Most "metal" non-metal bands
I don't mean bands that are close to the genre but aren't quite there. I mean what bands give you similar vibes to metal even though they aren't? This thread is inspired by my current Swans marathon, so I'm gonna throw them in for their incredibly dark atmospheres and handling of rock instrumentation. They never once went full metal as an industrial band, gothic band or as the post-rock band they act like now. But let's be honest: Lunacy is as hypnotic as any of the genres in either a rock or metal form.
I used to listen to epic trailer music company Two Steps From Hell. Most of their tracks aren't metal, but they often have that upbeat energy and occasional dark atmosphere similar to the metal that I like.
I'd go with some of these subgenres:
* Stoner rock bands like Kyuss & Elder.
* Some of the more extreme hardcore punk subgenres like crust punk & thrashcore.
* Heavy psych bands like Flower Travellin' Band, Buffalo & Sir Lord Baltimore.
I'd go with some of these subgenres:
* Stoner rock bands like Kyuss & Elder.
* Some of the more extreme hardcore punk subgenres like crust punk & thrashcore.
* Heavy psych bands like Flower Travellin' Band, Buffalo & Sir Lord Baltimore.
Kyuss and Elder are classified as stoner metal, so I'd go with someone a little less brutal in that regard. I'm no EXPERT on stoner but I do know a few things. I'd say QOTSA, but their attitude seems closer to punk than metal. And I'll completely avoid tagging Colour Haze and Monster Magnet as close to metal. I guess Fu Manchu would be a good one. The line between stoner rock and stoner metal can be hard to determine.
On the subject of thrashcore, I call to the stand Dropdead.
Kyuss and Elder are classified as stoner metal, so I'd go with someone a little less brutal in that regard. I'm no EXPERT on stoner but I do know a few things. I'd say QOTSA, but their attitude seems closer to punk than metal. And I'll completely avoid tagging Colour Haze and Monster Magnet as close to metal. I guess Fu Manchu would be a good one. The line between stoner rock and stoner metal can be hard to determine.
Quoted Rexorcist
Kyuss & Elder are incorrectly tagged as stoner metal in my opinion. In fact, Kyuss are tagged as Non-Metal here at the Academy & we have a number of Elder releases in the Hall of Judgement too. The grey area is that Stoner Rock possesses a Black Sabbath/doom metal influence by definition which often confuses things but sees it being an obvious candidate for this thread.
While we're on this topic, I found this Metal Trenches video. Have you guys heard of any of the albums mentioned in this video, and do you think some of them have a metal-like vibe? Personally the only one of these releases I'm familiar with is The Prodigy's The Fat of the Land, via the single "Firestarter" which, despite being a rave track, also has that upbeat energy and dark atmosphere similar to the metal that I like.
I'd point out that some people think the heavy psych bands Daniel mentioned are ambiguous too, some people consider the '70s albums from those bands to be metal, some don't.
Rome - The Lone Furrow, helped by being very uptempo for neofolk.
Some individual songs from Mahavishnu Orchestra, which despite being a jazz band, when it's aggressive doesn't feel too far off from some of the more technical solos. Or perhaps some of the more experimental stuff I've listened to just sounds like Mahavishnu Orchestra.
Nick Cave, even when he's at his softest has a tendency to capture the same kind of atmosphere a metal band does.
Andi, the releases mentioned in that video have nothing to do with metal in my opinion (although I do agree with his statements around The Prodigy's links to industrial metal). The Bjork & Radiohead (& to a lesser extent Wu Tang Clan) albums are some of the biggest records in my life but I don't think he's saying that they sound like metal as such, at least I hope he's not because they offer no relation at all as far as I can see.
It's an album rather than a band, but I remember that the soundtrack from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night stood out to me as one of the most metal-sounding things I'd heard that wasn't actually metal. Felt very strongly inspired by metal's whole approach, style and vibe.
Kyuss and Elder are classified as stoner metal, so I'd go with someone a little less brutal in that regard. I'm no EXPERT on stoner but I do know a few things. I'd say QOTSA, but their attitude seems closer to punk than metal. And I'll completely avoid tagging Colour Haze and Monster Magnet as close to metal. I guess Fu Manchu would be a good one. The line between stoner rock and stoner metal can be hard to determine.
Quoted Rexorcist
Kyuss & Elder are incorrectly tagged as stoner metal in my opinion. In fact, Kyuss are tagged as Non-Metal here at the Academy & we have a number of Elder releases in the Hall of Judgement too. The grey area is that Stoner Rock possesses a Black Sabbath/doom metal influence by definition which often confuses things but sees it being an obvious candidate for this thread.
The problem here is that Kyuss albums tend to boast a heaviness that metalheads often cite as difficult to overpower. Stoner rock can be heavy, but Welcome to Sky Valley posses a tame brutality.
Being heavy isn't the sole deciding factor in whether a band are metal or not though in my opinion. You either play metal riffs or you don't. You can be heavy as fuck but if your sound is still rooted in blues-based rock riff structures then you're not a metal band as far as I'm concerned.
Anyway... if we're going to push the threshold a bit then I'd suggest the industrial techno I used to play as a DJ is as metal as fuck. A lot of the early 2000's stuff coming out of Madrid was darker & more aggressive/abrasive than 99% of metal.
Being heavy isn't the sole deciding factor in whether a band are metal or not though in my opinion. You either play metal riffs or you don't. You can be heavy as fuck but if your sound is still rooted in blues-based rock riff structures then you're not a metal band as far as I'm concerned.
There's a lot of doom metal out there that doesn't have riffs. Plus, a riff is defined as a repeated sequence of chords, which practiaclyly makes up that album. What's your definition of a "metal riff" in this instance?
Just a year and two days after this thread died, I revive it to bring up Lingua Ignota, as reminded to me by my current exploration of Uboa, who's apparently got a new album out that may be a strong contender for album of the year. So I'll check out a couple of works before heading to the 2024. But yeah, Lingua Ignota deserves a mention.
EDIT: Uboa is so in.