Ok, so its an idea I've been toying with for a little while now but every time I've thought about it, it seems like something of a monolithic task. Basically, since we already have the 'lifer essentials' list being tallied by Biddles I thought it would be useful if resident experts wrote a short piece about the scene, perhaps only a paragraph giving an overview of the origins and whatnot, then a further few lines detailing the 'main' subgenres (for example Black would be split into symphonic black, ambient black and melodic black; the likes of ambient black, fitting under both ambient and black could simply be placed under both headings; all of the sub-divisions could be placed within specially labelled spoiler tags for the blog if needed to avoid clutter).

It would eventually all be put into one compendium post and linked to on the main page of the lifer blog as well as possibly stickied somewhere on these forums. Naturally, I don't mind writing a couple if there are gaps but quite frankly for most of the genres there are better candidates; Bidwell for PM; Costigan for Trad; Dale for Doom; Aaron for the Drone subsection (and perhaps they split Blues somewhere between them); Ricard for Prog, Julian for (OS)DM; Laurentz for post-rock, etc, etc, off the top of my head.

In my mind this is the current layout for the guide but its all up for argument:

EDIT:

The two posts are currently coded and ready for input, and are linked on the main page. Rather than keep pasting whats been put down already, I'll simply be updating lists of whats been written. If you don't see a gap for a genre you feel significant enough to deserve mentioning, let me know and I'll add one.

Written:
Adel - Death/Doom
Angell - Metalcore
Chan - Death Metal
Bawden - Viking, Shibuya-Kei, Doujin, Dark Ambient, Picopop/Chiptune, Progressive, Technical, Avant-Garde
Laurentz - Black Metal, NSBM
Weaver - Horror Punk

In Progress (possibly):
Bawden - Glitch
Costigan - NWOBHM
Laurentz - DSBM, Black Ambient
Mason - Symphonic BM
McGrath - Dark Metal

Naturally, thanks to all contributors.

So, if you were to look at doom, would traditional doom be spoken about just under the main doom heading and then discuss the offshoots that came later?

LegionOvDoom wrote:

So, if you were to look at doom, would traditional doom be spoken about just under the main doom heading and then discuss the offshoots that came later?

Yeah, it would come under 'origins' more than anything else. This is all just a rough guide that can be fiddled around with, for example we might later decide its worth splitting Black by the waves as well (my initial though to simply have that in the main heading). I envisage it as a bit like a wikipedia page once we've got some of the main bits down in the sense that people can freely challenge wording or phrases or whatever. I guess the place to start with really is the main headings, then we can slowly add things as people write.

I'd like to do one one death/doom whenever I have some time.

This what I've written so far. Many of the bands mentioned in brackets actually have links attached but it doesn't show properly here. I'll probably tackle "Shibuya-Kei" next before working on the introduction for ambient (I'll be leaving Black Ambient to others, naturally).



Doujin: It should first be prudent to point out that this is not a genre but rather a descriptor of the style of music. Whereas in the West royalties must be paid whenever a cover song is performed or publicly sold, in Japan it is openly encouraged as a means for fans to distribute their own material and generate popularity for the article in question. Whilst admittedly a lot ends up in the form of hentai of popular animé characters, fan made graphic novels and computer games have also emerged along with ‘Doujin Music,’ involving artists performing remixed variations of music from popular video games and animé.

These doujin groups can vary in size to the singular (e.g. Iron Attack) to their dozens (“Sound Horizon” have 32 members at last count) and are musically constrained by no specific genre, ranging from metal (e.g. Demetori) to electronica (e.g. East New Sound) and neo-classical (e.g. Sound Horizon). Coming from the same source, much of the music is instrumental by nature and it’s fairly common to find many alternate versions of the same song, and many artists are highly proficient, releasing upwards of two EP’s per year.


Visual-Kei: Neither genre nor a descriptor in the conventional sense, the label has no impact upon the sound of the artist in question and only describes the manner they dress. A Japanese scene that emerged in the early 80s, it has strong links to the aesthetic appeal of artists from the ‘Glam’ and ‘Shock Rock’ era in the US. Often provocatively dressing in a manner to accentuate the music, unlike both Glam and Shock the situation in Japan has massively gained in popularity since that time and are perhaps best compared to ‘GWAR’ in the manner they utilise their costumes. Well known Visual-Kei artists include Luna Sea, Glay and Malice Mizer (better artists include Gargoyle, Gonin-Ish and Versailles).


Viking Metal: Following the lead of Bathory’s ‘Blood Fire Death,’ (1988) the genre has since evolved to take its own unique form combining elements of Black Metal, Death Metal, Folk Metal and in some cases Doom Metal and Power Metal. Characterised by its comparatively mid-paced tempo, coherent growls (usually either mid-range or higher), and bombastic approach to the manner in which instruments are performed, as with folk metal, it is also often common to find unconventional instruments being utilised (or keyboards being used in their place). Many artists deemed the title offensive due to its specific nature (many having little in common with Viking imagery) and instead choose to refer to themselves as ‘Pagan Metal,’ though the terms are synonymous with regards to sound. Though the genre is still young and finding its roots, it has seen a large rise in popularity over the course of the last decade. Well known artists include Moonsorrow, Equilibrium and Forefather.

Note: there is a common misconception that ‘Amon Amarth,’ ‘Tyr’ and ‘Turisas’ can be considered a part of the genre due to their lyrical themes. Amon Amarth are Melodic Death Metal, Tyr Progressive Folk and Turisas Symphonic/Folk Metal; their lyrical content alone does not place them – or any other artist – within this genre.

Bvmp. Latest additions. Still have Glitch, Experimental and Avant-Garde in the works.

Progressive Metal: Whilst debatable as to whether it constitutes a descriptor or a genre in its own right, Progressive Metal features tracks that consistently vary throughout the course of the song. Often more involved in exploring a thematic concept, a particular range of emotions or in telling a story; because of this nature the track will only come to an end when the subject matter has been covered in sufficient detail, sometimes including additional unconventional instrumentation where required to accentuate the point being made, the result is often longer tracks are performed.

A common misconception is that the style of music being formed pushes conventional boundaries, and whilst this may once have been true to an extent from a technical standpoint with the frequent inclusion of time signatures and unusual beat patterns over the more conventional Rock and Metal format, it is not this that defines Progressive Metal. It is perfectly possible to have simplistic and catchy music that remains progressive (e.g. Janne da Arc, Walrus), if perhaps uncommon. Whilst any sub-genre of Metal can display progressive tendencies, much of the genre is either strongly influenced by Power Metal (e.g. Symphony X, Manticora, Redemption) or Death Metal (e.g. Atheist, Cynic, [later] Death). Other well known examples include Dream Theater, Zero Hour and Nevermore. - TB



Technical/Math Metal: Often associated with Progressive music, the genre utilises irregular song structures, dissonant chords, abrupt changes in tempo and unusual beat patterns. The result is often very complex and chaotic in tone, reserved largely for use in Technical Death Metal (e.g. Anata, Gorguts, Cryptopsy) and Mathcore (e.g. Sikth, Rolo Tomassi, Protest the Hero). Both genres terms emerged from alternate places but ultimately mean the same thing; Mathcore emerging influenced primarily from Math Rock and Technical Death Metal taking influences from Technical (Free) Jazz.

John Zorn - particularly with Naked City - soon fused the more metallic Technical Death Metal with the more punk influenced Mathcore, and with a greater reliance on Free Jazz, created a new breed of music called Jazzcore (e.g. Midori, Kusudama, Lye By Mistake). It should be noted that Technical music is not always chaotic in its sound; if something is performed in a 7/13 beat pattern at 120bpm, it remains technical but neither quick nor complex (e.g. Slint, Crydebris). It should also be noted that Technical music and Progressive music are mutually exclusive terms. - TB