to the CORE

It has become abundantly clear that a relatively recent movement in metal has taken a huge chunk of the metal pie.  Today I will bet talking about Metalcore.

To be fair, I am still coming to terms with Metalcore.  Unlike Thrash, Power, Black, Death, or nu-metal, I find Metalcore the hardest to define or qualify.  I like a lot of it, and much I hate, but I have a harder time explaining why.  However, I find myself TRYING with it as a sub-genre, as it is clear that it will be around for awhile

More rambling, and videos after the break.

To be fair metalcore has been around since the mid 90’s in some form (see wikipedia for a better breakdown), but I became aware of it as a sub-genre in 2005.  I was living in a house with a couple of other guys, and we regularly shared what we were listening to.  One of my roommates brought me Underoath, Norma Jean, and Avenged Sevenfold in a row.  we were both metal heads, but he was clearly listening to stuff that I was not encountering in my travels (During this same time I offered In Flames, 3 inches of Blood, and the latest Judas Priest).

I was also working with youth at the time, and started to notice that the kids who listened to metal were listening to bands like those that my roommate had been promoting.  I knew something was up. Then I played Burnout Revenge, and the whole soundtrack for the game screamed Metalcore and post-hardcore.

Metalcore is, as far as I can surmise, an offshoot of Post-Hardcore (all you fugazi fans out there, throw your hands up).  In many ways it is a blend of Punk and Metal, but with some added elements.  Unlike traditional Hardcore, which was decidedly punk based (see: Black Flag, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat), Post-Hardcore has more of a true meld of punk and metal.  However, unlike Motorhead, who had the tone of metal but the speed and simplicity of punk, Post-Hardcore has the structure of punk, but with the complexity of metal. Nirvana had a lot of songs that would fall into this category.

Metalcore takes this one step further, taking decidedly metal music, and adding a more punk songstyle.  Furthermore, it takes the de-tuned riffs worked on by the nu-metal crowd and incorporates them too.  This can lead to really complex songs, which sound rather simple at first, but after a listen or two, reveal their complexity.  However what I have battled with is wanting to listen that second time to find those nuances.

OK, enough of me rambling, time for some examples.

First, what I see as a “pure” metalcore song “Rose of Sharyn” by Killswitch Engage.  It is a lovesong for a lost (probably dead) former girlfriend.  See if that comes through given the tone of the music.

You might ask yourself “how do I know if I am listening to a metalcore song?”  Well there are a few easy cues.  Is there a double kickdrum?  Are the lyrics primarily screamed?  can you discern a time signature? If your answers were yes, yes, and no, then you are probably listening to metalcore.

Black Dahlia Murder, Please demonstrate.

Metalcore has become large enough for two sub-sub-genres to form: Screamo, and Mathcore.

Mathcore has exceedingly weird time signatures, and usually lacks a common chorus structure. Side story, when I was in highschool, and everyone had a band for a half-an-hour, you would never cover Soundgarden because they would play in 7/16 time and have a guitar tuning that Satan had created.  Mathrock, starts with those requirements.

A Mathcore band which has made it fairly big is the Dillinger Escape Plan.  Seriously, try and imagine making sheet music for this stuff. Even the video can’t keep up.

Screamo takes the cues of Metalcore, and adds a distinctive melody, and often a more melodious singing component.  Note that as soon as a band is labled “screamo” that they are instantly disowned by the screamo community.  Kind of like when Green Day got big and the punk community threw them away.

A good example of Screamo can be seen in Underoath.

It should be noted that Screamo has arguably made the biggest inroads into pop music, allowing bands like My chemical Romance to have HUGE hits like this one.

~ by zombinate on October 28, 2008.