The difference, by ear
D-beat is the narrower thing: bands playing Discharge's specific rhythm. Crust is broader and takes more from metal.
D-beat is shouted where crust punk is growled or screamed, at much the same pace, around 150 to 220 bpm. To hear the difference, play Amebix next to Discharge. Both grew out of hardcore punk, d-beat first and crust punk two years after. United Kingdom appears in the origins of both.
In figures
Crust punk
Where it sits
Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk › Crust punk
In short
D-beat soaked in metal and mud: thick tone, apocalyptic themes, trousers unwashed since 1989.
How it sounds
- Thick, muddy guitar tone with a very prominent distorted bass.
- Alternation between fast d-beat and slow passages close to doom.
- Two vocalists - one low, one shrill - and apocalyptic or ecological themes.
Key acts
- Amebix
- Doom
- Tragedy
- His Hero Is Gone
Start here
The pickAmebix - Arise! It sounds like the end of the world, which was the point.
Full page →D-beat
Where it sits
Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk › D-beat
In short
Named after Discharge's drum pattern: galloping toms, motorcycle guitar and anti-war slogans shouted as choruses.
How it sounds
- The Discharge pattern: floor tom in eighths with the hi-hat open on the offbeat.
- Guitars with massive distortion playing two- or three-chord riffs.
- Short, sloganeering lyrics about nuclear war and authority.
Key acts
- Discharge
- Anti Cimex
- Disfear
Start here
The pickDischarge - Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing. Not one relaxed second on it.
Full page →