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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

Deathgrind1990

Second genre

Goregrind1988

Head to headDeathgrind vs Goregrind
Deathgrind: heaviness 10, melody 2, speed 10. Goregrind: heaviness 9, melody 1, speed 10.Heaviness10 / 9Melody2 / 1Speed10 / 10
Each corner is a ten-point rating. The further out, the higher.

The difference, by ear

Goregrind shares the tempo and the subject matter with far less musical ambition and pitch-shifted vocals.

Both are growled or screamed, but goregrind is a little slower: 200 to 300 bpm against 220 to 320. Songs run longer in deathgrind: usually 1 to 3 minutes, against under a minute to 2 minutes in goregrind. To hear the difference, play Napalm Death next to Carcass. They share a root in heavy metal, and goregrind came first, by two years. United Kingdom appears in the origins of both.

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

In figures

Heaviness
Deathgrind10
Goregrind9
−1
Speed
Deathgrind10
Goregrind10
level
Melody
Deathgrind2
Goregrind1
−1

Deathgrind

1990 · USA / United Kingdom

Where it sits

Heavy metal › Death metal › Deathgrind

In short

Death metal compressed to the length and speed of grindcore. No intro, no outro.

How it sounds

  • Near-continuous blast beats, with songs between thirty seconds and two minutes.
  • Compressed death metal riffs with no development.
  • Vocals alternating between very low growls and very high screams.

Key acts

  • Napalm Death
  • Cattle Decapitation
  • Pig Destroyer

Start here

The pickPig Destroyer - Prowler in the Yard. No bass player, and you don't miss it.

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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.

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