Melodic death metal
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Melodic death metal (often referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal. It contains more melodic guitar riffs and solos, which are sometimes acoustic, and also occasional 'clean' singing as opposed to traditional death grunt vocals. The song structures are generally more progressive, using diverse themes throughout the song. Death and Morbid Angel, often considered the "godfathers" of death metal, are primary influences on the genre, and its progenitors include At the Gates and Carcass, with the release of their Heartwork album. Sentenced is also often credited with creating the first melodeath album with the release of North From Here. Some credit In Flames as the band which popularised the sub-genre. Melodic death metal, though from the same geographic area as black metal, rarely speaks of Satanism or the downfall of Christianity, but has more poetic themes, which vary greatly. Traditionally, lyrics deal with more Expressionist themes.
One extremely important piece of the melodic death jigsaw puzzle is the Gothenburg style, named after the city from which it originated. It is not certain what band originally started the Gothenburg sound, but it is widely accepted that In Flames, At the Gates, and Dark Tranquillity are the three major popularizers of the style, and some of the only widely known bands to practice it.
It was originally thought that nearly all melodic death metal bands are from the Scandinavian and Northern European regions, especially from Sweden and Finland, however with the notable exceptions of both Beyond Shadows and Exhalted, it seems that the North American state of New York also has some form of this sound.
Notable bands
- Amon Amarth
- Arch Enemy
- At The Gates
- Atrocity
- Behind the Scenery
- Beyond Shadows
- Callenish Circle
- Carcass (Heartwork and Swansong albums)
- Children Of Bodom
- Ceremonial Oath
- Dark Tranquillity
- Darkane
- Detonation
- Diablo
- Edge of Sanity
- Enforsaken
- Enter my Silence
- Entombed
- Eternal Tears of Sorrow (All albums but Sinner's Serenade)
- Exhalted
- Hypocrisy
- In Flames (first 5/6 albums)
- Insomnium
- Kalmah (Most Noticeable on The Black Waltz Album)
- Mercenary
- MoonFall
- Mors Principium Est
- Nightrage
- Norther
- Noumena
- Night In Gales
- Omnium Gatherum
- Opeth
- Scar Symmetry
- Sentenced (early albums)
- Skyfire
- Soilwork
- Solar Dawn
- Suidakra
- The Duskfall
- Unanimated
- Wintersun
See also
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