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.
Sludge metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. The genre generally includes slow tempos, tuned down guitars and nihilistic lyrics discussing poverty, drug addiction and pollution.
Agoraphobic Nosebleed is an American grindcore band. Its line-up has changed often over the years, with guitarist and drum programmer Scott Hull being the only continuous member. The current line-up includes vocalist Jay Randall, and Richard Johnson of Enemy Soil and Drugs of Faith, along with John Jarvis of Pig Destroyer and Fulgora on bass guitar.
Dystopia was an American crust punk/sludge metal band that formed in Orange County, California in 1991. They were popular in both the heavy metal and punk scenes, due in large part to the band's bleak, misanthropic imagery. Dystopia's lyrics often dealt with human emotions and social or political issues such as environmentalism, racial equality, substance abuse, and animal rights.
Doom are an English hardcore punk band from Birmingham whose first lineup were together from 1987 to 1990. Despite its short existence, the band is considered pivotal in the rise of crust punk, a genre of punk rock that takes influence and elements from extreme metal. They recorded for Peaceville Records and are cited as an early precursor to grindcore. Doom were also a favourite of BBC Radio DJ John Peel.
Electric Frankenstein is an American punk revival band from New Jersey, founded by Sal Canzonieri in 1990. The band relocated to North Carolina in 2021. Their style is a mixture of punk rock, hard rock, garage rock, glam, and heavy metal. Their style is called High Energy Rock & Roll in the USA and in Europe it is called Action Rock.
Hellnation was a hardcore punk band from Covington, Kentucky. The band was active from 1988 to 2010.
Man Is the Bastard was an American hardcore punk band based in Claremont, California. The band existed from 1990 to 1997, releasing mostly vinyl splits, extended plays, and albums on obscure labels from around the world. By 1997, the group ended and members all went on to do other projects, such as the noise group Bastard Noise, which originally started out as a Man Is the Bastard side project. They are typically seen as part of the 1990s powerviolence movement.
Crossed Out was a powerviolence band from Encinitas, California. The band was active from early 1990 until late 1993. The group is considered to be a very important band that helped define powerviolence with a style that incorporated political lyrics, blast beats, and quick tempos. They have been named as the "dark lords of powerviolence" by Beau Beasley of Insect Warfare.
The Locust is the debut studio album by American grindcore band The Locust.
The Freeze is an American punk rock band from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, United States, formed by a group of teenagers in 1978. They released the first single, "I Hate Tourists" in 1980 and contributed eight songs, including the title track to the 1982 hardcore punk compilation This Is Boston, Not L.A.
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.
Disorder are an English street punk band that formed in the Bristol area of England in 1980, and has existed with varying line-ups. They are aligned with politically charged punk bands.
The Aftermath is the second album by the American band Dystopia. It was originally released in 1999 as a four-track LP on Life Is Abuse Records, and as a 13-track CD featuring additional songs from their splits with Skaven and Suffering Luna, the Backstabber EP, and one unreleased cover, on Life Is Abuse Records, Misanthropic Records and Crawlspace Records. The final song, "Cosmetic Plague", begins near the end of track 12, and is a Rudimentary Peni cover. The LP version contains tracks 1–4 on side A and has an etching on side B.
Powerviolence is a chaotic and fast subgenre of hardcore punk which is closely related to thrashcore and grindcore. In contrast with grindcore, which is a "crossover" idiom containing musical aspects of heavy metal, powerviolence is just an augmentation of the most challenging qualities of hardcore punk. Like its predecessors, it is usually socio-politically charged and iconoclastic.
No Comment were an American powerviolence band from North Hollywood, California. The band was active from 1987 to 1993.
Loma Prieta is an American hardcore punk band that formed in 2005. The group is based in San Francisco, California and derived their name from the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Most of the group's early material was released on their own record label named Discos Huelga. Loma Prieta has toured the US, Mexico, Canada, Europe and Japan. They share members with Punch. Their often dark and emotionally charged music blends a range of styles, most prominently screamo and powerviolence.
Ramleh are a British experimental music group formed by musician Gary Mundy in 1982. The current line-up of the band includes Gary Mundy, Anthony di Franco and Stuart Dennison. Originally a part of the English power electronics and industrial music scene in early 1980s, Ramleh experimented with a more traditional rock format in their later releases.
Nails is an American hardcore punk band from Oxnard, California. The group was formed in 2009 by frontman Todd Jones, formerly the guitarist of Terror, along with bassist John Gianelli and drummer Taylor Young of Disgrace. They released their debut EP Obscene Humanity in 2009, followed by the studio albums Unsilent Death (2010), Abandon All Life (2013) and You Will Never Be One of Us (2016), and a split EP with Full of Hell. Nails have achieved widespread notoriety and critical acclaim for their savage and intense sound.
Capitalist Casualties were an American powerviolence / hardcore band. They formed in Rohnert Park, California around 1986 and had their first concert in 1987 in Santa Rosa, California. They have released multiple records, including many splits with other powerviolence / hardcore bands, and have toured nationally and internationally.
