It is a known fact that the two of us are extremely big fans of heavy metal music, but it really isn’t the only genre we’re listening to. (really) As we are musicians ourselves, it is very important that we discover new genres and explore them fully so we can find our place in the music industry of today. While we are fans of everything heavy (we started from listening to 60s and 70s rock music to all sorts of metal subgenres), we wanted to introduce you to some of the genres that are off the beaten track (pun intended…) Are you ready? Here are some of our favorite genres you probably haven’t heard of!
Pirate metal
We did mention we liked heavy music, so it is quite obvious we would start with something that has a slightly similar sound, right? It falls under the subgenre of heavy metal and it is differentiated from a “usual” metal song by the lyrics musicians come up with, sometimes even the instruments they use, and of course, the stage performance. Usually, their songs contain lyrics that stem from pirate mythology – they sing about sailing, fighting other pirates, getting the treasure, and so on. Recently, there has been a rise in the popularity of pirate metal because of no other app than TikTok. One of the most popular artists in this genre is Alestorm, a Scottish band founded in 2004.
Crunkcore
Ah, yes. Raise your hands if you have been emo in your teenage years. No? Nobody? Then, you won’t be familiar with this genre. Tuomas and I were, of course, emo back in the day, and one of the main genres we annoyed our parents with was crunkcore. How do we even begin to describe this genre?! Let’s just say it is a mix of all the random music elements – its main element coming from another “unique” genre that is screamo (can you guess what they borrowed from it? The screaming, obviously). Other elements this genre consisted of are hip-hop, electronic, and dance beats. The bands we used to listen to were Hollywood Undead, Brokencyde, and Breathe Carolina.
Nintendocore
Another genre ending with the suffix –core? Yes, we’re glad you asked what this genre is like.
Firstly, a lot of different subgenres fall into the category of Nintendocore, but it’s important to know that it always relates to music based on games. Secondly, it’s not just video game music – this genre combines video game music with chip music, metalcore, and hardcore punk music (which is where the suffix–core comes from). Relying on various drum and electronic elements, this genre is extremely fun to listen to, so we suggest you give it a go if you like many genres formed into one. Some of the more famous artists belonging to this genre are of course the great The NESkimos, Horse the Band, and The Megas.
Japanoise
A subgenre of the noise genre, Japanoise stands to represent noise music coming from Japan. Although almost all the famous artists performing under this genre claim that they dislike the name of it, as it divides them and other noise performers, the name still serves to describe their genre. Its best-known artists are Incapacitants, Boredoms, and Ruins.