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Cultural origins | Mid-1980s, |
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Avant-garde metal (also known as avant-metal, experimental metal, art metal and experimetal) is a subgenre of heavy metal music loosely defined by use of experimentation and innovative, avant-garde elements, including non-standard and unconventional sounds, instruments, song structures, playing styles, and vocal techniques. Avant-garde metal is influenced by progressive rock and extreme metal, particularly death metal, and is closely related to progressive metal. Some local scenes include Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Boston, and Seattle in the United States, Oslo in Norway, and Tokyo in Japan.
"Avant-garde metal" is interchangeable with "experimental metal" [1] and "avant-metal", [2] [3] and may also refer to a separate genre of "atmospheric metal" or "post-metal", which was named in reference to post-rock. [4] Avant-garde metal is related to progressive metal, but avant-garde metal often has more experimentation, while progressive metal usually has a tighter focus on traditional metal instrumentation and higher levels of technical complexity. [5] Avant-garde metal also uses unusual sounds, breaks conventions, and often includes new elements.
The lyrics and visual presentation of the genre are eclectic as well. [5] According to Jeff Wagner in Mean Deviation , electronic percussion and drum machines see widespread use by avant-garde metal bands, along with female vocals and operatic elements, all of which he attributes to the influence of the band Celtic Frost. [6] The Canadian group Voivod also influenced future bands in the genre, pioneering technique such as robotic vocal effects, unusual time signatures, and fractured, dissonant, unorthodox guitar sounds. [6]
According to Ian Christe, avant-garde metal emerged from death metal as a number of musicians "abandoned the tightly wound structure of the music and experimented with abstractions of its founding elements". [7] Progressive rock has also been cited as an influence. [8] Some early examples are the King Crimson releases Larks' Tongues in Aspic and Red in 1973 and 1974 respectively, [2] [9] with the latter album's title track defining an "avant-metal style" that Robert Fripp would revisit years later. [9] Another early example is the 1976 Led Zeppelin album Presence . [10] Pioneers of avant-garde metal include Celtic Frost, [11] Gorguts, Boris, [12] Earth, [13] Helmet, [14] Mayhem, [15] Maudlin of the Well, [16] Neurosis, [17] Sunn O))), [18] Mr. Bungle, [19] Today Is the Day, and Voivod. [11]
In the late 1990s, Misanthropy Records emerged as a promoter of Norwegian avant-garde metal until it folded in 2000, [20] and, according to Jeff Wagner, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, a so-called "new wave of avant-garde metal" was spearheaded by The End Records. [20] Wagner states that "with the support of [Misanthropy and The End Records] and other specialty labels, metal's new avant-garde had arrived." [20] Some other record labels which promote avant-garde metal are Aurora Borealis, [21] The Flenser, [22] Holy Records, [23] Hydra Head Records, [24] Ipecac Recordings, [25] Napalm Records, [26] the Release Entertainment imprint of Relapse Records, [27] Seventh Rule Recordings, [28] and Southern Lord Records. [29] In the United States, local avant-garde metal scenes have emerged in the San Francisco Bay Area with bands such as Giant Squid, Grayceon, and Ludicra, [30] and in Boston, with bands such as Isis, Kayo Dot, and Maudlin of the Well. [31] Some regional scenes that developed in the mid-1990s included the cities of Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Oslo. [12]
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, featuring double kick and blast beat techniques; minor keys or atonality; abrupt tempo, key, and time signature changes; and chromatic chord progressions. The lyrical themes of death metal may include slasher film-style violence, political conflict, religion, nature, philosophy, true crime and science fiction.
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal bands developed a thick, monumental sound characterized by distorted guitars, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats and loudness.
Robert Fripp is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session musician and collaborator, notably with David Bowie, Blondie, Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, Daryl Hall, The Roches, Talking Heads, and David Sylvian. He also composed the startup sound of Windows Vista operating system, in collaboration with Tucker Martine and Steve Ball. His discography includes contributions to over 700 official releases.
Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles. Formed in 1990, the group consists of vocalist Maynard James Keenan, guitarist Adam Jones, drummer Danny Carey and bassist Justin Chancellor, the latter of whom replaced founding member Paul D'Amour in 1995. Tool has won four Grammy Awards, performed worldwide tours, and produced albums topping the charts in several countries.
Progressive rock is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom, United States, and Germany through the late 1960s and early 1970s. Initially termed "progressive pop", the style was an emergence of psychedelic bands who abandoned standard pop traditions in favour of instrumentation and compositional techniques more frequently associated with jazz, folk, or classical music. Additional elements contributed to its "progressive" label: lyrics were more poetic, technology was harnessed for new sounds, music approached the condition of "art", and the studio, rather than the stage, became the focus of musical activity, which often involved creating music for listening rather than dancing.
Progressive metal is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral or "pseudo-classical" compositions of the latter.
Voivod is a Canadian heavy metal band from Jonquière, Quebec. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Denis "Snake" Bélanger, guitarist Denis "Piggy" D'Amour, drummer Michel "Away" Langevin and bassist Jean-Yves "Blacky" Thériault. The band has had numerous members changes throughout its 42-year career, with Langevin as the only consistent member. Their current line-up includes Langevin, Bélanger, Daniel "Chewy" Mongrain (guitar) and Dominic "Rocky" Laroche (bass).
A number of heavy metal genres have developed since the emergence of heavy metal during the late 1960s and early 1970s. At times, heavy metal genres may overlap or are difficult to distinguish, but they can be identified by a number of traits. They may differ in terms of instrumentation, tempo, song structure, vocal style, lyrics, guitar playing style, drumming style, and so on.
Larks' Tongues in Aspic is the fifth studio album by the English progressive rock group King Crimson, released on 23 March 1973 through Island Records in the UK and Atlantic Records in the United States and Canada. This album is the debut of King Crimson's third incarnation, featuring co-founder and guitarist Robert Fripp along with four new members: bass guitarist and vocalist John Wetton, violinist and keyboardist David Cross, percussionist Jamie Muir, and drummer Bill Bruford. It is a key album in the band's evolution, drawing on Eastern European classical music and European free improvisation as central influences.
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual transgression".
Neurosis is an American avant-garde metal band from Oakland, California. It was formed in 1985 by guitarist Scott Kelly, bassist Dave Edwardson, and drummer Jason Roeder, initially as a hardcore punk band. Chad Salter joined as a second guitarist and appeared on the band's 1987 debut Pain of Mind and then Steve Von Till replaced him in 1989. The following year, the lineup further expanded to include a keyboardist and a visual artist. Beginning with their third album Souls at Zero (1992), Neurosis transformed their hardcore sound by incorporating diverse influences including doom metal and industrial music, becoming a major force in the emergence of the post-metal and sludge metal genres.
Red is the seventh studio album by English progressive rock band King Crimson. It was released in October 1974 through Island Records in the United Kingdom and Atlantic Records in North America and Japan. The album was recorded at Olympic Studios in London in July and August 1974, and produced by the band themselves. The track "Providence" was a free improvisation recorded at their 30 June 1974 concert at the Palace Theater in the city of the same name. Parts of some of the pieces were conceived during previous improvisations performed by the band live. "Starless" was originally considered for their previous album, Starless and Bible Black (1974), but was deemed incomplete at the time. The lengthy version included on this album was refined and performed during concerts throughout 1974.
Kayo Dot is an American avant-garde metal band. Formed in 2003 by Toby Driver after the break-up of Maudlin of the Well, they released their debut album Choirs of the Eye on John Zorn's Tzadik Records that same year. Since then, Kayo Dot's lineup has drastically changed over the years. Toby Driver is the only founding member of the band still remaining, save for frequent lyrical contributions from former motW member Jason Byron. Up until 2011, the lineup was constantly shifting, and Kayo Dot's sound consistently changed over the years, featuring a wide variety of instrumentation including guitar, drums, bass, violin, saxophone, vibraphone, synthesizers, clarinets and flutes. Underground metal audiences warmly received the group upon its early existence, with the 2003 album Choirs of the Eye and the 2006 album Dowsing Anemone with Copper Tongue both becoming underground hits in the progressive metal scene.
Kekal is a heavy metal and electronic music band formed in 1995 in Jakarta, Indonesia. According to AllMusic, Kekal was one of the first heavy metal bands from Indonesia to make international inroads, and according to sociologist of heavy metal, Keith Kahn-Harris, was one of the few extreme metal bands from Southeast Asia to ever make more than a minimal impression on the global scene. Founded by two musicians known simply Yeris and Newbabe, the band underwent some shifts in lineup in its early years, but emerged with a consistent lineup of three key-members, guitarist/vocalist Jeff Arwadi, bassist Azhar Levi Sianturi, and guitarist Leo Setiawan. Frequently labeled as black metal, progressive metal, and avant-garde metal, Kekal plays a very diverse range of music styles within the frame of metal and rock, incorporating many other music genres such as ambient, electronic, jazz fusion, and progressive rock. Over the course of its career, Kekal has transitioned from a heavy metal-based style to a more experimental and electronic sound.
"Larks' Tongues in Aspic" is a musical suite by the English progressive rock band King Crimson. Spanning thirty years and four albums, the series comprises five parts, all of which carry unifying musical motifs. Parts I and II were released as the introductory and final tracks on King Crimson's 1973 album of the same name, part III was featured on their 1984 album Three of a Perfect Pair, part IV appeared on 2000's The Construkction of Light, and the final part, "Level Five", was included on the 2003 album The Power to Believe. Despite breaking the naming convention, Robert Fripp, King Crimson founder and only constant contributor to the suite, insists that "Level Five" is part of the pentalogy.
Acidity is the fifth album by Indonesian avant-garde metal band Kekal. It was recorded in celebration of the band's tenth anniversary, and was an official reunion album for the band. It marked the return of guitarist Leo Setiawan to the band, and includes the vocal talents of founding member Newbabe. The album was released following the band's successful 2004 European mini-tour, and a promotional concert and release party was held for the album on 13 March 2005 in Indonesia. It was considered by many to be the band's strongest work to date, and is one of four albums available for free download from the band on its website.
Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, with some of the genre's distinguishing characteristics being improvisational performances, avant-garde influences, odd instrumentation, opaque lyrics, unorthodox structures and rhythms, and an underlying rejection of commercial aspirations.
Coffins on Io is the seventh studio album by American avant-garde metal band Kayo Dot, released in the UK on August 14, 2014 and in the US on October 13 through experimental metal label The Flenser. It is a follow-up to 2013's Hubardo. It's the first album from Kayo Dot to not be self-released since 2012's Gamma Knife. Coffins on Io marks a notable change in sound. It combines influences of Type O Negative, The Sisters of Mercy, Peter Gabriel, dark wave and other 80s electronic musicians. It combines aspects of electronic music, jazz fusion, post-punk, gothic rock and new wave. It was produced by Toby Driver.
...later turned up on the 1973 avant-metal killer Larks' Tongues in Aspic.
Sol Niger Within, a 1997 avant-metal mindbender by Meshuggah guitarist Fredrik Thordendal that features bursts of piercing saxophone
Still, the best parts of Ænima come when Tool just let the music rip and dip with the broiling, avant-metal ferocity of Led Zeppelin's Presence.
Early arrivals were able to see experimental metal pioneers Helmet as well as retro punks the Casualties.
Their metal-based drone experiments have proved groundbreaking and hugely influential for an entire new generation of musicians practicing the art of avant-garde metal, drone, post rock and psychedelia.
Distributed by experimental metal label Aurora Borealis, the release earned Krlic a recording deal with the London-based company.
...said co-owner Mark Thompson, who also co-founded and runs the experimental-metal label Hydra Head Records.
We'd like to give a shout out to Seventh Rule and the striking, experimental metal acts coming from this label