Grindcore is an extreme fusion genre of heavy metal and hardcore punk that originated in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from abrasive-sounding musical styles, such as thrashcore, crust punk, hardcore punk, extreme metal, and industrial. Grindcore is considered a more noise-filled style of hardcore punk while using hardcore's trademark characteristics such as heavily distorted, down-tuned guitars, grinding overdriven bass, high-speed tempo, blast beats, and vocals which consist of growls, shouts and high-pitched shrieks. Early groups such as England's Napalm Death are credited with laying the groundwork for the style. It is most prevalent today in North America and Europe, with popular contributors such as Brutal Truth and Nasum. Lyrical themes range from a primary focus on social and political concerns, to gory subject matter and black humor.
Goregrind is a fusion genre of grindcore and death metal. British band Carcass are commonly credited for the emergence of the genre. Goregrind is recognized for its heavily edited, pitch shifted vocals and abrasive musicianship rooted in grindcore.
Agathocles is a Belgian political grindcore band. Founded in 1985, it is mainly known for producing a large quantity of split seven-inch EPs. They play a style of grindcore they have dubbed "mincecore". Their lyrical themes have focused on anti-fascism, animal liberation and anarchism. All of its members are vegetarians.
The County Medical Examiners is an American goregrind band who, in their own words, exist for the sole purpose of recreating the sound of early Carcass albums. The band is also known to do no live shows at all. All of the current members have graduated with an MD in medical school or are currently taking medical school classes, hence the name of the band.
Swingin' Utters is a Californian punk rock band that formed in the late 1980s. After U.S. and European tours supporting the release of 2003's "Dead Flowers, Bottles, Bluegrass and Bones", some band members concentrated on raising their new families. From 2003-2010, the band played frequently, though mostly limited to the west coast of the United States and Canada, taking a break from any longer, comprehensive touring or recordings. During this time, they released the "Live in a Dive" double live album on Fat Wreck Chords (2004), and "Hatest Grits", a b-sides and rarities compilation (2008). After a seven-year gap in the release of any new, original recordings, the band released the "Brand New Lungs" 3-song 7-inch ep in 2010, followed by the "Here, Under Protest" LP (2011), and have since released four more records, and have resumed touring internationally.
Useless ID is an Israeli punk rock band, formed in Haifa in 1994.
Unholy Grave is a Japanese grindcore band that formed in 1993 and are based in the city of Nagoya, Japan. The band got its name from the song "Beyond the Unholy Grave" by the American death metal band Death. Unholy Grave's lyrics mainly focus on political and social issues. A common phrase appearing on the artwork of the band's releases is "Grindcore Against Terrorism!". Unholy Grave are known for being highly prolific, releasing a considerably large amount of splits.
Haemorrhage is a Spanish goregrind band from Madrid.
Regurgitate was a Swedish goregrind band that included members from both Stockholm and Mjölby. The band formed in 1990 and ended in 2009, and released four full-length albums. They were one of the most notable practitioners in the goregrind genre, with their most famous album being Carnivorous Erection (2000).
Cock and Ball Torture is a German goregrind band formed on 22 February 1997. The group is known for its groove-heavy riffing and pitchshifted vocals as well as its pornography-themed imagery and song titles. Cock and Ball Torture has been acclaimed as one of the more-noteworthy acts in the pornogrind subgenre.
Cripple Bastards is a grindcore band from Asti, Italy. They were formed in 1988 in order to keep their area on the hardcore punk map as most of the other bands around them were breaking up.
Machetazo was a Spanish grindcore/goregrind band from A Coruña formed in 1994. They were one of the few surviving bands from the Spanish underground extreme music scene of the nineties.
General Surgery is a Swedish goregrind group known as one of the earliest Carcass clones. Their 1991 debut Necrology was released by Relapse Records and would be General Surgery's only material released until 2001, when the group recorded one track for the Carcass tribute album, Requiems of Revulsion. However, in 2003, General Surgery reformed and released a split album with The County Medical Examiners and have since released a collection of demos, two split 7-inches, a 2005 demo, a split album with Butcher ABC, and two full-length albums.
Dead Infection was a Polish goregrind band, that was founded in 1990 by Cyjan and Domin. Since their formation, the band has released a few full-length albums, and 7-inch EPs. They are the second band from Poland after Vader that made a deal to release a CD/LP with a non-European label. Their second album, A Chapter Of Accidents, is considered by many to be among the milestones of goregrind music. They played numerous live shows around the world, across Europe, the United States, South America, Mexico, and Japan. In February 2020, Cyjan died, which led to the group's disbandment.
Blockheads are a French grindcore band.
Inhumate are a French deathgrind band. They started off as a death metal band in 1990 but with a line up change in 1993 where Stephane and Olivier left the band and were replaced by Valentin and Sebastien, the band's musical stile shifted towards grindcore.
Inhume is a Dutch deathgrind band formed in 1994. The band has featured a revolving line-up throughout their career, with guitarist Ben Janssen and bassist Loek Peeters being sole constant members.
Extreme Smoke 57 are known as the first grindcore band from Slovenia. The band was formed in early 1990 in the city of Nova Gorica. Their influences include bands such as Napalm Death, Sore Throat, Fear of God, Seven Minutes of Nausea and Agathocles. Band members have played in different grindcore/noisecore/crust/drone/hardcore acts like Patareni, Deeper Than World, Cadlag, PureH, Mozak, Panic Overdose, Absent Minded, Ear Slaughter, Diarrhoea, Strobodeath and Psihoza. Extreme Smoke 57 split in 1992, but reformed in 2008. Since their reunion the band has performed on some well-known European music festivals such as Metaldays, Obscene Extreme, EXIT and Punk Rock holiday. In January 2016 "Corruption deteriorates" was released by band itself. In July 2017 their latest studio material was released as a split 7-inch EP with Belgian grindcore veterans Agathocles. In March 2018 a compilation CD that includes studio recordings from 1991 to 2018 was released on Independent Woman records from New Zealand. The compilation comes with bonus mini CD that includes their final show before split in 1992.
Carnal Diafragma is a Czech goregrind band formed in 1997 in Ostrava. The band's songs do not include any lyrics. Known for their instrumental songs, the band has experienced several lineup changes throughout its history. They have released four studio albums as well as a number of demos and split albums with other groups.
Malignant Tumour is a Czech metal band formed in 1991 in Ostrava. The group's lineup has changed many times over the years, with only vocalist and founding member Martin Bílek remaining to this day. The rest of the band consists of bassist Robert Šimek, guitarist Martin Vyorálek, and drummer Petr Bohda. As of 2024, they have released six studio albums, two EPs, and numerous split albums with other musicians. The band has won several Břitva music polls, and in 2010, they received an Anděl Award in the Hard & Heavy category.
