Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal

Heavy metal music

Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

. It was often used to describe Pantera

Pantera

Pantera was an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas. Formed by the Abbott brothers, Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell in 1981, bassist Rex Brown would join in late 1981 with vocalist Terry Glaze. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera had Terry replaced in 1987 with Phil Anselmo as...

 and Exhorder

Exhorder

Exhorder is an American thrash/groove metal band from New Orleans, Louisiana. They are credited as the purveyors of the groove-oriented thrash sound later made famous by bands such as Pantera, White Zombie, and Machine Head. Initially active from 1985 to 1992, they have since reformed in...

.

Characteristics and origins

Pantera's Cowboys from Hell

Cowboys from Hell

Cowboys from Hell is Pantera's fifth album and their first Atco Records album, recorded at The Dallas Sound Lab in Irving, TX and released on July 24, 1990. This was their first commercially successful album, exposing the band's groove metal style to mainstream audiences...

album from 1990 was described as "groundbreaking" and "blueprint-defining" for the groove metal genre. Tommy Victor

Tommy Victor

Tommy Victor is the lead singer and guitarist for the crossover thrash/industrial metal band Prong that he founded in New York in 1986. In the late 1980s Victor worked as a soundman at CBGB's. After the release of Rude Awakening in 1996, Prong disbanded and Victor moved to Los Angeles. Since then...

 of Prong claims that the attitude of groove metal came from Bad Brains

Bad Brains

Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...

.

Geoffrey Himes of The Washington Post

The Washington Post

The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...

described the music in 1998, as a "marriage of hard rock

Hard rock

Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...

 with dance music

Dance music

Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

 and hip-hop

Hip hop music

Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...

"; and stated about groove metal: "This gives the loud, crunchy guitars a black-flavored dance pulse and gives the wailing vocals the punchy rhythms of rap and funk

Funk

Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...

. The masters of this new sub-genre is Korn

Korn

Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...

." Other groove metal bands have incorporated thrash metal

Thrash metal

Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...

, hardcore punk

Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...

, and industrial music

Industrial music

Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...

. Ian Christe

Ian Christe

Ian Christe is an author, disc jockey and publisher. He attended The Clarkson School's Bridging Year and Indiana University....

 credits Sepultura's

Sepultura

Sepultura is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte, formed in 1984. The band was a major force in the death metal, thrash metal and ultimately groove metal realms during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with their later experiments melding nu metal, hardcore punk and industrial.Sepultura...

 Chaos A.D. and Pantera for creating the death metal

Death metal

Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....

-derived music of groove metal and Lamb Of God for creating thrash metal

Thrash metal

Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...

-derived music of groove metal influencing later groups in the genre during the 1990s.

Groups

The style has been associated with bands such as Lamb Of God

Lamb of God (band)

Lamb of God is an American heavy metal band from Richmond, Virginia. Formed in 1994, the group consists of vocalist Randy Blythe, guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler, bassist John Campbell, and drummer Chris Adler...

, Soulfly

Soulfly

Soulfly is a heavy metal band formed in 1997 based in Phoenix, Arizona. The original lyrical content revolved around spirituality and religious themes, with later albums encompassing other themes including war, violence, aggression, hatred and anger. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max...

, Gojira

Gojira

Gojira is a heavy metal band formed in 1996 in Bayonne, France. The band was known as Godzilla until 2001. Gojira is composed of Joe Duplantier on vocals and guitar, his brother Mario Duplantier on drums, Christian Andreu on guitar and Jean-Michel Labadie on bass...

, Throwdown, Trivium

Trivium (band)

Trivium is an American heavy metal band from Orlando, Florida, formed in 1999. Signed to Roadrunner Records, the band has released five studio albums, eleven singles, and twelve music videos...

, Spiritual Beggars

Spiritual Beggars

Spiritual Beggars is a hard rock/stoner metal band from Halmstad, Sweden, formed by Michael Amott, who is known from Arch Enemy, Carcass and Carnage.- Biography :...

, Machine Head

Machine Head (band)

Machine Head is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California. Formed on October 12, 1991, the group was founded by Robb Flynn and Adam Duce. There have been 4 member changes since their inception. The current lineup of the band comprises Flynn , Duce , ex-Vio-Lence guitarist Phil Demmel ,...

, and Byzantine

Byzantine (band)

Byzantine is a heavy metal band from Charleston, West Virginia that formed in 2000. The band consists of frontman and co-founder Chris "OJ" Ojeda , Brian Henderson , Matt Wolfe and Michael "Skip" Cromer . They have released three studio albums on Prosthetic Records...

.

To the contrary some bands have gone to some length to avoid being labelled as a groove metal band. Veteran thrash metal band Annihilator

Annihilator (band)

Annihilator is a Canadian heavy metal band hailing from Ottawa, Ontario, also from Vancouver, British Columbia between 1987-2002 by founding member, vocalist, guitarist and bassist Jeff Waters. The band has been around since 1984 and is the biggest selling heavy metal artist from Canada in history,...

 left Roadrunner Records

Roadrunner Records

Roadrunner Records is an American record label that concentrates primarily on heavy metal bands. It is currently a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.-History:...

in 1993 specifically to avoid being caught up in the groove-metal trend being promoted by the label. Subsequently, the Canadian band have not played in North America ever since their departure from the label.