What's your favorite metal subgenre?
in Music ·
scissors said:If we’re going to get technical...
Cradle of Filth - gothic/black metal
The term "epic" should really refer to the lyrical themes a band explores—it shouldn't be used to describe a musical style itself. Everyone knows what "epic" means in a literary sense—you probably remember it from middle school English class—and it reflects the storytelling in the lyrics. In the metal scene, people started using it to describe power metal bands with grand narratives, think knights in shining armor or ancient crusades... it’s about the text, not the sound. Honestly, so many people—even some major magazines—get this wrong.
In the case of COB, you could call them "symphonic," since they occasionally lean into orchestration and operatic female vocals, among other things...
Children of Bodom is definitely not melodic death metal... if you want to hear what melodic death actually sounds like, go listen to At the Gates, Dark Tranquillity, In Flames, or Dimension Zero. COB basically fused power/heavy metal guitar work—just listen to those solos and the riffing on their first two albums—with a bit of Thrash Metal influence on their last two records (especially on the latest one, "Hate Crew..."). The vocals have a black metal vibe, though they flirt a little with melodic death styles—but they just flirt with it; it's never true death vocals. Most people categorize them as black/power metal, which isn't wrong... but melodic death? Never.
I see your point.🙏