Does Nu Metal Deserve The Hate?

Nu Metal has definitely been on a popularity roller coaster. From being the most hyped metal genre it went to being the most hated one. It all happened right at the dusk of its popularity around 2010s. Many music fans, industry journalists and musicians started to distance themselves from nu metal.

Saying you enjoyed music of this sub-genre was a sure way to attract haters from all corners. Multiple articles were written calling it the worst genre ever. But was it deserved? Was all that hate for nu metal warranted? The answer is – No.

Nu Metal is not worse than any other music genre. And it’s definitely not inferior to other sub categories of metal. It was different and fresh for its time, that’s why it was so hugely popular.

The problem was it became so successful that too many bands tried to make songs in that style. The genre became overpopulated so to speak. Plus the bands that were the real pioneers and stars have moved on to other music for a variety of reasons.

There’s more to it, of course. I’ll cover it further.

Nu Metal Peak of Popularity

Nu Metal was a natural evolution of music fueled by cultural and social scene. It did not happen for no reason. But it did became super popular really fast. Started by Korn and then taken to new unseen heights by bands like Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Papa Roach, SOAD, Slipknot and others the new sub category of alternative metal was everywhere.

Radio stations, CDs, TV, Internet. You could not make two steps without hearing one of the bands with their hits. The music resonated with a whole generation. It was exactly what people wanted. It did not sound like anything before it, making it a new wave of music.

Here’s just a couple of examples from the golden era of Nu Metal. See if you recognize ’em:

It was a time of record breaking sales and tours. Time of new fashion styles. Time of newly emerged superstars that became bigger than the genre. Until it wasn’t.

The Fall From Grace

But then the main bands associated with the genre kinda moved on into different artistic directions. Some started releasing music in genres that were no longer “nu metal”. Some took a break from music. Others could not produce same level of high-quality creative albums.

And at the same time more and more upcoming artists tried their luck in writing similar nu-metalish music. Unfortunately not all of them were talented or inspired enough. So the genre itself became over-saturated.

And without the influx of fresh great songs or exciting bands the whole nu metal scene started to lose its popularity. When cracks appeared, haters and people who never liked it in the first place showed up. When nu metal was the king, they were silent or not loud enough. But now, the media space was like a vacuum, ready to consume whatever was thrown. It so happened that it was mostly “hate” and negative comments that flew in.

Reasons For The Hate

There was a whole bunch of reasons why so many hated on nu metal. For some it was personal. Others just wanted attention and were happy to make loud controversial statements. But I can point out three main reasons.

1. The Lack of New Ideas

You see, when the genre first emerged it was fresh, it didn’t sound like anything else popular at that time. When above mentioned bands appeared with all-time great hits, they all brought in fresh takes on music, they all had unique sound.

But with time too many so called nu metal bands tried to join the party without adding anything substantially original to the genre. Music became less creative. It was repetitive an lost its draw.

And when the genre started losing influence, music fans who did not like it in the first place were quick to throw shades at it. Many journalists we happy to throw tomatoes at the music style that was on the downhill. It was easy. They risked nothing.

2. Bad PR Multiplied

It’s just the way media works. If something is easy to criticize, you can bet a lot of people will do just that. When nu metal was on the rise and on its peak, not everybody from the industry was a fan. But because that music was extremely popular, it was not beneficial to speak negatively about it.

But when it lost the top position, critics were right there. With all the bad reviews, articles, etc. The internet was also booming, so being heard was easy. Critics thrived on it. And bad buzz snowballed. It simply became a trend – to sh*t on the whole subgenre.

Many artists from completely other genres were also happy to put a nail in the coffin of music that was stealing spotlight from their own work for years. It had nothing to do with fair criticism. They just chose to ride the trend and have some revenge on the competition.

3. Nu Metal Artists Turned On Their Own Genre.

But it weren’t just artists from other genres. Surprisingly many nu metal stars were trying to denounce their connection to their genre. Some preferred to distance themselves from all the bad publicity. They did not want to be associated with a genre that had such a bad rep.

Other nu metal bands didn’t actually see themselves as pure nu metal artists. But they were often called that, just because they had elements of the style in their music. Meanwhile, as I mention before, the scene was over saturated. Mediocre bands were also called nu metal. Naturally high profile talented bands tried to put themselves apart from mediocre groups.

Yeah, putting every alternative metal artist into a single category and under a single umbrella was not fair. But that’s what happened, and certain big stars like Linkin Park, Papa Roach and others were voicing their resentment.

The Reality vs Media Opinions

All those reasons were interconnected and fueled each other. It created a weird hate trend. Was it warranted? Only somewhat. For most cases it was not fair at all. Other music genres suffer from similar issues, but they don’t get near as much scrutiny as nu metal.

In all fairness nu metal is a great sub-genre of alternative metal music. It incorporates elements of hip hop, grunge, funk, groove. It can sound very good and has powerful energy. Songs made by its best artists are just as good now as they were back in 2001. They actually aged like a good wine.

Also as time has passed, and the dust has settled, many former nu metal musicians looked back and re-assessed their attitude. Some retracted their dislike of the nu metal genre completely. They accepted the role of this music style and the positive feedback it had with the audience. I’m talking about Papa Roach, Linkin Park, Slipknot.

And what about fans? Well, nu metal fans were never the biggest critics to begin with. Fans who really enjoyed nu metal hits in early 2000s still enjoy them to this day. It’s the mediocre bands who got forgotten. But like with all great music, true hits are timeless.

Fun fact – nu metal is seeing somewhat of a resurgence in popularity. If you look at Google Trends, you will see that it’s being searched and discussed quite more frequently recently. It reached the popularity of 2014, so we will see what happens to it in the future.

Conclusion

There’s always going to be buzz about Nu Metal as a genre. It had too much of an impact during its heyday. It basically put heavy music, alternative metal on top of all possible charts. It made heavier music mainstream.

Of course that disrupted the usual industry trends. And many were happy to criticize the whole genre as soon as it saw a decline. Media created a trend of hating on the genre. A lot of musicians fell for it, even though many later saw that it was a wrong move, and took back their harsh words.

Nu metal is just like other genres. In the hands of creative and talented artists it shines. So if you like its sound, relax and enjoy the music.