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Gothic metal is a genre of heavy metal music that originated during the mid 1990s in Europe as an outgrowth of doom-death, a fusion genre of doom metal and death metal.

The definition of gothic metal is commonly debated amongst fans and the media. Some fans and musicians have a specific concept of the gothic genre, based on the gothic novel and aesthetic similarities to gothic rock. Other fans reject these criteria and refer to female fronted symphonic metal band as gothic metal.

Characteristics

Music

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Gothic metal is commonly characterized lyrically by either one of two distinct characteristics: dual vocalists,growls and female vocals ("Beauty and the Beast"), or a single vocalist with an operatic tone. Instrumentation is heavily based on the use of modern keyboards and distorted guitars with varying tempos and rather complex compositions.

Gothic metal tends to take influence from the doom metal, black metal, and death metal subgenres of heavy metal for its composition. The heavily synthesized styles of their melody and rhythm ideas in its guitar riffs often cause the music to be aggressive and fast paced like death metal, while sometimes the sound is slow and heavy like doom metal.

Acoustic guitars are sometimes used in gothic metal. In bands that feature two guitarists, one guitarist may play an acoustic guitar while the other plays an electric guitar, often distorted or reverberated. The acoustic guitar is used in the same way as its electronic counterpart, and is normally found playing melodies of equal technicality. The bass guitar in gothic metal is usually played using lower tones akin to doom metal, often combined with the aggressive playing of black and death metal. The bass guitar is often the main contributor to the atmosphere in songs, though has also been seen as performing a duet with the keyboarding in this regard.

Keyboards in gothic metal play a significant role in the music, often replacing the second guitarist in bands and taking on the role of either lead or rhythm. The keyboards are often used to imitate a variety of instruments, most often string and wind instruments, though this varies between artists.

Gothic metal makes heavy use of atmospheres in its music, which are commonly tailored to fit the song; warm and energetic, empty and enclosing. The atmosphere rarely follows the deep morbidity of doom metal unlike its origin - doom-death, its offspring - gothic-doom, or the upbeat nature of closely related genre, symphonic metal. The use of the atmospherics is often to draw the listener into the music, as if to give them a sense of being involved with what is happening in the song.

Lyrical themes

Lyrically, gothic metal is centered on serveral topics: death and bereavement, tragedy, love, despair, emptyness and religion. Gothic bands also writes about romance and fantasy tales that may often end in tragedy for one or more parties involved. The settings depicted by the lyrics are most often in the New Age or the Dark Ages, but can also be in Victorian, Edwardian, Roman, or modern eras. The romantic and fantasy themed lyrics often used in gothic metal cover many broad subjects and are intended as being themes and guides to the lyricist, rather than a complete prerequisite of the genre. Gothic metal bands typically do not write their albums in the form of separate songs; they rather write concept albums in the form of books. This is so that each song acts as a part, or, chapter, inspiring people to listen to the whole album in order to hear the story, instead of just certain songs. Penumbra's Seclusion and Silentium's Sufferion - Hamartia of Prudence are two gothic metal albums that prominently feature this style of lyrics.

Gothic metal bands normally have two vocalists, (also known as "Beauty and the Beast" vocals) but are not limited to this style. One vocalist is typically male and uses vocals akin to black or death metal. The other vocalist is usually female, and often uses soprano vocals, or harmonic singing. Sometimes bands will use other forms of vocals included with the two prior vocalists, including (but not limited to) female death/black vocals, choirs, Gregorian chanting and male singing, but this tends to be limited to backing vocals and their thematic use within the song.

Sub-generes

• Gothic doom: slow and heavy Gothic metal that combines doom-death with female vocals and keyboard. For example: Draconian.
• Scandinavian gothic metal: Gothic metal that combines death metal and black metal with female vocals, keyboards and often violin and choruses. It is centered mainly in Norway and was the father of Gothic Symphonic metal. For example: Tristania and Sirenia.
• Symphonic gothic metal: Gothic metal that combines classical music, chorus and female operaic vocal. For example: After Forever, Epica.
• Soft gothic metal: a soft version of gothic metal in which almost all the singing is performed by female vocals, not necceserly operaic and is lighter than usual Gothic metal. It is influenced from gothic rock and darkwave. For example: Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil.

History

Origins (1983–1993)

Celtic Frost and King Diamond, although considered by many as an early black metal bands, also played semi-important roles in the development of doom-death, due to their use of "gothic-sounding" atmospherics. Celtic Frost's Into the Pandemonium in particular is sometimes cited as a seminal gothic metal album, combining elements such as orchestral compositions and female vocals. Though Paradise Lost's Gothic is often considered as the first gothic metal song.

In the 1990s, a group of young bands in Sweden and Northern England borrowed from the early death metal and incorporated it with the slow, down-tuned guitar dirges of Black Sabbath and similar doom metal bands. Doom-death, as it was known, was the first stage of the gothic-metal genre. Bands most notable for this style included Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Tiamat.

Although death metal and black metal were two of the larger genres of metal at this time, especially in the Scandinavian region, many bands who started in either genre had progressed more toward doom-death styles; two of these bands were Moonspell and Theatre of Tragedy.

Gothic rock/Darkwave sound and atmosphere,romantic feeling and image also helped the creation of gothic metal.Bands such as Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim have influenced the early gothic metal acts.

While early doom-death bands Paradise Lost and Anathema used some female vocals in their music, the Netherland's The Gathering was the first doom-death band with a leading female singer, Marike Groot on the album Always... and then Martine Van Loon on Almost a Dance (both later replaced by another female singer, Anneke van Giersbergen). This set a pattern for gothic metal by adding the first implications of using two vocalists in the bands, such as first done by Theatre of Tragedy, and later became a signature of gothic metal as it was quickly imitated by bands including Tristania and Theatres des Vampires.

Gothic metal (1993–present)

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Gothic metal originated in the early 1990s when Paradise Lost made their albums Icon and Draconian Times along with new bands such as Tristania and Theatre of Tragedy which took the doom-death sound that had arisen and made romantically-themed music that borrowed from black metal's and death metal's guitar and vocal styles. These bands left behind some of the depressing nature of their origins to add more warm and classical elements into the music.

A softer genre known as symphonic metal had evolved in the mid- to late- 1990s from gothic metal bearing strong similarities to its predecessor, with bands led by female singers including Within Temptation, Nightwish, and Epica. During this time the divide between gothic metal and the new-born symphonic metal became apparent; symphonic metal maintained a lighter approach, with more operatic and classical themes that often showed power metal influence, while gothic metal incorporated more aggressive elements of death metal and black metal directly into the music. Trail of Tears and Penumbra are examples of this last known progression.

The gothic metal scene is very developed in Europe and Scandinavia, most notably in England, Norway and the Netherlands, and is growing rapidly in Germany. Several groups of smaller bands are also emerging in eastern Europe and South America, struggling to gain a foothold where the scene is small.

Gothic doom

History

In the late 1990s-2000 bands within the gothic metal genre had become somewhat prominent, and the genre symphonic metal had begun to emerge from it. At this point, several bands started to go the opposite path to symphonic metal, adding highly morbid themes, slowing down to a more slow-paced aggression akin to doom metal, and began to abandon the Beauty And The Beast vocals that had become part of the gothic metal genre in extange for deep male vocals similar to those found in gothic rock.

During this period, a boom of new bands occurred. These bands combined aspects directly from early 90s gothic metal with aspects of various forms of doom metal. Bands such as Chalice, Draconian, Even Vast, and Left Hand Solution all released albums or produced demo's at this time. These bands used various elements of gothic metal and doom metal in varied and undefined methods. This included the romantic lyrics and instrument usage with morbid atmospheres and slow, droning guitar work. These bands also often found inspiration from doom-death bands, often utilizing the same gothic rock mannerisms found in doom-death almost subconsciously. These new bands, with their morbid sound and nature, and noticeable gothic metal elements, were often debated as being gothic metal or doom metal, before finally being settled on as being 'gothic-doom'.

However the band Type O Negative have mixed doom metal with goth rock since the early 90s

In the early 2000s another boom happened, many bands that were now considered gothic-doom released their first or second albums, with many more bands producing demo's. This second rush of bands and albums now emphasized parts of doom metal and gothic metal by melding aspects of the genres together. Lyrical themes of the genres were melded together, as were the guitaring, keyboarding, and atmoshperic styles of the genres.

Currently, gothic-doom is a widespread scene, with no centralized fan base or origins of bands. Gothic-doom's fanbase mostly tends to be fans heavily into gothic metal and/or doom metal, and currently lacks any major recognition beyond its borrowed stardom.

Characteristics

Gothic-doom is best described as a subgenre of both doom metal and gothic metal. Throughout its existence, gothic doom has combined aspects of both doom metal and gothic metal in varying methods and designs, with the often combining of two aspects together.

Early bands in the subgenre used varying characteristics and aspects of doom metal with aspects of gothic metal, taking strong influence from doom-death bands. The music often used one element from gothic metal, with an element of doom metal, ie: The lyrical theme and instrumental usage of gothic metal, with doom metal atmospherics and vocal styles.

The sound became more varied as it evolved to combine traits of gothic metal and doom metal directly with their counterparts. Later Gothic doom bands have tended towards writing music that is typical of either genre, then combining the characteristics of that genre directly with their counterparts from the second genre. Lyrics tend to meld the romantic and fantasy themes of gothic metal, with the morbid and depressive themes of doom metal, creating stories that focus heavily on romance induced misery. Bands have also tended to adapt the synthesising nature of gothic metal. Guitars synthesising aspects of death metal's chugging and techinal nature and gothic rock's minor chord usage (for example early Metallica), with the slow, heavily downtuned aspects of doom metal, similar to the guitaring styles found in early doom-death bands. The instrument usage of gothic metal has also met adaption into doom metal styles, the instruments roles remaining the same within the band, yet played with the same slow, downcast nature of most doom metal.

Some gothic doom bands such as Type O Negative and The Wounded have more atoned to following the patterns of early gothic doom bands, placing heavy emphasis on each part of their music, making each individual aspect highly distinguished from another, rather than letting them all blend into one conjoined sound. These bands also take some influence directly from gothic rock, incorporating prevalent characteristics of the genre directly into their music, such as minor chord usage.

Gothic doom bands are overall characterised by their often equal, but highly mixed use of elements of gothic metal, doom metal and gothic rock, whether they are imitated, combined, or emphasised individually. As such, bands are sometimes debated upon as to whether they are doom metal, gothic metal, or neither.

Other gothic metal fusions

Other fusions of gothic metal similar to gothic doom have also started to become more noticeable. This has often been noticed by bands within the black metal, death metal and symphonic metal genres that have started using elements of gothic metal in the bands music.

Within death metal and black metal this has included the non-defining use of dual vocalists, sub-romantic themes and the writing of concept albums mixed with the traditional sound of the genre. These genre fusions include bands such as Dark Lunacy, Cradle of Filth, and Eternal Tears of Sorrow. These bands are often called "Extreme Gothic Metal"

Some symphonic metal bands have also started to use more gothic metal elements. This is mainly noticeable by the more downbeat, aggressive and complex structures to songs. Bands such as the Netherlands' Autumn and Moldova's Offertorium are both notable for this.

Gothic metal related fusions

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Some Industrial metal bands such as Deathstars and Deadstar Assembly have gothic metal influences and use dark image and atmosphere in their music.

Bands such as Lacrimosa, The 69 Eyes have incorporated elements from goth and metal to create a fusion close to gothic metal but lacking its heaviness and some of the typical characteristics.

Common debates

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Although the style has seen much more controversy than other metal genres - and remarkably, the most instances of debate - some arguments have gone on in regards to bands that have sported a gothic "image" in the eyes of the media versus those with direct musical connections to the gothic metal genre. This has included bands that have shown imagery akin to morbidity, religious themes, gothic fashion, vampirism, and satanism and bands that have played alongside gothic metal bands at concerts.

Many debates have gone on as to whether bands rooted in one genre that use gothic metal aspects within their music are themselves gothic metal, or are themselves creating fusion like subgenres such as gothic doom. Because of these debates, sometimes bands such as these are listed amongst gothic metal bands as well as bands in the genre they are rooted from, often causing more debate and more confusion on the issue.

Many people assume that gothic metal's name implies that it is the same as gothic rock, but with metal based composition, and so misinterpret a wide range of bands as being gothic metal on that basis. This misconception is furthered by the use of the term 'goth metal'. Gothic metal actually got its name from the imagery and themes within the lyrics, and the atmospherics it uses, which are quite different to those of the similarly named gothic rock.While both use the term "gothic" in reference to the foreboding sense of doom popularized by the Gothic novel, gothic rock developed out of punk rock in the late 1970s and, aside from some heavier bands like later Christian Death, has no connection to heavy metal.

Anyway such debates may be cleared with the fact that the term Gothic has a conceptual side much larger and darker than the current use in the present times.

Also it may be remembered that the countercultural revolution took place long before the era of Punk Rock and that leading punk rockers rejected and neglected such acts like Progressive Rock or Classic Rock as for example The Clash declared: "No Elvis, Beatles or Rolling Stones in 1977". In critic Robert Christgau's description: "It was also a subculture that scornfully rejected the political idealism and Californian flower-power silliness of hippie myth."

See also

• List of gothic metal bands
• List of heavy metal genres

References

1. www.soniccathedral.com/webzine
2. Silver Dragon Records
3. Metal Storm

1. VaniShine
2. Gothic & Doom Metal in Turkey
3. Gothic Metal - Goth Metal Turkey
4. Gothic Metal - Magazine about its music, culture & aesthetic
5. Goth Metal World
6. Gothic Metal Web zine
7. www.soniccathedral.com/webzine
8. http://www.silver-dragon-records.com/gothic_metal.htm
9. http://www.metalstorm.ee/pub/article.php?article_id=78
10. http://www.bnrmetal.com
11. Gothic Metal Zone
12. www.eraseronline.com
13. www.discogs.com
14. Doom-metal.com
15. rock

• Articles with unsourced statements from jul 2007
• Gothic metal
• Metal subgenres