Nine branches, and the words that pick each one
Each line below is built from what defines the style, the traits its encyclopedia entry lists first (sources at the end of the page), and written as a brief. Paste it as it is, or take it apart: a word for the pace, one for the guitars, one for the drums and one for the voice make a complete metal brief.
| Branch | Type this |
|---|---|
| Heavy metal | “classic heavy metal, distorted power-chord riffs, a guitar solo, powerful clean vocal” |
| Thrash | “thrash metal, fast palm-muted riffs, double-kick drums, shouted vocals, a shredding solo” |
| Power | “power metal, fast, keyboards, soaring high clean vocal, an uplifting anthem chorus, fantasy lyrics” |
| Doom | “doom metal, slow tempo, down-tuned heavy sustained riffs, a thick sound, mournful clean vocal” |
| Black | “black metal, tremolo-picked riffs, blast beats, shrieked vocals, raw production” |
| Metalcore | “metalcore, screamed verses, clean melodic chorus, a breakdown after the second chorus” |
| Nu metal | “nu metal, down-tuned seven-string groove, rapped verses, turntable scratches” |
| Symphonic | “symphonic metal, full orchestra and choir, operatic female vocal, heavy guitars underneath” |
| Djent | “djent, palm-muted syncopated low riffs, eight-string guitar, progressive song structure” |
Two habits keep a metal brief from sliding back into hard rock. Words like “heavy” and “brutal” describe intensity, not a style, and on their own they leave the branch to the engine. And a tempo written as a number does more than any adjective.
Say where each voice goes
The choice that divides metal most is the voice: clean singing, harsh vocals such as growls and screams, or the two traded between sections. A brief that says only “metal vocals” leaves that open. Say it by section: “screamed verses, clean chorus”, “deep growls throughout”, or “clean vocals only” if you want no harsh singing at all.
In Custom mode you can go further and write the direction in brackets above each part of your words: [Verse 1 – screamed], [Chorus – clean, melodic], [Breakdown], [Guitar Solo]. Directions in brackets steer the arrangement and are not sung. The rock page has a real punk song written exactly this way, with the whole brief printed.
Backing tracks, solos and length
Three requests come up whenever musicians use a generator, and each has its own setting.
- A backing track to play over: turn on Instrumental, name the branch and give the tempo as a number.
- A solo or a breakdown in a particular place: write it into the structure, in brackets in Custom mode or in words in a description (“a breakdown after the second chorus”).
- A particular length, for a long intro or an extended solo: on the free plan the engine chooses; on Pro you can set it.
Why there is no example song here
The examples on these pages come only from songs made anonymously and never claimed, and only when neither the brief nor the words names a person or carries something we would not print. None of the few metal songs in that pool passed. Rather than make one up, this page stands on each style's definition, and on the brief-writing mechanics we have seen work on the rock and beat pages.
Before you press Create
- The branch, by name
- The pace as a number
- What the guitars do: palm-muted, tremolo-picked, down-tuned, syncopated
- What the drums do: double kick, blast beats
- Where each voice goes: screamed, growled, clean, or clean only
- Solos and breakdowns placed, in brackets in Custom mode
Sources
- Heavy metal genres — Wikipedia
- Thrash metal: fast tempos, palm muting, double-bass drumming — Wikipedia
- Doom metal: slow tempos and down-tuned guitars — Wikipedia
- Black metal: tremolo picking, blast beats, shrieked vocals — Wikipedia
- Metalcore: breakdowns, screamed and clean vocals — Wikipedia
- Djent: palm-muted, syncopated riffs on extended-range guitars — Wikipedia
- Death growl and other harsh vocals — Wikipedia
Written and fact-checked by the Tunely team · Updated