History

Mathcore, also known as math metal, is a rhythmically complex and dissonant style of metalcore. It has its roots in bands such as Converge, Botch,and The Dillinger Escape Plan. The term mathcore is suggested by analogy with math rock. Both math rock and mathcore make use of unusual time signatures. Math rock groups such as Slint, Don Caballero, Shellac, and Drive Like Jehu have some influence on mathcore, though mathcore is more closely related to metalcore. Prominent mathcore groups have been associated with grindcore.

An early antecedent to mathcore was practiced by Black Flag, in 1984, with the album My War: "Its seven-minute metal dirges and fusion-style time signatures proved too much for many fans". Many groups from the mathcore scene paid tribute to Black Flag for the album Black on Black.

In the 1990s, groups now often described as mathcore were grouped together as "noisecore". Kevin-Stewart Panko of Terrorizer referred to groups such as Neurosis, Deadguy, Cave In, Today Is the Day, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Converge, Coalesce, Candiria, and Botch as described by this label. Stewart-Panko described the sound of these bands as a "dynamic, violent, discordant, technical, brutal, off-kilter, no rules mixture of metal, hardcore, prog, math rock, grind and jazz." However, this term also describes an earlier, more dissonant variant of grindcore, also known as "noisegrind", that is less complex and dynamic than the groups subsequently labeled mathcore.

The portmanteau term "mathcore" emphasizes the influence taken from math rock: math rock with hardcore. The earliest known bands to record this hybrid include Rorschach, Starkweather, Botch, and Converge. Throughout the 1990s, several other groups started to emerge: Cave In from Massachusetts, Cable from Connecticut, Coalesce from Kansas City, and Knut from Switzerland. The term mathcore was coined at the release of The Dillinger Escape Plan's 1999 debut album Calculating Infinity. The Dillinger Escape Plan is often considered the "pioneer" of mathcore.The style had previously been referred to as "noisecore", which confusingly also refers to a style of hardcore techno and an earlier outgrowth of grindcore. In the early 2000s several new mathcore bands started to emerge. These bands were rarely described as such, but were commonly related to mathcore pioneers or cited a major mathcore band as an influence.[improper synthesis?] Norma Jean's earlier records are often compared to Converge and Botch. Other new mathcore bands that cite older mathcore bands as an influence or are compared to one include Car Bomb, The Locust, Daughters, Some Girls, Look What I Did, and The Number Twelve Looks Like You,.

The term is generally applied by journalists, rather than by musicians themselves. Jacob Bannon of Converge stated,“ I really don't know what mathcore is. Converge is an aggressive band. We have elements of hardcore, punk, and metal for sure. But I think trying to define our efforts and other bands with a generic sub-genre name is counter productive. We all have something unique to offer and should be celebrated for those qualities rather than having them generalized for easy consumption.

Grindcore

Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including extreme metal, industrial music, noise music and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk. Grindcore is characterized by heavily distorted, down-tuned guitars, high speed tempo, blast beats, and vocals which consist of incomprehensible growls, or high-pitched shrieks. Early groups like Napalm Death are credited with laying the groundwork for the style.

It is most prevalent today in North America and Europe, with popular contributors such as Brutal Truth and Nasum. Lyrical themes range from a primary focus on social and political concerns, to gory subject matter and black humor.

An infamous trait of grindcore is the "microsong". Several bands have produced songs that are only seconds in length. British band Napalm Death holds the Guinness World Record for shortest song ever recorded with the one-second "You Suffer" (1987). Many bands record simple phrases that may be rhythmically sprawled out across an instrumental lasting only a couple of bars in length. A variety of "microgenres" have subsequently emerged, often labeling bands according to traits that deviate from regular grindcore, including goregrind, focused on themes of gore, and pornogrind, fixated on pornographic lyrical themes. Other offshoots include noisegrind (especially raw and chaotic) and electrogrind (incorporating electronic elements such as programmed drums). Although an influential phenomenon on hardcore punk and other popular genres, grindcore itself remains an underground form of music.