Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...

and

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

, originating in the 1990s

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined with breakdowns – which are slow, intense passages conducive to moshing. Other defining traits are low-tuned, percussive guitar riffs,

double bass drumming The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter usually greater than its depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. The head ...

, and polished production. Vocalists typically switch between roaring or

screaming A scream is a loud/hard speech production, vocalization in which air is passed through the vocal cords with greater force than is used in regular or close-distance vocalisation. This can be performed by any creature possessing lungs, including h ...

and clean, melodic, emotional singing. Lyrics are often personal, introspective and emotive. In the late 1980s to early 1990s, pioneering bands were founded such as

Integrity Integrity is the quality of being honest and having a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. In ethics, integrity is regarded as the honesty and Honesty, truthfulness or of one's actions. Integr ...

, Earth Crisis and Converge, whose hardcore punk-leaning style is sometimes referred to as metallic hardcore. These bands took influence from a range of styles and genres such as hardcore punk,

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

and

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

. During the decade, the genre diversified, with Converge, the Dillinger Escape Plan, Botch and Coalesce pioneering

mathcore Mathcore is a subgenre of hardcore punk and metalcore influenced by post-hardcore, extreme metal and math rock that developed during the 1990s. Bands in the genre emphasize complex and fluctuant rhythms through the use of irregular time signatur ...

, while Overcast, Shadows Fall and Darkest Hour merged the genre with melodic death metal to create melodic metalcore. During the early 2000s, melodic metalcore bands such as

Killswitch Engage Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, bassist Mike D'Antonio, and drummer Justin ...

, All That Remains,

Trivium The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric. The trivium is implicit in ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but the term was not used until the Carolin ...

, As I Lay Dying, Atreyu, Bullet for My Valentine and Parkway Drive found mainstream popularity. In the subsequent years, the genre saw increased success through

social networking A social network is a social structure consisting of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), networks of Dyad (sociology), dyadic ties, and other Social relation, social interactions between actors. The social network per ...

Myspace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

and

internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

s such as crabcore. During this time, artists began to draw influence from a wide variety of sources, which led to genre cultivating a plethora of fusion genres including

electronicore Electronicore (also known as synthcore or trancecore) is a fusion genre of metalcore music with elements of various electronic music genres, often including trance, electronica, and dubstep. Reception Attack Attack! is often recognized as th ...

deathcore Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore Breakdown (music)#Heavy metal and punk rock, breakdowns. While there are some precursors ...

Nintendocore Nintendocore is a broadly defined style of music that most commonly fuses chiptune and video game music with hardcore punk and/or heavy metal. The genre is sometimes considered a direct subgenre of post-hardcore and a fusion genre between meta ...

, progressive metalcore and nu metalcore. In the 2010s and through to the 2020s, the genre saw even greater commercial success, with albums by

Bring Me the Horizon Bring Me the Horizon are a British Rock music, rock band, formed in Sheffield, England in 2004. The group currently consists of lead vocalist Oli Sykes, drummer Matt Nicholls, guitarist Lee Malia and bassist Matt Kean (musician), Matt Kean. T ...

Architects An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

, Asking Alexandria, the Devil Wears Prada and Of Mice & Men penetrating the top 10 of international albums charts.

Etymology

The term "metalcore" is a portmanteau of the words "metal" and "hardcore", and was originally tongue-in-cheek. During the 1980s, '' Maximumrocknroll'' had used early variations of the term, referring to Richmond band Black Pyramid as "heavy-metal core" in February 1985; Oxnard band False Confessions as "metal-core" in December 1985; Mesa band Desecration as "death metal core" in May 1986; and Austin band Last Will as "ghoulish metal/core" in December 1986. When the metalcore genre began in the 1990s, it was largely known as "metallic hardcore". Phillip Trapp of ''

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive i ...

'' states that Shai Hulud guitarist Matt Fox is widely credited for playing a role in "popularizing" term. However, in a 2008 interview, Fox claimed the term had already been in use before his band began releasing music. He recalled: "There were bands before Shai Hulud started that my friends and I were referring to as 'metalcore.' Bands like Burn, Deadguy, Earth Crisis, even Integrity. These bands that were heavier than the average hardcore bands. These bands that were more progressive ..my friends and I would always refer to them as 'metalcore' because it wasn't purely hardcore and it wasn't purely metal ..so we would joke around and say, 'Hey, it's metalcore. Cool!' But it was definitely a tongue-in-cheek term." Alternatively, Jorge Rosado of Merauder claimed in 2014 interview that he and his band coined the term. Luke Morton of '' Metal Hammer'' stated that the word "means different things to different people," highlighting the fact that the tag has been variously applied to stylistically dissimilar bands such as

, Earth Crisis, Asking Alexandria and Parkway Drive.

Characteristics

Stylistic elements

Metalcore fuses elements of

and

, and is known for its use of breakdowns. According to Scott Kennedy, although metalcore existed "in some form or another" throughout the 1990s, it was only during the early 2000s that metalcore became codified or distinguished as a genre with specific traits. He links this with the movement known as the " New Wave of American Heavy Metal". The genre is broadly defined, and throughout its history, various metalcore acts have fused elements of hardcore and metal in different ways. Some earlier metalcore bands, such as Botch and Cave In, were stylistically derived from traditional hardcore scenes. Jorge Martins of '' Ultimate Guitar'' explained, "some of those bands fused Slayer-based assaulting riffs with

Pantera Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...

-leaning plummeting breakdowns and punk's ferocity and ethics, and a whole new beast was formed." Some later acts, such as

, gravitated towards a more accessible heavy metal sound, while also incorporating elements of Swedish melodic death metal and Boston hardcore. Many 2000s metalcore bands were heavily influenced by melodic death metal, and extensively incorporated elements of the style into their music. '' Alternative Press Magazine'' described metalcore as the "breakdown-heavy counterpart" of melodic death metal, referring to the latter genre as the "founding ancestor" of the former. Malcolm Dome of ''

Revolver A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...

'' wrote that without Swedish melodic death metal band At the Gates' 1995 album '' Slaughter of the Soul'', modern North American melodic metalcore acts such as As I Lay Dying and All That Remains "wouldn't even exist." Graham Hartmann of ''

'' retroactively assessed that the album appeared to be a "

Nostradamus Michel de Nostredame (December 1503 – July 1566), usually Latinisation of names, Latinised as Nostradamus, was a French Astrology, astrologer, apothecary, physician, and reputed Oracle, seer, who is best known for his book ''Les Prophéti ...

-esque prediction of how metal would evolve." Jon Weiderhorn of ''

'' said that deathcore and some metalcore bands were influenced by elements of

Genre classification

There is debate as to whether metalcore is a fusion genre, a subgenre, or a genre of its own. Metalcore is not universally accepted in some traditional heavy metal and hardcore circles. There has been debate and disagreement over whether metalcore is an authentic subgenre of heavy metal, and some in the heavy metal community do not recognize it as a "true" form of metal. Traditional metalheads tend to view it as an inauthentic imitation of "real" metal, and "a diluted misinterpretation of metal's stylistic codes".

Instrumentation and vocals

Instrumentally, metalcore bands generally employ heavy, metallic, percussive guitar riffs, and stop-start

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse (music), pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., d ...

. Metalcore is known for its emphasis on breakdowns. According to Graham Hartmann of ''

'', "when a band changes up the mood with some masterful composition, a breakdown can be brilliant as well as devastating." Drop guitar tunings are often used in metalcore. Most bands use tuning ranging between Drop D and A, although lower tunings, as well as 7 and 8 string guitars, are not uncommon. Drummers typically employ various techniques common in extreme metal and hardcore, such as double-kick drumming. Author James Giordano explains that metalcore is usually played at slower tempos than some of the styles its artists draw influence from, such as

. Metalcore vocalists usually perform

, a harsh vocal technique that became popular in the underground punk and metal scenes of the 1980s. Vocal performances in early metalcore acts were characterized by what has been described as a "raw, scream-meets-shout vocal style." Later metalcore bands often alternate between harsh vocals and singing (also known as "clean vocals"), usually during the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

or chorus of a song. Joe Davita of ''

'' explains that many people define modern metalcore by the tradeoff between screaming and clean singing. Although many modern metalcore tracks have choruses that contain hooks, some bands still do omit clean vocals entirely. Other bands use clean vocals very sparingly, done for the purpose of "coloring a mood." Modern metalcore clean vocals have drawn comparisons to the mainstream emo and

pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

music of the 2000s, which some have suggested may have deterred some fans of heavier music styles. Lyrics in metalcore are often personal, introspective and emotive.

Increased commercialism

In the early 2000s, bands under the metalcore banner drew criticism for "their increasingly considered images, polished production, and what was seen as appeal to progressively more mainstream audiences". Despite several metalcore bands achieving critical acclaim and cult status, several journalists have noted that the metalcore tag earned a "bad rep" after several bands in the genre found commercial success, or released albums with polished production. Andrew Sacher of '' Brooklyn Vegan'' stated his belief that "the mainstream boom tarnished the word 'metalcore' for a while." Several bands and musicians labelled as metalcore have rejected the term entirely, and even some who accept the term nonetheless insist that the style has become "bastardized" by the influence of

commercialism Commercialism is the application of both manufacturing and consumption towards personal usage, or the practices, methods, aims, and distribution of products in a free market geared toward generating a profit. Commercialism can also refer, positi ...

and trends. Critics and journalists have observed the increased presence of ballads on modern metalcore albums, claiming that the "

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

spirit slong gone" from the genre. Stephen Hill of '' Metal Hammer'' assessed, "

became something akin to the

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

of metalcore, enjoying continued success whilst others dwindled but, with Howard Jones taking the mic from Jess Leach, becoming more

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

and

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

-heavy with each new album." Journalists have also observed many later metalcore bands omitting direct hardcore punk influence entirely. Hill also assessed, "So instantly recognisable was the Killswitch sound that it was aped unashamedly by many a newcomer, where before it was an underground scene full of innovative and eclectic bands, there was now a formula." Furthermore, many of the genre's more commercially successful acts, such as All That Remains, Asking Alexandria, Of Mice & Men and

, eventually abandoned their metalcore roots entirely, opting for what has been described as a "more radio-friendly rock- and pop-inclined" approach. Stephen Hill of ''Metal Hammer'' explained: "To onlookers from the outside, metalcore was dead, a one dimensional flash in the pan to go alongside glam and

nu-metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu metal rarely features guita ...

in the ‘what were we thinking?’ Fads of alternative culture." Some practitioners who have expressed disillusionment with the genre's development have attempted to differentiate and constitute acts such as Martyr AD and Poison The Well as representing "what true metalcore is." Stephen Hill of ''Metal Hammer'' suggested that later metalcore bands such as

Attila Attila ( or ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in early 453. He was also the leader of an empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Gepids, among others, in Central Europe, C ...

and Blessthefall " avemore in common with airbrushed, cynically-minded boy bands than the melding of two counter-cultures."

History

Precursors: 1980s

Many of the originators of

took influence from the sound of heavy metal, including Black Flag, the

Bad Brains Bad Brains are an American punk rock band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1976. They are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this term to describe their music. They are also an ade ...

, Discharge and the Exploited, Furthermore, during the 1980s many genres originated merging the two styles, including crust punk,

sludge metal Sludge metal (also known as sludge doom or simply sludge) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. The genre generally includes slow tempos, down-tuned guitars and nihilis ...

and

crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre emerged in the mid-1980s, when hardcore punk bands, such as Suicidal Tendencies, Cryptic Slaughter, Corrosion of Conformity and Dir ...

. Nonetheless, punk and metal cultures and music remained fairly separate through the 1980s. Bands in the New York hardcore scene in particular put a significant emphasis on the influence of metal, building their own take on hardcore, based around groove-driven, palm muted guitar riffs. Early on, this scene saw the development of the hardcore breakdown, an amalgamation of Bad Brains'

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and hardcore backgrounds, which encouraged moshing.Blush, p. 193. "Howie Abrams (NYHC scene): Mosh style was slower, very tribal – like a Reggae beat adapted to Hardcore. (...) It was an outbreak of dancing with a mid-tempo beat driven by floor tom and

snare SNARE proteins – "Soluble NSF attachment protein, SNAP REceptors" – are a large protein family consisting of at least 24 members in yeasts and more than 60 members in mammalian and plant cells. The primary role of SNARE proteins is to m ...

." It was this New York-style hardcore that metalcore grew directly out of.

Origins: 1990s

One of the earliest metalcore scenes was that of

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. Fronted by

and

Ringworm Dermatophytosis, also known as tinea and ringworm, is a mycosis, fungal infection of the skin (a dermatomycosis), that may affect skin, hair, and nails. Typically it results in a red, itchy, scaly, circular rash. Hair loss may occur in the a ...

, the sound of bands in the scene was distinctly darker than what the genre would become. Integrity's debut album ''Those Who Fear Tomorrow '' (1991) merged hardcore with apocalyptic lyrics and metal's guitar solos and chugging riffs to create one of the primeval albums in the genre. ''

'' magazine writer Elis Enis stated that the album "influenced practically every breakdown that's been recorded since". Whereas, Ringworm's debut ''The Promise'' (1993) made use of a style closer to crossover thrash while also putting a heavy emphasis on breakdowns. The term "holy terror" refers to this specific style of metalcore which Integrity and Ringworm pioneered. The style is typified by soaring guitar leads, gravelly vocals and lyrics discussing

western esotericism Western esotericism, also known as the Western mystery tradition, is a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united since they are largely distinct both from orthod ...

. Philadelphia's Starkweather were also an important early metalcore band, with their album ''Crossbearer'' (1992) which merged early metal's grooves and dark atmospheres with elements of hardcore. Rorschach also pioneered a distinctly dissonant and

noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...

-influence niche into this early metalcore sound, which would go on to define noisecore and

. In 1993, Earth Crisis released "Firestorm", a song which became one of the most influential in metalcore. The band's militant

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

straight edge ethic and emphasis on chug riffs saw them immediately influence a wave of subsequent bands and gained coverage by major media outlets like '' CNN'', '' CBS'' and '' MTV''. The EP the song was a part of was also one of the earliest releases by

Victory Records Victory Records is a Chicago-based record label founded by Tony Brummel. It operates a music publishing company called "Another Victory, Inc." and is the distributor of several record labels. It has featured many prominent artists including Thu ...

who go on to be a defining part of the metalcore scene in the coming years, through releasing many of the style's most successful albums.

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

too developed an early metalcore scene, led by Overcast who formed in 1990. Much of this scene were based around Hydra Head Records, which was founded by Aaron Turner after moving to Boston. Converge were one of the earliest and most prominent groups from the city, formed in 1990. Using Rorschach's music as their sonic template, the band's experimental attitude, emotional lyrics and attention to dynamics led to them becoming one of the most influential bands in the genre. Converge, along with Morris Plains, New Jersey's the Dillinger Escape Plan and

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

's Botch were three of the founding acts in the style's mathcore subgenre, with

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

's Coalesce and

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Deadguy being prominent acts transitioning towards the style. Converge's guitarist

Kurt Ballou Kurt Ballou (born February 1, 1974) is an American musician and record producer based in Massachusetts, best known as the guitarist for metalcore band Converge and for his recording and production work at his own GodCity Studio. Early and pe ...

opened the recording studio GodCity Studio in 1998, and would go on to record many of the most influential subsequent hardcore records from the city.

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

's Merauder released their debut album ''Master Killer'' in 1996, merging the sounds of metalcore, earlier New York hardcore and the newly emerged beatdown hardcore style. Of the album, ''

'' writer Elis Enis stated "any self-proclaimed 'metallic hardcore' band of the last 25 years is indebted to ''Master Killers steel-toed stomp." Along with All Out War, Darkside NYC and Confusion, Merauder were a part of a wave of bands defining a newer, increasingly metallic style of hardcore in New York that had long been one of the epicentres of the genre. Long Island's Vision of Disorder were also a prevalent band in the scene, being one of the first bands to incorporate clean singing into the genre, which would soon become a staple, as well as incorporating elements of

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop music, hip hop, funk, industrial music, industrial, and grunge. Nu ...

. In a 2005 article by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' magazine, writer Greg Pato stated that "with seemingly every local teen waving the VOD banner circa the mid/late '90s, it seemed as though it was only a matter of time before VOD would become the band to take 'metalcore' to a massive audience". Hatebreed 2016

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the List of cities in New England by population, fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Loc ...

's Hatebreed released their debut album '' Satisfaction is the Death of Desire'' in 1997. The album helped the band achieve underground success, selling 158,000 copies, according to

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...

, and holds the record for Victory Record's best selling debut album. The band's style merged classic hardcore with beatdown and metalcore, while also overtly referencing metal bands like Slayer. In a 2015 '' Metal Hammer'' article, writer Stephen Hill stated "The difference between Hatebreed and many of their influences is that where a band like Madball were happy to co-exist with metal bands without feeling like they were part of the same scene, Hatebreed actively went out of their way to become the hardcore band metal fans listen to." Other influential metalcore bands of the time include Shai Hulud,. Zao. and Disembodied.

Orange County, California Orange County (officially the County of Orange; often initialized O.C.) is a county (United States), county located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population ...

metalcore band Eighteen Visions contrasted the metalcore scene's usual hyper masculine aesthetic of "army and sports clothes" with "skinny jeans, eyeliner and hairstyles influenced by Orgy and Unbroken". This visual style led to the band being called "fashioncore". Jasamine White-Gluz of ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

'' wrote that Eighteen Visions look "more like a boy band than a popular hardcore group. Critics tag the band for putting fashion at the centre of their music, but it adds a playful and interesting touch to a band that sounds much tougher than it looks." A scene of bands in Orange County including Bleeding Through, Avenged Sevenfold and Atreyu continued this in Eighteen Visions' wake, and influenced emo and scene (subculture), scene fashion in the coming decade. As the decade drew to a close, a wave of metalcore bands began incorporating elements of melodic death metal into their sound. This formed an early version of what would become the melodic metalcore genre, with Shadows Fall's ''Somber Eyes to the Sky'' (1997), Undying's ''This Day All Gods Die'' (1999), Darkest Hour's ''The Prophecy Fulfilled'' (1999), Unearth's ''Above the Fall of Man'' (1999), Prayer for Cleansing's ''Rain in Endless Fall'' (1999) being some of the style's earliest releases. CMJ writer Anthony Delia also credited Florida's Poison the Well (band), Poison the Well and their first two releases ''The Opposite of December... A Season of Separation'' (1999) and ''Tear from the Red'' (2002) as "design[ing] the template for most of" the melodic metalcore bands to come.

Mainstream success: 2000s

Converge's ''Jane Doe (album), Jane Doe'' was released on 4 September 2001 to universal critical and fan acclaim. The album influenced the development of the sound of other U.S. bands like Norma Jean (band), Norma Jean and Misery Signals as well as international acts like Eden Maine, Johnny Truant and Beecher (band), Beecher. Blake Butler of ''Allmusic'' stated that Converge "put the final sealing blow on their status as a legend in the world of metallic hardcore" with the album, calling it "an experience -- an encyclopedic envelopment of so much at once." ''Terrorizer Magazine'' named it their 2001 Album of the Year,J. Bennett, "Who's That Girl?", ''Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces'', Albert Mudrian (ed.), Da Capo Press, p. 331. and it was named the greatest album of the 2000s by ''Noisecreep'', ''Sputnikmusic'' and ''Decibel (magazine), Decibel''. Douglasville, Georgia's Norma Jean and The Chariot (band), the Chariot were both influential artists continuing metalcore's earlier sound into the 2000s. Norma Jean's ''O' God, the Aftermath'' (2005) was Grammy award nominated for Grammy Award for Best Recording Package, Best Recording Package and the Chariot's ''Long Live (The Chariot album), Long Live'' (2010) was listed as one of ''Kerrang!s "21 best U.S. metalcore albums of all time". In contrast to these bands' dark approach to the genre, Buffalo, New York's Every Time I Die incorporated Southern rock elements and humor, ''Kerrang!'' noted them as "shaped the cutting edge of modern metalcore."

Melodic metalcore

In 2002, Killswitch Engage's ''Alive or Just Breathing'' reached number 37 on the Heatseekers Albums chart. In 2004, Killswitch Engage's ''The End of Heartache'', Shadows Fall's ''The War Within (Shadows Fall album), The War Within'', and Atreyu's ''The Curse (Atreyu album), The Curse'' peaked at numbers 21, 20, and 36 on the ''Billboard'' 200, respectively. Also, in 2006, Atreyu's third studio album, ''A Death-Grip On Yesterday'' peaked at number 9 on the Billboard 200, only to be followed up by 2007's ''Lead Sails Paper Anchor'', which peaked at number 8. Atreyu's 2002 debut album ''Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses'', as of 3 July 2004, has sold 107,000 copies in the United States. Killswitch Engage's 2004 album ''The End of Heartache'' and 2006 album ''As Daylight Dies'' were both certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2007 and 2009, respectively. Killswitch Engage's 2002 album ''Alive or Just Breathing'', as of 3 July 2004, has sold 114,000 copies in the United States. Unearth began to have success among heavy metal fans in 2004 with the release of their second album ''The Oncoming Storm'', which peaked at number 1 on the Heatseekers Albums chart on 17 July 2004. On that same day, the album peaked at number 105 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Unearth's 2006 album ''III: In the Eyes of Fire'' peaked at number 35 on the ''Billboard'' 200. The band's 2008 album ''The March (album), The March'' peaked at number 45 on the ''Billboard'' 200. ''Oncoming Storm'', ''III: In the Eyes of Fire, and ''The March'' peaked at numbers 6, 2 and 3 on the Independent Albums chart, respectively. Avenged Sevenfold's first two albums ''Sounding the Seventh Trumpet'' (2001) and ''Waking the Fallen'' (2003) were both metalcore albums. On the band's 2005 album ''City of Evil'', Avenged Sevenfold moved away from metalcore and changed to a traditional heavy metal sound. On 15 June 2005, ''Blabbermouth.net'' reported that ''Waking the Fallen'' has sold 172,253 copies in the United States, according to

. On 17 July 2009, ''Waking the Fallen'' was certified gold by the RIAA. BulletForMyValentine2006

As I Lay Dying at the With Full Force music festival -- 29 June 2007

Trivium also achieved success among heavy metal fans when their 2005 album ''Ascendancy (album), Ascendancy'' peaked at number 151 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Their albums ''The Crusade (album), The Crusade'' (2006) and ''Shogun (Trivium album), Shogun'' (2008) peaked at numbers 25 and 23 on the ''Billboard'' 200, respectively. Bleeding Through's 2006 album ''The Truth (Bleeding Through album), The Truth'' peaked at number 1 on the Independent Albums chart on 28 January 2006. On that same day, the album peaked at number 48 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Metalcore band As I Lay Dying also achieved success among heavy metal fans. The band's 2005 album ''Shadows Are Security'' peaked at number 35 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and sold 263,000 copies, according to

. As I Lay Dying's 2007 album ''An Ocean Between Us'' peaked at number 8 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in 2007. As of April 2005, As I Lay Dying's 2003 album ''Frail Words Collapse'' sold 118,000 copies in the United States. All That Remains achieved success with their 2006 album ''The Fall of Ideals'', which, as of 1 October 2008, sold 175,000 copies in the United States. All That Remains' 2008 album ''Overcome (All That Remains album), Overcome'' peaked at number 16 on the ''Billboard'' 200. ''Overcome'' song "Two Weeks" peaked at number 9 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart on 16 May 2009. Bullet for My Valentine's debut album ''The Poison'' was released in October 2005 in Europe and was released in February 2006 in the United States. On 26 July 2006, Blabbermouth.net reported that ''The Poison'' has sold 72,000 copies in the United States. On 27 October 2007, Blabbermouth.net reported that ''The Poison'' has sold 336,000 copies in the United States. On 3 April 2010, ''

'' reported that ''The Poison'' sold 573,000 copies in the United States. ''The Poison'' was certified gold by the RIAA on 30 January 2009. Bullet for My Valentine's second album ''Scream Aim Fire'', released in 2008, peaked at number 4 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and sold 360,000 copies in the United States. Bullet for My Valentine's 2010 album ''Fever (Bullet for My Valentine album), Fever'' peaked at number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 71,000 copies in the United States during its first week of release. ''Fever'' song "Your Betrayal" peaked at number 25 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.

Diversification

As the decade progressed, metalcore became increasingly tied to the social media

, launched in 2003, and the scene (subculture), scene subculture that was prominent on the platform. Marketing through Myspace launched the careers of many of the era's most prominent bands including

, Attack Attack! (American band), Attack Attack!, Black Veil Brides, Bullet for My Valentine, Job For a Cowboy and Suicide Silence. Despite the stylistic distinctness between many of these groups' sounds they became encompassed by the terms "myspace-core" and "scene-core". Many went on to become fixtures at Warped Tour, and Fearless Records's ''Punk Goes...'' cover series. Deathcore is a fusion of metalcore and death metal. Deathcore is defined by Breakdown (music)#Heavy metal and punk rock, breakdowns, blast beats and death metal Ostinato#Riff, riffs. Bands may also incorporate guitar solos and even riffs that are influenced by metalcore. New York-based death metal group Suffocation (band), Suffocation is credited as one of the main influences for the emergence of deathcore. Embodyments album "Embrace The Eternal" is a foundation for the modern Deathcore sound.. Some examples of deathcore bands are Suicide Silence, Whitechapel (band), Whitechapel, Knights of the Abyss, Carnifex (band), Carnifex and Chelsea Grin (band), Chelsea Grin. In 2006 and 2007, a wave of metalcore bands strongly influenced by death metal dubbed deathcore gained moderate popularity. Notable bands that brought the genre to the fore include Bring Me the Horizon and Suicide Silence. Suicide Silence's ''No Time to Bleed'' peaked at number 32 on the Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200, number 12 on the Rock Albums Chart and number 6 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart, while their album ''The Black Crown'' peaked at number 28 on the ''Billboard'' 200, number 7 on the Rock Albums Chart and number 3 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart. After its release, Whitechapel (band), Whitechapel's album ''This Is Exile'' sold 5,900 in copies, which made it enter the ''Billboard'' 200 chart at position 118. Their Whitechapel (album), self-titled album peaked at number 65 on the Canadian Albums Chart and also at number 47 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Their third album ''A New Era of Corruption'' sold about 10,600 copies in the

in its first week of being released and peaked at position number 43 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Furthermore, Bring Me the Horizon won the Kerrang! Awards#2006 Results, 2006 Kerrang! Awards for Best British Newcomer after they released their 2006 debut record ''Count Your Blessings (Bring Me the Horizon album), Count Your Blessings''. However, Bring Me the Horizon abandoned the deathcore genre after the release of this album. San Diego natives Carnifex (band), Carnifex, witnessed success with their first album ''Dead in My Arms'', selling 5,000 copies with little publicity. On top of their non-stop touring and methodical songwriting resulted in Carnifex quickly getting signed to label

. Lastly, Australian deathcore band Thy Art Is Murder debuted at number 35 on the ARIA Charts with their album ''Hate (Thy Art Is Murder album), Hate'' (2012) making them the first extreme metal band to ever reach the Top 40 of this chart. Asking Alexandria 2012 Mayhem

Electronicore's merger of metalcore with various electronic music styles emerged in the 2000s. One of the earliest contributors to the sound was St Albans band Enter Shikari. Their debut album ''Take to the Skies'' peaked at number on the Official UK Album Chart selling 28,000 copies in its first week and was certified Gold in the UK after selling over 100,000 copies. It was also the first album to achieve a significant chart success for a new act operating outside the traditional label system. The group received international radio airplay and a substantial number of musical awards, from ''Kerrang!'', ''NME'', ''Rock Sound'' and the ''BT Digital Music Awards''. Their second album ''Common Dreads'' was released in June 2009 and debuted on the UK Albums Chart at 16. Columbus, Ohio's Attack Attack! gained significant notoriety with their Enter Shikari-influenced sound. The band's song for "Stick Stickly", the lead single from ''Someday Came Suddenly'' (2008) went viral online for its use of autotune and synths, with the members' squatting "crab walk" stance during the music video giving way to the crabcore meme. Warren, Michigan band I See Stars's debut album ''3-D (I See Stars album), 3-D'' debuted at number 176 on the Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200, number 5 on Top Heatseekers, and number 22 on Top Independent Albums. The Devil Wears Prada (band), The Devil Wears Prada's 2011 album ''Dead Throne'' (which sold 32,400 in its first week) reached number 10 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Asking Alexandria also achieved success, with their 2009 song "Final Episode (Let's Change the Channel)" being certified gold by the RIAA. The band's 2011 album ''Reckless & Relentless'' peaked at number 9 on the ''Billboard'' 200. In the late 2000s, a wave of groups began to gain traction cross-pollinating the metalcore style of bands like Shai Hulud and Misery Signals, with the influence of traditional hardcore and melodic hardcore groups like Killing the Dream. This wave often made use of serious, solemn lyrics and sometimes clean vocals in addition to the commonplace screams. Music commentators including ''Finn McKenty, Stuff You Will Hate'', ''Alternative Press'' and Bradley Zorgdrager of ''

'' used the name "serious hardcore" or "srscore" to refer to this style. Groups in this wave included Hundredth (band), Hundredth, The Ghost Inside (band), the Ghost Inside, Counterparts (band), Counterparts and Stick to Your Guns (band), Stick to Your Guns.

Continued success: 2010s–present

and Bring Me the Horizon spearheaded the British metalcore scene of the late 2000s and early 2010s. Architects had begun as a mathcore band on ''Nightmares (Architects album), Nightmares'' (2006) before moving into metalcore by the release of ''Ruin (album), Ruin'' (2007). ''Hysteria'' magazine credited the band's long time vocalist Sam Carter with reviving high pitched screamed vocals in metalcore and "influencing an entire generation of acts such as Polaris (Australian band), Polaris, In Hearts Wake, Void of Vision, Invent Animate, Imminence (band), Imminence...the list goes on", as well as popularising the "blegh" adlib, which subsequently became commonplace in the genre. Bring Me the Horizon's third album ''There Is a Hell Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven Let's Keep It a Secret.'' (2010), saw the band incorporate electronica, classical music and pop music into their metalcore style, a trend then continued further on ''Sempiternal (album), Sempiternal'' (2013), which also embraced elements of

. The Latter peaked at number 3 on the UK albums chart, and was one of the earliest releases by a UK metalcore band on a major label, through RCA Records. Following this, many bands in the metalcore scene began to emulate the sound these albums. The band's massive mainstream success led publications such as ''the Guardian'' and ''the Independent'' to accredit them as "the new Metallica", and '' Metal Hammer'' writer Stephen Hill to call ''Sempiternal'' "this generation's definitive metal album". The nu metal elements present on ''Sempiternal'', as well as Suicide Silence's ''The Black Crown'' (2012), led to a wave of bands in the mid-2010s taking influence from nu metal. My Ticket Home's ''Strangers Only'' (2013) was a notable precedent of this wave, seeing a previously established metalcore act merge their style with dark, nu metal influence to help establish the coming nu metalcore sound. Issues (band), Issues' merger of nu metal, metalcore and contemporary R&B gained them significant commercial success, with a number of publications crediting them as ushering a new wave of nu metal. Their debut Issues (Issues album), self-titled album (2014) peaked at number nine on the ''Billboard 200'' chart and their second album ''Headspace (Issues album), Headspace'' (2016) reached number one on the ''Top Alternative Albums'' chart. Furthermore, Bring Me the Horizon's fifth album ''That's the Spirit'' (2015) saw the band fully embrace nu metal, which peaked at number 2 in both the UK and US. In the following years Emmure, Of Mice & Men, Sworn In (band), Sworn In and DangerKids had all embraced the genre, and by 2016, nu metalcore had solidified itself as a movement. Architects02

Architect's ''All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us'' (2016) was released to critical acclaim, with ''Metal Hammer'' writer Stephen Hill called it "as close to a perfect metal record as one can imagine". The following year, they released the single "Doomsday (Architects song), Doomsday", their first release since the death of the band's founding guitarist Tom Searle. In the years following the single's release, the song's sound became widely imitated within the metalcore scene, particularly the song's introduction guitar riff. As the decade drew to a close, a new wave of bands in the genre emerged who harkened back to the metallic hardcore sound of bands from the 1990s. Vein.fm, Code Orange (band), Code Orange, Knocked Loose, Varials, Jesus Piece (band), Jesus Piece, Counterparts (band), Counterparts and Kublai Khan (band), Kublai Khan were all notable groups who gained significant success within the genre at the time. Code Orange saw critical acclaim and success with their Roadrunner Records debut ''Forever (Code Orange album), Forever'' in 2017. Forever's title track was also nominated Grammy for Best Metal Performance in 2018. It too embraced the influence of nu metal and according to ''PopMatters'' writer Ethan Stewart, led to nu metalcore becoming "one of the most prominent flavors of contemporary metal". Knocked Loose gained significant attention after their song "Counting Worms" from their album ''Laugh Tracks (Knocked Loose album), Laugh Tracks'' (2016) became a meme due to its "arf arf" mosh call. The band's 2019 second album ''A Different Shade of Blue'' also received critical and commercial success. Nu metalcore maintained its prominence into the 2020s with Tetrarch (band), Tetrarch and Tallah gaining notability. Loathe (band), Loathe's second album ''I Let It In and It Took Everything'' (2020) saw critical acclaim, and was consistently praised for expanding the scope of metalcore by incorporating elements of nu metal, shoegaze, emo, post-rock, progressive metal and industrial music. The band's use of the Fender Bass VI guitar, which tunes to an octave below a standard tuning guitar, became widely sought after following the album's release. Publications credited Spiritbox similarly with ''Metal Hammer'' calling them "post-metalcore" and "genre-fluid". The band's 2020 single "Holy Roller" reached the Top 40 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and their debut album ''Eternal Blue (album), Eternal Blue'' was named the year's best rock or metal album by ''

'' and metalcore album by ''Metal Hammer''. Around the same time, a number of bands gained prominence in the scene that revived the sound of groups from the mid-to-late-2000s, fronted by Static Dress, SeeYouSpaceCowboy, If I Die First and Jarrod Alonge, CrazyEightyEight. This movement grew out of both the hardcore scene and the mainstream success that the emo rap scene gained the late-2010s. Formed in 2015, Bad Omens' third album ''The Death of Peace of Mind'' (2022) was the band's commercial breakthrough after viral success of the album's second single "Just Pretend (Bad Omens song), Just Pretend" on TikTok which then topped the ''Billboard'' Mainstream Rock chart. By March 2023, the album had received 20 million streams on Spotify, leading to ''Metal Hammer'' calling them "the biggest metalcore band in a generation." Bring Me the Horizon's ''Post Human: Survival Horror'' (2020) and Architects' ''For Those That Wish to Exist'' (2021) both also reached number one in the UK album charts.

References

Bibliography

* Haenfler, Ross. ''Straight Edge: Clean-living Youth, Hardcore Punk, and Social Change'', Rutgers University Press. . * Mudrian, Albert (2000). ''Choosing Death: The Improbable History of Death Metal and Grindcore''. Feral House. . * Sharpe-Young, Garry (2005). ''New Wave of American Heavy Metal''. Zonda Books. . *

External links

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