| Groove metal | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Neo-thrash, post-thrash, power groove[1] |
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Late 1980s–early 1990s,New Orleans,New York City,Texas, U.S. |
| Derivative forms | |
| Local scenes | |
| New Orleans | |
| Other topics | |
Groove metal (also known asneo-thrash orpost-thrash[1]) is a subgenre ofheavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre is primarily derived fromthrash metal, but played in slower tempos, and making use of rhythmic guitar parts. It was pioneered in the late 1980s by groups likeExhorder,Prong andBad Brains, and then popularized by the commercial success ofPantera,White Zombie,Machine Head andSepultura. The genre went on to be influential in the development of thenew wave of American heavy metal,nu metal andmetalcore, and continued to gain traction in the 2000s withLamb of God,DevilDriver andFive Finger Death Punch, and 2010s withKiller Be Killed andBad Wolves.
Groove metal makes use of elements ofthrash metal, but plays them in a slower tempo, making use of bouncy, unconventional rhythms.[2]Loudwire stated that "Unlike so many other styles of metal, groove metal is one that doesn't have rigid boundaries and incorporatesindustrial,death metal,nu-metal,hardcore and a lot more."[3] Music journalistGary Graff also noted the influence of hardcore punk as integral to groove metal.[4]
In their bookHellraisers: A Complete Visual History of Heavy Metal Mayhem, journalistsAxl Rosenberg andChristopher Krovatin traced the origins of groove metal to New Orleans'Exhorder and New York'sProng.[5] Exhorder, formed in 1985, recorded their first demo in the summer of 1986,[6] playing a style that was influencedhardcore punk and metal, as well asjazz,funk,blues and the music ofMardi Gras.[7] The band were immediately influential in the New Orleans metal scene, with pioneeringsludge metal bandsEyehategod,Soilent Green andCrowbar all playing some of their earliest live performances in support of them.[6] Prong, on the other hand, originated from theNew York hardcore scene, originally playingcrossover thrash, before slowing their tempos and incorporating heavier percussion on their second albumBeg to Differ (1990).[8]VH1 described the band as having "existed outside of categorical restriction", by having a sound rooted in both punk and metal, while also experimenting with elements ofindustrial music.[9] A number of writers have also noted theBad Brains's post-1987 music, particularlyQuickness (1989), as helping to pioneer the genre.[10][11]
White Zombie, formed in 1985, playing music influenced by thenoise rock ofHoneymoon Killers,Swans andPussy Galore, 1970s rock ofVan Halen,Kiss andAC/DC, as well asBlack Sabbath,the Cramps andgothic rock. Their early career was spent playing in the New York City noise rock scene, before being approached by the members of theCro-Mags andBiohazard to instead begin playing in the New York hardcore scene.[12] During this time, some New York hardcore bands were embracing metal influence and grooves, to the extent that bands includingSick of It All andLeeway self-identified as "Jackson Heights groove metal".[13] White Zombie began leaning into the nascent sound of groove metal on their second albumMake Them Die Slowly (1989).[14] The band achieved mainstream success in the mid-1990s, withLa Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One (1992) peaking at number 2 on theHeatseekers Albums chart in 1993[15] and was certified double-platinum by the RIAA in July 1998.[16] White Zombie's music videos were featured onBeavis and Butt-Head, helping to increase the band's sales.[17] Their 1995 follow-upAstro Creep: 2000 peaked at number 6 on theBillboard 200[18] and sold 104,000 copies in its first week of release;[19] it was certified double-platinum by the RIAA.[20] White Zombie's song "More Human than Human" achieved mainstream success in 1995, peaking at number 53 onBillboard'sRadio Songs chart,[21] number 7 on theAlternative Songs chart,[22] and number 10 on theMainstream Rock Songs chart.[23] The song was played frequently onMTV and won the Best Metal/Hard Rock Video award at the1995 MTV Video Music Awards.[24]
Venice crossover thrash bandExcel's second albumThe Joke's on You (1989) took a more groove-driven direction.[25]Far Out cited the introduction to the track "Tapping into the Emotional Void" as an early example of groove metal.[26]
Texas heavy metal bandPantera's 1990 albumCowboys from Hell is often considered the album that codified and popularized groove metal.[27] They continued releasing influential albums through the 1990s; the 1992 albumVulgar Display of Power featured an even heavier sound than its predecessor, while its follow-upFar Beyond Driven (1994) peaked at number 1 on theBillboard 200, selling 186,000 copies its first week of release.[28][29]
Thrash pioneersMetallica'sBlack Album (1991) included multiple groove metal tracks, including "Sad but True"[30] and "The Struggle Within".[31] Brazilian bandSepultura, previously established as havingdeathrash sound, released their fifth studio albumChaos A.D. in 1993, which saw the band slow their tempos and embrace the influence of New York hardcore acts like the Cro-Mags,Agnostic Front andSick of It All.[32]Sound of the Beast authorIan Christe creditedChaos A.D. with helping to developing groove metal and as being widely influential.[33] Machine Head released their debut albumBurn My Eyes in 1994. The album helped the band achieve underground success and sold over 145,000 copies.[34]
Following the widespread success of Pantera, White Zombie and Machine Head, the genre expanded with notable subsequent groups includingSkinlab,Pissing Razors,Grip Inc.,Merauder,Pro-Pain,GZR, andStuck Mojo.[9] Additionally, several veteran thrash bands began to change their sound in favour of groove metal. Foremost among this trend were the releases ofSacred Reich'sIndependent (1993),[35]Overkill'sI Hear Black (1993),[36]Coroner'sGrin (1993),[37]Testament'sLow (1994),[38]Forbidden'sDistortion (1994),[39]Kreator'sCause for Conflict (1995),[40] and much ofAnnihilator's 1990s output,[41] as well asAnthrax's albums from theJohn Bush-era (1992–2005).[42][43][44]
In the 2000s, a second wave of groove metal bands emerged, includingDamageplan,Lamb of God,Chimaira andDevilDriver.[2] Damageplan was founded in 2003 by the Abbott brothers,Dimebag Darrell andVinnie Paul, just before Pantera broke up. They released one album,New Found Power, in the following year. The band broke up in December 2004, after guitarist Dimebag Darrellwas shot dead at a live performance.[45] One of the most commercially successful groove metal groups during this time wasFive Finger Death Punch, who formed in 2005 and garnered extensive chart positions and album certifications of gold and platinum in the United States.[46] Vinnie Paul's post-Damageplan bandHellyeah, which was formed in 2006, also saw commercial success.[47] The 2010s saw the formation ofKiller Be Killed[2] andBad Wolves.[48]Malevolence's third studio albumMalicious Intent (2022), saw widespread success and included the influence of groove metal andsludge metal intobeatdown hardcore andmetalcore.[49]Metal Hammer cited them as a definitive groove metal act.[50]
The groove metal genre was a driving force in theNew Wave of American Heavy Metal movement, which began in the 1990s. Additionally, it influenced the development and success ofnu metal andmetalcore, two of the most commercially successful subsequent metal genres.[2]VH1 called groove metal "a musical purgatory that bridged the gap between classic thrash-y heavy metal and angst-y, down-tuned modern metal of the 21st century."[9]
Pantera's second major-label release found the band going further into the creation of what the Texans dubbed "groove metal," an alloy of thrash and hardcore punk but with swagger.
Perhaps the first true groove metal bands were New Orleans's Exhorder, whose fuzzy guitar tone was uniquely sexy; and New York City's Prong, whose weirdo conceptual thrash went more for kinetic impact than grandiosity. However, groove metal's real claims to fame are two of metal's most important bands regardless of genre.
The Bad Brains would split up shortly after releasing Rock for Light, a 1983 LP produced by new wave maestro Ric Ocasek, but they reformed in 1987 as a pioneering groove-metal outfit.
We began to write heavier songs groove songs, which we referred to as "Jackson Heights groove metal", because between us and Leeway and a few other bands, that's where it came from
[...]it's not surprising that the name of the game here is groove metal
