Melodic death metal

Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal which combines the melody of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) with the intensity of death metal.[citation needed] The genre is also known as Gothenburg metal, a reference to the city in Sweden where it originated.[citation needed] Originally the genre combined the harmony style and groove melodies of heavy metal with the harsh thrashing sound and vocals of death metal.[citation needed] Later the genre evolved due to many different influences, a notable evolution in the genre being the addition of keyboards. Melodic death metal contains more melodic guitar riffs, melodic solos, and acoustic guitar work than traditional death metal.

Most melodic death metal bands are from the Scandinavian and Northern European regions, especially from Sweden and Finland.[citation needed][citation needed] Coming out of Finland in the past decade have been few uprising bands in the melodic death metal genre, including: Children of Bodom, Insomnium, Kalmah, Mors Principium Est and Norther. While not as mainstream in Denmark, melodic death metal is popular in the underground music scene, and some more established death metal acts, such as Illdisposed, have also acquired a more melodic sound. In recent years, the genre has gained somewhat of a popularity boost, acquiring an increasing following in North America, especially among North American fans of the Scandinavian bands which still pioneer the genre to this day; modern metalcore and later deathcore takes influence of melodic death metal with bands including: DevilDriver, The Black Dahlia Murder, Darkest Hour and Himsa.

Southern/Central Europe has a growing scene too, with bands such as Nightrage (Greece, Sweden, Finland, Belgium) Hollenthon(Austria), Inactive Messiah(Greece) and Disarmonia Mundi (Italy) all rising to prominence in the scene, though interestingly, most bands in central, continental Europe, seem to have incorporated the more symphonic elements that has become a popular aspect of European metal. Another example is Eluveitie (Switzerland) which incorporates the "Gothenburg sound" with folk metal. Other minor scenes have begun emerging, especially in the oriental regions, such as Japan, Turkey, UAE and Egypt. Bands such as Blood Stain Child (Japan) show this small scene developing. Be'lakor from Australia are also a great example and gathering a lot of interest abroad. Deus Ex Machina from Singapore and their interest abroad further reinforces this phenomenon.

Credit for the creation of melodic death metal is usually given to the Gothenburg scene, not a specific band. Unsurprisingly, it is not certain what band originally started the Gothenburg sound, however, it is widely accepted that Dark Tranquillity, At the Gates and In Flames are three major pioneers of the style;[citation needed] however history yields that At the Gates began playing a much more contemplative and "Neoclassical" style of death metal in their early years,[citation needed] very comparable to the Finnish act Demilich. It wasn't until their later albums (Slaughter of the Soul being the most commercially known) when the Gothenburg sound was recaptured.[citation needed] Some of the earliest releases of melodic death metal can be tracked back to the band Grotesque, with a demo released in 1988 and an EP in 1990. Grotesque existed for three short years, producing two demos, a rehearsal tape, an EP and one compilation album entitled In the Embrace of Evil. This appeared again in the form of a re-release split with the early At the Gates EP entitled Gardens of Grief. Note that At the Gates was started by former members of Grotesque because of the latter being relatively unsuccessful.
In the late 1990s, many melodic death metal bands changed their style of playing by adding more melodic elements; more melodic choruses and riffs and making more prominent use of keyboards, and their lyrics, unlike death metal, did not focus on death, violence, gore, horror, or blood for the most part.

During the mid to late 2000s, certain melodic death metal bands, such as Blood Stain Child, Timecry, Silent Descent, Lost Eden, The Dawn Chose Orion, and Deadlock, began to incorporate techno or trance beats and atmospheres into their music. This relatively young style has been tentatively referred to as trance metal.