What's COB's Genre?

[KriZDondir]

Can you please answer me this question , what genre are Children Of Bodom...
I think they are Melodic Death Metal, but im not sure... please Vote on the Poll and Comment if possible...

 

[<Arcane>]

If you are not sure about the genre, why do you make a poll then? ^^

 

[KriZDondir]

If you are not sure about the genre, why do you make a poll then? ^^

well, just vote for ur opinion , if no than just write the genre as a post on this thread please...

 

[(__Joonas__)]

They can't be classified into any genre, as it would be disrespectful, cos their songs and albums are actually different... You could put it __something__ like:

SW: neo-classical death metal
HB: melodic death metal with black vocals
FTR: atmospheric melodic death metal
HCDR: melodic thrash death metal
AYDY: -//-
BD: -//-
RRF: -//-

 

[Necroraven]

I don't really see the point of genre-wanking, but I'd probably go like this:

SW: melodic black/death metal
HB: blackened melodic death metal
FTR: melodic death metal
HCDR: melodic death thrash
The rest: mallcore

 

[eveningninja]

I don't really see the point of genre-wanking

If you know your friend likes primarily neoclassical metal, you're not gonna recommend him CoB's HCDR, you'd recommend SW and/or HB. Different people like different sub-genres, so categorizing can be useful. It's only wankery if you suppose it to be.


I'd call FTR power metal with harsh vocals. It's too good

 

[Necroraven]

If you know your friend likes primarily neoclassical metal, you're not gonna recommend him CoB's HCDR, you'd recommend SW and/or HB. Different people like different sub-genres, so categorizing can be useful. It's only wankery if you suppose it to be.

I'd rather just talk about the bands or albums themselves. "I like COB's Follow the Reaper, can you recommend me something similar?".

 

[eveningninja]

I'd rather just talk about the bands or albums themselves. "I like COB's Follow the Reaper, can you recommend me something similar?".

If someone asked me to recommend me something similar to FTR, I'd have no idea what to recommend, because to me there is nothing. However, if someone asked me to recommend some good power metal in a somewhat similar fashion, I'd point them toward Sonata Arctica. Bearing in mind the vocals are different, there are many similarities in song structure instrumentation and overall level of energy, hence the coinciding of subgenres.

 

[<Arcane>]

No offence dude but WTF? FTR has nothing to do with power metal. Sonata Arctica isn't really similar to FTR and it's also not really power metal. Putting FTR in the same genre as Hammerfall and Dragonforce is a shame.

Btw... I always answered when I was asked about COB's genre that SW,HB,FTR are melodic metal and HCDR> is just metal.

 

[(__Joonas__)]

Don't know why either, but if someone asked me to recommend something similar to FTR... I'd say Mirror of Madness by Norther, The Arrival by Hypocrisy, Epilogue by To/Die/For, and maybe something by Kalmah... they've got the same atmospheric, cold vibe, but music-wise there really isn't anything similar. And yeah I agree FTR is not more power metal than other COB albums, it's just the most atmospheric.

 

[Sany]

Senseless...

Like Alexi always says: "Damn, it's just fuckin' Metal it has to sound good for me"

 

[vivebodom]

Senseless...

Like Alexi always says: "Damn, it's just fuckin' Metal it has to sound good for me"

and he wears the Norwegian Black Metal hat- that does tend to indicate he feels it is more black than death metal.

I do enjoy the neo-classical supposition. Can't remember where I read/saw it, but didn't Alexi once say they really wanted to recreate something (damn I can't remember what it was called either) that was an electronic version of classical? No, it's not Transatlantic... aw fuck, it was huge at the time...

 

[eveningninja]

No offence dude but WTF? FTR has nothing to do with power metal. Sonata Arctica isn't really similar to FTR and it's also not really power metal. Putting FTR in the same genre as Hammerfall and Dragonforce is a shame.

Btw... I always answered when I was asked about COB's genre that SW,HB,FTR are melodic metal and HCDR> is just metal.

Honestly, I've never seemed to agree with anything you've ever said, so I am not surprised. The instrumentation and chord structuring/progressions of FTR coincide with power metal quite well. The tremolo-picked slower chord changes, the heavy use of keyboards in creating dominant symphonic elements, the commonly used power metal drum pattern of sixteenth double-kicked bass, hi-hat every quarter, and snare every other quarter. Similarities that are rather clear to me.

 

[Necroraven]

The instrumentation and chord structuring/progressions of FTR coincide with power metal quite well. The tremolo-picked slower chord changes, the heavy use of keyboards in creating dominant symphonic elements, the commonly used power metal drum pattern of sixteenth double-kicked bass, hi-hat every quarter, and snare every other quarter. Similarities that are rather clear to me.

In theory perhaps, but at least for me there is 0% power metal-feel (which is pretty much the most important thing in music anyway) on that album.

 

[vivebodom]

Trying to remember what it was...

I know they've said Yngwie Malmsteen (like a metal band from Finland wouldn't say that). But there was another hybrid classical electronic thing.... like a piano thing... aw fuck this is gonna keep me up all night.

 

[vivebodom]

In theory perhaps, but at least for me there is 0% power metal-feel (which is pretty much the most important thing in music anyway) on that album.

You mean perhaps there is 0% power CHORD feel?

Could someone please fucking describe what exactly generates FEEL when the musical qualifications of a genre are met yet you refuse to qualify it in that genre?

yah sure it's missing the third of the chord being on the bottom, but do you qualify music of the Romantic era as having a power metal FEEL?

 

[<Arcane>]

Honestly, I've never seemed to agree with anything you've ever said, so I am not surprised. The instrumentation and chord structuring/progressions of FTR coincide with power metal quite well. The tremolo-picked slower chord changes, the heavy use of keyboards in creating dominant symphonic elements, the commonly used power metal drum pattern of sixteenth double-kicked bass, hi-hat every quarter, and snare every other quarter. Similarities that are rather clear to me.

Children of Bodoms chord structuring has nothing to do with power metal. The tremolo picking is really rare. Typcal for power metal would be fast tremolo picking like in the song Legacy Of Kings. The only song on FTR which has some more tremolo picking is KTS. A heavy use of a keyboard stands for power metal? Didn't knew that. That means Blooddrunk is power metal too. And most black metal bands. Your commonly used power metal drum pattern is used by nearly all metal bands I know.

If you hear Dimmu, you know that it's black metal. If you hear Cannibal Corpse, you know it's death, Metallica stands for trash/speed and Hammerfall for power metal. Nobody would ever mention COB if asked for a power metal band. Even Alexi said in some interview that it's hard to describe their music but that it's no fucking power metal.

Necroraven is correct. Maybe "feel" is the wrong word but I know what he means.

 

[kilon]

It's useless, but if you have to say something it's mostly melodic death metal.
Earlier work with neo-classical influences and later work with thrash influences.

 

[Necroraven]

You mean perhaps there is 0% power CHORD feel?

Could someone please fucking describe what exactly generates FEEL when the musical qualifications of a genre are met yet you refuse to qualify it in that genre?

yah sure it's missing the third of the chord being on the bottom, but do you qualify music of the Romantic era as having a power metal FEEL?

What the hell are talking abut? Like Arcane said, those same beats, chords, tremolo pickcing etc. are used in almost every genre of metal, and they alone do not define anything. And yes, the "feel" or the "feeling" is a very abstract thing to describe (and perhaps a poor choice of words), but I think you get the idea. Let's put it like this:

You listen to 20 seconds of this and you know for sure it's power metal:



You listen to 20 seconds of this and you know for sure it's black metal:



You listen to 20 seconds of this and you know for sure it's death metal:



You don't need to do any in depth-analysis to tell that. Of course, FTR might not belong to any certain genre as clearly as the above examples, but still the album doesn't remind me of power metal in any way (except maybe the solos) even if theoretically it has a lot of similarities.

 

[vivebodom]

Actually, I believe YOU do need to do an in depth analysis.

What I got out of that is as follows:
power metal: higher pitches, bright tone, fast chord progression, reminds (me) a bit of Bohemian Rhapsody
black metal: heavy on the midrange, dirty tone, slow chord progression with lots of repetition of the same chord
death metal: heavy on the bass, chords are less thickly layerd than black metal, otherwise seems essentially the same, tone is slightly cleaner

Furthermore, aside from some particulars of tone quality these examples lead me to qualify Children of Bodom as DEFINITELY BLACK METAL. granted, they do sometimes thin out the midrange, but they also tend to keep things thickly layered, and yah the chord progressions are generally a bit faster, but frequently repeated exactly

Here is a qualifying question for you: In what genre do you place Alcatrazz? 'cuz I'm pretty sure Bodom should fall into the same category.