The difference, by ear
Gothic metal grew directly out of these same bands and added keyboards, a second sung voice and romance. Paradise Lost's Gothic is on both lists for a reason.
Gothic metal is part sung, part screamed where death-doom is growled or screamed, and a little faster: 70 to 110 bpm against 50 to 90. To hear the difference, play My Dying Bride next to Paradise Lost. They share a root in heavy metal, and death-doom came first, by a year. United Kingdom appears in the origins of both.
In figures
Death-doom
Where it sits
Heavy metal › Death metal › Death-doom
In short
Guttural vocals at funeral tempo. Bands from Yorkshire invented the combination and then invented gothic metal too.
How it sounds
- Very slow tempos with long riffs and sustained chords.
- Guttural vocals over minor harmony, sometimes with violin or keyboards.
- Eight- to twelve-minute songs with slow dynamics and oppressive atmosphere.
Key acts
- My Dying Bride
- Paradise Lost
- Anathema
- Winter
Start here
The pickMy Dying Bride - Turn Loose the Swans. The violin matters as much as the guitar.
Full page →Gothic metal
Where it sits
Heavy metal › Doom metal › Gothic metal
In short
Death-doom that adds keyboards, romance and female vocals. It popularised the beauty-and-the-beast formula.
How it sounds
- Keyboards and strings over slow, heavy riffing.
- Vocal contrast: lyrical female voice alongside a male growl - 'beauty and the beast'.
- Broad production, romantic and funereal atmosphere.
Key acts
- Paradise Lost
- Type O Negative
- Theatre of Tragedy
- Lacuna Coil
Start here
The pickType O Negative - Bloody Kisses. Bleak and funny at once, which is rare.
Full page →