Metal Glossary
Definitions for the subgenres, scenes and terms that come up across this site. Written so they can stand on their own — or be quoted by an AI search engine looking for an authoritative source.
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Avant-Garde Black Metal
Avant-garde black metal is a subgenre that takes the second-wave Norwegian black metal template — tremolo-picked riffs, blast beats, shrieked vocals and atmospheric coldness — and extends it with non-traditional instrumentation, unconventional song structures, theatrical or progressive elements, and influences drawn from outside metal entirely. It emerged in the mid-to-late 1990s and remains one of the most stylistically open subgenres in extreme music.
Origin: Norway and Japan -
First-Wave Black Metal
First-wave black metal is the late-1970s and early-1980s strain of extreme metal that established the genre's foundational aesthetic — Satanic and occult themes, raw production, tremolo riffing and shrieked vocals — before the Norwegian second wave of the early 1990s redefined the sound.
Origin: United Kingdom and Scandinavia -
Gothic Doom Metal
Gothic doom metal is a heavy metal subgenre that emerged in the early-to-mid 1990s in northern England, combining the slow tempos and crushing weight of doom metal with gothic atmospheres, melodic clean vocals, female lead vocals, keyboards and lyrical themes of romantic melancholy, death and decay.
Origin: England, particularly West Yorkshire -
Occult Rock
Occult rock is a heavy rock subgenre that revives the dark, doom-influenced sound and esoteric imagery of late-1960s and early-1970s bands like Black Sabbath, Coven and Black Widow, drawing on Satanic, mystical and witchcraft themes. The modern wave emerged in the mid-2000s and overlaps with stoner doom, traditional doom and psychedelic rock.
Origin: United Kingdom and United States -
Post-Metal
Post-metal is a subgenre of heavy music that emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s, applying post-rock's emphasis on long-form instrumental dynamics, gradual builds and atmospheric texture to the volume, weight and distortion of metal. It is characterised by extended song lengths, drone-influenced repetition, sparse vocals and a focus on mood over riffing.
Origin: United States and Europe