WTF is the difference between Nu-Metal and other metal?

[RobLoge85]

I honestly don't get the term Nu-Metal at all. I hate bands like Godsmack, Slipknot, Ill Nino, I like some System of A Down stuff and I like bands like Opeth, Arch Enemy, In Flames, and Anthrax(I heard of more bands this is a small list of what I like.) Don't bash me because I don't know what Nu-Metal is exactly, I can't really tell the difference since I don't have too much musical knowledge (though I'm trying to build up my knowledge of it)

[nailz]

Repetitive booring and unfluctuating guitars that play the exact same riff over, and over, and over, and over. Same rediculious no talent shitty vocalist that says the same thing over, and over, and over with no pitch change in his voice at all. Bad drumming, and little bass.

Basically, any Sum41 clone out there. It's a shame, because a soon as a band has an OUNCE of creativity, there springs up a plethora of bands just like them. Thats basically how you figure out who's nu-metal and who isn't. =P

[Otohiko]

Generally, nu-metal is influenced by Rap/Hip-hop. Listen to those bands again and you'll notice.

No, there's nothing wrong with it. I don't particularly enjoy it, but a little System is alright once in a while.

[Otohiko]

Umm...

riffs are not unique to nu-metal, and repeating riffs have been around forever.

Nu-metal has nothing to do with repetition, and I found the nu-metal bands' 'low-end' to be more than abundant.

[Otohiko]

And really, classification is somewhat unclear.

My take on the whole contemporary metal classification thing.

First, you have your established, well-bred sorts of metal - power metal, death metal, black metal, etc. These take from established roots of the metal tradition, and develop it in a distinct but recognizeable fashion.

Then, nu-metal is a recent development that takes the urban hip-hop influences, both lyrically and musically, and puts an odd spin on things. IMHO, this fusion works on some levels and fails on others.

Lastly, there's prog-metal, which, contrary to common belief, is not a genre (like death metal or most of nu-metal). It's actually stuff that can't be classified, since it often uses bizzare influences and fusions, and violates what you'd call 'typical metal' structure. A lot of it is notorious for mathematic-like complexity.

That's my take on it. Some may think otherwise since, like I said - the classification is really pretty loose.

[Jace Tsunami]

Nailz can't talk about things he doesn't like, he's too biased.

All he's going to tell you is what he THINKS of it, and why he doens't like it.


And Nailz, are you calling Sum 41 metal?


Anyways, I don't know about metal, but I know about punk, and maybe this will help.

there are different types of punk, pop-punk is a new punk genre that includes bands such as Blink-182 and Good Charlotte. Even tho respectivley by the punk community this has been labeled pop-punk, fans that are partial more to other genres than punk, call pop-punk nu punk. It's understandable, as pop punk didn't exist several years ago, so it makes sense to call it "nu"

What I'm assuming here is "Nu-Metal" is a poppy sub genre of old school Metal, that exists as of today.

[kthulhu]

I'd define Nu-Metal as "safe metal". The sort of thing you can play around parents and they probably wouldn't frown. It has "hard" guitars and "deep" vocals, none of which is particularly offensive.

Basically, pop metal. Even a group that's supposedly as hard as Slipknot can be counted in this definition - they're not artistic so much as gimmick.

Sure, they have the "angry" vocals and instrument playing, but compared to bands like Satyricon, Dimmu Borgir, Sepultura and older stuff like Metal Church, early Slayer and Metallica, they have no musical integrity that I can think of. All their lyrics are about is unfounded "rage", it seems, and while it can be loud and annoying, it's still safer and less objectionable than, say, "Angel Of Death" (about Auschwitz doctor Josef Mengele) by Slayer. "Rage and anger", after all, is what teenage rebellion is about, is it not?

Odds are, if it's kind of heavy and your parents are likely to, at most, tell you to turn it down, then it's probably nu-metal.

That's my definition and my opinion.

[Otohiko]

Generally functional Kthulhu, except one thing - there is older metal that's easy on the ears and brain.

[RobLoge85]

Well, everyone said something that was pretty helpful in its own right. Thanks

[kthulhu]

Generally functional Kthulhu, except one thing - there is older metal that's easy on the ears and brain.

Well, yeah, but good luck getting the "HARD ROCK HARD ROCKS!" people to wrap their minds around that one.