Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres. Both the music and the lyrics are intended to evoke a sense of despair, dread, and impending doom. The genre is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath, who formed a prototype for doom metal. During the first half of the 1980s, a number of bands such as Witchfinder General and Pagan Altar from England, American bands Pentagram, Saint Vitus, the Obsessed, Trouble, and Cirith Ungol, and Swedish band Candlemass defined doom metal as a distinct genre.
Characteristics
Instrumentation
The electric guitar, bass guitar, and drum kit are the most common instruments used to play doom metal, but its structures are rooted in the same scales as in blues. Guitarists and bassists often down tune their instruments to very low notes and make use of large amounts of distortion, thus producing a very "thick" or "heavy" guitar tone, which is one of the defining characteristics of the genre. Along with the usual heavy metal compositional technique of guitars and bass playing the same riff in unison, this creates a loud and bass-heavy wall of sound. Another defining characteristic is the consistent focus on slow tempos, and minor tonality with much use of dissonance, employing the usage of repetitive rhythms with little regard to harmonic progression and musical structure.Vocals
Traditional doom metal vocalists favor clean vocals, which are often performed with a sense of despair, desperation, or pain; imitating the high-tone wails of Ozzy Osbourne, Frank Ferrara, Bobby Liebling, and Zeeb Parkes. So-called "epic doom" vocalists often take it a step further, singing in an operatic style. Doom metal bands influenced by other extreme metal genres often use growled or screamed vocals, as is the case of death-doom, black-doom, and funeral doom.Lyrical themes
Lyrics in doom metal play a key role. Influenced by notable blues musicians like Robert Johnson and Son House, normally they are gloomy and pessimistic, including themes such as suffering, depression, fear, grief, dread, death, and anger. While some bands write lyrics in introspective and personal ways, others convey their themes using symbolism – which may be inspired by occult arts and literature.Some doom metal bands use religious themes in their music. Trouble, one of the genre's pioneers, were among the first to incorporate Christian imagery. Others have incorporated occult and pagan imagery. For many bands, the use of religious themes is for aesthetic and symbolic purposes only. Examples include lyrics/imagery about the Last Judgment to invoke dread, or the use of crucifixes and cross-shaped headstones to symbolize death.
Furthermore, some doom metal bands write lyrics about drugs or drug addiction. This is most common among stoner doom bands, who often describe hallucinogenic or psychedelic experiences.
History
Origins (late 1960s–1970s)
The first traces of doom in rock music could be heard as far back as the Beatles' 1969 track "I Want You ". Black Sabbath are generally regarded as the progenitors of doom metal. Black Sabbath's music is itself stylistically rooted in blues, but with the deliberately doomy and loud guitar playing of Tony Iommi, and the then-uncommon dark and pessimistic lyrics and atmosphere, they set the standards of early heavy metal and inspired various doom metal bands. In the early 1970s, both Black Sabbath and Pentagram composed and performed this heavy and dark music, which would in the 1980s begin to be known and referred to as doom metal by subsequent musicians, critics and fans. Joe Hasselvander, Pentagram's drummer also cited bands like Black Widow, Toe Fat, Iron Claw, Night Sun, and Zior as pioneers of the doom metal sound.Aside from Pentagram and Black Sabbath, other groups from the 1970s would heavily influence the genre's development. Blue Cheer is often hailed as one of the first stoner metal bands. Through the use of loud amplifiers and guitar feedback, their debut Vincebus Eruptum created a template for other artists to follow. Uriah Heep released "Demons and Wizards" album include "Easy Living" in 1972. Though lacking the pessimistic lyrical content of their contemporaries, Welsh heavy metal band Budgie would also produce heavy songs which were amongst the loudest of their day, stylistically influencing various doom metal acts. Led Zeppelin's No Quarter is considered as one of the earliest examples of a doom metal song made by a rock band. Early doom metal was also influenced by Japanese psychedelic rock albums, such as Kuni Kawachi & Friends' Kirikyogen and Flower Travellin' Band's Satori. Bang's 1971 self-titled debut is considered an important forerunner to doom metal. Other notable groups include Sir Lord Baltimore, Buffalo, Necromandus, Lucifer's Friend, and Leaf Hound.
Development (1980s)
During the early-mid-1980s, bands from England and the United States contributed much to the formation of doom metal as a distinct genre. In 1982, English pioneers Witchfinder General released their debut album Death Penalty. During 1984, two American pioneers also released their debuts—Saint Vitus released their eponymous album and Trouble released Psalm 9. That same year, American band Cirith Ungol released their second studio album, King of the Dead—regarded by many as an early influence on doom. The following year, American band Pentagram would go on to release their debut, Relentless. The Swedish Candlemass would also prove influential with their first record Epicus Doomicus Metallicus in 1986, from which epic doom metal takes its name. Pentagram, Saint Vitus, Trouble and Candlemass have been referred to as "the Big Four of Doom Metal".Some doom metal bands were also influenced by the underground gothic rock and post-punk scene of the 1980s, showing similarities with the dark themes addressed through lyrics and the atmosphere both music styles deal with. A doom metal band like Mindrot was often described as a cross-over between death metal and gothic rock.