Blackened Death Metal

There are many extreme metal bands whose music blurs the line between death metal and black metal. The bands that do this usually want more creative freedom with their brutal music, and are subsequently known as blackened death metal bands. 

Each blackened death metal group is fairly different. Each band in the subgenre takes what it wants from both subgenres. For example, some bands may choose to keep death metal song structures, but use shrieked black metal vocals and cold black metal undertones. Other bands may do the exact opposite, using black metal song structures, but deeper vocals and more gory death metal themes. Blackened death metal is a liberal subgenre with a wide amount of variation.

Blackened death metal was hinted around by various bands throughout the 1990s. However, it didn’t really become an established subgenre until the late 1990s. At this time, Behemoth’s Satanica was the crowning jewel of the subgenre. Behemoth is a Polish band that was an above average black metal group during the mid-1990s. Upon releasing Satanica, Behemoth became massively influential in the heavy metal underground. Satanica is at heart a death metal album, but the strong black metal influences on the record forced critics to create the new classification of blackened death metal. 

Around this time, other blackened death metal bands started to appear as well. Most notably, Belphegor, Goatwhore and Akercocke released their debut albums, which all followed in the vein of Behemoth. These bands have since matured their sounds and they are all now well established heavy metal bands. 

Blackened death metal is a growing subgenre today and a much more common classification than it used to be. Nowadays, when a new extreme metal band is formed that blurs black metal and death metal together, it is quickly classified as blackened death metal. The subgenre has a strong following, and many blackened death metal bands (particularly Behemoth) are very successful.

Goregrind and Deathgrind

Like last week, we are going to be talking about two subgenres instead of one. These subgenres are both related to grindcore, and share many characteristics with it.

The first subgenre we will talk about is goregrind. Goregrind is a term that is thrown around when grindcore bands get a bit more extreme. There are only a few differences between goregrind and grindcore. Goregrind usually involves pitch-shifted vocals, whereas grindcore does not. The drums of goregrind are also usually a little bit tinnier than those of grindcore. The biggest difference between the subgenres is the lyrical content. Goregrind lyrics usually discuss gore and forensic pathology. The lyrics are usually also very tongue-in-cheek, and shouldn’t be interpreted literally.

Goregrind originated from Carcass’s Reek of Putrefaction album. This record used medical imagery and gory undertones to create the stylized version of grindcore. The album was very over-the-top, and subsequently the term “goregrind” was created to describe it. Other bands who have received the goregrind label include Cattle Decapitation, Exhumed, Impaled and Repulsion.

The other subgenre that we will discuss in this post is a close relative of goregrind. Deathgrind is the combination of grindcore and brutal death metal. Bands within this subgenre usually use the typical grindcore song structure, but the content of the songs is more akin to that of brutal death metal. These songs are therefore usually very abrupt, fast and brutal. Lyrical content within the subgenre may vary.

Deathgrind has become quite popular throughout the years, and the subgenre has been praised by heavy metal critics for its brutality. Famous bands of the subgenre include Aborted, Autopsy, Cephalic Carnage, Dying Fetus, Lock Up and Misery Index. 

Both goregrind and deathgrind started off as terms to describe specific grindcore groups, but have since become subgenres of their own. Both subgenres maintain sizable cult followings that thrive on the brutality of this extreme music. New bands continue to emerge in these subgenres, and they usually experience success in the heavy metal underground in both the US and Europe.

Death 'n' Roll and Black 'n' Roll

This week we are going to be talking about two closely related heavy metal subgenres. A recent trend among metal bands has been to combine extreme metal with rock ‘n’ roll music. This has led to the creation of two separate subgenres known as death ‘n’ roll and black ‘n’ roll. 

Musically speaking, death ‘n’ roll is death metal that incorporates elements of hard rock. Guitars are detuned and vocals are still deeply growled, as they would be in normal death metal. However, the songs themselves are structured similarly to hard rock tunes. Black ‘n’ roll is the exact same thing as death ‘n’ roll except the songs are rooted in black metal instead of death metal.

The term “death ‘n’ roll” was first used to describe the band Entombed. The band's third album, Wolverine Blues, was considered to be a stylistic departure from its death metal origins, and earned Entombed the “death ‘n’ roll” label by critics. Since then, the band has continued to experiment with that style and has influenced other bands such as Gorefest and Six Feet Under to experiment with the style as well.

Black ‘n’ roll is a more recently created subgenre than death ‘n’ roll, and wasn’t stylistically popular until the 2000s. Currently, two of the most successful bands of the subgenre are Kvelertak and Vreid, the latter of which is composed of the surviving musicians from the popular black metal band, Windir.

Death ‘n’ roll and black ‘n’ roll are subgenres that are still emerging, but are gaining sizable followings. Black ‘n’ roll in particular has recently gained some major attention as a subgenre due to the critical acclaim for Kvelertak’s second album, Meir. Both subgenres are much more popular in Europe than they are in the US, but hopefully in time that will soon change.