Funeral doom
{{Short description|Extreme genre of music}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name = Funeral doom
| stylistic_origins = {{flatlist|
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|cultural_origins = Mid-1990s, Finland
|instruments = {{hlist|Electric guitar|bass guitar|Electronic keyboard|drums|vocals}}
|derivatives =
|subgenrelist =
|subgenres =
|fusiongenres =
|regional_scenes =
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Funeral doom is a subgenre of death-doom with heavy influence from funeral dirge music.{{cite news |author=Davis, Cody |title=Funeral Doom Friday: FUNERAL MOURNING's Blackened, Deadly Inertia of Dissonance (A Sermon in Finality) |url=http://www.metalinjection.net/av/funeral-doom-friday/funeral-mournings-blackened-deadly-inertia-of-dissonance-a-sermon-in-finality |work=Metal Injection |access-date=29 July 2018}} Low-tuned guitars, death growls, instruments that emulate pipe organ sounds and ponderous pace are typical traits of this style.
History
An offshoot of death-doom, the genre was mostly inspired by the work of Autopsy, Winter, Cathedral and early Paradise Lost. Funeral doom truly came into being in the mid-1990s.Hinchliffe 2006a, p. 44.{{cite web|url=http://www.wewither.com/2011/07/extreme-doom-part-ii-matt-skarajew-of.html|title=EXTREME DOOM PART II: Matt Skarajew of Disembowelment/Dusk|last=Bickle|first=Travis|date=27 July 2011|publisher=We Wither|access-date=2020-03-28}}{{cite web|url=http://www.queensofsteel.com/2006/11/esoteric-eng|title=ESOTERIC (Eng.)|last=Fernández|first=Sergio|date=14 November 2006|publisher=Queens of Steel|access-date=2020-03-29}}{{cite web|url=https://nihilistic-webzine-distro.fr/Interviews/evoken.htm|title=EVOKEN Interview - Funeral doom from the pits of darkness|author= Silenius & Gam|date=19 December 2004|publisher=NIHILISTIC HOLOCAUST - Underground Death metal webzine!|access-date=2020-03-29}} The genre was birthed out of Finland;{{cite web|url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/a-guide-to-the-glorious-miserable-world-of-funeral-doom|title=A Guide To The Glorious, Miserable World Of Funeral Doom|last=Lawrence|first=Dan|date=31 October 2018|publisher=Bandcamp Daily|access-date=2020-03-27}}{{cite web|url=http://www.wewither.com/2011/07/extreme-doom-part-iii-niko-skorpio-of.html|title=EXTREME DOOM PART III: Niko Skorpio of Thergothon|last=Bickle|first=Travis|date=29 July 2011|publisher=We Wither|access-date=2020-03-28}}{{cite web|url=http://www.metalstorm.net/pub/interview.php?interview_id=145|title=Funeral interview (11/2005)|author= KwonVerge|date=7 November 2005|publisher=Metal Storm|access-date=2020-03-29}} Thergothon and Skepticism are commonly cited as the earliest two bands in the style, as well as Unholy.Tracey 2006, p. 55.Hinchliffe 2006b, p. 54.{{cite web|url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2012/12/31/top-5-funeral-doom-songs|title=Top 5 Funeral Doom Songs|last=Dick|first=Chris|date=31 December 2012|publisher=Decibel Magazine|access-date=2020-03-27}}{{cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/av/funeral-doom-friday/funeral-doom-friday-celebrating-25-years-of-funeral-doom-with-thergothons-fhtagn-nagh-yog-psothoth|title=Funeral Doom Friday: Celebrating 25 Years of Funeral Doom with THERGOTHON's Fhtagn-nagh Yog-Psothoth|last=Davis|first=Cody|date=4 November 2016|publisher=Metal Injection|access-date=2020-03-28}}Minton, Kelly & Selby 2009, p. 56.{{cite web|url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/doom-metal-a-brief-timeline|title=Doom Metal: A Brief Timeline|last=Wiederhorn |first=Jon|date=2 February 2017|publisher=Bandcamp Daily|access-date=2020-04-09}} Outside Scandinavia, the lines between death-doom and funeral doom pioneers were less clear cut. diSEMBOWELMENT, from Australia, Birmingham-based Esoteric, and American act Evoken are examples.{{cite web|url=http://www.wewither.com/2011/07/extreme-doom-part-i-john-paradiso-of.html|title=EXTREME DOOM PART I: John Paradiso of Evoken|last=Bickle|first=Travis|date=25 July 2011|publisher=We Wither|access-date=2020-03-28}}{{cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/av/funeral-doom-friday/disembowelments-genre-defining-classic-transcendence-into-the-peripheral|title=Funeral Doom Friday: DISEMBOWELMENT's Genre-Defining Classic, Transcendence Into the Peripheral|last=Davis|first=Cody|date=3 November 2017|publisher=Metal Injection|access-date=2020-04-09}}{{cite news | url = http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2012/04/an_interview_wi_66.html#more|title =An Interview with Inverloch (Mems Disembowelment), Who Are Welcoming Dusk...Subside EP|last =Kelly|first =Kim |work =Brooklyn Vegan|publisher = |date = 3 April 2012|access-date = 26 September 2012}}{{cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/av/funeral-doom-friday/esoteric-and-their-brilliant-debut-epistemological-despondency|title=Funeral Doom Friday: ESOTERIC and Their Brilliant Debut, Epistemological Despondency|last=Davis|first=Cody|date=29 April 2018|publisher=Metal Injection|access-date=2020-03-28}}
With the turn of the millennium came releases of newer bands, such as Shape of Despair, Mournful Congregation, the "Nautik Doom" group Ahab and one-man-projects Nortt and Doom:VS.{{cite web |archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20121126213400/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/122322/20121127-0834/www.voltagemedia.com.au/news/2011/07/27/mournful-congregation-unspoken-hymns.html |url=http://www.voltagemedia.com.au/news/2011/07/27/mournful-congregation-unspoken-hymns.html |title=Mournful Congregation – The Unspoken Hymns |last=Bloodaxe |first=Mathias |work=VoltageMedia |archive-date=26 November 2012 |date=27 July 2011 |access-date=24 August 2017}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/av/funeral-doom-friday/ahab-call-wretched-sea|title=Funeral Doom Friday: Remembering AHAB's The Call of the Wretched Sea|last=Davis|first=Cody|date=29 June 2018|publisher=Metal Injection|access-date=2020-04-03}} Funeral doom scenes cropped up over the world, such as the one in Russia.{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/a-light-hearted-chat-with-siberian-funeral-band-station-dysthymia/|title=A Light-Hearted Chat with Siberian Funeral Band Station Dysthymia|last=Kelly|first=Kim|date=13 September 2013|publisher=Vice|access-date=2020-04-06}} The Solitude Productions label, for example, became a major force in shaping its future.{{cite web|url=https://www.doom-metal.com/interviews.php?entry=1263|title=Interview with Solitude Productions|last=Doom-metal.com|date=16 July 2015|publisher=Doom-metal.com|access-date=2020-03-28}} Like no metal subgenre before it, the internet boom greatly helped funeral doom reach new fans. By the 2010s, funeral doom reached into metal's mainstream.{{cite web|url=https://www.kerrang.com/the-news/exclusive-premiere-evoken-stream-their-new-album-hypnagogia|title=EXCLUSIVE PREMIERE: EVOKEN STREAM THEIR NEW ALBUM, HYPNAGOGIA|last=Goldsmith|first=Zachary|date=8 November 2018|publisher=Kerrang!|access-date=2020-04-16}}
Another sign of funeral doom's increasing status was Peaceville's move to buy the rights of Avantgarde Music's back catalogue.{{cite web|url=https://avantgardemusic.com/contact-us|title=Mission|publisher=Avantgarde Music|access-date=2020-04-06}} Responsible for launching the careers of Autopsy, Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Anathema, Peaceville was the major player in shaping what became known as death-doom.{{cite web|url=http://www.doom-metal.com/interviews.php?entry=1584|title=Interview with Peaceville Records (Label)|last=Evdokimov|first=Aleks|date=9 July 2018|publisher=Doom-metal.com|access-date=2020-04-06}} This now meant that Peaceville had a significant stake in funeral doom's history: it owned all of Thergothon's and Unholy's discography, along with two Evoken albums.{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Thergothon-Stream-From-The-Heavens/release/3331579|title=Thergothon – Stream From The Heavens (2009, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Unholy-From-The-Shadows/release/2758016|title=Unholy – From The Shadows (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Unholy-The-Second-Ring-Of-Power/release/3211403|title=Unholy – The Second Ring Of Power (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Unholy-Rapture/release/2989506|title=Unholy – Rapture (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Unholy-Gracefallen/release/2767185|title=Unholy – Gracefallen (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Evoken-Quietus/release/2809006|title=Evoken – Quietus (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/pt_BR/Evoken-Antithesis-Of-Light/release/3039960|title=Evoken – Antithesis Of Light (2011, CD)|publisher=Discogs|access-date=2020-04-05}}
Although it has a substantial following, funeral doom has also its share of criticism. Chronicles of Chaos co-editor Pedro Azevedo argued that, to the average listener, funeral doom might sound "boring and repetitive". Ciarán Tracey, in an article for Terrorizer, acknowledged that the increasing popularity of funeral doom also meant that it now had its "share of hangers-on and can act as a repository for pseudo-literary teen poetry and artless abstraction, so a certain critical scrutiny has become necessary."
Characteristics
=Instrumentation and vocals=
Most funeral doom songs are played at very slow tempos. Coc's Azevedo described funeral doom's core sound as a mix of "downtuned guitars, ponderous drumming, church organs and cavernous death vox" done at an "extremely slow" pace. Though it kept death metal's low-tuning and death growls, funeral doom eschewed most of its complex song structures and rapid tempo changes in a favor of a minimalist approach and slower tempos. Depending on the band, it keeps some genre-specific characteristics of death-doom, such as violins and female vocals.{{cite web|url=http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/articles.aspx?id=6-674|title=Doom Metal: The Gentle Art of Making Misery|last=Azevedo|first=Pedro|date=19 November 2004|publisher=Chronicles of Chaos|access-date=2020-03-27}} Some background elements - church bells, keyboards or synthesizers - are many a time part of funeral doom's overall sound, adding a "dreamlike" quality to what is often described as a heavy and burdensome atmosphere.Ebner 2010, p. 28.
=Lyrics=
Thematically, funeral doom avoided the "Peaceville Three"'s gothic sensibilities in favor of a more nihilistic world view, evoking a sense of emptiness and despair. Thanatology topics such as grief, loss and suicide are central to the style.{{cite web|url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2012/07/23/the-myth-of-the-peaceville-three|title=The Myth of the Peaceville Three|last=Dick|first=Chris|date=23 July 2012|publisher=Decibel|access-date=2020-04-16}} Apart from that, thematic content varies widely. Thergothon's lyrics were inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. Ahab notoriously wrote whole concept albums based on Herman Melville's classic Moby Dick. In turn, Esoteric experimented with a variety of psychotropic substances - LSD, magic mushrooms and cannabis - to explore the obscure recesses of the unconscious mind. Their dark take on psychedelia inspires music and words that resemble a soundtrack to a "bad trip".{{cite web|url=https://www.bardomethodology.com/articles/2017/03/22/esoteric-interview|title=Esoteric interview|last=Göransson|first=Niklas|date=3 March 2017|publisher=Bardo Methodology|access-date=2020-03-28}}
Etymology
Funeral doom's name has two distinct genealogies. One source claimed it was a namesake of Norway's death-doom outfit Funeral.{{cite web|url=https://www.doom-metal.com/interviews.php?entry=1566|title=Interview with Funeral|last=Evdokimov|first=Aleks|date=22 April 2018|publisher=Doom-metal.com|access-date=2020-03-28}} It might have come, too, from Skepticism's pipe organ-like keyboard timbre, which reminded listeners of funeral music.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcOxHbfiqko|title=The March: Skepticism Documentary (2018)|last=Kannisto|first=Janne|date=29 April 2018|publisher=|access-date=1 April 2020|via=YouTube}} Keyboardist Eero Pöyry said that "I position myself as a church organ player in a metal band".{{cite web|url=http://www.invisibleoranges.com/skepticism-interview|title=The March and the Stream: Skepticism Revisits The Re-Mixed "Stormcrowfleet"|last=Rosenthal|first=Jon|date=9 October 2018|publisher=Invisible Oranges|access-date=2020-04-04}} Furthermore, Pöyry explained that, at the time,
{{cquote|Many bands were either using [keyboards] as background, almost like an effect, and others were using it like a second solo guitar, using keyboard solos and all that. Neither of those felt like ours. I kind of thought what a keyboard player in a metal band like this should be like. It should be like the organist in a church. In that lineup, the organ became much like what the second guitar would have been. The way to position it in the sound was church organ-like. Thinking through all the things you should do and not do… I started taking it in the organist direction instead of soloist direction [...]. It's pretty much a church organ setup in a metal band as well.}}
References
{{Reflist}}
Bibliography
- {{cite thesis
|last=Ebner
|first=Arne
|date=25 July 2010
|title=Ästhetik des Doom
|type=Bachelor
|institution=Macromedia University of Applied Sciences for Media and Communication – Cologne |url=http://doom.resettheworld.com/aesthetik_des_doom_arne_ebner_40mb.pdf
|access-date=
|language=de
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304075156/http://doom.resettheworld.com/aesthetik_des_doom_arne_ebner_40mb.pdf
|archive-date=4 March 2016
|url-status=dead}}
- {{cite journal
| last = 'Harry' Hinchliffe
| first = James
| title = Funeral Doom/Drone Doom: Hearse Play
| journal = Terrorizer
| volume = 143
| issue =
| pages = 44–45
| location = London
| year = 2006
| url =
| issn =
| doi =
| id =
| access-date = }}
- {{cite journal
| last = 'Harry' Hinchliffe
| first = James
| title = Thergothon - 'Stream from the Heavens' (1993)
| journal = Terrorizer
| volume = 144
| issue =
| pages = 54
| location = London
| year = 2006
| url =
| issn =
| doi =
| id =
| access-date = }}
- {{cite journal
| author1 = Minton, James
| author2 = Kelly, Kim
| author3 = Selby, Jenn
| title = Filth Parade
| journal = Terrorizer
| volume = 188
| issue =
| pages = 56
| location = London
| year = 2009
| url =
| issn =
| doi =
| id =
| access-date = }}
- {{cite journal
| last = Tracey
| first = Ciarán
| title = Doom/Death: United In Grief
| journal = Terrorizer
| volume = 142
| issue =
| pages = 54–55
| location = London
| year = 2006
| url =
| issn =
| doi =
| id =
| access-date = }}
{{Heavymetal}}
{{Extreme metal}}
Category:20th-century music genres