I Love Heavy Metal Music
[center][big]The Origins of Heavy Metal[/big]
[b]Part 1: Pre-history[/b][/center]
[center](Dedicated to @SW-User)[/center]
This is going to be a three-part series discussing the early history of heavy metal music, such as its progenitors, the first metal bands and how metal came to be what it is today. On this first part, we'll explore the antecedents, the music that was instrumental in the formation of heavy metal.
As we all know, the most defining characteristic of metal is the heavy use of guitar distortion and power chords. The use of these can be traced all the way back to '50s and early '60s rock and roll and surf rock. There are several songs back then that can be credited for laying the foundations for the raw, gritty and aggressive electric guitar sound, but none of them did it quite like The Kingsmen with their cover of the Richard Berry track "Louie Louie" in 1963, which set the standard for garage rock, a grittier and more energetic style of rock and roll:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RZJ4ESU52U][/center]
Though not formally recognized as a subgenre until the '70s, garage rock became the first "heavy" kind of rock music and paved the way for future styles of rock that would only become louder and heavier from there. Which is exactly what happened in 1964, when The Kinks released their song "You Really Got Me". It would go on to become the foundation for all hard rock and heavy metal, as it was the first major hit song built around power chords and broke new ground for the rock music scene with its loud, aggressive sound:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTTsY-oz6Go][/center]
It inspired many other bands around that time to amplify their music, relying on more booming drums, increased guitar distortion and louder vocals. However, the true basis of heavy metal stems from a combination of blues-rock and psychedelic rock. Once psychedelia came about in rock music, the style's use of frequent guitar distortion, extended guitar solos and the overall "trippy", surreal theme of it was a key influence in the development of heavy metal. Particularly with acid rock, a heavier, louder and even more distorted variant of psychedelic rock. Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience are credited with forming the links between psychedelia and heavy metal. The songs "Sunshine of Your Love" and "Purple Haze" are widely considered two of the earliest proto-metal tracks:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt51rITH3EA]
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjwWjx7Cw8I][/center]
1968 would see the formation of the sound that would come to be known as the earliest incarnation of heavy metal. Blue Cheer released their cover of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" and Steppenwolf released "Born to be Wild". These two are regarded as two of the first true heavy metal songs:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU5uDozoSSM]
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UWRypqz5-o][/center]
That same year saw more influence for heavy metal as well. The Beatles' self-titled album (The White Album) featured the track "Helter Skelter", described as a "proto-metal roar" and became a prime progenitor for metal and punk:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWW2SzoAXMo][/center]
Iron Butterfly also released their hit single "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" which saw a transition between acid rock and heavy metal:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xv1k4Dug7_8][/center]
The following year saw a few more metal progenitors. Pink Floyd released two songs "Ibiza Bar" and "The Nile Song", their two heaviest songs to date with the latter being significantly heavier of the two:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQWmVHWQ6RI][/center]
A few months later, The Stooges released "I Wanna Be Your Dog". It would become a greater influence on punk than metal, but it still featured a heavily distorted found in heavy metal:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gsWt7ey6bo][/center]
Lastly, King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man", though it leans more toward progressive rock, it was still considered an early metal track by some:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLCIfDqgDIk][/center]
The turn of the decade would see the rise of many bands who are considered the first metal bands. Some are hailed as forefathers of metal today, others didn't have the heavy metal label stick to them as metal evolved, but all of that will be explored on the second part of this series.
I know there are a few early metal progenitors I overlooked and if you know them, feel free to share them in the comments.
Thank you for reading and if you're still interested, stay tuned for part 2! 馃
Part 2:
https://similarworlds.com/9973031-I-Love-Heavy-Metal-Music/2808336-The-Origins-of-Heavy-Metal-Part-2-The-First-Metal
[b]Part 1: Pre-history[/b][/center]
[center](Dedicated to @SW-User)[/center]
This is going to be a three-part series discussing the early history of heavy metal music, such as its progenitors, the first metal bands and how metal came to be what it is today. On this first part, we'll explore the antecedents, the music that was instrumental in the formation of heavy metal.
As we all know, the most defining characteristic of metal is the heavy use of guitar distortion and power chords. The use of these can be traced all the way back to '50s and early '60s rock and roll and surf rock. There are several songs back then that can be credited for laying the foundations for the raw, gritty and aggressive electric guitar sound, but none of them did it quite like The Kingsmen with their cover of the Richard Berry track "Louie Louie" in 1963, which set the standard for garage rock, a grittier and more energetic style of rock and roll:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RZJ4ESU52U][/center]
Though not formally recognized as a subgenre until the '70s, garage rock became the first "heavy" kind of rock music and paved the way for future styles of rock that would only become louder and heavier from there. Which is exactly what happened in 1964, when The Kinks released their song "You Really Got Me". It would go on to become the foundation for all hard rock and heavy metal, as it was the first major hit song built around power chords and broke new ground for the rock music scene with its loud, aggressive sound:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTTsY-oz6Go][/center]
It inspired many other bands around that time to amplify their music, relying on more booming drums, increased guitar distortion and louder vocals. However, the true basis of heavy metal stems from a combination of blues-rock and psychedelic rock. Once psychedelia came about in rock music, the style's use of frequent guitar distortion, extended guitar solos and the overall "trippy", surreal theme of it was a key influence in the development of heavy metal. Particularly with acid rock, a heavier, louder and even more distorted variant of psychedelic rock. Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience are credited with forming the links between psychedelia and heavy metal. The songs "Sunshine of Your Love" and "Purple Haze" are widely considered two of the earliest proto-metal tracks:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt51rITH3EA]
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjwWjx7Cw8I][/center]
1968 would see the formation of the sound that would come to be known as the earliest incarnation of heavy metal. Blue Cheer released their cover of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" and Steppenwolf released "Born to be Wild". These two are regarded as two of the first true heavy metal songs:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU5uDozoSSM]
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UWRypqz5-o][/center]
That same year saw more influence for heavy metal as well. The Beatles' self-titled album (The White Album) featured the track "Helter Skelter", described as a "proto-metal roar" and became a prime progenitor for metal and punk:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWW2SzoAXMo][/center]
Iron Butterfly also released their hit single "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" which saw a transition between acid rock and heavy metal:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xv1k4Dug7_8][/center]
The following year saw a few more metal progenitors. Pink Floyd released two songs "Ibiza Bar" and "The Nile Song", their two heaviest songs to date with the latter being significantly heavier of the two:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQWmVHWQ6RI][/center]
A few months later, The Stooges released "I Wanna Be Your Dog". It would become a greater influence on punk than metal, but it still featured a heavily distorted found in heavy metal:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gsWt7ey6bo][/center]
Lastly, King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man", though it leans more toward progressive rock, it was still considered an early metal track by some:
[center][youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLCIfDqgDIk][/center]
The turn of the decade would see the rise of many bands who are considered the first metal bands. Some are hailed as forefathers of metal today, others didn't have the heavy metal label stick to them as metal evolved, but all of that will be explored on the second part of this series.
I know there are a few early metal progenitors I overlooked and if you know them, feel free to share them in the comments.
Thank you for reading and if you're still interested, stay tuned for part 2! 馃
Part 2:
https://similarworlds.com/9973031-I-Love-Heavy-Metal-Music/2808336-The-Origins-of-Heavy-Metal-Part-2-The-First-Metal
