Rockpedia

Compare

Two genres, side by side. The ratings are editorial judgements on a ten-point scale, not measurements. Where they come out level, the difference is in the prose underneath them.

First genre

Brutal death metal1991

Second genre

Goregrind1988

Head to headBrutal death metal vs Goregrind
Brutal death metal: heaviness 10, melody 2, speed 9. Goregrind: heaviness 9, melody 1, speed 10.Heaviness10 / 9Melody2 / 1Speed9 / 10
Each corner is a ten-point rating. The further out, the higher.

The difference, by ear

Goregrind shares the pitch-shifted vocals and the subject matter, and keeps grindcore's brevity and lack of structure.

Both are growled or screamed and move at much the same pace, around 200 to 300 bpm. Songs run longer in brutal death metal: usually 2½ to 4 minutes, against under a minute to 2 minutes in goregrind. To hear the difference, play Suffocation next to Carcass. They share a root in heavy metal, and goregrind came first, by three years.

Put together from each genre's vocals, tempo, song length, key acts and place in the tree.

In figures

Heaviness
Brutal death metal10
Goregrind9
−1
Speed
Brutal death metal9
Goregrind10
+1
Melody
Brutal death metal2
Goregrind1
−1

Brutal death metal

1991 · USA · 1 subgenre

Where it sits

Heavy metal › Death metal › Brutal death metal

In short

Built for density and weight: dissonant riffing, low guttural vocals and crushing breakdowns.

How it sounds

  • Very low tunings and dissonant riffs with dense construction.
  • Deep guttural vocals, often entirely unintelligible, sometimes with pig squeals.
  • Sustained blast beats and gravity blasts alternating with slow breakdowns.

Key acts

  • Suffocation
  • Deeds of Flesh
  • Devourment

Start here

The pickSuffocation - Effigy of the Forgotten. The genre's absolute reference point.

Full page →

Goregrind

1988 · UK / Japan

Where it sits

Heavy metal › Grindcore › Goregrind

In short

Grindcore with pitch-shifted vocals and lyrics from a pathology textbook. Carcass wrote the rules on their first two albums.

How it sounds

  • Vocals run through a pitch shifter into an underwater sound.
  • Simple riffs, extreme tempos and deliberately filthy production.
  • Lyrics and cover art drawn from medical and pathological imagery.

Key acts

  • Carcass
  • Regurgitate
  • Last Days of Humanity

Start here

The pickCarcass - Symphonies of Sickness. Better produced than the debut, which is a low bar.

Full page →