Top 10 Extreme Metal bands

SATCHMO · 01-17-2010, 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 333

Can someone define extreme metal for me?

I was kinda' wondering too.

almauro · 01-17-2010, 06:14 PM

^ I think all you need to realize is it's created by musicians that are seeking to exceed the speed, complexity, heaviness and the general badass nature of what preceded it.

Let me talk about Nile for a moment. Starting with the drummer, George Kollias who utilizes a variety of techniques such a blast beats, double bass, abuses the snare, and does phenomenal classic rock fills and rolls, all at unprecedented speeds and heaviness. He may sound like noise to a lot of people, but I think George has elevated drumming to a whole new level . The guitarist Karl Sanders, is equally amazing. Instead of being melodic, he's got this totally brutal and atonal style that sounds like he's torturing his guitar has he strangles the neck, squeezing out these wailing sounds as if the guitar is screaming for help, which only results in him abusing it some more, and creating even louder wails of despair. Now when you have these two virtuosos going at it full blast, poly-rhythms are constantly created, mutating and evolving, creating some very interesting music. There’s a lot of discussion about how fast and heavy Nile plays, but they also have this incredibility ability to slow down and create great atmosphere, space and depth in their music. The dynamic range they display, IMO is unprecedented.

Ronnie Jane Devo · 01-18-2010, 10:51 AM

I'm going to come up with a 'fuck boring' list for now and fill in a little detail, then try to come back when I have more time.

Bathory
Aside from being among the greatest songwriters in the history of metal, they basically created the classic black metal sound and Blood Fire Death is easily one of the greatest black metal albums ever, if not the greatest. It builds on all the power and intricacy of Ride the Lightning era Metallica and takes it to a new level of chaotic fury.

Venom
They were the first extreme metal band, so that counts for something, but they were also good at writing catchy riffs and I think they set a good precedent for the genre by playing really sloppy and imprecise - it gives extreme metal a certain charm it wouldn't otherwise have.

Morbid Angel
As far as ugly, dissonant songwriting goes, MA are the masters of it. Their songs are almost always interesting in terms of structure and riffwork, and work on a level of creepiness that few bands can manage. Azagthoth is an incredible guitarist with a style all his own, possibly the closest any guitarist has ever come to making his instrument sound like the very wails of the damned. With all the bizarre twists and turns he puts in his solos, they seem to just pull one's brain apart slowly. Unbelievably talented band overall.

Other bands I'd rank up there as well:
* Darkthrone
* Dimmu Borgir
* Opeth
* Emperor

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoathsomePete

Therion

Starting off as a death metal band but turning more into a symphonic metal band later on in their career, they really made the jump from one style to another seem natural, graceful, and elegant. Their orchestral arrangements for their later albums are very strategically placed that add a whole new element to the band and Christofer Johnsson comes across as an incredibly intelligent and interesting man who I'd love to sit down and have a drink with and pick his brain about his thoughts on metal and the world. I was very upset when I found they were playing Vancouver a few years ago and I couldn't go because I was leaving for the UK a week earlier, however along with Hypocrisy, they are a band that I am determined to see live, even if I have to travel to Wacken to do it.

Therion weren't very exceptional as a death metal act, and only really became notable because of their symphonic metal, so I don't think they belong on a list like this.

hip hop bunny hop · 01-18-2010, 01:20 PM

Extreme Metal = Grindcore, Death & Metal, mostly.

Quote:

Therion weren't very exceptional as a death metal act, and only really became notable because of their symphonic metal, so I don't think they belong on a list like this.

^^^ wrong. Therion's early death metal work is widely acclaimed. It's even on the ANUS list of best death metal releases ever. They were absolutely wonderful at channeling Celtic Frost.

....anyways

Repulsion, the one album they released remains one of the best albums I ever heard. While the songs are rather formulaic, the riffs are just amazing. The fusion of Discharge and Celtic Frost is classic and manages to be unique, as I've never heard a band that sounds like them.

Deicide, the first three albums are simply terrific and seemingly set the template for the Florida sound. As a rule, I don't trust any "best-of" list that doesn't include one of their first 3 albums.

Burzum, I know, I know. He's a NAZI. He's a murderer. He's an arsonist. The impact he had on _ALL_ genres of metal is simply stunning - he was instrumental in moving extreme metal beyond a contest of who's heavier, faster, etc...

Incantation, again, they manage to go beyond the blast beat. A terrific mix of doom and death momentum with killer black metal riffs. Their debut, "Onward to Golgotha" and the later "Diabolical Conquest" are classics.

Demilich, nevermind the evil-frog vocals. More intelligent than anything done by Ulver and Agolloch, while completely lacking in pretension and pointless aesthetics. You can download the entire album free from the band's website, too.

Blasphemy, I had trouble choosing between them and Sarco***o. As I listen to Blasphemy more, I went with them... a wonderful band who had a strong influence on many of todays greatest acts, namely Black Witchery, Order from Chaos, Revenge, Angelcorpse, etc.

Watchmaker, **** the Redchord, metalcore, Agalloch, and every other band that thinks innovation means cheap changes in aesthetics and noting how your band used antlers for percussion. This Discordance Axis influenced band is innovation.

Cryptic Slaughter, my favorite cross over band... wonderful musicianship, great energy, and everytime I listen to them I can't help but think Napalm Death used their template for song structures on Scum and FETO.

CELTIC FROST!!! Oh lawdy... they are beyond description:

Blood, eh, not very well known... I don't think they ever played a show outside of Germany in their 20+ years. Simple, riff-worship grindcore. Of the first wave grindcore bands, they are unique in they - unlike Napalm Death and Carcass - never changed, they just improved. I couldn't find anything off the "Depraved Goddess" album, but this song should get the idea across.

~~CAPTAIN CAVEMAN~~ · 01-18-2010, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SATCHMO

I was kinda' wondering too.

generally, death, doom, and black metal and their subgenres.

jackhammer · 01-18-2010, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hip hop bunny hop

Repulsion, the one album they released remains one of the best albums I ever heard. While the songs are rather formulaic, the riffs are just amazing. The fusion of Discharge and Celtic Frost is classic and manages to be unique, as I've never heard a band that sounds like them.

Cryptic Slaughter, my favorite cross over band... wonderful musicianship, great energy, and everytime I listen to them I can't help but think Napalm Death used their template for song structures on Scum and FETO.

Repulsion are classed as one of the very first bands with the Grindcore sound but the first half of Napalm Death's Scum was recorded in the same year as Cryptic Slaughters debut and they certainly took some influence later on from Cryptic Slaughter,but it is generally agreed that Scum is the first genuine Grindcore release but due to the protacted nature of the recording and band line up changes, the album Scum didn't surface until 1987.

almauro · 01-19-2010, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronnie Jane Devo

Venom
They were the first extreme metal band, so that counts for something, but they were also good at writing catchy riffs and I think they set a good precedent for the genre by playing really sloppy and imprecise - it gives extreme metal a certain charm it wouldn't otherwise have.

That reminded me of that immortal line from Spinal Tap..."It's such a fine line between being brilliant and being stoopid." What a hoot! "Black Metal" still rocks pretty hard.

Ronnie Jane Devo · 01-20-2010, 12:34 PM

^ Exactly. Just look at the Ramones.

Ronnie Jane Devo · 01-20-2010, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hip hop bunny hop

^^^ wrong. Therion's early death metal work is widely acclaimed. It's even on the ANUS list of best death metal releases ever. They were absolutely wonderful at channeling Celtic Frost.

I'm not sure what makes ANUS worth taking seriously, but I've never heard anything particularly memorable, innovative, or otherwise noteworthy in Therion's early albums. If you can explain this somehow without simply asserting that they're "widely acclaimed", feel free. Even if they are heavily influenced by Celtic Frost (whatever that's worth), I'm pretty sure other bands "channeled" that influence better (i.e. Darkthrone).

Sonolin · 01-21-2010, 10:26 PM

Some very good lists here.

I am a death metal lover, so my list has a lot of bands of that genre. Tech death too. But don't get discouraged if you don't really like the genre much as every band listed here is very unique, amazing, awesome, and worth a listen

.

In no particular order:

Death
This band is one of my favorites. This band tops many other death metal bands in the following ways: 1) amazing guitar rif***e! There are some awesome riffs in the band, varying from intensely technical to extremely melodic. One thing about this band is Death, despite being a fairly technical metal band, does not sound like pure noise. There are some awesome guitar solos as well. Another reason I feel this band tops many other death metal bands is that Schuldiner's vocals are very unique - instead of the stereotypical death metal growl, Schuldiner uses a more of a "scream/growl" style (without sounding like garbage which is very hard to do). Most of the lyrics are also amazing (particularly from the album Individual Thought Patterns). Some highlights: Without Judgement, Sacred Serenity, The Philosopher, Crystal Mountain.

Nile
Nile has a very unique sound to them, mainly due to them having a lot of influence from Egyptian music. This band is also fairly "progressive" without being too over the top. Nile's music is definitely brutal - from crushing power cords (and even bar cords - who would have thought), to brutally fast playing, all the way to even ambient music in some parts (the Egyptian style greatly complements this area). The lyrics are also fairly good, in that they still have the "brutal" themes behind them that most stereotypical death metal does, but instead of sounding like everybody else Nile adds Egyptian influence to the lyrical writing. Some highlights: Lashed to the Slave Stick (very fast playing, with an amazing melodic-feel to it makes this one of my faves), Unas Slayer of the Gods (very epic song, ambience, brutality, everything in 1 - long though), Black Seeds of Vengeance (awesome song with a catchy chorus at the end).

Cryptopsy
Ah.. Cryptopsy. Where to start... Well there's not much to say about this band other than that they are awesome. You really have to listen to their music (multiple times) to really understand how awesome they are. This band is extremely technical, but they are also very unique. This band just spits brutality in your face, rips your heart out, and then kicks you in the crotch... over and over and over again. But, amazingly, you find that your ears are still fully intact and you just cannot get enough of them. Some highlights: everything from their earlier albums. (Don't listen to their newest album! It is horrible!)

Atheist
Atheist is another band that is insanely technical and progressive. They also have a very unique sound to them, most likely due to their awesomeness and influence from jazz music. Their lyrics are also very good. I guess they could be called "technical death metal", but they are really more "technical jazzy thrashy deathy amazing metal" and it all fits together perfectly.

Slayer
I love Slayer, they were one of my first "extreme metal" bands (along with Children of Bodom.. if you call them "extreme"..) and remain to this day one of my faves. Most of you probably know what Slayer sounds like, so I won't go into much detail other than that they are super fast, thrashy, and have guitar wankery to the max. (READ: OLD SLAYER) Seasons of the Abyss is a nice album to listen to if you don't really like their early-er albums, that album is amazing in that Slayer stays "Slayer" except they are slightly more melodic and have less guitar wankery and more good solos.

Meshuggah
I just recently got into this band, and I have found them good enough to include in this list. This band is very strange. The strange thing about them is they are basically "groove metal", but without the simplicity - in other words, very good. They are surprisingly technical without being a pile of random wankery and fast rif***e put together with varying tempos and time signatures. Their rhythm playing is some of the best I have heard in metal. I only listened to "Chaosphere" but I am sure their other albums (hopefully) are just as good. They do get a tad repetitious (mostly because they are basically tech groove, if thats even a genre, with little actual lead playing), but this is just a minor setback.

Suffocation
Suffocation is an awesome band, especially if you are in love with death metal like I am. One of the best things about this band is the insane drumming - it never gets repetitious, and the drummer is very skilled.. he leads into different tempos perfectly, and it just sounds so natural.

Opeth
Opeth. Many of you probably know of them, and they are a definite inclusion in this list - even if they get little playing nowadays on my music player. The reason is is that they are insanely progressive, and have very long song lengths, so you really need to be in an "Opeth" mood. The great things about this band are their awesome acoustic guitar parts, which meld perfectly with the electric guitar rif***e, and the vocals which are very varied - but not in a bad Killswitch Engage kind of way. (Oh gawd I just mentioned Killswitch in a write up about Opeth..) I think I'm going to go listen to some Opeth now.

Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel is awesome. Listen. They are very comparable to Death in many ways. The guitar riffs have an amazingly epic feel, while being crushingly brutal at the same time. Very very very good band.

Decapitated
Another tech death band, and also a very good inclusion. This band is insanely technical, but they are not so "noisy" as Cryptopsy and rather have a melodic sound to the riffs (or maybe they just sound awesome, I don't know

).

01-17-2010, 06:14 PM	#12 (permalink)
almauro Way Out There Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 850	^ I think all you need to realize is it's created by musicians that are seeking to exceed the speed, complexity, heaviness and the general badass nature of what preceded it. Let me talk about Nile for a moment. Starting with the drummer, George Kollias who utilizes a variety of techniques such a blast beats, double bass, abuses the snare, and does phenomenal classic rock fills and rolls, all at unprecedented speeds and heaviness. He may sound like noise to a lot of people, but I think George has elevated drumming to a whole new level . The guitarist Karl Sanders, is equally amazing. Instead of being melodic, he's got this totally brutal and atonal style that sounds like he's torturing his guitar has he strangles the neck, squeezing out these wailing sounds as if the guitar is screaming for help, which only results in him abusing it some more, and creating even louder wails of despair. Now when you have these two virtuosos going at it full blast, poly-rhythms are constantly created, mutating and evolving, creating some very interesting music. There’s a lot of discussion about how fast and heavy Nile plays, but they also have this incredibility ability to slow down and create great atmosphere, space and depth in their music. The dynamic range they display, IMO is unprecedented. __________________ rock n music blog Last edited by almauro; 01-17-2010 at 07:53 PM.

01-20-2010, 12:34 PM	#18 (permalink)
Ronnie Jane Devo moon shoes Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Virginia Posts: 57	^ Exactly. Just look at the Ramones. __________________ Last.fm

01-21-2010, 10:26 PM	#20 (permalink)
Sonolin Groupie Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 2	Some very good lists here. I am a death metal lover, so my list has a lot of bands of that genre. Tech death too. But don't get discouraged if you don't really like the genre much as every band listed here is very unique, amazing, awesome, and worth a listen . In no particular order: Death This band is one of my favorites. This band tops many other death metal bands in the following ways: 1) amazing guitar rif*e! There are some awesome riffs in the band, varying from intensely technical to extremely melodic. One thing about this band is Death, despite being a fairly technical metal band, does not sound like pure noise. There are some awesome guitar solos as well. Another reason I feel this band tops many other death metal bands is that Schuldiner's vocals are very unique - instead of the stereotypical death metal growl, Schuldiner uses a more of a "scream/growl" style (without sounding like garbage which is very hard to do). Most of the lyrics are also amazing (particularly from the album Individual Thought Patterns). Some highlights: Without Judgement, Sacred Serenity, The Philosopher, Crystal Mountain. Nile Nile has a very unique sound to them, mainly due to them having a lot of influence from Egyptian music. This band is also fairly "progressive" without being too over the top. Nile's music is definitely brutal - from crushing power cords (and even bar cords - who would have thought), to brutally fast playing, all the way to even ambient music in some parts (the Egyptian style greatly complements this area). The lyrics are also fairly good, in that they still have the "brutal" themes behind them that most stereotypical death metal does, but instead of sounding like everybody else Nile adds Egyptian influence to the lyrical writing. Some highlights: Lashed to the Slave Stick (very fast playing, with an amazing melodic-feel to it makes this one of my faves), Unas Slayer of the Gods (very epic song, ambience, brutality, everything in 1 - long though), Black Seeds of Vengeance (awesome song with a catchy chorus at the end). Cryptopsy Ah.. Cryptopsy. Where to start... Well there's not much to say about this band other than that they are awesome. You really have to listen to their music (multiple times) to really understand how awesome they are. This band is extremely technical, but they are also very unique. This band just spits brutality in your face, rips your heart out, and then kicks you in the crotch... over and over and over again. But, amazingly, you find that your ears are still fully intact and you just cannot get enough of them. Some highlights: everything from their earlier albums. (Don't listen to their newest album! It is horrible!) Atheist Atheist is another band that is insanely technical and progressive. They also have a very unique sound to them, most likely due to their awesomeness and influence from jazz music. Their lyrics are also very good. I guess they could be called "technical death metal", but they are really more "technical jazzy thrashy deathy amazing metal" and it all fits together perfectly. Slayer I love Slayer, they were one of my first "extreme metal" bands (along with Children of Bodom.. if you call them "extreme"..) and remain to this day one of my faves. Most of you probably know what Slayer sounds like, so I won't go into much detail other than that they are super fast, thrashy, and have guitar wankery to the max. (READ: OLD SLAYER) Seasons of the Abyss is a nice album to listen to if you don't really like their early-er albums, that album is amazing in that Slayer stays "Slayer" except they are slightly more melodic and have less guitar wankery and more good solos. Meshuggah I just recently got into this band, and I have found them good enough to include in this list. This band is very strange. The strange thing about them is they are basically "groove metal", but without the simplicity - in other words, very good. They are surprisingly technical without being a pile of random wankery and fast rife put together with varying tempos and time signatures. Their rhythm playing is some of the best I have heard in metal. I only listened to "Chaosphere" but I am sure their other albums (hopefully) are just as good. They do get a tad repetitious (mostly because they are basically tech groove, if thats even a genre, with little actual lead playing), but this is just a minor setback. Suffocation* Suffocation is an awesome band, especially if you are in love with death metal like I am. One of the best things about this band is the insane drumming - it never gets repetitious, and the drummer is very skilled.. he leads into different tempos perfectly, and it just sounds so natural. Opeth Opeth. Many of you probably know of them, and they are a definite inclusion in this list - even if they get little playing nowadays on my music player. The reason is is that they are insanely progressive, and have very long song lengths, so you really need to be in an "Opeth" mood. The great things about this band are their awesome acoustic guitar parts, which meld perfectly with the electric guitar rif*e, and the vocals which are very varied - but not in a bad Killswitch Engage kind of way. (Oh gawd I just mentioned Killswitch in a write up about Opeth..) I think I'm going to go listen to some Opeth now. Morbid Angel Morbid Angel is awesome. Listen. They are very comparable to Death in many ways. The guitar riffs have an amazingly epic feel, while being crushingly brutal at the same time. Very very very good band. Decapitated** Another tech death band, and also a very good inclusion. This band is insanely technical, but they are not so "noisy" as Cryptopsy and rather have a melodic sound to the riffs (or maybe they just sound awesome, I don't know ).