Melodic death metal

Melodic death metal (sometimes referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal. It contains more melodic guitar riffs and solos, which are sometimes acoustic, and also occasional 'clean' singing as opposed to traditional death grunt vocals. The song structures are generally more progressive, using diverse themes throughout the song. Death and Morbid Angel, often considered the "godfathers" of death metal, are primary influences on the genre, and its progenitors include At the Gates, In Flames, and Carcass, with the release of their Heartwork album. Sentenced is also often credited with creating the first melodeath album with the release of North from Here. Some credit In Flames as the band which popularised the sub-genre, some even credit them for inventing the subgenre. Amorphis are also worth noting, because of their 1992 The Karelian Isthmus album. Melodic death metal, though from the same geographic area as black metal, rarely speaks of Satanism or the downfall of Christianity, but has more poetic themes, which vary greatly. Traditionally, lyrics deal with more expressionist themes.

One extremely important piece of the melodic death jigsaw puzzle is the Gothenburg style, named after the city from which it originated. It is not certain what band originally started the Gothenburg sound, but it is widely accepted that In Flames, At the Gates, and Dark Tranquillity are the three major popularizers of the style, and some of the only widely known bands to practice it, with newer bands such as Arch Enemy and The Haunted being offshoots of Carcass and At The Gates respectively.

Most melodic death metal bands are from the Scandinavian and Northern European regions, especially from Sweden and Finland, however, in recent years, the genre has gained somewhat of a popularity boost, acquiring a small underground status in the North American areas of Florida, New York, California, and some parts of Canada, especially among North American fans of the Scandinavian bands which still pioneer the genre today but are looking for some closer-to-home bands.

The outbreak of North American melodic metalcore bands in the late 1990's and early 2000's has perhaps help to spread the popularity of the melodic death metal style. However, it should be noted that these North American bands generally feature less creative songwriting than their European counterparts, and accusations have been made against American bands for borrowing/stealing riffs from their predeccessors. Although many North American bands tend to focus on heavy breakdowns than melodic riffs, not all should be completely ignored when discussing melodic death metal. American bands Arsis and Darkest Hour, among others, are often regarded as a step above the rest.