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Grindcore

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Grindcore, often referred to as grind, is an extreme music genre, deriving from hardcore punk, and according to most sources, began to emerge in around the mid-to-late 1980s. Grindcore is said to take hardcore to a further extreme, characterised by very fast tempos, short-length songs (often less than one minute) and shouted or grunted vocals, often fairly guttural in their approach.

Grindcore
Stylistic originsHardcore punk
Extreme metal
Industrial music
Noise music
Cultural originsMid 1980s, England
Typical instrumentsElectric guitar - Bass - Drums - Vocals
Derivative formsPowerviolence
Subgenres
Goregrind - Noisegrind - Pornogrind
Fusion genres
Crustgrind - Cybergrind - Deathgrind
Other topics
Death growl − Extreme metal − Blast beat

Though an unwelcoming style of music to most, grindcore has influenced many styles of music, most notably on powerviolence,[1] avant-garde jazz, and the commercially successful industrial[2] and nu metal genres.[3][4] It should be noted that grindcore is not a sub-genre of metal, as it is, as mentioned before, a derivative of hardcore punk, though it does have many metallic influences.

Grindcore is characterized by heavily distorted, down-tuned guitars,[5][6] extreme tempos, frequently accompanied by blast beats, songs often lasting no more than two minutes (some are seconds long), and vocals which consist of growls and high-pitched screams, similar to those found in crust punk.[7] Lyrical themes range from social and political issues (Napalm Death) to gore (Carcass) and humor (Anal Cunt).[8]

Musical style

Down-tuned guitars

The vinyl A-side of Napalm Death's debut, Scum, is set to standard tuning while on side B the guitars are tuned downed 2½ steps. Their second album and 1989's Mentally Murdered EP were tuned to C#. Harmony Corruption, their third offering, was tuned up to a D.[5] Fellow grindcore practitioners Carcass also had the habit of the downtuning their guitars - specifically, to a B.[6] Bolt Thrower went further than Carcass, dropping 3½ steps down (A).[5] Godflesh, early on associated with the grindcore scene,[9] had their guitars tuned to either B or C sharp.[10]

Microsongs

One well-known characteristic of grindcore and related genres is the microsong; songs lasting seconds. In 2001, the Guinness Book of World Records awarded Brutal Truth the record for "Shortest Music Video" for 1994's "Collateral Damage." The song lasts 4 seconds. In 2007 the video for the Napalm Death song "You Suffer" set a new "Shortest Music Video" record: 1.3 seconds.[11]

Short song span

Along with the microsong, it is characteristic of early grindcore to have diminutive song lengths. Such is the example of Carcass' Reek of Putrefaction (1988), where the song span averages in about 1 minute and 48 seconds.[12]

Lyrical and conceptual elements

Napalm Death's songs address a variety of anarchist concerns, in the tradition of anarcho-punk.[13] These themes include feminism, anti-militarism, and anti-capitalism. Other grindcore groups, such as Carcass, have expressed disgust with the body, and are famous for their vegetarianism.[6] Seth Putnam's lyrics are notorious for their black comedy.[8] Both A.C. and Pig Destroyer are controversial for their apparent misogyny.[14] The Locust and Agoraphobic Nosebleed tend toward satirical collage, indebted to William S. Burroughs' cut-up method.[15][16]

History

1980s

Precursors

Main articles: Siege (band) and Repulsion (band)

The most widely acknowledged precursors of the grindcore sound are Siege[17][9][18][19][20], a thrashcore group, and Repulsion, an early death metal outfit.[21][18][19] Siege, from western Massachusetts, were influenced by classic American hardcore (Minor Threat, Black Flag, the Misfits) and by British groups like Discharge, Venom, and Motörhead.[22] Siege's goal was maximum velocity: "We would listen to the fastest punk and hardcore bands we could find and say, ‘Okay, we’re gonna deliberately write something that is faster than them'", drummer Robert Williams recalled.[22]

Repulsion, from Flint, Michigan, cited street punk groups like Discharge and Charged GBH, crossover thrash such as Dirty Rotten Imbeciles and Corrosion of Conformity, thrash metal like Slayer, Metallica, and Sodom, early black metal (Venom) and death metal (the Possessed), hardcore punk, like Black Flag, and older hard rock, as inspirational.[21] The group is often credited with inventing the classic grind blast beat (played at 190 bpm), as well as its distinctive bass tone.[21] Shane Embury, in particular, advocates the band as the origin of Napalm Death's later innovations.[21]

Napalm Death

Main article: Napalm Death

Grindcore, as such, was developed during the mid-1980s in the United Kingdom by Napalm Death. The name "grindcore" was is said to have been coined by Napalm Death's second drummer, Mick Harris. When asked about coming up with the term, Harris said the following:

Grindcore came from "grind", which was the only word I could use to describe Swans after buying their first record in '84. Then with this new hardcore movement that started to really blossom in '85, I thought "grind" really fit because of the speed so I started to call it grindcore.[23]

Other sources contradict Harris' claim. In a Spin magazine article written about the genre, Steven Blush declares that "the man often credited" for dubbing the style grindcore was Shane Embury, Napalm Death's bassist since 1987. Embury offers his own account of how the grindcore "sound" came to be:

As far as how this whole sound got started, we were really into Celtic Frost, Siege - which is a hardcore band from Boston - a lot of hardcore and death-metal bands, and some industrial-noise bands like the early Swans. So, we just created a mesh of all those things. It's just everything going at a hundred miles per hour, basically.[9]

Earache Records founder Digby Pearson concurs with Embury, saying that Napalm Death "put hardcore and metal through an accelerator".[24] Pearson, however, said that grindcore "wasn't just about the speed of [the] drums, blast beats, etc." He claimed that "it actually was coined to describe the guitars - heavy, downtuned, bleak, harsh riffing guitars [that] 'grind', so that's what the genre was described as, by the musicians who were its innovators [and] proponents."[25]

In addition to Repulsion and Siege, key groups cited by current and former members of Napalm Death as formative influences include Discharge,[26][18][19][13] Lärm, Amebix,[18][19] Throbbing Gristle,[13][27] Dirty Rotten Imbeciles[27] and the aforementioned Celtic Frost[9][20] and the Swans.[9] Post-punk, such as Killing Joke[13] and Joy Division, were also cited as an influence on early Napalm Death, the latter cited on the DVD half of Napalm Death's Scum reissue.

Napalm Death's seismic impact inspired other British grindcore groups, among them Carcass and Sore Throat, and the Belgian group Agathocles.[7] Early American grind practitioners included Terrorizer, Assück, and Brutal Truth.[7]

1990s

Scott Hull is prominent in the contemporary grindcore scene, through his participation in Pig Destroyer and Agoraphobic Nosebleed.[28] ANb's Frozen Corpse Stuffed with Dope has been described as "the Paul's Boutique of grindcore", by Village Voice critic Phil Freeman, for its "hyper-referential, impossibly dense barrage of samples, blast beats, answering machine messages, and incomprehensibly bellowed rants".[29] Pig Destroyer is inspired by thrash metal, such as Dark Angel and Slayer, the sludge metal of the Melvins, and classic grindcore practiced by Brutal Truth,[30] while Agoraphobic Nosebleed takes cues from thrashcore and powerviolence, like D.R.I. and Crossed Out.[30] The Locust are also a popular grindcore outfit,[28] who also take inspiration from powerviolence (Crossed Out, Dropdead), first-wave screamo (Angel Hair), obscure art rock (Art Bears, Renaldo and the Loaf), and death metal.[31] The Belgian Leng Tch'e are also a popular group,[32] who acknowledge a variety of non-grind influences, including Neurosis, Morbid Angel, Converge, Hatebreed, Suffocation and Mastodon.[33]

Legacy

Although an intentionally uncommercial genre, grindcore's impact quickly spread through the worlds of hardcore, metal, and avant-garde music.

Powerviolence, though less metallic than grindcore, was, nonetheless, influenced by many early bands.[1]

John Zorn's group Naked City, from New York, performed an avant-garde form of polystylistic, grindcore-influenced punk jazz.[34][35] Zorn later formed the Painkiller project with ambient dub producer Bill Laswell on bass guitar and Mick Harris on drums.[36]

Napalm Death's guitarist, Justin Broadrick, and drummer, Mick Harris, went on to careers in industrial metal; the former in Godflesh,[13] the latter in Scorn.[37] Scorn also worked in the industrial hip-hop[38] and isolationist styles.[39] Fear Factory[2] have also cited debts to the genre.

Some nu metal acts also acknowledge the style's influence: Wes Borland, former Limp Bizkit guitar player, is an avowed Carcass fan.[3] Slipknot's #3, percussionist Chris Fehn, also describes Carcass as an influence on the band.[4]

The Panacea, a prominent breakcore musician, describes himself as "the digital version of Napalm Death"[40]. Agoraphobic Nosebleed and the Locust have also solicited remixes from breakcore producers and noise musicians.[41][42] Alec Empire collaborated with Justin Broadrick, on the first Curse of the Golden Vampire album,[43] and with Gabe Serbian, of the Locust, live in Japan.[44] Japanoise icon Merzbow also participated in the Empire/Serbian show,[44] and has frequently mentioned his appreciation for grindcore.[45]

Andrew W.K. has often spoken enthusiastically of his love for Napalm Death.[46]

East Coast screamo groups of the turn of the millennium, such as Circle Takes the Square, pg. 99, Hot Cross, Orchid, and Saetia, crossbreed grindcore with post-hardcore.[47]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b Bartkewicz, Anthony (July 2007). "Screwdriver in the Urethra of Hardcore". Decibel Magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-20. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b Cordero, Amber (Director) (December 18). Fear Factory: Digital Connectivity (motion picture). United States of America: Roadrunner Records. {{cite AV media}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  3. ^ a b Appleford 1998, page 54.
  4. ^ a b Gilchrist, Mark (2004-03-06). "Rockezine.com interview with Slipknot". Rockezine Is Past. Retrieved 2008-06-20. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ a b c Johnson 2007, page 04.
  6. ^ a b c "Carcass: Death Is No Escape". Metal Maniacs. Retrieved 2008-07-01. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help) Archived at Sex. Money. Food.
  7. ^ a b c Felix von Havoc, Maximum Rock'n'Roll #198. [1] Access date: June 20, 2008.
  8. ^ a b Bartkewicz, Anthony (April 2007). "The History of Comedy Grind". Decibel Magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-21. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ a b c d e Blush 1991, page 36. Cite error: The named reference "blush36" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  10. ^ Martinelli, Roberto (2004). "Interview with JESU :: Maelstrom :: Issue No 39". Maelstrom Zine. Retrieved 2008-07-01. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ McPheeters, Sam (2006-03-09). "Extreme Extremeness". Orange County Weekly. Retrieved 2008-06-18. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Carcass (1994).
  13. ^ a b c d e Bartkewicz, Anthony (March 2007). "Justin Broadrick". Decibel Magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-19. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ Andrew Bonazelli, "Pig Destroyer", Decibel, November 2004. [2] Access date: July 19, 2008.
  15. ^ "The Locust: Catching Up with J.P.," October 17, 2007. [3]
  16. ^ Travis Jeppesen, Pig Destroyer, Terrifier review. [4] Access date: July 19, 2008
  17. ^ Steven Blush, "Boston Not L.A.", American Hardcore, Feral House, p. 171.
  18. ^ a b c d Atkinson, Peter (2003-02-07). "Fire in the Belly: Interview With Napalm Death's Mark "Barney" Greenway". KNAC.COM. Retrieved 2008-06-19. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ a b c d Coale, Sean Michael (2004). "NAPALM DEATH INTERVIEW!". AbsolutMetal.com. Retrieved 2008-06-20. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  20. ^ a b Mudrian 2004, page 32.
  21. ^ a b c d Matthew Widener, "Scared to Death: The Making of Repulsion's Horrified", Decibel no. 46, August 2008, p. 63-69.
  22. ^ a b Mudrian 2004, p. 50.
  23. ^ Mudrian 2004, page 35.
  24. ^ Ibid., p. 35.
  25. ^ Pearson, Digby (2007-04-26). "Godflesh/PSI etc - are they Grind?". ASK EARACHE - BraveWords.com. Retrieved 2008-06-15. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  26. ^ Martinelli, Roberto (2002). "Interview with NAPALM DEATH :: Maelstrom :: Issue No 11". Maelstrom Zine. Retrieved 2008-06-19. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ a b Mudrian 2004, page 31.
  28. ^ a b Mudrian, p. 265
  29. ^ Phil Freeman, "Gratuitous Grindcore Gross-Out Gimps' Glade and Guns Get Guffaws", Village Voice, September 13, 2005. [5] Access date: July 19, 2008.
  30. ^ a b Anthony Bartkewicz, "Pig Destroyer", Decibel, July 2007 [6] Access date: July 24, 2008
  31. ^ LA Weekly, September 18, 2003 [7] Access date: July 24, 2008
  32. ^ Cosmo Lee, Stylus, July 25, 2008 [8] Access date: July 23, 2008.
  33. ^ Filip Dupont, Vampire Magazine, March 9, 2007 [9] Access date: July 24, 2008
  34. ^ Bagatellen, "Slave to the Grind", April 21, 2004 [10] Access date: June 21, 2008
  35. ^ Christopher Thelen, Daily Vault, 8/17/1998 [11] Access date: June 21, 2008
  36. ^ Huey, Steve. "( Pain Killer > Overview )". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2008-07-02. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  37. ^ Christian Genzel, Scorn, Stealth review, Allmusic.com, [12] Access date: July 24, 2008
  38. ^ David E. Flick, Scorn, Stealth, Re:Gen Magazine, January 18, 2008 [13] Access date: July 24, 2008
  39. ^ Simon Reynolds, "Chill: the new ambient". Artforum, January 1995. [14] Access date: July 24, 2008.
  40. ^ The Thing Is ... [15]
  41. ^ Whitney Strub, Agoraphobic Nosebleed review, July 26, 2007. Stylus Magazine. [16] Access date: July 19, 2008.
  42. ^ The Locust Biography [17] Access date: July 19, 2008.
  43. ^ Ipecac Records, The Curse of the Golden Vampire. [18] Access date: July 20, 2008.
  44. ^ a b "Alec Empire Interview: "People Are Organized But Political Music Is Not Really Being Made", Indymedia Ireland, December 28, 2006 [19] Access date: July 25, 2008.
  45. ^ Interview with Masami Akita, 1997. [20] Access date: July 25, 2008.
  46. ^ Marc Masters, "Andrew WK Unedited Transcript", The Wire no. 289, March 2008. [21] Access date: July 19, 2008
  47. ^ Ryan Buege, "Circle Takes the Square is in the Studio". Metal Injection, June 15, 2008. [22] Access date: July 8, 2008

References

  • Appleford, Steve (1998). The Family That Plays Together. Guitar, 15(12): 40-42, 45-46, 49-50, 53-54, 57.
  • Blush, Steven (1991). Grindcore. Spin, 7(3): 35-36.
  • Carcass (1994). Reek of Putrefaction. [CD]. Nottingham, UK: Earache Compact Discs, Cassettes & Records.
  • Johnson, Richard (2007). Napalm Death. Disposible Underground, 15(38): 02-04.
  • Mudrian, Albert (2004). Choosing Death: the Improbable History of Death Metal and Grindcore. Los Angeles, CA: Feral House.
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