{{Short description|Fusion of metalcore and death metal}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2021}} {{Infobox music genre | name = Deathcore | image = 20170422 Oberhausen Impericon Carnifex 0046.jpg | caption = Carnifex during a 2017 performance | stylistic_origins = * Death metal * metalcore * hardcore | cultural_origins = early 2000s, North America | other_topics = * List of bands * nu metalcore * slam death metal }}
'''Deathcore''' is a fusion genre that combines metalcore with elements of death metal.<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/release/desolation-of-eden-mr0002871032|access-date=June 26, 2015|title=Desolation of Eden|last=Henderson|first=Alex|quote=Deathcore -- the type of noisy, caustic, abrasive mixture of metalcore and death metal that Chelsea Grin offer on their first full-length album, Desolation of Eden -- is bound to annoy a lot of parents, which is exactly the point.|website=AllMusic}}</ref><ref name="allmusic heaven">{{cite web|last=Rivadavia|first=Eduardo|title=Heaven Shall Burn|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/heaven-shall-burn-mn0000952025#biography|work=AllMusic|access-date=March 25, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Henderson|first=Alex|title=Burning Skies|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/burning-skies-p671407/biography|work=AllMusic|access-date=March 25, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Dan Kenny of Suicide Silence Picks the Top Five Underground Death-Metal Bands|url=http://www.revolvermag.com/news/dan-kenny-of-suicide-silence-picks-his-top-five-underground-death-metal-bands.html|website=Revolver|date=October 19, 2012|last=Chichester|first=Sammi|archive-date=October 20, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020232118/http://www.revolvermag.com/news/dan-kenny-of-suicide-silence-picks-his-top-five-underground-death-metal-bands.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The style typically includes metalcore breakdowns, simplified death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and low roaring vocals combined with high-pitched screams or "pig squeals". Lyrics tend to be violent, angry and personal. As a distinct genre, deathcore emerged in the United States in the early 2000s and became popular in the later 2000s.
Some of the genre's earliest examples include Antagony, Despised Icon, and the Red Chord. In the mid-2000s, several deathcore bands gained widespread popularity, some of them through promotion on MySpace, including <!--ordered by date of first release-->All Shall Perish, Suicide Silence, Through the Eyes of the Dead, Bring Me the Horizon, Job for a Cowboy, Carnifex, Whitechapel and Chelsea Grin. In the 2010s, deathcore bands began experimenting with a range of other genres.
==Characteristics== thumb|Deathcore band Chelsea Grin A fusion genre, deathcore melds elements of metalcore, hardcore and death metal.<ref name="Richardson">{{cite web |last1=Richardson |first1=Jake |title=Is Deathcore Dead? |url=https://www.kerrang.com/is-deathcore-dead |website=Kerrang! |date=October 16, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Kennedy2015">{{cite book |last1=Kennedy |first1=Lewis |editor1-last=Karjalainen |editor1-first=Toni-Matti |title=Modern Heavy Metal: Markets, Practices and Cultures |date=2015 |publisher=Aalto University |page=432 |chapter=The Symbiotic Relationship between Metal and Hardcore in the 21st Century}}</ref> It is usually very fast and focuses on intensity. Deathcore typically combines deep 'roaring' and high 'screaming' vocals, down-tuned guitars, simplified death metal riffs, tremolo picking, double bass drumming and blast beat drumming. It is defined by its slower intense sections called breakdowns, which are also a key trait of metalcore.<ref name="Kennedy2015"/><ref name="Smialek">{{cite book |last1=Smialek |first1=Eric |editor1-last=Herbst |editor1-first=Jan-Peter |title=The Cambridge Companion to Metal Music |date=2023 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=282–292 |chapter=Contempt-of-Core: A reception history of Metalcore}} Note: Smialek uses "metalcore" as an umbrella term for metalcore, deathcore and related genres.</ref><ref name="Cosmo Lee">{{cite web|last=Lee|first=Cosmo|title=Doom|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/r854978|work=AllMusic|publisher=Rovi Corporation|access-date=March 25, 2011|archive-date=October 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151019002935/http://www.allmusic.com/album/r854978|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Coles"/><ref name="Rise"/> The characteristic deathcore breakdown involves single notes played repeatedly on low open guitar strings.<ref name="Smialek"/> Unlike death metal, guitar solos are rare in deathcore,<ref name="Coles"/> although they have been used by some bands.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.deadtide.com/reviews/albums/page.php?id=4393 |title=Bring Me the Horizon, "Count Your Blessings" |publisher=Dead Tide |access-date=November 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219211758/http://www.deadtide.com/reviews/albums/page.php?id=4393 |archive-date=December 19, 2014 |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.blistering.com/fastpage/fpengine.php/templateid/13151/menuid/2/tempidx/4/link/1 |title=Bring Me The Horizon - Count Your Blessings |magazine=Blistering |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104015751/http://www.blistering.com/fastpage/fpengine.php/templateid/13151/menuid/2/tempidx/4/link/1 |archive-date=November 4, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://punkworldviews.com/whitechapel-self-titled-album-review/ |title=Whitechapel "Self-Titled" Album Review |publisher=Punk World Reviews |date=June 15, 2012 |access-date=February 6, 2013 |archive-date=November 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103041004/http://punkworldviews.com/whitechapel-self-titled-album-review/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sonicabuse.com/2012/07/whitechapel-self-titled-album-review/ |title=Whitechapel - Self-Titled Album Review |publisher=Sonic Abuse |date=July 6, 2012 |access-date=February 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213023524/http://www.sonicabuse.com/2012/07/whitechapel-self-titled-album-review/ |archive-date=December 13, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metalunderground.com/reviews/details.cfm?releaseid=3583 |title=Whitechapel - "A New Era of Corruption" CD Review |publisher=Metal Underground |date=June 5, 2010 |access-date=February 6, 2013 |archive-date=November 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102183745/http://www.metalunderground.com/reviews/details.cfm?releaseid=3583 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Vocals in deathcore are typically a mixture of deep roaring vocals similar to death growls,<ref name="Cosmo Lee"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.metalinjection.net/reviews/carnifex-until-i-feel-nothing |title=CD Review: CARNIFEX Until I Feel Nothing |work=Metal Injection |date=October 27, 2011 |access-date=February 6, 2013 |archive-date=July 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130703064154/http://www.metalinjection.net/reviews/carnifex-until-i-feel-nothing |url-status=live }}</ref> and higher-pitched screaming, as well as a style known as "pig squeals" or "pig squealing".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/doom-mw0000787310 |title=Doom - Job for a Cowboy |website=Allmusic |access-date=January 5, 2013 |archive-date=February 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130215114536/http://www.allmusic.com/album/doom-mw0000787310 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2010/08/26/poll-are-deathcore-vocalists-interchangeable/ |title=Poll: Are Deathcore Vocalists Interchangeable? |publisher=MetalSucks |date=January 5, 2013 |access-date=January 6, 2013 |archive-date=May 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524034601/http://www.metalsucks.net/2010/08/26/poll-are-deathcore-vocalists-interchangeable/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://psychocydd.co.uk/details.php?id=1205fdbf4cb14ae5dec638ea9d8881dbe85e7c30 |title=Interrupting Cow - Desecration of the Universe (EP) (2012) |publisher=Psychocydd |date=November 7, 2012 |access-date=January 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130221171029/http://psychocydd.co.uk/details.php?id=1205fdbf4cb14ae5dec638ea9d8881dbe85e7c30 |archive-date=February 21, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="A Deathcore Extravaganza">{{cite web |url=http://www.reviewtheworld.com/content/staff/deathcore.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130216182644/http://www.reviewtheworld.com/content/staff/deathcore.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 16, 2013 |title=A Deathcore Extravaganza |publisher=Review the World |access-date=January 5, 2013 }}</ref><ref name="Leave The Pig Squeals on The Farm">{{cite web|url=http://americanaftermath.net/2010/09/26/leave-the-pig-squeals-on-the-farm/ |title=Leave The Pig Squeals on The Farm |publisher=American Aftermath |date=September 26, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524023223/http://americanaftermath.net/2010/09/26/leave-the-pig-squeals-on-the-farm/ |archive-date=May 24, 2013 }}</ref> Sung vocals are rare, but they have been used by a few bands such as<!--Do NOT add any more examples here, your favorite song does not need to be included--> All Shall Perish (in the song "Awaken the Dreamers") and Oceano (in the song "Incisions").<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.altpress.com/features/entry/song_premiere_oceano_incisions|title=Song Premiere: Oceano, "Incisions" - Features - Alternative Press|website=Alternative Press|access-date=May 6, 2017|date=August 12, 2013|archive-date=July 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170718085604/http://www.altpress.com/features/entry/song_premiere_oceano_incisions|url-status=live}}</ref>
Lyrics in deathcore tend to be personal, angry and violent, often deal with male frustrations, and can include misogynistic language.<ref name="Smialek"/> Personal lyrics are common in metalcore, but rare in death metal.<ref name="Smialek"/> Some common lyrical themes are antireligion, psychological pain and body horror.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Coles |first1=T |title=Death Metal |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |page=105 |quote="Despite the aesthetic changes, deathcore bands were singing about the same things: Railing against religion in Job for a Cowboy's Reduced to More Filth, mental turmoil in Carnifex's The Diseased and the Poisoned and body horror in Suicide Silence's Eyes Sewn Shut."}}</ref>
In terms of fashion, deathcore is associated with short hair, baseball caps, earlobe plugs and sportswear, which is similar to metalcore and hardcore scenes, and differs from typical metalhead attire.<ref name="Smialek"/><ref name="Rise"/>
==History== ===Predecessors (1990s)=== [[File:Suffocation Summer Breeze Open Air 2017 27.jpg|thumb|right|226px|Death metal band Suffocation]]
The term "deathcore" has had a number of uses in various metal/hardcore scenes far before it was considered an established or recognized genre, with Dom Lawson of ''Metal Hammer'' writing: "blending death metal with hardcore was by no means a new thing when Despised Icon emerged."<ref name="Rise">{{cite web |last=Lawson |first=Dom |date=August 15, 2016 |title=The rise and rise of deathcore: that genre that refuses to die |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/a-matter-of-life-and-deathcore-how-metal-s-most-maligned-genre-has-survived |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021628/https://www.loudersound.com/features/a-matter-of-life-and-deathcore-how-metal-s-most-maligned-genre-has-survived |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |work=Metal Hammer}}</ref> The earliest known use of "deathcore" as a word was by New York band N.Y.C. Mayhem as a self-description for their merger of hardcore punk and thrash metal.<ref name="Metal Forces">{{cite news |last1=Doe |first1=Bernard |title=MAYHEM (N. Y. C.) Mayhemic Destruction (1985) |url=http://www.metalforcesmagazine.com/site/demo-review-mayhem-nyc-mayhemic-destruction/ |access-date=July 28, 2018 |issue=12 |publisher=Metal Forces |date=1985 |archive-date=July 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728191453/http://www.metalforcesmagazine.com/site/demo-review-mayhem-nyc-mayhemic-destruction/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1996, Nick Terry of ''Terrorizer'' magazine publicized: "We're probably going to settle on the term ''deathcore'' to describe the likes of Earth Crisis (as well as the more NYHC-ish but still as deathly Merauder)."<ref>Terry, Nick (December 1996). "So, Did Earth Crisis Move You?". ''Terrorizer'' #37, page 23. {{issn|1350-6978}}.</ref> ''Embrace the Eternal'' (1998) by Embodyment, ''Yesterday Is Time Killed'' (1999) by Eighteen Visions, and ''Rain in Endless Fall'' (1999) by Prayer for Cleansing are early examples of albums that feature a metalcore sound combined with death metal influences.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/rain-in-endless-fall-2003-mw0000692737|title=Rain in Endless Fall (2003 reissue) - Prayer for Cleansing <nowiki>| Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards |</nowiki> AllMusic|author=Alex Henderson|publisher=Allmusic. Rovi Corporation|access-date=July 28, 2013|archive-date=October 10, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161010173453/http://www.allmusic.com/album/rain-in-endless-fall-2003-mw0000692737|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metalsucks.net/2011/01/31/stealing-18-visions-ideas-a-book-by-the-2011-metalcore-scene/ |title=Stealing 18 Visions' Ideas: A Book By the 2011 Metalcore Scene |date=January 21, 2011 |accessdate=April 24, 2021}}</ref><ref>HM Magazine. Retrieved on May 11, 2016.</ref> In 2019, music site The New Fury credited Embodyment as "[pioneers] of the deathcore genre" due to their performance on ''Embrace the Eternal''.<ref>Pelt, Doug Van (2004) {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.hmmagazine.com/reviews/album/e/embodyment0603.php |date=* |title=Embodyment - ''Embrace the Eternal'' }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://thenewfury.com/religious-infamy-in-1998-embodyment-pioneered-the-deathcore-genre-with-embrace-the-eternal |title=Religious Infamy: In 1998, Embodyment pioneered the deathcore genre with "Embrace The Eternal" - New Fury Media<!-- Bot generated title --> |date=February 8, 2019 |access-date=June 18, 2021 |archive-date=June 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624214753/https://thenewfury.com/religious-infamy-in-1998-embodyment-pioneered-the-deathcore-genre-with-embrace-the-eternal/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
''Decibel'' magazine wrote that death metal band Suffocation were one of the main inspirations for the genre's emergence, stating "One of Suffocation's trademarks, breakdowns, has spawned an entire metal subgenre: deathcore."<ref name="Decibel #059">{{cite journal|last=Lee |first=Cosmo |date=September 2009 |title=Suffocation reclaim their rightful place as kings of death metal |quote=One of Suffocation's trademarks, breakdowns, has spawned an entire metal subgenre: deathcore |journal=Decibel Magazine |issue=59}}</ref> Suffocation bassist Derek Boyer says Suffocation "were influenced by many early metal and hardcore bands".<ref name=Rise/> Lawson cites death metal bands like Dying Fetus, Suffocation, and Internal Bleeding as being influential on deathcore due to their use of "crushing, mid-paced grooves and breakdowns".<ref name=Rise/>
thumb|right|120px|Despised Icon
===Origins (early to mid-2000s)=== Despite a few earlier metalcore/death metal hybridizations, Antagony<ref name="Metal Injection">{{Cite web |url=http://www.metalinjection.net/video/watch-dawn-of-deathcore-the-story-of-antagony-for-maximum-deathcore-history |title=''Metal Injection'' - Watch Dawn of Deathcore: The Story of Antagony For Maximum Deathcore History! |date=August 2017 |access-date=February 21, 2019 |archive-date=February 20, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220062950/http://www.metalinjection.net/video/watch-dawn-of-deathcore-the-story-of-antagony-for-maximum-deathcore-history |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="No Clean Singing">{{cite web|url=http://www.nocleansinging.com/2013/01/28/antagony-why-you-need-to-know-this-band/|title=NO CLEAN SINGING » ANTAGONY – Why you need to know this band…|access-date=May 6, 2017|date=January 28, 2013|archive-date=May 22, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522055224/http://www.nocleansinging.com/2013/01/28/antagony-why-you-need-to-know-this-band/|url-status=live}}</ref> and Despised Icon are considered to be the true pioneers of deathcore,<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.decibelmagazine.com/magazine/baroness-61-nov-2009/despised-icon/ |title=Despised Icon |magazine=Decibel |date=November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023060904/http://www.decibelmagazine.com/magazine/baroness-61-nov-2009/despised-icon/ |archive-date=October 23, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=97517/ |title=Despised Icon: New Video Interview Available |work=Blabbermouth |date=May 22, 2008 }}{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> though both bands have rejected the label.<ref name="No Clean Singing"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mtv.com/news/7qvech/despised-icon-despise-deathcore-plus-himsa-dekapitator-more-news-that-rules-in-metal-file |title=Despised Icon Despised 'Deathcore' |publisher=MTV |date=June 8, 2007 |access-date=June 23, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021064852/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1561995/metal-file-despised-icon-himsa-dekapitator-amp-more.jhtml |url-status=dead }}</ref> Antagony founder and frontman Nick Vasallo is credited as being the "father of deathcore" due to his work in the band.<ref>{{Citation|last=RiffShop|title=Meet The Father of DEATHCORE! {{!}} Riffcast - The Songwriting Podcast #1|date=March 1, 2017|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl0tWKLjRcQ|access-date=March 3, 2017|archive-date=April 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406063853/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl0tWKLjRcQ|url-status=live}}</ref> The Red Chord is referenced as an early influential source for the genre due to their hybridization of metalcore and death metal sounds, among other genres.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.metalblade.com/us/artists/the-red-chord/ |title=Metal Blade artists |access-date=November 19, 2019 |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021626/https://www.metalblade.com/us/artists/the-red-chord/ |url-status=live }}</ref> New Hampshire band Deadwater Drowning and Californian group All Shall Perish are also seen as notable early entries of the genre. Deadwater Drowning's 2003 EP was remarked as "basically the blueprint for every current deathcore band out today,"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metalinjection.net/av/monday-wake-up-call/deadwater-drowning-heavy-fuck |title=Deadwater Drowning are heavy as fuck! |date=March 30, 2009 |work=MetalInjection.com |publisher=Metal Injection LLC |access-date=May 22, 2010 |archive-date=December 30, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091230161625/http://www.metalinjection.net/av/monday-wake-up-call/deadwater-drowning-heavy-fuck |url-status=live }}</ref> while All Shall Perish's debut album ''Hate, Malice, Revenge'' (2003) "never got tied down to [simply] death metal or metalcore."<ref>{{cite web |title=HATE.MALICE.REVENGE ALL SHALL PERISH |url=https://www.nuclearblast.com/en/music/band/discography/details/75608.71027.hate-malice-revenge.html |website=Nuclear Blast |quote=ALL SHALL PERISH never got tied down to death metal or metalcore, they simply have become metal that breaks down genres and gets EVERYONE moving. |access-date=June 26, 2020 |archive-date=June 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626121548/https://www.nuclearblast.com/en/music/band/discography/details/75608.71027.hate-malice-revenge.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Music journalist T Coles said, "in a similar fashion to their grindcore ancestors, cultural barriers melted away as kids with earnest interests in various heavy sounds melded ideas together [...] they were earnestly trying to be as ruthlessly heavy as possible, taking elements from everything they liked and pushing them as hard as they could, just as bands [in the 1990s], and a decade before that, had done."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Coles |first1=T |title=Death Metal |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |pages=104–105}}</ref>
In the mid 2000s, deathcore spiked in popularity shortly after Job for a Cowboy released their EP ''Doom'' in 2005, which is heavily credited as one of deathcore's most significant and influential releases for the genre.<ref name="doom review">{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=doom-mw0000787310|pure_url=yes}}|title=Doom > Review|last=Lee|first=Cosmo|publisher=Allmusic|access-date=October 24, 2008}}</ref> The genre saw an increase in popularity even further when English band Bring Me the Horizon released their deathcore debut full-length ''Count Your Blessings'' in 2006. The band were presented the 2006 Kerrang! Award for "Best British Newcomer" shortly after the album's release,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kerrang.typepad.com/kerrang_awards_2006_blog/2006/08/best_british_ne.html|title=Kerrang! Awards 2006 Blog: Best British Newcomer|access-date=January 6, 2013|archive-date=April 10, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410223246/http://kerrang.typepad.com/kerrang_awards_2006_blog/2006/08/best_british_ne.html|url-status=live}}</ref> though the band abandoned the genre soon thereafter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://drownedinsound.com/directory/artists/Bring_Me_The_Horizon |title=Bring Me The Horizon // Drowned In Sound |work=Drowned in Sound |access-date=March 20, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921054215/http://drownedinsound.com/directory/artists/Bring_Me_The_Horizon |archive-date=September 21, 2013 }}</ref>
===Expansion (late 2000s and 2010s)=== [[Image:Suicide Silence @ Arena Joondalup (12 12 2010) (5273245862).jpg|thumb|231px|right|Mitch Lucker of Suicide Silence]] San Diego natives Carnifex witnessed success with their first album ''Dead in My Arms'' (2007), selling 5,000 copies with little publicity. On top of their non-stop touring, the band's methodical songwriting resulted in Carnifex quickly getting signed to label Victory Records.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.massconcerts.com/event/83083-all-in-merch-14th-annual-new-worcester/|title=Event – MassConcerts|website=www.massconcerts.com|access-date=May 6, 2017|archive-date=July 31, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731161929/https://www.massconcerts.com/event/83083-all-in-merch-14th-annual-new-worcester/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Suicide Silence's ''No Time to Bleed'' (2009) peaked at number 32 on the ''Billboard'' 200, number 12 on the Rock Albums Chart and number 6 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart,<ref name=charts>{{cite magazine|title=Suicide Silence Album & Songs Chart History|url={{BillboardURLbyName|artist=suicide silence|chart=all}}|magazine=Billboard|publisher=Billboard.com|access-date=January 5, 2013}}</ref> while their album ''The Black Crown'' peaked at number 28 on the ''Billboard'' 200, number 7 on the Rock Albums Chart and number 3 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart.<ref name="charts"/> Whitechapel album ''This Is Exile'' sold 5,900 in copies, which made it enter the ''Billboard'' 200 chart at position 118.<ref name=Blabbermouth>{{cite news |url=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=100980 |title=Whitechapel's ''This Is Exile'' Lands on Billboard Chart |date=July 16, 2008 |work=Blabbermouth |access-date=January 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080803031857/http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=100980 |archive-date=August 3, 2008 }}</ref> Their third album ''A New Era of Corruption'' sold about 10,600 copies in the United States in its first week of being released and peaked at position number 43 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart.{{cn|date=April 2026}} Their self-titled album peaked at number 65 on the Canadian Albums Chart<ref>{{cite web |url=http://jam.canoe.com/Music/Charts/ALBUMS.html |title=Albums Charts |access-date=January 5, 2013 }}{{dead link|date=April 2026|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> and also at number 47 on the ''Billboard'' 200.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/whitechapel/chart-history/778140 |title=Whitechapel's Chart History |magazine=Billboard.com |access-date=January 5, 2013 }}{{Dead link|date=June 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
In the late 2000s, deathcore groups began to embrace elements of nu metal, with Whitechapel and Suicide Silence making use of a "heavier and more groove-driven sound than their predecessors and increasingly bordered nu-metal",<ref name="Stewart 20212">{{cite web |last1=Stewart |first1=Ethan |date=31 August 2021 |title=SLIPKNOT TRANSFORMED MODERN METAL WITH 'IOWA' 20 YEARS AGO |url=https://www.popmatters.com/slipknot-iowa-album-atr20 |access-date=7 September 2021 |website=PopMatters}}</ref> and Emmure, Winds of Plague and the Acacia Strain embracing its urban, black aesthetics.<ref name="McKenty, 2010">{{cite web |last1=McKenty |first1=Finn |title=What is UR Favorite Classic Nu-Metal Band?? |url=https://www.metalsucks.net/2010/09/29/what-is-ur-favorite-classic-nu-metal-band/ |website=MetalSucks |date=September 29, 2010 |access-date=7 September 2024}}</ref> As early as 2011, publications including ''MetalSucks'' had begun to use the term "nu-deathcore" to refer to groups that hybridized the two such as Emmure, Suicide Silence, Here Comes the Kraken, Upon a Burning Body and Gorelord.<ref name=MetalSucksNuDethcore>{{cite web|author-link=Finn McKenty |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2011/10/24/is-nu-dethcore-the-next-big-thing-bouncewitme/ |title=Is Nu-Dethcore The Next Big Thing?|publisher=MetalSucks |date= October 24, 2011|accessdate=June 27, 2014}}</ref> This wave led Japanese band Dir En Grey to return to their nu metal influence sound while also embracing deathcore on songs such as "Different Sense".<ref>{{cite web |last1=NEILSTEIN |first1=VINCE |title=APPARENTLY DIR EN GREY PLAY NU-DEATHCORE NOW |date=July 5, 2011 |url=https://www.metalsucks.net/2011/07/05/apparently-dir-en-grey-play-nu-deathcore-now/ |access-date=10 September 2024}}</ref>
Australian deathcore band Thy Art Is Murder debuted at number 35 on the ARIA Charts with their album ''Hate'' (2012),<ref name="australian-charts.com">{{cite web |author=Steffen Hung |url=http://australian-charts.com/weekchart.asp?cat=a&year=2012&date=20121104 |title=Australian charts portal |publisher=Australian-charts.com |date=April 13, 2015 |access-date=April 17, 2015 |archive-date=November 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106181405/http://australian-charts.com/weekchart.asp?cat=a&year=2012&date=20121104 |url-status=live }}</ref> making them the first extreme metal band to ever reach the Top 40 of this chart.<ref name="themusicnetwork.com">{{cite web |last=Eliezer |first=Christie |url=http://www.themusicnetwork.com/music-news/industry/2012/10/31/thy-art-is-murder-break-aria-record/ |title=Thy Art Is Murder break ARIA record - Music Industry - The Music Network |access-date=July 27, 2017 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926071241/http://www.themusicnetwork.com/music-news/industry/2012/10/31/thy-art-is-murder-break-aria-record/ |archive-date=September 26, 2013 }}</ref>
thumb|Lorna Shore at Tons of Rock 2025 In the 2020s, deathcore experienced a resurgence in popularity—especially on platforms like YouTube and TikTok, with bands like Fit for an Autopsy, Ingested, Paleface Swiss and AngelMaker bringing somewhat of a revived recognition to the genre. Lorna Shore, in particular, went viral with their 2021 song "To the Hellfire".<ref>{{cite web|title=Lorna Shore and the Deathcore Resurgence|url=https://metalinjection.net/news/fit-for-an-autopsys-pat-sheridan-discusses-deathcores-resurgence-lorna-shores-role-in-it|website=Metal Injection|access-date=February 24, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=ENIS |first1=ELI |title=HOW LORNA SHORE BEAT THE ODDS TO BECOME THE NEW FACES OF DEATHCORE |url=https://www.revolvermag.com/music/how-lorna-shore-beat-odds-become-new-faces-deathcore |website=Revolver |access-date=16 May 2023}}</ref> Recent bands introduced more symphonic and progressive elements to the genre while maintaining its traditional heaviness.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Deathcore Resurgence: How Modern Bands Are Evolving the Genre|url=https://www.kerrang.com/the-rise-of-modern-deathcore|website=Kerrang!|access-date=February 24, 2025}}</ref> Russian deathcore group Slaughter to Prevail reportedly reached over 3.5 million streams on music services for their song "Hell" (2015); the band also performed a line of sold-out shows in China, which made the group the only foreign metal band to perform a sold-out concert in the country in all of 2020.<ref>[https://thenewfury.com/slaughter-to-prevail-unleashes-aptly-titled-new-song-demolisher/ Slaughter to Prevail unleashed aptly titled new song] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802013536/http://thenewfury.com/slaughter-to-prevail-unleashes-aptly-titled-new-song-demolisher/|date=August 2, 2020}} The_New_Fury</ref><ref>[http://www.insaneblog.net/2020/05/slaughter-to-prevail-watch-full-show.html SLAUGHTER TO PREVAIL - Sold Out Show in Shanghai, China]</ref>
== Fusion with other genres == A variety of deathcore bands experimented with other genres into their music as influence and time progressed. Emmure has been credited to be heavily influenced by nu metal<ref>{{cite web |date=September 10, 2009 |title=Guest Insider: Mike Gitter Reviews Emmure's 'Felony' |url=http://www.metalinsider.net/guest-blog/guest-insider-mike-gitter-reviews-emmures-felony |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120617142735/http://www.metalinsider.net/guest-blog/guest-insider-mike-gitter-reviews-emmures-felony |archive-date=June 17, 2012 |access-date=October 3, 2012 |publisher=Metal Insider}}</ref> and was described as "the new Limp Bizkit".<ref>{{cite web |date=August 27, 2012 |title=FURTHER MORE PROOF THAT EMMURE ARE THE NEW LIMP BIZKIT |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2012/08/27/further-proof-that-emmure-are-the-new-limp-bizkit/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523170924/http://www.metalsucks.net/2012/08/27/further-proof-that-emmure-are-the-new-limp-bizkit/ |archive-date=May 23, 2013 |access-date=February 6, 2013 |publisher=MetalSucks}}</ref> Suicide Silence's 2011 album ''The Black Crown'' is a deathcore album with some nu metal influences.<ref name="NuDethcore">{{cite web |author=Sergeant D |date=October 24, 2011 |title=IS NU-DETHCORE THE NEXT BIG THING???? #bouncewitme |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2011/10/24/is-nu-dethcore-the-next-big-thing-bouncewitme/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407180039/https://www.metalsucks.net/2011/10/24/is-nu-dethcore-the-next-big-thing-bouncewitme/ |archive-date=April 7, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |publisher=MetalSucks}}</ref> Other examples of nu metal-inspired deathcore bands include Here Comes the Kraken's later material.<ref name="NuDethcore" /> The early 2010s saw bands fusing the genre with influences from djent and progressive metal, which began to achieve underground popularity. Examples of the aforementioned include Veil of Maya,<ref>{{cite web |last=Zorgdrager |first=Bradley |date=March 23, 2015 |title=Veil of Maya Announce First Album with New Singer, Share Video |url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/veil_of_maya_announce_first_album_with_new_singer_share_video |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021627/http://exclaim.ca/music/article/veil_of_maya_announce_first_album_with_new_singer_share_video |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |work=Exclaim!}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Heaney |first=Gregory |title=[Id] - Veil of Maya |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/id-mw0001968166 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021624/https://www.allmusic.com/album/id-mw0001968166 |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |publisher=AllMusic}}</ref> Born of Osiris,<ref>{{cite web |last=Jurek |first=Thom |title=Born of Osiris {{!}} Biography & History |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/born-of-osiris-mn0000722448/biography |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021623/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/born-of-osiris-mn0000722448/biography |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |publisher=AllMusic}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe |date=October 8, 2015 |title=Born of Osiris, 'Free Fall' - Exclusive Song Premiere |url=https://loudwire.com/born-of-osiris-free-fall-exclusive-song-premiere/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021623/https://loudwire.com/born-of-osiris-free-fall-exclusive-song-premiere/ |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |website=Loudwire}}</ref> and After the Burial.<ref>{{cite web |last=Morton |first=Luke |date=March 1, 2016 |title=After the Burial: Dig Deep |url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/after-the-burial-dig-deep |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102021627/https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/after-the-burial-dig-deep |archive-date=January 2, 2020 |access-date=November 19, 2019 |work=Metal Hammer}}</ref> Some bands, such as Make Them Suffer, Lorna Shore and Winds of Plague, mix deathcore with symphonic/classical elements.<ref>{{cite web |last=True |first=Chris |title=Winds of Plague - Biography & History : AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/winds-of-plague-mn0000667554/biography |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209103226/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/winds-of-plague-mn0000667554/biography |archive-date=December 9, 2019 |access-date=December 9, 2019 |work=AllMusic}}</ref><ref name="translate">{{cite web |author=Marcel |date=March 13, 2015 |title=Make Them Suffer – Mozart Trifft Deathcore |url=http://www.impericon-mag.com/de/make-them-suffer-mozart-trifft-deathcore-3003 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170315175353/http://www.impericon-mag.com/de/make-them-suffer-mozart-trifft-deathcore-3003/ |archive-date=March 15, 2017 |access-date=March 17, 2017 |publisher=Impericon |language=de}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Story of Lorna Shore |url=https://www.themetalverse.net/the-story-of-lorna-shore/ |access-date=2025-06-23 |website=The Metalverse}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=MAKE THEM SUFFER's New Song "Ether" Is Pretty Damn Catchy - Metal Injection |url=http://www.metalinjection.net/video/make-them-suffers-new-song-ether-is-pretty-damn-catchy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202005430/http://www.metalinjection.net/video/make-them-suffers-new-song-ether-is-pretty-damn-catchy |archive-date=February 2, 2017 |access-date=January 22, 2017 |newspaper=Metal Injection |language=en-US}}</ref> French band Betraying the Martyrs has been described as "[the] punishing brutality of deathcore with melodic flourishes pulled from symphonic and progressive metal, giving it a theatricality that feels distinctly European."<ref>{{cite web |last=Heaney |first=Gregory |title=Betraying the Martyrs - Biography & History : AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/betraying-the-martyrs-mn0002437936/biography |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209103148/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/betraying-the-martyrs-mn0002437936/biography |archive-date=December 9, 2019 |access-date=December 9, 2019 |work=AllMusic}}</ref>
== Backlash and rejection of the term == Deathcore has been widely criticized and shunned by traditional extreme metal fans.<ref name="Richardson"/><ref name="Smialek"/><ref name="Coles">{{cite book |last1=Coles |first1=T |title=Death Metal |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |pages=106–109}}</ref> Many metalheads do not regard it as a true heavy metal subgenre, but as an inauthentic imitation of "real" metal, and "a diluted misinterpretation of metal's stylistic codes" by outsiders.<ref name="Smialek"/> Music journalist Dom Lawson called deathcore "metal's most maligned genre".<ref name="Rise"/> When it emerged, deathcore was met with backlash from death metallers,<ref name="Rise"/> who accused deathcore bands of stylistic misappropriation.<ref name="Kennedy2015"/> This shunning of deathcore is often linked to its metalcore traits, frequent use of hardcore-style breakdowns, "pig squeal" vocals, and what they see as its simplistic riffs and commercialism.<ref name="Smialek"/><ref name="A Deathcore Extravaganza" /><ref name="Leave The Pig Squeals on The Farm" /><ref>{{cite web |date=May 16, 2012 |title=Why Do Metal Nerds Like All These Deathcore Bands???? |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2011/05/16/why-do-metal-nerds-like-these-deathcore-bands/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524032433/http://www.metalsucks.net/2011/05/16/why-do-metal-nerds-like-these-deathcore-bands/ |archive-date=May 24, 2013 |access-date=January 6, 2013 |publisher=Sergeant D from MetalSucks |quote=I like this band OK, but I think it's really funny how when they first came out everybody was like "WTF this band sucks they are posers/not real death metal!!!" Then they put out their second album, which was basically generic late-90s death metal like any of the 8962323 jillion bands who ripped off Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation at the time, and then everybody was all "I guess they are OK this record is pretty sweet."}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=October 15, 2012 |title=Deathcore... and how hard it is to find good bands??? |url=http://www.daviddawson.com.au/music/deathcore-and-how-hard-it-is-to-find-good-bands/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419185908/http://www.daviddawson.com.au/music/deathcore-and-how-hard-it-is-to-find-good-bands/ |archive-date=April 19, 2013 |publisher=David Dawson}}</ref> Music journalist T Coles says that deathcore became homogenized by an oversaturation of artists during the 2010s.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Coles |first1=T |title=Death Metal |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |page=109 |quote="As history could have forseen, deathcore's rapid growth could not be sustained forever. By the beginning of the 2010s, the genre had swollen drastically, homogenizing the sound."}}</ref> Coles observed:<blockquote>"Whilst kids were eating this up, the old guard saw it as a further death blow. The established traditions were being tinkered with, old rules were being broken, and, having already lost out to Slipknot, it was now seeing its ideas taken and warped by a younger generation that was reaping the financial benefits."<ref name="Coles"/></blockquote>
Extreme metal and deathcore bands often play at the same festivals, but they use conflicting tropes in their lyrics and imagery and attract different types of fans.<ref name="Patterson">{{cite book |last1=Patterson |first1=Jamie |editor1-last=Brown |editor1-first=Andy |title=Global Metal Music and Culture: Current Directions in Metal Studies |date=2016 |publisher=Routledge |page=258 |chapter=14: Getting My Soul Back}}</ref><ref name="Coles"/> Metalheads, for example, have expressed frustration with what they call a more overt, macho 'bro' posturing in deathcore and metalcore.<ref name="Patterson"/>
Some deathcore musicians have rejected the label "deathcore". In an interview with vocalist Vincent Bennett of The Acacia Strain about the deathcore label, he said "Deathcore is the new nu-metal. [...] It sucks. And if anyone calls us 'deathcore' then I might do something very bad to them",<ref name="ExclusiveInterviewVincentBennett">{{cite web |last=Bee Roth |first=David |date=December 30, 2008 |title=Exclusive Interview with The Acacia Strain's Vincent Bennett |url=http://www.metalsucks.net/2008/12/30/exclusive-interview-with-the-acacia-strains-vincent-benett/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519154552/http://www.metalsucks.net/2008/12/30/exclusive-interview-with-the-acacia-strains-vincent-benett/ |archive-date=May 19, 2011 |access-date=August 7, 2011 |publisher=MetalSucks}}</ref> but he would later express ambivalence towards the association, stating "sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bellino |first=Vince |date=2019-12-26 |title=Interview: Acacia Strain Vocalist Vincent Bennett Discusses New Album 'It Comes in Waves' |url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2019/12/26/interview-acacia-strain-vocalist-vincent-bennett-discusses-new-album-it-comes-in-waves/ |access-date=July 30, 2025 |website=Decibel Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> Guitarist Justin Longshore from Through the Eyes of the Dead said, "You know, I really hate that term. I know we've been labeled as that but I think there's so much more to our music than just a mixture of death metal and hardcore even though we incorporate those elements in our music. To me it seems that is just the new and fresh thing that kids are following."<ref>{{cite web |date=March 25, 2007 |title=Justin Longshore (Through the Eyes of the Dead) |url=http://www.decoymusic.com/blog_posts/201 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130521231441/http://www.decoymusic.com/blog_posts/201 |archive-date=May 21, 2013 |publisher=Decoymusic}}</ref>
In November 2013, ''Terrorizer'' wrote, "The term 'deathcore' is usually seen as a dirty word in metal circles" while interviewing vocalist Bryce Lucien of the Texas-based metal band Seeker. Lucien then stated:<ref>{{cite web |date=November 4, 2013 |title=Seeker's Bryce Lucien On The Term 'Deathcore' |url=http://www.terrorizer.com/news/features-2/seekers-bryce-lucien-term-deathcore |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924075235/http://www.terrorizer.com/news/features-2/seekers-bryce-lucien-term-deathcore/ |archive-date=September 24, 2016 |access-date=May 6, 2017}}</ref>
{{blockquote|Much like what became of metalcore in the mid-2000s, deathcore is an often maligned term that can instantly diminish a bands credibility. What once conjured images of ridiculously brutal, unapologetically heavy bands like Ion Dissonance and The Red Chord now brings to mind bands full of twenty-year-olds sporting throat tattoos, matching black T-shirts, and trying desperately hard to look tough while they jump in sync onstage. }}
In contrast, some musicians are less negative towards being described as deathcore. Scott Lewis of the San Diego–based deathcore band Carnifex stated, "We're not one of those bands trying to escape the banner of deathcore. I know a lot of bands try and act like they have a big problem with that, but if you listen to their music, they are very 'deathcore.' I know that there is a lot of resentment towards deathcore and kind of younger bands."<ref name="Noisecreep">{{cite web |date=March 16, 2010 |title=Carnifex Vocalist Doesn't Fear the Deathcore Tag |url=http://www.noisecreep.com/2010/03/16/carnifex-deathcore-tag/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409215338/http://www.noisecreep.com/2010/03/16/carnifex-deathcore-tag/ |archive-date=April 9, 2010 |access-date=January 28, 2014 |website=Noisecreep}}</ref> In a 2012 interview, former Chelsea Grin guitarist Jake Harmond said, "Everyone likes to flap their jaw and voice their own opinion how 'embarrassing' it is to be in a band that can be labeled 'deathcore,' but honestly we have never given a fuck".<ref>{{cite web |date=January 7, 2012 |title=Chelsea Grin interview |url=http://lambgoat.com/features/interviews/151/Chelsea-Grin-interview |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222211240/http://lambgoat.com/features/interviews/151/Chelsea-Grin-interview |archive-date=February 22, 2014 |access-date=March 11, 2014 |publisher=Lambgoat}}</ref>
==See also== *List of deathcore artists
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Extreme metal}} {{Hardcorepunk}} {{Heavy metal music}}
Category:Deathcore Category:Death metal Category:Metalcore genres Category:21st-century music genres Category:2000s in music Category:2010s in music Category:Fusion music genres Category:Extreme metal Category:Heavy metal genres Category:American styles of music