Bands and Artists that are Called Nu Metal but Aren't

The Top Ten
1 Avenged Sevenfold Avenged Sevenfold is an American heavy metal band, that was formed 1999 in California. Their longest lineup of members was M. Shadows (Vocals), Synyster Gates (Lead Guitar), Zacky Vengeance (Rhythm Guitar), Johnny Christ (Bass Guitar), and The Rev (Drums). ...read more.
2 Three Days Grace Three Days Grace is a Canadian post-grunge/alternative rock band formed in Norwood, Ontario in 1992 with a line-up consisting of guitarist and lead vocalist Adam Gontier, drummer and backing vocalist Neil Sanderson, and bassist Brad Walst. Their original name was Groundswell until they changed it to ...read more.
3 Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine is a rap metal band formed in Los Angeles, California. The band consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello and drummer Brad Wilk.

Never was Nu Metal. More Punk/Funk oriented and only influenced some Nu Metal bands.

Influence but mostly just rap/hard rock

4 Linkin Park Linkin Park is an American alternative rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. The current members include Mike Shinoda (vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar), Brad Delson (guitar), Dave "Phoenix" Farrell (bass), Joe Hahn (DJ), and Rob Bourdon (drums). Linkin Park is associated with a mixture of alternative rock, hip hop, and techno. Some of their influences include Nine Inch Nails, Deftones,... read more

Definitely not nu-metal. I get why people would call them that, but that's wrong thinking. Korn, Slipknot and Limp Bizkit are nu-metal. Linkin Park just doesn't fall into the same category as those bands.

I agree with all of these except Linkin Park. What constitutes a metal band as nu metal is the usage of rap and breakdowns. Linkin Park has both, while other bands have only one or none of these.

Not even close to nu metal. I'd say electronic rap rock

5 Tool Tool is an American alternative metal/progressive metal band, that was formed in 1990.

The band is set together between Maynard James Keenan (Vocals), Danny Carey (Drums), Adam Jones (Guitar) and since 1995 Justin Chancellor (Bass).

The band is known for their influences from electronic... read more

They are anything but metal. Most of their songs unbearably boring and awful too.

6 Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. They rose to fame with their 1986 album Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the big four of thrash metal bands, the others being Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax. ...read more.
7 System Of A Down System of a Down, formed in 1994, is an Armenian-American alternative metal group from Glendale, California. The band name is sometimes shortened to System or SOAD. They've always been a very political band since their inception. Often being against genocide and war most notably in songs like: Pluck, Holy Mountains, and BYOB (Bring Your Own Bombs). Serj is an active activist who wants to change the world for the better.

The band's current members include Serj Tankian (vocalist, keyboards), Daron Malakian (guitarist, vocalist), Shavo Odadjian (bassist), and John Dolmayan (drummer). ...read more.

This is way to low.

8 Evanescence Evanescence is an American alternative rock/alternative metal band. It was founded in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1995 by singer/pianist Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody.

They're more alt

9 Kid Rock Robert James Ritchie Sr., known professionally as Kid Rock, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, musician, record producer, activist, minister and actor.
10 Alice In Chains Alice in Chains is an American grunge/alternative metal band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley.
The Contenders
11 Deftones Deftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California. The band, which was founded in 1988, consists of Chino Moreno, Stephen Carpenter, Frank Delgado, Abe Cunningham and Sergio Vega. They have released a total of 9 studio albums. Some of their most popular songs are Change (in the House of the Flies), Passenger, Bored, Minerva, Rocket Skates, Back to School (Mini Maggit), Beauty School, Diamond Eyes, Hole in the Earth, Mein, Digital Bath, and etc.
12 Breaking Benjamin Breaking Benjamin is a American post-grunge/alternative metal/rock band formed in 1998. The bands members all changed in the time between 2010 to 2014, with the exception of Ben Burnley (Vocals). The Ex-Members included Chad Szeliga (Drums), Aaron Fink (Guitar) and Mark Klepaspi (Bass). ...read more.
13 Staind Staind was a post-grunge/alternative metal band formed in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1995.

Staind is Aaron Lewis (vocalist and guitarist), Jon Wysocki (drummer, left in 2011), Johnny April (bassist), and Mike Mushok (guitarist). After Jon's departure Sal Giancarelli filled in as drummer until the band's hiatus in 2012.

Staind's early sound was predominantly nu metal, then they verged into softer territory with passing albums, becoming more post-grunge in sound.

Many of Staind's song deal with depression, substance abuse, death, and similar subjects. The band has enjoyed modest success off of such songs. ...read more.

I honestly don't understand how they are called Nu-Metal.

14 Mr. Bungle Mr. Bungle was an American experimental rock band from Northern California. Known for a highly eclectic style, the band often cycled through several musical genres within the course of a single song, including heavy metal, avant-garde jazz, ska, disco as well as funk.
15 Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins is an American alternative rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1988. Formed by frontman Billy Corgan and James Iha, the band included D'arcy Wretzky and Jimmy Chamberlin in its original incarnation.

Who calls them Nu-Metal?

16 Metallica Metallica is an American Heavy/Thrash Metal band formed in 1981. The original lineup was James Hetfield (Vocalist and Rhythm guitarist), Dave Mustaine (Lead Guitar), Lars Ulrich (Drums), Ron McGovney (Bassist). The group came into mainstream from their Self-Titled album and the hit single "Enter Sandman".

With their first two albums, Kill 'Em All and Ride The Lightning reaching underground success, their third effort, Master of Puppets has since become one of the most important heavy metal albums ever, as it became the first thrash metal album to be certified platinum. The title track has since become the band's most played song live. ...read more.
17 Crazy Town Crazy Town is an American rap rock band, formed in 1995 by Bret Mazur and Seth Binzer. Crazy Town is best known for their 2000 hit single, "Butterfly," which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and helped their debut album, The Gift of Game, sell over 1.5 million units.

In 2002, they released Darkhorse, which was a significant flop compared to their debut. This would cause... read more
18 Beastie Boys The Beastie Boys were an American Rap/Rock group that was formed in 1981 by its three original members, Michael "Mike D" Diamond, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz, and Adam "MCA" Yauch.
19 Five Finger Death Punch Five Finger Death Punch, often shortened to Five Finger or Death Punch, also abbreviated as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American metal band from Las Vegas, Nevada. Formed in 2005, the band's name comes from the kung fu movie The Five Fingers of Death.
20 Godsmack Godsmack is an American alternative metal/hard rock band from Lawrence, Massachusetts, formed in 1995. The band is composed of founder, frontman and songwriter Sully Erna, guitarist Tony Rombola, bassist Robbie Merrill, and drummer Shannon Larkin.
21 Slipknot Slipknot is an American metal band formed in Des Moines, Iowa in 1996. The band is best known as one of the pioneers of the New Wave of American Alternative Metal during the late 1990s - 2000s and are distinguishable by the band's clothing choices, consisting of black/red jumpsuits and horror inspired masks. ...read more.

Their first album maybe but since then they drifted away from that. They are closer to Thrash, and Groove Metal.

22 Limp Bizkit Limp Bizkit is an American nu-metal/rap metal/rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed in 1994. Their lineup consists of Fred Durst, Sam Rivers, John Otto, and Wes Borland. They're mostly known for their singles like Break Stuff, My Way, My Generation, Nookie, Eat You Alive, Rollin', and Take a Look Around... read more
23 Mudvayne Mudvayne was an American nu-metal/alternative metal band that was formed in Peoria, Illinois, in 1996. Originally from Bloomington, Illinois, they are known for their sonic experimentation, innovative album art, face and body paint, masks, and uniforms.
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