrash metal, black metal, power metal |
| Cultural origins | Early to mid-1990s, Scandinavia (particularly Gothenburg, Sweden) and the United Kingdom |
| Typical instruments | Electric guitar, bass guitar, drums (double kick), keyboard, acoustic guitar, vocals |
| Derivative forms | Melodic metalcore |
| Regional scenes | |
| Sweden • Finland • United States • United Kingdom • Japan | |
| Other topics | |
| Bands • death growl | |
Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) with elements of death metal. The style originated and developed in Sweden (pioneered by At the Gates, Dark Tranquillity and In Flames) and the United Kingdom (pioneered by Carcass) during the early and mid-1990s. The Swedish death metal scene did much to popularize the style, which soon centered in the "Gothenburg metal" scene in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Melodic death metal uses components of NWOBHM, in particular the fast riffing and harmonic guitar lines, but also is influenced by the characteristics of death metal like heavily distorted guitars, fast double-bass drum patterns and sometimes blast beats some even utilizing elements from other genres such as black metal and thrash metal.[1] The vocal style of the genre may be a combination of harsh screaming, clean vocals, and death growls, if not emphasizing one of these styles over the rest.[2] Some bands fuse melodic death metal with other metal sub-genres such as Gothic metal (Dark Tranquillity), folk metal (early Amorphis), power metal (Children of Bodom), symphonic metal (Eternal Tears of Sorrow), doom metal] (Insomnium), thrash metal (Arch Enemy), alternative metal (In Flames), metalcore (Heaven Shall Burn) and groove metal (DevilDriver).
The origin and popularity of melodic death metal can be attributed to the bands At the Gates, In Flames, and Dark Tranquillity, with their early 1990s music releases that defined the genre and laid the foundation for the Gothenburg metal scene,[2] as well as the British band Carcass, who started out playing grindcore but morphed into a death metal style and helped pioneer the genre with their 1993 album Heartwork.[3]
Since the late 1990s, melodic death metal bands have added more melodic choruses and riffs and have used keyboards more prominently than other death metal bands; their lyrics, unlike those of death metal, did not focus on death, violence, gore, horror, or blood for the most part.[4] Its influence lead to the diversification of modern metalcore, with melodic metalcore gaining prominence in the 2000s, especially in the United States. Stewart Mason of Allmusic stated that the "increasingly melodic" style of Swedish death metal combines the post-hardcore aggression and guttural vocals of black metal with melodic and technically proficient guitar lines. Stewart Mason claims that the style has become very popular in the United States, using the term "Swedecore" to describe Scandinavian-style metal as played by non-Nordic bands.[5] The American melodic death metal band The Black Dahlia Murder, formed in 2001, is an example of this, gaining considerable prominence with 5 albums charting on the Billboard 200.
