This is where it all begins....

Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal.

Death metal is an extreme heavy metal subgenre.

Doom metal emerged as a recognized heavy metal sub-genre during the first half of the 1980s.

Drone metal began as a derivative of doom metal and it is largely defined by drones; notes or chords that are sustained and repeated throughout a piece of music.

Folk metal developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with folk music.

Glam metal (also known as hair metal) arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States.

Gothic metal is characterised as a combination of the dark melancholy of gothic rock with the aggression of heavy metal music.

Also known as neo-thrash, post-thrash, or power groove, groove metal consists of slow or mid-tempo and down tuned thrash riffs, bluesy guitar solos, greatly emphasized drum work and harsh vocals.

Industrial metal combines elements of industrial music and heavy metal. It is usually centered around repetitive metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer lines, and distorted vocals.

Metalcore combines elements of hardcore punk with heavy metal, thrash metal or extreme metal.

Neo-classical metal (also known as shred metal) is a subgenre that is heavily influenced by classical music in its style of composition.

Nu metal is a style that combines heavy metal with elements of alternative rock and funk, often with hip hop influence.

This heavy metal movement takes influences from post-rock.

Power metal is more upbeat than most metal genres, taking heavy influence from heavy metal and speed metal.

Progressive metal is a fusion between progressive rock and heavy metal.

Sludge metal began as a derivative of doom metal, incorporating hardcore punk and elements of southern rock.

Speed metal originated in the late 1970s and early 1980s and was the direct musical progenitor of thrash metal.

Stoner metal is typically slow-to-mid tempo, low-tuned, and bass-heavy. It combines elements of psychedelic rock, blues-rock and doom metal, often with melodic vocals and 'retro' production.

Thrash metal is often regarded as the first form of extreme metal.

Viking metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music characterised by its galloping pace, keyboard-rich anthemic sound, bleakness and dramatic emphasis on Norse mythology, Norse paganism, and the Viking Age.