Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres. Both the music and the lyrics are intended to evoke a sense of despair, dread, and impending doom. The genre is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath, who formed a prototype for doom metal. During the first half of the 1980s, a number of bands such as Witchfinder General and Pagan Altar from England, American bands Pentagram, Saint Vitus, the Obsessed, Trouble, and Cirith Ungol, and Swedish band Candlemass defined doom metal as a distinct genre.
Ulver is a Norwegian experimental electronica band founded in 1993, by vocalist Kristoffer Rygg. Their early works, such as debut album Bergtatt, were categorised as folklore-influenced black metal, but the band has since evolved a fluid and increasingly eclectic musical style, blending genres such as experimental rock, electronica, ambient, trip hop, symphonic and chamber traditions, noise, progressive and experimental music into their oeuvre. 1997 marked their international debut with the release of their third album Nattens madrigal through German label Century Media. However, following discord with the label, Rygg formed his own imprint, Jester Records, in 1998.
Enslaved is a Norwegian extreme metal band formed by Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson in Haugesund in 1991. They are currently based in Bergen. The band's lineup has changed many times over the years, and Bjørnson and Kjellson have been the sole constant members. The current lineup also includes lead guitarist Arve Isdal, keyboardist/singer Håkon Vinje, and drummer Iver Sandøy.
Symphonic metal is a cross-generic style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitars of metal with different elements of orchestral classical music, such as symphonic instruments, choirs and sometimes a full orchestra, or just keyboard orchestration.
The Meads of Asphodel are an English black metal band with pronounced medieval, Arab, punk, and progressive metal influences from Hertfordshire, England.
Post-metal is a music genre rooted in heavy metal but exploring approaches beyond metal conventions. It emerged in the 1990s with bands such as Neurosis, Godflesh, and Helmet, who transformed metal texture through experimental composition. In a way similar to the predecessor genres post-rock and post-hardcore, post-metal offsets the darkness and intensity of extreme metal with an emphasis on atmosphere, emotion, and even "revelation", developing an expansive but introspective sound variously imbued with elements of ambient, noise, psychedelic, progressive, and classical music. Songs are typically long, with loose and layered structures that discard the verse–chorus form in favor of crescendos and repeating themes. The sound centres on guitars and drums, while any vocals are usually screamed or growled and resemble an additional instrument.
Suicide Silence is an American deathcore band from Riverside, California. The band was established in 2002, and has released seven studio albums, three EPs, and nineteen music videos. They were awarded the Revolver Golden God award for "Best New Talent" in 2009. The group currently consists of guitarists Chris Garza and Mark Heylmun, bassist Dan Kenny, vocalist Hernan "Eddie" Hermida and drummer Ernie Iniguez.
Vertebrae is the tenth studio album by Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved. It was released on 29 September 2008 by Indie Recordings in Europe and on 28 October 2008 by Nuclear Blast in the US, Enslaved's first album on both labels. It was named as Album of the Year by Terrorizer and was awarded the Norwegian "Spellemannprisen" for best metal album. The album sold approximately 1,100 copies in its first week in the United States, reaching number 49 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart.
The Destroyers of All is the third full-length album by New Zealand death metal band Ulcerate. It was released on January 25, 2011 through Willowtip Records to positive reviews by critics. A limited edition gatefold vinyl version was issued on November 7, 2012.
Winterfylleth is an English black metal band from Manchester. Since their inception in 2006, the band has released seven studio albums and have become a popular act in both the English underground metal scene and the wider international metal arena. Winterfylleth are self-described as "English Heritage Black Metal" and is often considered to be musical 'brothers-in-arms' with fellow English black metal band Wodensthrone owing to the common lyrical and aesthetic themes they share. The band takes its name from the Old English word 'Winterfylleth', which translates into modern English as 'Winter Full Moon' and is signified by the arrival of the first full moon of winter.
Cormorant is an American progressive metal band from San Francisco, California, formed in 2007. The group consists of bassist and vocalist Marcus Luscombe, guitarists Nick Cohon and Matt Solis, and drummer Brennan Kunkel.
Mutoid Man is an American heavy metal band formed in 2012 in Brooklyn, New York City by Cave In vocalist/guitarist Stephen Brodsky, Converge drummer Ben Koller and bassist Nick Cageao. They have released three EPs and three studio albums to date. AllMusic described their sound as metalcore but noted that it engages not just with hardcore punk and heavy metal but also rock and roll, math rock, progressive rock, and psychedelic music. Pitchfork celebrated their debut album Bleeder for "[embracing] both numbskull hard rock and cerebral progressive metal, at a time when the two approaches have become almost mutually exclusive in heavy music."
Tengger Cavalry was a heavy metal band originated from Inner Mongolia and Beijing and formerly based in New York state and Texas. They combine elements of the traditional music of Central Asia and music of Mongolia with heavy metal into a kind of folk metal that Billboard and CNN refer to as nomadic folk metal.
Rivers of Nihil is an American technical death metal band from Reading, Pennsylvania. They are currently signed to Metal Blade Records. To date the band has released two EPs and four studio albums. Their most recent release is 2021's The Work. Their 2018 album Where Owls Know My Name debuted at number 61 on the Billboard 200, selling 2,750 copies in its first week.
Black Crown Initiate is an American extreme metal band from Reading, Pennsylvania, United States, currently signed to Century Media. The band formed in 2012 and self-released their first EP Song of the Crippled Bull, which was met with positive reviews. They began touring in early 2014 with fellow extreme metal bands such as Goatwhore, Behemoth, and 1349; this led to them being signed by eOne Music in June 2014. With eOne, they released both The Wreckage of Stars, released on September 30, 2014, and Selves We Cannot Forgive, released on July 22, 2016. Their third studio album, Violent Portraits of Doomed Escape, was released with Century Media on August 7, 2020.
Monotheist is a death metal band from Orlando, Florida. Former vocalist JJ Polachek is in the bands 7 Horns 7 Eyes and Ovid's Withering, of which, 7H7E, ranked their album on No. 1 on Metalsucks.com by Vince Neilsteins' Top 15 albums, and therefore stated that Monotheist is very similar to 7 Horns 7 Eyes. In 2016, the band released a demo, "Scion of Darkness" for their debut album that was to be released in the summer of 2016 via SkyBurnsBlack Records.
The Wreckage of Stars is the debut full length record from American based progressive death metal band Black Crown Initiate. The album was released on September 30, 2014 through eOne Music and was produced by Carson Slovak. A music video was filmed for "Withering Waves" and "The Fractured One". The album debuted at #18 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.
A Year With No Summer is the second studio album by Barcelona-based band Obsidian Kingdom. It is a concept album featuring seven songs that draw from a diverse range of styles including alternative rock, drone, black metal, progressive rock, post-metal and electronica. The album was recorded, mixed, mastered and produced in September 2015 by Jaime Gómez Arellano at Orgone Studios in London, and co-produced by Jorge Mur and the band itself.
Selves We Cannot Forgive is the second full length album from American progressive death metal band Black Crown Initiate. The album was released on July 22, 2016 with eOne Music. It was produced by Carson Slovak and Grant McFarland(August Burns Red, Texas In July, From Ashes To New) and recorded at Atrium Audio Recording Studio's in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with cover art by Travis Smith(Opeth, Devin Townsend, Avenged Sevenfold).
Where Owls Know My Name is the third studio album by American technical death metal band Rivers of Nihil. The album was released on March 16, 2018 through Metal Blade Records and was the band's first effort to chart on the Billboard Top Sales chart, debuting at number 61 and selling 2,750 copies in its first week. It is the third album in the band's tetralogy based around the four seasons; it represents autumn.
