Top Ten Most Misunderstood Music Genres
Besides Metal being seen as "satanic," I think the biggest misunderstanding of the genre is extreme metal. Once you get into Death Metal or any of the "cores," most inexperienced listeners will lump it under the "Screamo" label, when in reality, Metal has as many subgenres as electronic music.
People say that metal is satanic music, but this is really nothing new. You guys do realize that jazz was considered satanic back then, right?
Metal isn't about screaming while jamming on instruments. It takes talent and real skill to learn to play and sing without autotune.
What happens when you combine the mainstream's vague perception of Metal, half the peak years of Grunge, and the mentality that electronic music isn't music? You get Dubstep.
Dubstep is a music genre that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1990s. Before the genre peaked, it was calm and often percussive. However, when the genre peaked, it became completely different from its original concept. Brostep, a genre often labeled as Dubstep, is a combination of the original Dubstep, Electro House, and Metal-esque drops. It was popularized by artists like Skrillex, Rusko, and Excision. Because of how harsh Brostep sounded, the term and definition of Dubstep were ruined. It received mixed reactions from the public, and the mainstream media's perception of the genre remains vague.
Brostep, which was labeled as Dubstep, eventually faded quickly. Unfortunately, Dubstep is still considered by most people as aggressive, noisy, unmusical, and a fad. On the other hand, fans of the genre believe that Dubstep is about Transformers growling at each other and that it's all about crazy sound design. Both sides are wrong. Dubstep is all about sub-bass and rhythm. Yes, it can be aggressive, but it can also be soulful or jazzy. It can sound like a hip-hop subgenre, it can be melodic, and so on. Dubstep is just a term for music that features sub-bass and a mid-range percussive instrument.
Indie is short for independent. It isn't about being hipster. It is just a DIY music genre or being on a minor label.
For example:
Jamie is a 16-year-old girl. There are two labels: a major one called Bubblegum Plastic and a minor one called Lovely Ducklings. She decides to join Lovely Ducklings. She then writes and produces songs without the label's help. She releases songs, and they all go platinum, making Jamie an A-lister. She continues to write and produce her own songs about whatever is in front of her, even if they are all brainless. Guess what? Jamie is an indie pop artist!
Why is classical music seen as boring or not good when it is really so complex and intense? In my band class, we once had to create our own instrumental music, and it was very challenging. You had to work a lot to get it right.
Rock music is a music genre that was created in the 1940s. The genre was popular during the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s. Rock bands generally consists of a guitar player, a drummer, bass player and singer. There are many rock subgenres - such as heavy metal, alternative, hard rock, grunge, and more... read more Since when is rock satanic? I love this genre, but my parents know pretty much every band, and none of them sing about worshiping Satan. Not all rock fans are weird drug addicts who like to smoke and practice satanic rituals.
Rock was not the first genre to be accused of being satanic. Many critics called jazz satanic in the 1920s.
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and developed from roots in blues and ragtime. Jazz is seen by many as "America's classical music". Jazz music is so rad! Speaking as a musician, I enjoy playing Jazz much more than any other genre. It's more complicated and stimulates the mind more. Instead of just using simple chord progressions, Jazz thinks outside the box.
The only reason people don't like jazz is that they don't want to give it a chance. They figure since no one listens to it, it must suck (lies), and that pop is great because everyone listens to it (more lies).
Despite popular belief, screamed lyrics do not make a band Screamo. Can I grab a guitar, start playing, scream "HI," and boom, I'm a Screamo artist? Of course not. Screamo artists do scream, but it also aligns closely with Emo.
The Newcomers
R&B is not a hip-hop subgenre. The traditional form was derived from blues and jazz and was a precursor to rock and roll. It is called Rhythm and Blues.
It spawned genres such as funk, soul, and disco. The R&B you hear today is Contemporary R&B.
Punk rock is a subgenre of rock music. It usually has rebellious lyrics and down stroked power chords played on guitars. Bad Religion, Sex Pistols, and Green Day (actually pop-punk, which is still punk in a way) are a few punk rock bands. The subgenre influenced thrash metal because of it's down stroked... read more Punk is a faster version of rock, made mainly by poor white guys. It embodies true passion, talent, and pure angst and is meant to highlight politics and society's flaws, striving to cause change. It is the Sex Pistols (my favorite punk band). It is not Blink-182.
Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is a subgenre of alternative rock and a subculture that emerged during the mid-1980s. Grunge isn't just Nirvana! Nirvana is still legendary, though.
Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains, and Soundgarden are grunge bands.
Nu-Metal is the most mislabeled genre next to emo. Nu-Metal includes Korn, Limp Bizkit, and early Linkin Park - not Deftones, System of a Down, or Rage Against the Machine.
Listen to the underground guys like YC the Cynic, Black Milk, Soul Khan, or even Eminem and Tupac, or some of the creators of rap, and you might like it. Rap was supposed to be about social injustice or living on the rough side of town, not about materialism or superficial topics.
Rapping takes quite a lot of practice and time, and it's quite enjoyable, may I add? Yes, modern rap makes me want to shove diarrhea up my ears, but old-school rap is awesome.
At least in the context of this site, rap is misunderstood. Rarely have I seen metal being called satanic, but rap gets the most flack due to the "sex, money, drugs" stereotype. Just because you hear stuff on the radio doesn't mean the whole genre is bad. The same goes for disliking a certain song and labeling an entire genre as bad.
A lot of early Death Metal was very thrash-like, and while it is not the most common, there are several bands where you can actually hear what they are saying. Plus, most bands do NOT sing about violence.
Try some Death, Opeth, Arch Enemy, or Lothlorien, to name a few.
Emo is a style of rock music characterized by melodic musicianship and expressive, often confessional lyrics. It originated in the mid-1980s hardcore punk movement of Washington, D.C., where it was known as "emotional hardcore" or "emocore" and pioneered by bands such as Rites of Spring and Embrace. Emo is not short for emotional. It's short for emotional hardcore. It includes bands like Rites of Spring, Jimmy Eat World, Embrace, Dag Nasty, and Moss Icon. It is not My Chemical Romance.
Emo features metaphorical lyrics, often about failed relationships, meant to spark an emotional reaction from the audience. It is not about crappy lyrics regarding self-harm. I love emo, and I wish people would get their facts right and listen to the legends before they start judging.
