Issue 21 2009

For the first issue back after the holidays I’ve decided to delve into another metal genre I enjoy. Earlier in the year I looked at Black metal, so this week I’m going to look at another Northern European dominated sub-genre, Melodic Death Metal.
While at first this sub-genre sounds like an oxymoron, it actually makes these two seemingly opposites work quite well. What Melodic Death Metal does is take the melody of the New Wave of British Heavy metal and combine it with the intensity of death metal. Think Iron Maiden meets Death (the band). The style has evolved over time; originally it took the harmonies from NWOBH and combined them with the vocals and subject matter of death metal. Now, with new influences and new bands different element have been added to the genre, the most notable of these being the keyboard. It has also seen the vocals become more comprehensible, and the subject matter become broader.
The early 90s saw the beginnings of the genre in albums by Carcass and Amorphis, but it never really emerged as a sub-genre on its own until three hugely influential bands from Sweden started releasing albums. In the earlier years At the Gates, In Flames and Dark Tranquillity were very closely intertwined, which gave the starting genre a chance with members carrying traits from one band to another. All three of these bands also come from Gothenburg in Sweden, which has lead to Melodic Death Metal also being call ‘Gothenburg metal’.
Even today many of the top Melodic death bands come from Gothenburg; however it is also prominent over the border in Finland and is spreading across the rest of Northern Europe. This also goes for the popularity of the genre, with it having mainstream success in countries like Sweden and Finland. Melodic Death Metal has also found a following in America in recent years, spawning bands with a similar sound (though in my opinion, not as good). Although most of the American bands have the disadvantage of being less than 10 years old, whereas many of the European acts are coming up on their 20th anniversary and have a vast back catalogue.
If you’re interested in seeing what Melodic Death metal offers, I must of course recommend you check out stuff from Dark Tranquillity, At the Gates and earlier albums from in Flames. Other bands include Arch Enemy (who are here in November), Soilwork and Amon Amarth, who are a Viking themed band.