10 Amazing Metal Bands That Totally Defy Genre

If you like your heavy music eclectic and unpredictable, you better start pointing your ears Down Under, because Australia has possibly the best progressive metal scene on the planet. And the extreme maestros Ne Obliviscaris are probably the most popular, wild and versatile group hailing from that county right now.

It would probably be quicker to list how many metal subgenres don’t get thrown into Ne Obliviscaris’s sound than those that do: the six-piece are equal parts death metal, prog, symphonic metal, melodic metal, ambient and thrash, with a tiny hint of black metal thrown in for good measure.

Vocalist Xenoyr has one of the most piercing roars in all of heavy metal, perfectly juxtaposing the work of clean singer/violinist Tim Charles, whose beautiful voice and instrumentation are both second-to-none. Meanwhile, drummer Daniel Presland gives his kit the rapid speed of a machine gun, while guitarists Matt Klavins and Benjamin Baret can shred like it’s their birth-right.

From a technical perspective, Ne Obliviscaris are pure perfection, with a whole array of dynamics at their disposal, ready to be pulled out at any second. Their songs are grandiose, classical suites, often obliterating the ten-minute mark, even when they’re divided into individual movements or sections.

There is not another metal band on the planet that has ever come close to crafting the sheer ferocity, diversity and soulfulness of Ne Obliviscaris, who truly deserve to one day be listed among such other experimental greats as Death, Cynic and Opeth.