Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal)[4] is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal.[5][6] Alternative metal bands are often characterized by heavily downtuned, mid-paced guitar riffs, a mixture of accessible melodic vocals and harsh vocals and sometimes unconventional sounds within other heavy metal styles.[5] The term has been in use since the 1980s,[7] although it came into prominence in the 1990s.[8]
Other genres considered part of the alternative metal movement included rap metal[5][9] and funk metal, both of which influenced another prominent subgenre, nu metal. Nu metal expands the alternative metal sound, combining its vocal stylings and downtuned riffs with elements of other genres, such as hip hop, funk, thrash metal, hardcore punk and industrial metal.
Alternative metal began in the 1980s with bands like Faith No More, Living Colour, Soundgarden, and Jane's Addiction. The genre achieved success in the 1990s with the popularity of bands like Helmet, Tool, and Alice in Chains. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, nu metal achieved mainstream popularity with the mainstream success of bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit, P.O.D., Papa Roach, Disturbed, Godsmack, System of a Down, Linkin Park, Slipknot, and Staind. After 2003, nu metal's popularity began to decline, with bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit and P.O.D. experiencing a decline in album sales and many nu metal bands moving on to other genres. Nonetheless, alternative metal's popularity continued in the mid–late 2000s with the continued success of bands like Disturbed, Godsmack and System of a Down and the mainstream success of emerging bands like Evanescence, Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin.
^Schmidt, Axel; Neumann-Braun, Klaus (2008) [First published 2004]. Die Welt der Gothics: Spielräume düster konnotierter Transzendenz [The World of the Gothics: Leeways of Darkly Connoted Transcendency] (in German) (2nd ed.). Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften / GWV Fachverlage GmbH. pp. 269–270. ISBN 978-3-531-15880-8. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
^Grow, Kory (March 20, 2013). "Not a Downer: Tool's Adam Jones Talks 'Opiate' Reissue, New Material | SPIN | Q & A". SPIN. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
^"Coal Chamber - Biography & History - AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
^Grierson, Tim. "Alternative Metal - What Is Alternative Metal - Alt-Metal History". About.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016. Retrieved July 7, 2010.
^ abc"Alternative Metal". AllMusic. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
^Henderson, Alex. "Sourvein Will to Mangle". AllMusic. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
^Crean, Patricia. "'Alice' will rattle some chains". Spokane Chronicle. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
^"Jesters of Destiny". Allmusic. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
^"Rap-Metal". Allmusic. Retrieved November 21, 2012. Rap-Metal seeks to fuse the most aggressive elements of hardcore rap and heavy metal, and became an extremely popular variation of alternative metal during the late '90s...In spite of projects like 1993's much-hyped Judgment Night soundtrack -- which featured all-star teamings of artists from the rap and rock worlds -- crossover collaborations faded as the '90s wore on. At the same time, rap-metal began to draw influences from alternative metal -- specifically, bands like Helmet, White Zombie, and Tool, who relied on crushingly heavy sonic textures more than catchy songwriting or immediately memorable riffs. The thick sound and the lack of melodic emphasis fit rap-metal's concerns perfectly. With the exception of Rage Against the Machine's angry left-wing politics, most rap-metal bands during the mid- to late '90s blended an ultra-aggressive, testosterone-heavy theatricality with either juvenile humor or an introspective angst learned through alternative metal...
Alternativemetal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres...
Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States...
Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal) is a subgenre of alternativemetal that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music...
This is a list of alternativemetal artists. Alternativemetal (or alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences...
Alternativemetal is a style of heavy metal and alternative rock which emerged in the mid-1980s and gained popularity in the early 1990s. Alternative...
sometimes known as alternative soul Alternative reggaeton Alternative hip hop Alternative dance Alternativemetal Christian alternative rock Indie folk,...
period, many record labels were looking for "alternatives", as many corporate rock, hard rock, and glam metal acts from the 1980s were beginning to grow...
Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal or prog) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression"...
Rap metal is a fusion genre which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals...
Funk metal (also known as thrash-funk or punk-funk) is a subgenre of funk rock and alternativemetal that infuses heavy metal music (often thrash metal) with...
metal. During that period, some bands either disbanded or moved away from their thrash metal roots and more towards groove metal or alternativemetal...
played nu metal. Nu metal (also known as nü-metal and aggro-metal), is a form of alternativemetal music that merges elements of heavy metal with elements...
unlike the new wave and glam metal-dominated scene of the time, grunge, Britpop, industrial rock, and other alternative rock music emerged and took over...
categorised under many different genres, including alternativemetal, post-rock/metal, progressive metal and indie rock/pop. After self-releasing their debut...
Giant Yungblud Zoé The Zolas Zox The Zutons Zvuki Mu Zwan List of alternativemetal artists List of Britpop musicians List of dream pop artists List of...
Deftones is an American alternativemetal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by frontman Chino Moreno, lead guitarist Stephen...
British heavy metal dating to 1979. NWOAHM includes a wide variety of styles, including alternativemetal, groove metal, industrial metal, nu metal and metalcore...
Industrial metal is the fusion of heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer...
mainstream in the early 1990s. Early alternativemetal bands mixed a wide variety of genres with hardcore and heavy metal sensibilities, with acts like Jane's...
on the Alternative Songs chart, and number 10 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart. The song was played frequently on MTV and won the Best Metal/Hard Rock...
of bands that play sludge metal, or sludge, a genre of extreme music that originated through combining elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. "16 -...
punk, punk rock, heavy metal, alternativemetal, melodic hardcore, alternative rock, thrash metal, pop rock, punk metal, nu metal, arena rock, and hard...
thrash metal bands emerged (Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax), to be joined on the scene in 1983 by Megadeth. Heavy metal genres List of alternativemetal bands...
black metal of Trail of Tears, the folk metal of Midnattsol, the industrial metal of Deathstars, Gothminister and Neon Synthesis, the alternativemetal of...
White Pony is the third studio album by the American alternativemetal band Deftones, released on June 20, 2000, through Maverick Records. It was produced...
the genres alternativemetal, alternative rock, pop rock, electronic rock, hard rock, heavy metal, post-hardcore, pop metal, pop, nu metal, electropop...
Global Information