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Pop metal
Pop metal (sometimes conflated with or used interchangeably with glam metal) is an umbrella term for commercial heavy metal and hard rock styles that feature prominent pop music elements such as
Characteristics#
Pop metal is a variation of heavy metal which emphasizes catchy pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs. It was influenced by the anthemic choruses of arena rock. In the “definitive metal family tree” of his documentary Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey, anthropologist Sam Dunn differentiates pop metal, which includes bands like Def Leppard, Europe, and Whitesnake, from glam metal bands that include Mötley Crüe and Poison.
History#
The catchy hard rock of Kiss and Van Halen in the 1970s helped spawn the genre, The arrival of grunge in 1991 largely turned audiences away from pop metal. Andrew W.K., Architects, Bring Me the Horizon, Coheed and Cambria, Dead by April, Evanescence, Halestorm, Ghost, In Flames, In This Moment, Issues, Lacuna Coil, Poppy, Shinedown, The Pretty Reckless, We Are the Fallen, and Weezer.
- Genre family
- 1980s in music, 20th-century music genres, Fusion music genres, Heavy metal genres, Pop music genres, Rock music genres