Most Influential Extreme Metal Bands

Death created this new form of Metal in Florida. Within a few years, some of Death Metal's biggest names came from Florida. Deicide, Morbid Angel, Obituary, and Atheist emerged, and Cannibal Corpse from New York came to Florida to record.

Every Death Metal band owes a debt to Chuck Schuldiner and Death.

Welcome to Hell was the first true extreme album. Their first two albums alone created the fast, abrasive style of thrash, coined the term 'black metal', and started the satanic image and lyrical theme of most black metal.

They also had a prototypical guttural vocal style. Venom directly created thrash and part of black metal.

Celtic Frost was formed after the members' original band, Hellhammer, was not well received. Like Venom, they pioneered Extreme Metal with elements of thrash, death, and black metal, which influenced bands forever.

Mayhem spawned the most notorious scene in Metal history: Norwegian Black Metal. After Mayhem started, bands like Satyricon, Darkthrone, Burzum, Emperor, Immortal, and Gorgoroth emerged.

They were so controversial, along with some other bands, that they became internationally known and helped spawn black metal as we know it.

The influential Swedish First Wave Black Metal band, Bathory, saw Quorthon take Cronos' vocals and ramp them up. He created the guttural, shrieking black metal vocals that were used in Norway years later. Of all First Wave Black Metal bands, Bathory sounds the most like a Norwegian band.

Their fifth album, Hammerheart, created Viking Metal, a popular Folk Metal subgenre. They heavily influenced two subgenres, Black and Viking Metal.

Napalm Death created the early British Grindcore scene. Although Grindcore is likely the most hated subgenre, Napalm Death was well received, placing in the charts above bands like Sonic Youth and The Pixies.

Napalm Death not only spawned Grindcore, but they also brought us the blast beat, a drumming technique used in all forms of extreme metal.

Cannibal Corpse is the band that spread Death Metal everywhere. They became the most popular and notorious band in the genre. Politicians brought them attention in order to shame them, which spread Death Metal further, making it more popular.

The band even gained Jim Carrey's attention, and they were featured in Ace Ventura, which spread Death Metal everywhere.

Meshuggah was the first really heavy Progressive Metal band. Prog Metal was usually associated with clean vocals, like Queensrÿche, Dream Theater, and Fates Warning. They were extremely heavy while maintaining great prog musicianship.

Their guitar style involved downtuned, palm-muted playing, a style dubbed 'Djent'. Bands like Animals as Leaders and Periphery owe a debt to Meshuggah.

Possessed had the first ghastly voice and the first death metal record in history. Even today, Becerra's vision is making a real influence. Put this band in their right place in the top 5! Becerra should be recognized as number one as a non-stop person and musician.

They started off by releasing two very aggressive albums, Reek of Putrefaction and Symphonies of Sickness. These albums helped pioneer the Grindcore genre along with Napalm Death. The gory lyrics and grotesque covers from these albums helped spawn a microgenre known as Goregrind.

They later switched to a pure Death Metal sound and eventually released Heartwork. Heartwork is an early Melodic Death Metal album and was very influential to future Melodeath bands everywhere. Since then, Carcass has been playing Melodeath and established themselves as one of the most influential bands in Grindcore and Death Metal.

At The Gates were part of the Swedish Death Metal movement in the 90s. Their last album, Slaughter of the Soul, added elements of Traditional Heavy Metal, which spawned the very popular Melodic Death Metal genre.

Bands like Children of Bodom, Amon Amarth, Dark Tranquillity, In Flames, Arch Enemy, and Insomnium owe their existence to At The Gates, who started this new style. They are easily one of the most underappreciated bands.