Getting to Know the Metal Music Genre🎵🎧🎶

🎶 A Brief History of Metal Music

The full name of metal music is "heavy metal," though it is often simply referred to as metal. By exploring the music of British and American hard rock bands, we arrive at metal music. Metal music emerged and was introduced in the late 1960s and the 1970s. Some believe that metal was inspired by blues rock and psychedelic rock, and after some transformations—such as long electric guitar solos and heavy rhythms—it evolved into metal. As metal developed, it reached its peak in the 1970s and 1980s, gaining many fans across the globe.

🎶 Pioneering Bands of the Metal or Heavy Metal Genre

• Black Sabbath

• Led Zeppelin

• Deep Purple

• Judas Priest

  

🎶 Main Features of the Metal Genre

• Use of heavy and aggressive electric guitar rhythms

• Some subgenres, such as thrash metal, death metal, or speed metal, are extremely fast-paced

• Use of melodic guitar solos (though this feature has been omitted in some subgenres like nu-metal)

• Incorporation of harmonies from classical music and blues

• Use of screeching or screaming vocals

🎶 The Difference Between Rock and Metal

When rock music first emerged, it garnered strong interest from the youth—those who had grown up during World War II and had experienced hardship and confusion.

Thus, the first people drawn to rock were these young individuals, many of whom went on to become pioneers of rock music themselves. Over time, rock split into many subgenres, one of which was metal. Eventually, metal branched out into its own genre with various subgenres. Metal originated from hard rock. After hard rock developed in the UK in the late 1960s and early 1970s, metal entered the scene. Like hard rock, metal used heavier chords and lyrical themes that were dreamy or frightening, often expressing dissent against the social conditions of the time. Metal guitarists are typically known for their speed, innovation, and unique styles compared to those in other genres. In metal, the guitar holds a central place among the instruments.

🎶 A Simple Comparison Between Rock and Metal

• In metal, vocals are often either very high-pitched (screams) or very low (harsh), while this is not the case in rock.

• The rhythm in many metal subgenres is much faster than in rock, and metal drumming typically uses double bass drums.

• Distorted electric guitar sounds are louder and more prominent in metal than in rock.

• Rock is considered the parent genre, and metal, like indie, alternative, punk, and grunge, is one of its major subgenres.

• There’s also a bridge between rock and metal: on the rock side, it’s called hard rock; on the metal side, it’s known as heavy metal.