Doom metal is a type of
heavy metal music which developed in the mid
1980s. The sound is slow and creepy, and intended to evoke a general atmosphere of darkness, tension and doom. When the sound developed, bands like
Trouble[?] and
Candlemass[?] were critically acclaimed for their return to the old school sounds of
Black Sabbath and
Blue Oyster Cult, though sales were slim; metal audiences at the time were listening to
thrash metal or
hair metal, and both were swift, hard and energetic, very unlike doom metal.
In the early 1990s, doom metal's popularity grew greatly, and two unique styles developed. The old school imitation of 1970s bands was picked up by stoner metal groups, while a New Orleans metal scene developed a gothic rock/doom metal hybrid that came to be known as sludge metal[?].
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