| Deathcore | |
|---|---|
 Carnifex during a 2017 performance | |
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Late 1990s – early 2000s, North America |
| Other topics | |
| List of bands,nu metalcore,slam death metal | |
Deathcore is anextreme metal subgenre that combinesdeath metal withmetalcore.[1][2][3][4] The genre consists of death metalguitar riffs,blast beats, and metalcorebreakdowns.[5] While there are some precursors to the concept of death metal fused with metalcore and hardcore elements seen in the 1990s, deathcore as a distinct genre emerged in the early 2000s and gained prominence beginning in the mid-2000s.
Some of the genre's earliest examples includeAntagony,Despised Icon, andthe Red Chord. Deathcore's expansion in the mid-2000s saw bands likeAll Shall Perish,Through the Eyes of the Dead,Bring Me the Horizon,Suicide Silence,Carnifex,Job for a Cowboy,Chelsea Grin andWhitechapel taking off. In the 2010s, deathcore bands began experimenting with an eclectic selection of other genres.
The genre has received criticism from longtimefans of heavy metal music, usually for its frequent use of breakdowns which are often associated withhardcore. Some musicians classified as deathcore have rejected the label.
Compared tometalcore, the fulcrum of deathcore is "weight and volume".[6] A fusion genre, deathcore combinesdeath metal characteristics such asblast beats, down-tuned guitars,tremolo picking, andgrowled vocals with metalcore characteristics such asbreakdowns, melodic riffs and high-pitched screamed vocals.[citation needed] The genre is usually defined by breakdowns and death metal riffs or metalcore riffs played in the usual death metal tuning.[5][7] Like in otherextreme metal fusion genres, deathcore guitarists down-tune their guitars to give their music a heavier sound. Deathcore bands may also employguitar solos as well.[8][9][10][11][12]
Lowgrowls and shriekedscreams are common types of vocals in deathcore.[5][13] Some other techniques that deathcore vocalists have used include what is known aspig squeals.[14][15][16][17][18] Some lyrical themes common in deathcore songs includeantireligion,psychological pain andbody horror.[19]
Deathcore has been criticized, especially by longtime fans of otherheavy metal subgenres, often because of its fusion ofdeath metal withmetalcore and use ofbreakdowns.[17][18][20][21] Music journalist T Coles observed, "Whilst kids were eating this up, the old guard saw it as a further death blow. The established traditions were being tinkered with, old rules were being broken, and, having already lost out toSlipknot, it was now seeing its ideas taken and warped by a younger generation that was reaping the financial benefits."[22] They also state that an oversaturation of artists within the scene during the 2010s "[homogenized]" the genre.[23]
Some deathcore musicians have rejected the label "deathcore". In an interview with vocalist Vincent Bennett ofThe Acacia Strain about the deathcore label, he said "Deathcore is the newnu-metal. [...] It sucks. And if anyone calls us 'deathcore' then I might do something very bad to them",[24] but he would later express ambivalence towards the association, stating "sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't".[25]Guitarist Justin Longshore fromThrough the Eyes of the Dead said, "You know, I really hate that term. I know we've been labeled as that but I think there's so much more to our music than just a mixture of death metal and hardcore even though we incorporate those elements in our music. To me it seems that is just the new and fresh thing that kids are following."[26]
In November 2013,Terrorizer wrote, "The term 'deathcore' is usually seen as a dirty word in metal circles" while interviewing vocalist Bryce Lucien of the Texas-based metal band Seeker. Lucien then stated:[27]
Much like what became of metalcore in the mid-2000s, deathcore is an often maligned term that can instantly diminish a bands credibility. What once conjured images of ridiculously brutal, unapologetically heavy bands likeIon Dissonance andThe Red Chord now brings to mind bands full of twenty-year-olds sporting throat tattoos, matching black T-shirts, and trying desperately hard to look tough while they jump in sync onstage.
In contrast, some musicians are less negative towards being described as deathcore. Scott Lewis of the San Diego–based deathcore bandCarnifex stated, "We're not one of those bands trying to escape the banner of deathcore. I know a lot of bands try and act like they have a big problem with that, but if you listen to their music, they are very 'deathcore.' I know that there is a lot of resentment towards deathcore and kind of younger bands."[28] In a 2012 interview, formerChelsea Grin guitarist Jake Harmond said, "Everyone likes to flap their jaw and voice their own opinion how 'embarrassing' it is to be in a band that can be labeled 'deathcore,' but honestly we have never given a fuck".[29]
A variety of deathcore bands experimented with other genres into their music as influence and time progressed.Emmure has been credited to be heavily influenced bynu metal[30] and was described as "the newLimp Bizkit".[31] Suicide Silence's 2011 albumThe Black Crown is a deathcore album with some nu metal influences.[32] Other examples of nu metal-inspired deathcore bands includeHere Comes the Kraken's later material.[32] The early 2010s saw bands fusing the genre with influences fromdjent andprogressive metal, which began to achieve underground popularity. Examples of the aforementioned includeVeil of Maya,[33][34]Born of Osiris,[35][36] andAfter the Burial.[37] Some bands, such asMake Them Suffer,Lorna Shore andWinds of Plague, mix deathcore withsymphonic/classical elements.[38][39][40][41] French bandBetraying the Martyrs has been described as "[the] punishing brutality of deathcore with melodic flourishes pulled from symphonic and progressive metal, giving it a theatricality that feels distinctly European."[42]
The term "deathcore" has had a number of uses in various metal/hardcore scenes far before it was considered an established or recognized genre, with Dom Lawson ofMetal Hammer writing: "blending death metal with hardcore was by no means a new thing whenDespised Icon emerged."[43] The earliest known use of "deathcore" as a word was by New York bandN.Y.C. Mayhem as a self-description for their merger ofhardcore punk andthrash metal.[44] In 1996, Nick Terry ofTerrorizer magazine publicized: "We're probably going to settle on the termdeathcore to describe the likes ofEarth Crisis (as well as the moreNYHC-ish but still as deathlyMerauder)."[45]Embrace the Eternal (1998) byEmbodyment,Yesterday Is Time Killed (1999) byEighteen Visions, andRain in Endless Fall (1999) byPrayer for Cleansing are early examples of albums that feature a metalcore sound combined with death metal influences.[46][47][48] In 2019, music site The New Fury credited Embodyment as "[pioneers] of the deathcore genre" due to their performance onEmbrace the Eternal.[49][50]
Decibel magazine wrote that death metal bandSuffocation were one of the main inspirations for the genre's emergence, stating "One of Suffocation's trademarks, breakdowns, has spawned an entire metal subgenre: deathcore."[51] Suffocation bassist Derek Boyer says Suffocation "were influenced by many early metal and hardcore bands".[43] Lawson cites death metal bands likeDying Fetus, Suffocation, andInternal Bleeding as being influential on deathcore due to their use of "crushing, mid-paced grooves and breakdowns".[43]
Despite a few earlier metalcore/death metal hybridizations,Antagony[52][53] and Despised Icon are considered to be the true pioneers of deathcore,[54][55] though both bands have rejected the label.[53][56] Antagony founder and frontmanNick Vasallo is credited as being the "father of deathcore" due to his work in the band.[57]The Red Chord is referenced as an early influential source for the genre due to their hybridization of metalcore and death metal sounds, among other genres.[58] New Hampshire bandDeadwater Drowning and Californian groupAll Shall Perish are also seen as notable early entries of the genre. Deadwater Drowning's2003 EP was remarked as "basically the blueprint for every current deathcore band out today,"[59] while All Shall Perish's debut albumHate, Malice, Revenge (2003) "never got tied down to [simply] death metal or metalcore."[60] Music journalist T Coles said, "in a similar fashion to their grindcore ancestors, cultural barriers melted away as kids with earnest interests in various heavy sounds melded ideas together [...] they were earnestly trying to be as ruthlessly heavy as possible, taking elements from everything they liked and pushing them as hard as they could, just as bands [in the 1990s], and a decade before that, had done."[61]
In the mid 2000s, deathcore spiked in popularity shortly afterJob for a Cowboy released their EPDoom in 2005, which is heavily credited as one of deathcore's most significant and influential releases for the genre.[62] The genre saw an increase in popularity even further when English bandBring Me the Horizon released their deathcore debut full-lengthCount Your Blessings in 2006. The band were presented the2006 Kerrang! Award for "Best British Newcomer" shortly after the album's release,[63] though the band abandoned the genre soon thereafter.[64]
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San Diego nativesCarnifex witnessed success with their first albumDead in My Arms (2007), selling 5,000 copies with little publicity. On top of their non-stop touring, the band's methodical songwriting resulted in Carnifex quickly getting signed to labelVictory Records.[65]
Suicide Silence'sNo Time to Bleed (2009) peaked at number 32 on theBillboard 200, number 12 on theRock Albums Chart and number 6 on theHard Rock Albums Chart,[66] while their albumThe Black Crown peaked at number 28 on theBillboard 200, number 7 on the Rock Albums Chart and number 3 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart.[66]Whitechapel albumThis Is Exile sold 5,900 in copies, which made it enter theBillboard 200 chart at position 118.[67] Their third albumA New Era of Corruption sold about 10,600 copies in the United States in its first week of being released and peaked at position number 43 on theBillboard 200 chart.[68] Theirself-titled album peaked at number 65 on theCanadian Albums Chart[69] and also at number 47 on theBillboard 200.[70]
In the late 2000s, deathcore groups began to embrace elements ofnu metal, with Whitechapel and Suicide Silence making use of a "heavier and more groove-driven sound than their predecessors and increasingly bordered nu-metal",[71] andEmmure,Winds of Plague andthe Acacia Strain embracing its urban, black aesthetics.[72] As early as 2011, publications includingMetalSucks had begun to use the term "nu-deathcore" to refer to groups that hybridized the two such as Emmure, Suicide Silence,Here Comes the Kraken,Upon a Burning Body andGorelord.[73] This wave led Japanese bandDir En Grey to return to their nu metal influence sound while also embracing deathcore on songs such as "Different Sense".[74]
Australian deathcore bandThy Art Is Murder debuted at number 35 on theARIA Charts with their albumHate (2012),[75] making them the first extreme metal band to ever reach the Top 40 of this chart.[76]
In the 2020s, deathcore experienced a resurgence in popularity—especially on platforms like YouTube andTikTok, with bands likeFit for an Autopsy,Ingested,Paleface Swiss andAngelMaker bringing somewhat of a revived recognition to the genre. Lorna Shore, in particular, went viral with their 2021 song "To the Hellfire".[77][78] Recent bands introduced more symphonic and progressive elements to the genre while maintaining its traditional heaviness.[79] Russian deathcore groupSlaughter to Prevail reportedly reached over 3.5 million streams on music services for their song "Hell" (2015); the band also performed a line of sold-out shows inChina, which made the group the only foreign metal band to perform a sold-out concert in the country in all of 2020.[80][81]
Deathcore -- the type of noisy, caustic, abrasive mixture of metalcore and death metal thatChelsea Grin offer on their first full-length album,Desolation of Eden -- is bound to annoy a lot of parents, which is exactly the point."
In comparison to other bands from the time, say Mastodon, Trivium or KillSwitch Engage, deathcore was focused on weight and volume."
Despite the aesthetic changes, deathcore bands were singing about the same things: Railing against religion in Job for a Cowboy's Reduced to More Filth, mental turmoil in Carnifex's The Diseased and the Poisoned and body horror in Suicide Silence's Eyes Sewn Shut.
I like this band OK, but I think it's really funny how when they first came out everybody was like "WTF this band sucks they are posers/not real death metal!!!" Then they put out their second album, which was basically generic late-90s death metal like any of the 8962323 jillion bands who ripped off Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation at the time, and then everybody was all "I guess they are OK this record is pretty sweet."
As history could have forseen, deathcore's rapid growth could not be sustained forever. By the beginning of the 2010s, the genre had swollen drastically, homogenizing the sound.
One of Suffocation's trademarks, breakdowns, has spawned an entire metal subgenre: deathcore
ALL SHALL PERISH never got tied down to death metal or metalcore, they simply have become metal that breaks down genres and gets EVERYONE moving.
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