Why Thrash Metal is the Most Advanced Form of Rock
by Jack Bailey
Growing up all I ever listened to was rock music. Not classic rock, more 90’s grunge music, along with alternative from 80’s through to the early 2000’s. When talking about music, usually the music you grow up with is the type of music you’ll enjoy. While this is true for me, I’ve also broadened my taste in music to many other genres relating to my roots of grunge and punk. Eventually I got around to trying metal after my friend had been desperately trying to get me to listen to it. So, I complied and listened to the couple of songs he had sent me. At this point I would like to talk about the stigma that surrounds metal in general. Most people won’t even hear the first chord of a metal song just because of what they perceive as metal. They think of satanic guitar rhythms and chaotic drum parts that go too fast to even enjoy. But, as a musician, thrash metal is nothing more than a display of insane talent and awesome musical capability. Metal has many sub-genres, thrash being my favorite. The criteria I am using to evaluate the genres of rock are melodic phrasing, tempo and time, rhythm, and lyrical meaning. This argumentative piece is designed to help people appreciate the spectacle of thrash metal, and to prove that thrash metal is the most advanced form of rock.
First off, in terms of tempo, thrash metal has a very fast paced, hard hitting, and brain melting speed. Tempo basically means at what speed is the piece of music being played at, which is measured in beats per minute. Thrash metal is very different from other genres because the tempo in a thrash song can change multiple times within even just one phrase. Most rock songs from any genre will stick to the same tempo for the whole song. The precise use of many tempo changes within a song is what helps set thrash metal music apart from many other genres. Thrash metal not only plays with the tempo of a song, but also its’ time signatures as well. Changing between time signatures is a useful tool many artists use to create a sense of variety in their music. Listening to the same beat on a loop in the background can get pretty boring, but by changing time signatures an artist can change the entire feel of a melodic line. Many alternative rock songs keep a steady pattern with the drum set and bass line playing straight rhythms, but in thrash music the drummer is almost constantly switching between grooves that fit different time signatures. This keeps the bass line on its’ toes as well, being the backboard of the whole song. Thrash metal artists have to be insanely good at what they do to be able to play different speeds in different amounts of time constantly.
In rock music, much of the melodic burden is placed on the singer, while the guitar can play counter harmonies or an underlying melody, or both! There is a lot of room for the melody, and thrash metal guitarists and bassists take full advantage of this. In thrash music, most of the melody is given to the guitar, and after many layers of melody the guitar can provide its own harmonies as well. The guitar is a very interesting instrument because it can sound so different in so many ways. The heavy strums on the strings give thrash guitars an angry sound, while in softer music guitars can sound beautiful and