Written by vgmaster9 on 13.06.2012 at 04:45
2. Glam metal was also heaviliy commercialized in the 80s, and bands used tons of makeup and long hair, yet that's praised by metalheads. What makes nu metal so different?

Glam is praised by metalheads? Generally speaking, that is not true. Glam was just as vilified in the 80's by metalheads as nu-metal has been since it's inception in the mid-90's. Sure, a minority of metalheads like glam, but then a minority of metalheads also have no problem with nu-metal. In general though, glam is pretty much hated just as much as nu-metal is by most metalheads.

Written by Angelic Storm on 13.06.2012 at 09:25
Glam is praised by metalheads? Generally speaking, that is not true. Glam was just as vilified in the 80's by metalheads as nu-metal has been since it's inception in the mid-90's. Sure, a minority of metalheads like glam, but then a minority of metalheads also have no problem with nu-metal. In general though, glam is pretty much hated just as much as nu-metal is by most metalheads.

Obviously I wasn't around at the time, but my understanding of the scene back then is the same.

Written by vgmaster9 on 13.06.2012 at 04:45
1. There are plenty of underground nu metal bands.

I'll point out the flaw with this since Angelic Storm took on point number 2.

There are plenty of underground pop artists. That doesn't mean pop music isn't commercialized.

Went to a glam show once for fun, basically to laugh at everyone. Saw Warrant and Dokken. Actually, I thought Dokken had some pretty good lead playing, but it was pretty much what I expected: 45-55 year-old divorcee dudes drinking Bud Light trying to relive their glory 1985 frat boy days. I think there was a chick there, actually. The bartender.

They are completely unrelated genres. The only direct connection is several newer metalcore take influence from nu metal (but back when nu metal was in it's hight metalcore was largly a reaction AGAINST nu metal), and some nu metal bands took influence from metal-influenced hardcore bands, but not really so much from either straight hardcore punk, or metalcore proper, mainly from the New York and DC hardcore scenes (which is odd as nu metal was born in Los Angels, which has it's own, more punk oriented hardcore scene) which kinda fill the gap between hardcore punk and metalcore.

Nu metal and metalcore also have a bit of common history in that they both take a lot from groove metal, but from there they pretty much went in opposite directions. I guess one way of thinking about that is metalcore is a form of extreme metal with an alternative touch, while nu metal is a form of alternative metal with an extreme touch. Beyond both utilizing at least some groovy or chuggy riffs, the similarities end. If you can differentiate either metalcore from groove metal, or groove metal from nu metal, it should be pretty easy to differentiate metalcore from nu metal. Like some groove metal, popular metalcore and nu metal often have more melodic vocals in the chorus, but it's not a defining characteristic of either genre, that stylistic choice actually originated in industrial metal. Really most popular metal nowadays uses that pattern in one way or another, regardless of subgenre.