10 Alternative Metal Bands Every Fan Should Know

WatchMojo

From rap-rock pioneers to masked metal mavericks, the alternative metal scene has redefined heavy music. Join us as we count down the most dynamic and interesting bands that pushed the boundaries of metal! Our countdown includes Faith No More, Deftones, System of a Down, Slipknot and more! Which alt-metal band defined your musical journey?

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today, we're counting down our picks for the most dynamic and interesting

00:12bands from the alternative sides of heavy metal.

00:2310.

00:24Korn

00:30It can be difficult to pin down exactly which band was at the forefront of the new metal

00:37movements that emerged during the 90s and thrived during the early 2000s. One thing's certain,

00:43however, Korn remains one of that genre's biggest names and most notable success stories.

00:4810.

00:59This California group balanced a thick, low-end musical groove with the vocals of Jonathan

01:04Davis, which could vacillate between emotional crooning and death metal growls.

01:09Meanwhile, Korn's visual aesthetics spoke to Generation X's near-constant need for edginess,

01:15while also retaining their substance as an alternative metal act with something to say,

01:20and the talents to back it up.

01:2210.

01:27The art of bringing together shocking visual elements to a rock band is nothing new,

01:42but Des Moines, Iowa's Slipknot certainly upped the proverbial ante when their debut album dropped

01:47back in 1999.

01:56The new metal movement was already in full swing during this point,

01:59yet Slipknot dared to get heavier and darker than even their most capable forebears.

02:04The group's masked image didn't feel disingenuous in the slightest, and this sincerity spoke to

02:18their growing legions of fans. Even members of the extreme metal underground could often find

02:23something to praise within Slipknot's work, which only became more uncompromising as their

02:28alt-metal star began to rise.

02:428.

02:43Helmet

02:49There was a punchy physicality to the riffing of NYC's Helmet that felt fresh and invigorating

02:55during the group's early 90s heyday. Bands as diverse as Snapcase and Papa Roach

03:01seemed to jump on Helmet's crunchy, uncategorizably metallic sound.

03:13Was it punk, hardcore, heavy rock and roll? The correct answer was… of course, yes,

03:19on all of these fronts. The major label world would soon come calling for Helmet as well,

03:23meaning that LPs such as Betty and Meantime were exposed to more youthful ears than ever before

03:29in the band's career. All of the flowers deserved to be laid at the feet of Paige Hamilton,

03:35whose guitar style felt leagues away from anything else going on around this time.

03:40The musical roots of Primus actually dwell within the underground thrash and death metal scenes of

03:58the 1980s. Bassist Les Claypool kicked around with Bay Area band Blind Illusion while guitarist Larry

04:04Lalonde was part of the incredibly influential possessed around the same time.

04:16These old-school influences were largely eschewed when fast-forwarding to the Primus era, however,

04:21since Claypool and Lalonde's new band was a far funkier, more progressive, and out-there affair.

04:27Sure, Primus has always embraced some heaviness on classic tunes like Jerry was a race car driver,

04:33but most commercial alt-fans are probably more aware of their music video weirdness,

04:38a la Winona's Big Brown Beaver. To us, however, it's all great.

04:42It's really interesting to navigate just how far the conceptual ideas for White Zombie grew as this

05:02New York City-based band achieved their mainstream success. Early efforts from the group were harsh,

05:07noisy, and uncompromising affairs, although glimpses of their strangeness still felt clearly evident.

05:19It took until albums number three and four for major label stardom to come calling,

05:23and it was here where White Zombie's B-movie would grab onto the imaginations of fans.

05:29It was heavy metal for a new generation, and it doesn't sound like hyperbole to state that White

05:56Zombie truly seemed to hit onto something special.

06:085. Rage Against the Machine

06:17It was probably the varied influences within LA's Rage Against the Machine that enabled this rap-rock

06:24group to escape the cliched and hackneyed puddles that often served as stumbling blocks for lesser

06:30acts from the genre. Fiery and political punk rock fury fueled their lyrics, while guitarist Tom

06:36Morello utilized a percussive approach to his guitar that practically felt futuristic back in the early

06:42nineties. Elsewhere, Zack de la Rocha's rapping and screaming approach to his vocals felt explosive,

06:48spouting off messages amidst Rage Against the Machine's relentless, heavy groove.

07:00It all came together in a way that helped make Rage's rock music feel just a bit more than escapist

07:06entertainment. 4. Tool

07:23One needs only to look at the fanatical devotion afforded to this group to know just how much Los

07:28Angeles' Tool has meant to so many over the years. The heaviness of Tool isn't so much created from

07:34guitar pyrotechnics or vocal caterwauling as it is a slow-building lurch of a groove.

07:49Smoldering percussive moves that always feel like they're building up to something.

07:53Serpentine bass lines that wind their way through walls of guitar and Maynard James Keenan's

07:59uniquely idiosyncratic vocals. The word groove doesn't even feel properly in place here,

08:06since fans would likely compare the musical works of Tool more like some kind of obelisk,

08:11an ancient thing that holds secrets for those willing to dive into the band's deep and dark discography.

08:18It's refreshing now and then to come across a band that simply defies categorization. System of a Down

08:42have incorporated seemingly every bit of musical knowledge they have into a sound that loves jumping

08:47from one sonic palette into another. If there was one anchoring aspect of the band, it's probably the

08:54vocal interplay between Serge Tonkian and Darren Malakian, with the former strong,

09:04soaring melodies being juxtaposed against Malakian's frenzied screaming. Elements of black metal even rear

09:11their ferocious heads, as System of a Down blends in the folk influences from their native Armenia

09:17into a sound that's gloriously strange… and unique.

09:272. Deftones

09:293. Deftones

09:39Fans can often be devoted to certain musical eras from their favorite bands. The Deftones' early work

09:45was one that felt heavier, a new metal alternative to the grunge sound of the mid-90s. Time saw this

09:51California group becoming more experimental, however, utilizing elements from the trip-hop and

09:56shoegaze genres to draw upon a sound that felt smoother, some might even say sexual in nature.

10:09Meanwhile, the vocals of Chino Moreno have always felt like a defining factor for the Deftones,

10:16a cult of personality that's enabled the group to stay relevant over the course of their decades-long

10:21career. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. Fear Factory,

10:35Death Metal origins belie an industrial future. Living Color, not just a cult of personality.

10:56Jane's Addiction, odd, strange, and impossible to categorize.

11:00Yeah, my girl, she's one, too. She's gonna get her skirt. She's digging her in a shirt.

11:07Alice in Chains, godfathers of moody grunge.

11:19Prong, heavy, groovy modern metal.

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11:45Number 1. Faith No More

11:48Fans can either celebrate or demonize Faith No More for essentially being one of the progenitors

11:59of rap rock. This can definitely be seen within their early work with vocalist Chuck Mosley,

12:04although the band never stayed in one place creatively for very long.

12:08Number 2. What inheritance? The salt and the cleat.

12:16Subsequent LPs, like The Real Thing, saw Faith No More's career with ex-Mr. Bungle singer Mike Patton

12:22actually achieve mainstream success with singles like Epic.

12:26Afraid, a lie, afraid, it's magic, it's just a kiss, it's a loss of the win.

12:30Future creative pivots felt inevitable, however,

12:33as Faith No More became further distanced from rap metal and became far more experimental in nature.

12:46Through it all, they cultivated a rabid fan following,

12:50that always anticipated what they were going to do next.

12:56What2U defines an alternative metal band?

12:59Let us know your classifications in the comments!

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