Grindcore

Grindcore is a music genre that was initially created by an extreme hybrid of hardcore punk and thrash metal, but is stylistically more closely related to death metal and crust punk, genres that came into existence around the same time. Grindcore is characterized by heavily distorted, often down-tuned, guitars, blastbeats, punk influenced drumming, and a vocal style consisting of growls and higher pitched shouting and screaming similar to that of hardcore punk or black metal. Lyrical concepts range from social and political issues to gore and horror.

Historical roots and influences

The genre was pioneered during the early 1980s in the United Kingdom, Netherlands and Brazil by bands such as Sore Throat, Napalm Death, Agathocles and Brazilian Brigada Do Ódio. In the United States the genre has its roots with proto-grindcore and hardcore punk bands such as Siege, DRI, Cyanamid, Deep Wound, and Repulsion.

Many of the early bands, such as Napalm Death, DRI, S.O.B., and Siege were seen by their contemporaries as part of the anarcho-punk and hardcore punk scenes, as many anarcho-punk and peace punk bands in England and hardcore bands in the United States had already incorporated elements of metal into their music.

Many of these early bands were, and still are, obscure.

For instance, the hardcore punk band Siege only released a DIY demo entitled Drop Dead, and Repulsion was posthumously exposed to the world in 1989 through the album Horrified which was released in Europe. Grindcore is characterized by its intense blast-beat drumming, grinding guitars (hence the name), brutal grunted vocals, and very short songs (the Napalm Death song "You Suffer" is listed as the shortest song ever by the Guinness Book of Records, clocking in at just over 1 second long; however, others such as the Cripple Bastards on their demo 94 Flashback di Massacro, and Agoraphobic Nosebleed on their 3" CD/10" LP Altered States of America have taken this aesthetic to even greater extremes). American grindcore band Anal Cunt, a project of Seth Putnam, has recorded an EP called 5643 Song EP which contains 5643 "songs" in less than 15 minutes, by way of creative multitracking and recording processes.

Subgenres

Grindcore has proven somewhat difficult to categorise. Some fans and musicians have a firm concept of genre and subgenre, but others reject such categorisation as limiting or useless.

There is often significant crossover from one category to another, and often the influence of non-metal/non-punk music is present.

• Powerviolence: Grindcore influenced hardcore.
• Goregrind: A form of grindcore characterized by pitchshifted vocals as well as gore and/or horror themes.
• Cybergrind: Cybergrind is a form of grindcore that, aside from the instruments used in ordinary grindcore, uses computer generated sounds and/or drum machines and other synthetic instruments.
• Deathgrind: Death metal with heavy grindcore influences, or vice versa.
• Noisegrind: Grindcore with an emphasis on speed and humor rather than musicianship.
• Pornogrind: Grindcore characterized by porn/sex related themes, vocals that range from pitchshifted growls to absurdly high pitched screams, and an emphasis on groove.

Crucial bands

• See also List of grindcore bands.

Crucial grindcore bands include: Agathocles, Anal Cunt, Brutal Truth, Carcass, Extreme Noise Terror, Fear of God, Gut, Impetigo, Napalm Death, Repulsion, Siege, S.O.B., and Terrorizer.

Bands that inspired and helped to define early grind include: Agonia, Anti-Cimex, CCM, Cryptic Slaughter, Discharge, Electro Hippies, Larm, and Unseen Terror.

See also

• Crossover thrash
• Death metal
• Crust punk
• Metalcore

External links

• Grindcore Milestones: A subjective history.
• Braindead Webzine
• interviews and reviews metallian