Heaviness in Metal Music Production Volume I; How and Why It Works by Jan-Peter Herbst & Mark Mynett

Author:Jan-Peter Herbst & Mark Mynett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2026-02-15T00:00:00+00:00

The adoption of digital music production by metal producers from the early 1990s made editing considerably easier and more precise. For example, Motörhead’s Bastards (1993) stands as one of the first computer-created metal albums, as producer Howard Benson explains (Brown 2010: 134). Engineer Ryan Dorn noted that the production team quickly capitalized on digital editing to correct pitch and refine performance accuracy (Brown 2010: 135). This focus on precision intensified with the release of Pro Tools version 5.1 in 2000, which introduced the Beat Detective feature that allowed for drum quantization by separating, moving, and crossfading regions without introducing artefacts. This development enabled highly precise, hyperreal performances in metal, aligning recorded drums and instrumental parts with a machine-like, hyperreal consistency. Alongside these editing advancements, drum sample libraries like Toontrack’s DFH Superior Drummer (2005) and EZ Drummer (2006) emerged as additional tools for achieving hyper-precise aesthetics (see Lux and Herbst 2025). Around that time, the trend towards hyperrealistic metal productions began, characterized by quantizing recorded drum performances, replacing some with programmed MIDI events, adding additional hits to refine the performance (e.g. kick building), or creating entirely sequenced drums (see Herbst and Mynett 2021). This push for exact synchronization within and across instruments is largely motivated by its contribution to punch, clarity, and, heaviness. Without the precise alignment required for consistent transient energy, rhythmic subdivisions lose impact, diminishing the overall sense of heaviness (see Mynett 2017: 20).

Heaviness and punch fundamentally rely on tight ensemble synchronization, making drums one of the prime factors in metal’s sonic impact. The drums’ rhythmic complexity and the presence of numerous instruments make them susceptible to deviations. For example in a sixteenth-note pattern at 180 bpm, each note event has only 83 milliseconds to occur. Deviations of even 10 to 20 milliseconds, smaller than the intended groove deviations typical in genres like soul (Danielsen 2006), can obscure rhythmic clarity and precision. This loss of synchronization weakens both the rhythmic impact and tonal presence, resulting in diminished heaviness (Mynett 2020).

172. Editing decisions in metal production are primarily aimed at enhancing performance quality, yet producers must also address the balance between clarity and heaviness derived from sonic density and weight. A notable challenge in achieving this balance is managing ‘bleed’ or ‘spill’, particularly from cymbals. Cymbals are prone to masking and can obscure rhythmic note onsets—especially when using sustained crashes or washy rides—thereby undermining performance precision, clarity, and punch, all of which contribute to the perception of heaviness. Cymbal bleed complicates processing options for other instruments and vocals, as the compression and equalization frequently applied to drum shells tend to accentuate this spill, sometimes resulting in harsh or abrasive qualities (see Mynett 2017: 272–273). Consequently, many producers opt to minimize or completely remove cymbal bleed using noise gates or waveform editing. However, the degree of signal separation varies considerably depending on the recording material, composition, and aesthetic goals of each project. While cymbal bleed often presents challenges, it can also positively contribute to the cohesion of individual drum tracks, preserving a natural quality that counterbalances the artificiality often introduced by sample enhancement.

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