The Melody Web what each genre heard, and what it passed on

heard passed on Click or tap a node to recenter. Use a connecting line, or Influence, for the story.

Heard

Heavy metal genre · 1970–

Industrial metal keeps metal’s guitar-riff band and high-gain public and replaces the live-kit default with machine pulse and samples.

Influence
Industrial genre · 1976–

Industrial metal takes industrial’s machine pulse, tape/sample noise, and factory timbre and hangs them on a metal riff band.

Influence

Industrial metal

style · 1988–

Kind of Heavy metal

Late-1980s metal that puts machine pulse, samples, and factory timbre on a guitar riff (Ministry, Godflesh, later Fear Factory). It is a style of Heavy metal. Industrial supplies the factory-noise parent. It already gives Nu metal the sampled/mechanical vocal-and-guitar job. EBM is a dance child of industrial (industrial ebm), not of this metal node. Neue Deutsche Härte leftover as a later Rammstein press bin. Nine Inch Nails leftover as an artist mediator into industrial-rock, not a second node.

Listen

  1. Stigmata Ministry (1988) YouTube · Spotify · Amazon
  2. Thieves Ministry (1989) YouTube · Spotify · Amazon
  3. Like Rats Godflesh (1989) YouTube · Spotify · Amazon
  4. Christbait Rising Godflesh (1989) YouTube · Spotify
  5. Replica Fear Factory (1995) YouTube · Spotify

Passed on

Nu metal style · 1994–2003

Nu metal takes industrial metal’s machine pulse, sample color, and processed vocal onto a groove-metal/hip-hop chassis.

Influence

Heavy metal → Industrial metal

instrumentationphrase and licktimbre and productionstrength: highwell documented1988–1992recording

Mechanism

Industrial metal keeps metal’s guitar-riff band and high-gain public and replaces the live-kit default with machine pulse and samples. Strength high. Industrial supplies the factory-timbre parent. Taxonomically a child of Heavy metal.

Evidence

Ministry and Godflesh as metal-chart/metal-press bands using riff units (Weinstein, Grove).

Debate

Whether this leaves metal for industrial. The riff-and-stage job stays metal; the machine mix is industrial’s hop.

Mediators

artist: Ministry; artist: Godflesh

Industrial → Industrial metal

timbre and productioninstrumentationmeter and groovestrength: highwell documented1988–1992recording

Mechanism

Industrial metal takes industrial’s machine pulse, tape/sample noise, and factory timbre and hangs them on a metal riff band. Strength high. Heavy metal supplies the guitar-unit parent. EBM leftover as a dance fork of industrial, not this metal child.

Evidence

Ministry The Land of Rape and Honey and Godflesh Streetcleaner against Throbbing Gristle/Neubauten factory grammar (Grove).

Debate

Whether this is already industrial. The art-noise/tape job is industrial’s; the named metal-guitar factory band is industrial metal’s.

Mediators

artist: Ministry; artist: Godflesh

Industrial metal → Nu metal

timbre and productionmeter and grooveinstrumentationstrength: mediumwell documented1994–1999recordingradio

Mechanism

Nu metal takes industrial metal’s machine pulse, sample color, and processed vocal onto a groove-metal/hip-hop chassis. Strength medium. Hip-hop and groove metal remain the definitional parents. Nine Inch Nails leftover as an industrial-rock mediator, not a third parent node.

Evidence

Korn/Fear Factory-adjacent 1990s production against Ministry/Godflesh machine-guitar (Weinstein, Starr).

Debate

Whether this is already industrial. The factory-band job is industrial metal’s; the rap-verse radio job is nu-metal’s.

Mediators

artist: Fear Factory; artist: Korn