The difference, by ear
Nu metal inherited the samples and the low tunings and swapped the machine's coldness for hip-hop's groove.
Both are part sung, part screamed, but nu metal is a little slower: 80 to 120 bpm against 110 to 150. To hear the difference, play Killing Joke next to Korn. Industrial rock comes from the rock side of the tree and nu metal from the metal side, and industrial rock came first, by twelve years.
In figures
Industrial rock
Where it sits
Rock › Punk rock › Post-punk › Industrial rock
In short
Guitars over programmed drums, sampling and factory noise. The bridge to industrial metal.
How it sounds
- Programmed drums or samples of struck metal in place of a conventional rhythm section.
- Digitally processed guitar, often chopped up and reassembled.
- Vocals distorted through a megaphone or digital processing.
Key acts
- Killing Joke
- Ministry
- Nine Inch Nails
Start here
The pickNine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral. Recorded, not at all by chance, in a house with a grim history.
Full page →Nu metal
Where it sits
In short
Seven-string guitars tuned very low, hip-hop groove, a DJ or sampler and lyrics about personal trauma. The decade's best-selling and most disputed genre.
How it sounds
- Seven-string guitars tuned very low, with simple syncopated riffs.
- Very prominent bass, often slapped or synth-toned, plus a DJ or sampler in the line-up.
- Vocals moving between rapping, singing and screaming, with lyrics about personal trauma.
Key acts
- Korn
- Slipknot
- Deftones
- Limp Bizkit
Start here
The pickKorn - Korn. The first track opens with bagpipes, which nobody ever remembers.
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