Extreme metal

Updated on Oct 20, 2023

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Stylistic origins Heavy metal
Cultural origins 1980s, United States and Europe Typical instruments Electric guitarbass guitardrumsvocals Derivative forms Avant-garde metalgothic metalgroove metalneoclassical metalpower metal

Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal and visual transgression". The term usually refers to a more abrasive, harsher, underground, non-commercialized style or sound associated with the speed metal, thrash metal, death metal, black metal and doom metal genres. With the exception of doom metal, all of these genres are characterized by fast tempos, attesting to their roots in hardcore punk, which has also fused with extreme metal in the forms of crossover thrash, crust punk, grindcore, sludge metal and metalcore. Though many extreme sub-styles are not very well known to mainstream music fans, extreme metal has influenced an array of musical performers inside and outside of heavy metal.

Definitions

"Extreme" can be meant to describe any of the following musical elements: instrumentation (whether it is intended to be faster, more aggressive, abrasive or "heavier" than other metal styles), lyrics (dealing with darker, more sensational topics and themes), vocals (which often use guttural, harsh or abrasive singing), or appearance and stage demeanor (using corpse paint, Satanic or occult imagery). The "extreme" label is most commonly applied to bands whose music is extreme; for example, few would consider Kiss or Alice Cooper to be extreme metal, though they could be considered to employ extreme elements in their appearance and stage demeanor for their time.

"Extreme metal's sonic excess is characterized by high levels of distortion (also in the vocals – grunting or screaming), less focus on guitar solos and melody, emphasis on technical control, and fast tempos (at times, more than 200 beats per minute). Its thematic transgression can be found in more overt and/or serious references to Satanism and the darker aspects of human existence that are considered out of bounds or distasteful, such as death, suicide and war." "Visual transgression [can include] ... medieval weaponry [and] bloody/horrific artwork."

According to ethnographer Keith Kahn-Harris, the defining characteristics of extreme metal can all be regarded as clearly transgressive: the "extreme" traits noted above are all intended to violate or transgress given cultural, artistic, social or aesthetic boundaries.

Given the vagueness of existing definitions and considering the limitations such definitions have, there are many artists for whom the usage of the term "extreme metal" is a subject of debate. However, Kahn-Harris also notes that many musicians and fans see such debates over style and genre as useless and unnecessary, or at least as given undue attention.