The difference, by ear
Black metal is growled or screamed where folk rock is sung cleanly, and much faster: 160 to 280 bpm against 80 to 120. Songs run longer in black metal: usually 4 to 9 minutes, against 2½ to 5 minutes in folk rock. To hear the difference, play The Byrds next to Bathory. Folk rock comes from the rock side of the tree and black metal from the metal side, and folk rock came first, by eighteen years.
In figures
Folk rock
Where it sits
In short
Folk lyrics played on a twelve-string electric guitar. It taught rock that the words can matter as much as the riff.
How it sounds
- Twelve-string guitar, clean tone, open arpeggios.
- Dense vocal harmony inherited from the American folk tradition.
- The text comes first: songs are built around the words rather than the riff.
Key acts
- The Byrds
- Bob Dylan
- Fairport Convention
- Simon & Garfunkel
Start here
The pickFairport Convention - Liege & Lief. The birth certificate of British folk rock.
Full page →Black metal
Where it sits
In short
Tremolo picking, blast beats, shrieked vocals and deliberately cold production. More an aesthetic than a technique - atmosphere matters more than clean sound.
How it sounds
- Tremolo picking on open fifth voicings, with vocals in the high register.
- Deliberately thin, cold production - the missing bass is an aesthetic choice, not an accident.
- Fast blast beats, drums often mixed back, atmosphere placed above technique.
Key acts
- Bathory
- Mayhem
- Darkthrone
- Emperor
Start here
The pickDarkthrone - A Blaze in the Northern Sky. The production is intentional, not a flaw.
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