It’s a given that the Big Four of thrash metal is Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax. But, what about nu-metal? The genre started out in the 1990s and is still one of the most influential genres in rock and metal music. Even today, new bands pop up all the time that wear their nu-metal influences proudly on their sleeves.
The nu-metal movement is defined as a “subgenre of heavy metal music represented by a fusion of heavy metal instrumentation and hip-hop conventions such as rapped lyrics and ‘turntabling,'” according to Britannica. They add that the genre, of course, is related to rap metal and rap rock. “Nu metal built on rap metal’s foundation of rock and rap collaboration, but it emphasized some of the more aggressive elements of its musical forebears,” Britannica states.
“Nu metal, also known as nü-metal, is a subgenre of alternative metal that fuses heavy metal music with other styles like hip hop, grunge, alternative rock, hard rock, and funk,” adds Master Class.
So, now that we know what nu metal is about, let’s get into Audio Ink Radio’s picks for the big four of the genre. These four bands are responsible for the genesis of nu-metal.
The ‘Big 4’ Bands of Nu-Metal
Korn
Of course, Korn had to be on this tally. Korn is the first band that’s really credited to starting the nu-metal movement. “The rise of nu metal is primarily attributed to the band Korn, who released their debut, self-titled album in 1994, ushering in a new wave of metal music,” Master Class explains. “American record producer Ross Robinson, who had previously been a thrash metal guitarist, helped take Korn from an up-and-coming band to massive success.”
Linkin Park
Even though Korn originated the nu-metal genre, Linkin Park went more mainstream with it. The band’s 2000 debut, “Hybrid Theory,” is a blueprint for the genre. “This Southern California five-piece knows its way around a hook: Crashing, loud-soft dynamics run through the album and producer Don Gilmore (who has worked with Eve 6, Lit, Pearl Jam) gives the guitars and samples a raw-meat heft that will sound right at home on modern-rock radio,” Rolling Stone magazine notes in a 2000 review of the album.
Rolling Stone adds, “Maybe too at home — (Chester) Bennington and (Mike) Shinoda often slip into corny, boilerplate-aggro lyrics: Thanks to ‘voices in the back of my head’ (“Papercut”), they’re ‘one step closer to the edge’ (“One Step Closer”), suffering ‘wounds [that] will not heal’ while the ‘walls are closing in’ (“Crawling”).”
Slipknot
Slipknot were on the heavier side of nu-metal, but they were just as important to the genre. Corey Taylor and company wore masks and had a super heavy and menacing delivery, which set them apart from their more mainstream peers. Even with their debut album, 1996’s “Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat,” Slipknot got comparisons to Korn. “Slipknot is the most venomous, apoplectic and vein-poppingly furious album since Korn’s 1994 debut, and easily the best metal debut of the year,” Kerrang noted at the time.
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit may have caused a few chuckles, especially after the movement had died down, but Fred Durst, Wes Borland and the band are no laughing matter. They even came back in 2021 with a new album, “Still Sucks,” poking fun at themselves. Audio Ink Radio gave the album a 9/10, noting, “The main charm of ‘Still Sucks’ lies in the album’s variety, as the band delivers a range of dynamics, from classic Bizkit hip-hop to soft ballads. The production is stellar, Wes Borland’s riffs are strong and Durst’s rhymes are in the pocket and through-provoking. With a solid new release to bring them into the 2020s, it appears Limp Bizkit 2.0 is here to stay.”
Thanks to these four bands, nu-metal got its start back in the 1990s, and all of these bands have contributed to the genre still thriving today. It’s hard to imagine a world without nu-metal, and thank goodness that’s not the reality.
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