Is melodic death metal still a subgenre of death metal, or has it become its own thing?

[yungstirjoey666]

Now, I am aware of its death metal roots, and that bands at the time are still pretty death-ish, but honestly, I don't really think melodeath has much to do with death metal anymore, like how death metal started from thrash metal but became its own thing. While death metal has become very versatile, I think it should still retain the original elements, such as harsh vocals, heavily tuned guitar, darker or dissonant notes, blast beats, and complex song structure. Sure, some of those elements pop up once in a while in melodeath, but overall it sounds more like trad heavy metal, power metal, or melodic metalcore to me. Even the vocals sometimes are a bit cleaner than what you'd find in traditional death metal. I don't know; I feel like bands such as Amon Amarth and Arch Enemy have more in common with Kamelot or Hammerfall than anything like Entombed, Obituary, or Dying Fetus.

So what are your thoughts? Is melodeath still a death metal subgenre?

 

[no country for old wainds]

around 1996 or so it primarily became more of a trad metal spin-off with very little relation to death metal, you are correct. it’s a mainstream bastardisation though and not necessarily the original definition, there’s plenty of ‘melodic death metal’ which does derive from death metal, unfortunately that sub-genre largely died out after at the gates sold out and in flames/dark tranquillity became popular.

 

[CiG]

Dunno about that Amon Amarth part though.

 

[challenge_everything]

Yeah Amon Amarth have more in common with death metal than trad IMO. Other bands like In Flames are a better example of what the OP is talking about; Maiden-esque leads with harsh vocals.

 

[yungstirjoey666]

Yeah, Amon Amarth wasn't the best example since their early works are pretty death-metal like, but I am mostly referring to their newer mainstream stuff which is basically just Visigoth or Hammerfall with death growls.

 

[CiG]

There's a ton of Bolt Thrower and Unleashed influence on their newest album.



Sure they've always had a big melodic element but I don't think they're out here growling over nothing but power metal riffs lol.