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rabm

Rabm

Canada ¡ 2000s
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Description

RABM (Red and Anarchist Black Metal) is a politically left-wing current within black metal that explicitly aligns with anti-fascist, anarchist, socialist, and anti-authoritarian ideas.

Musically it spans raw, aggressive second‑wave black metal tropes (tremolo-picked riffs, blast beats, shrieked vocals) and the crust punk/D‑beat energy of blackened crust, while some projects adopt atmospheric black metal’s expansive textures and epic song forms. Lyrically and visually it replaces the genre’s historic flirtations with reactionary imagery by centering class struggle, anti-racism, queer/feminist perspectives, environmentalism, and mutual aid.

The movement is also defined by DIY ethics: small labels, zines, collectives, and Bandcamp-driven distribution, often tied to benefit compilations and on-the-ground organizing.

History
Origins (early–mid 2000s)

Black metal’s sound provided the musical backbone, but the ideological turn came from intersections with anarcho-punk and crust punk scenes. Canadian bands associated with blackened crust (notably Iskra) demonstrated an explicitly anarchist stance in the early 2000s, foreshadowing a broader left-wing current within black metal.

Term and community (late 2000s–2010s)

By the late 2000s, a loose international network of anti-fascist black metal listeners, musicians, and bloggers began using the shorthand “RABM” (Red and Anarchist Black Metal). A dedicated blog and DIY labels amplified visibility for bands that rejected NSBM and other reactionary currents, linking scenes across Canada, the US, the UK, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia.

Consolidation and visibility (mid 2010s)

As Bandcamp and social media lowered barriers, RABM albums, splits, and benefit compilations circulated widely. Atmospheric and cascadian-influenced sounds coexisted with rawer, punk-driven approaches. Public debates about politics in metal—and prominent anti-fascist statements by artists—further clarified the movement’s stance and helped audiences discover RABM projects.

2020s and beyond

RABM’s profile rose through touring, festival slots, and viral releases. UK and North American acts in particular brought the message to larger stages, while EU collectives continued to tie records to fundraisers for antifascist, migrant, and environmental causes. Today, RABM is best understood as a political current cutting across several black metal microstyles rather than a single, narrowly codified sound.

How to make a track in this genre
Core sound
•   Guitars: Use tremolo-picked minor and modal riffs (natural minor, Phrygian, and Aeolian are common). Layer harmonies in fifths or dissonant seconds for tension. Consider alternating between raw, two-guitar walls and open, reverb-washed atmospheric passages. •   Drums: Combine blast beats (180–220 BPM) with D‑beat and crust rhythms (typically 140–170 BPM) to inject punk propulsion between black metal barrages. •   Bass: Follow root motion tightly in fast sections; in atmospheric parts, use sustained notes or droning fifths to thicken the texture. •   Vocals: High-pitched shrieks or desperate howls are standard; gang shouts in crust-influenced breaks reinforce collective, protest-like energy.
Form and arrangement
•   Structures: Alternate long, atmospheric builds with short, urgent punk sections. Use dynamic contrasts—quiet guitar interludes, field recordings, or spoken samples—before returning to blasts. •   Production: Embrace DIY aesthetics—raw but intelligible. Guitars can be gritty and mid-forward; drums punchy but not overly polished; a touch of room or plate reverb keeps the sound organic.
Harmony and melody
•   Favor minor-key centers with occasional modal shifts (Phrygian for darkness, Dorian for bittersweet lift). Melodic motifs should be memorable yet stark, often cycling across repeating ostinati to evoke persistence and struggle.
Lyrics and aesthetics
•   Themes: Anti-fascism, labor and class struggle, abolitionism, anti-racism, queer/feminist solidarity, ecological crisis, mutual aid, and community defense. •   Delivery: Direct, slogan-like lines can coexist with poetic imagery. Consider integrating samples from demonstrations, speeches, or oral histories. •   Visuals: Red/black colorways, protest iconography, woodcut or zine-inspired layouts. Credit benefit causes and include liner-note statements of intent.
Performance and ethos
•   DIY-first: Work with community spaces, benefit gigs, sliding-scale shows. Release on small labels or via Bandcamp, and tie proceeds to grassroots causes. •   Collaboration: Split releases with crust/HC and atmospheric BM peers to bridge audiences and emphasize solidarity.
Top albums
The Rime of Memory
Panopticon
Trisagion
Ethereal Shroud
Autumn Eternal
Panopticon
Hostile Architecture
Ashenspire
Roads to the North
Panopticon
Só quem viu o relâmpago à sua direita sabe
Kaatayra
Main artists
Influenced by
Black Metal
Black metal is a form of extreme metal defined by fast tempos, tremolo‑picked guitar lines, blast‑beat drumming, shrieked or rasped vocals, and a deliberately raw, icy production aesthetic. Harmonically, it favors minor and modal collections (especially Aeolian and Phrygian), open-string drones, parallel fifths and fourths, tritones, and sparse or suspended chord voicings over blues-derived harmony. Arrangements often employ layered guitars, long-form song structures, and enveloping reverb to create a bleak, otherworldly atmosphere. The genre’s visual and thematic language is equally distinctive: corpse paint, monochrome artwork, and lyrics exploring anti-dogma, nature, pagan myth, cosmic nihilism, and misanthropy. While some scenes have been associated with controversy and extremism, the musical identity centers on sound, atmosphere, and aesthetics rather than any single ideology.
Crust Punk
Crust punk is a dark, heavy, and politically charged offshoot of punk that fuses the speed and rawness of hardcore with the weight and bleak atmospheres of metal. It is characterized by abrasive, overdriven guitar tones, pounding D‑beat and double‑time rhythms, and harsh, shouted vocals. Lyrically, crust punk confronts themes such as anti-militarism, anti-fascism, environmental collapse, social decay, and everyday survival under capitalism, often presented through apocalyptic or dystopian imagery. Its sound and message are inseparable from the DIY ethic, squatter culture, and grassroots activism that nurtured the scene.
Anarcho-Punk
Anarcho-punk is a politically charged strand of punk that explicitly promotes anarchist and anti-authoritarian ideas. Emerging in the late 1970s United Kingdom, it fused the speed and abrasion of punk with an uncompromising DIY ethic, collective organization, and a culture of zines, benefit gigs, and independent labels. Musically, anarcho-punk leans on raw guitars, driving 4/4 rhythms, shouted or chant-like vocals, and concise song forms, but it often incorporates spoken-word, noise, sound collage, and experimental interludes to underscore its messages. Lyrically, it addresses anti-war and anti-nuclear activism, animal liberation, environmentalism, anti-capitalism, feminism, and social justice. Its stark black-and-white stencil aesthetic—iconic in sleeves, patches, and posters—became as recognizable as its sound.
D-Beat
D-beat is a ferociously fast, raw form of punk named after the relentless drum pattern popularized by the UK band Discharge. The style is defined by a charging 4/4 beat with alternating kick and snare on the eighth notes, overdriven guitars playing terse power-chord riffs, and hoarse, shouted vocals. Lyrically, D-beat is stark, urgent, and political: anti-war, anti-authoritarian, and apocalyptic in tone. Songs are short, direct, and impact-focused—often 1–2 minutes—capturing a feeling of perpetual forward motion. Production tends to be gritty and live, foregrounding intensity over polish.
Hardcore Punk
Hardcore punk is a faster, louder, and more abrasive offshoot of late-1970s punk rock. Songs are typically short (often under two minutes), propelled by rapid tempos, aggressive down‑stroked guitar riffs, and shouted or barked vocals. The style prioritizes raw energy over technical ornamentation: power‑chord harmony, minimal guitar solos, and tightly locked rhythm sections dominate. Lyrically, hardcore punk is intensely direct—often political, anti‑authoritarian, and socially critical—reflecting a DIY ethic that values independent labels, self‑organized shows, and community‑run spaces. The genre coalesced in U.S. scenes such as Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., New York, and Boston, and soon spread internationally. Its velocity, attitude, and grassroots infrastructure profoundly shaped underground music and paved the way for numerous metal, punk, and alternative subgenres.
Atmospheric Black Metal
Atmospheric black metal is a branch of black metal that emphasizes immersive, expansive soundscapes and mood as much as raw aggression. It typically blends tremolo‑picked guitars, blast beats, and harsh vocals with sustained synthesizer pads, reverbs, field recordings, and long-form, meditative song structures. The genre often evokes images of nature, wintry or forested environments, and cosmic vastness. Production ranges from lo‑fi, foggy textures to clear but distant mixes that preserve a sense of space. Harmonically, it leans on minor and modal colors, drones, and repeating motifs to create a trance-like intensity rather than riff-showmanship. Where traditional black metal can be claustrophobically fierce, atmospheric black metal opens the sonic frame—slower passages, ambient interludes, and dynamic arcs are common—so that ferocity and serenity coexist within the same piece.
Blackened Crust
Blackened crust is a hybrid of black metal’s icy tremolo riffing and harsh shrieks with crust punk’s d-beat drive, power-chord urgency, and politically charged ethos. The style favors raw, abrasive production, minor-key and dissonant harmonies, and tempos that lurch between breakneck blast beats and galloping d-beat/skank rhythms. Guitar tones often lean on buzzy fuzz or chainsaw-like distortion (e.g., HM-2-inspired), while vocals range from caustic hardcore bellows to black metal rasps. Lyrically, it typically inherits crust’s anti-authoritarian, anti-fascist, and socially critical perspective, delivered with black metal’s bleak atmosphere.
Stenchcore
Stenchcore is a dark, metallic strain of crust punk that emerged in the mid-1980s United Kingdom. It blends the d-beat drive and political urgency of anarcho/crust punk with the weight, riffing vocabulary, and atmosphere of early extreme metal. The style is characterized by downtuned, overdriven guitars; mid-to-fast d-beat and double-time passages interspersed with slower, doomy sections; and a bleak, apocalyptic mood cemented by cavernous, murky production. Lyrics typically address war, environmental collapse, authoritarianism, and existential dread, delivered through harsh, barked vocals. The name “stenchcore” nods both to the grimy, reverb-heavy sound and to the macabre, death-tinged imagery common in artwork and themes.
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