We sort of just discussed a variation of this.

https://forum.metal-archives.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=135126

I'm struggling to come up with a unique take from what I already mentioned there. To summarize I think the main tentpegs of metal subgenres have already pretty much been driven in by around the turn of the millennium. Anything since then is either a minor evolution, a slightly different rehash, or we collectively decide that it doesn't count as metal because it has too much other stuff going on in it, which might be kind of a problem in terms of the longevity of metal at some point in the future.

...icelandic black metal and indian warnoise scene have been some of the recent places of innovation...

Do you have any good examples of those Icelandic black metal bands? I'm not familiar with the region's scene, besides Auðn.

As an extreme metal fan, i'll speak from the perspective and field that im familiar with; icelandic black metal and indian warnoise scene have been some of the recent places of innovation. Not outstandigly different, but their influence is already felt across the globe.

Any attempt to bring in some outside influence to metal is instantly slapped with a "not metal" label which highly restricts things. If metal cannot fuse with a genre as sonically and thematically similar as hardcore and remain metal then the options are limited besides inward, navel-gazing elaborations on metal's basic elements--and people have done that already. They've taken it as sonically extreme (slam, death metal, black metal, etc.), as chaotically violent (thrash, grind), as dismally dark (doom), and as triumphantly melodic (trad, power, folk) as they can. There really isn't much else to go.

I myself am looking forward to the inevitable qawalli/atmo BM fusion record. Nusrat fateh Ali khan meets WITTR. Please someone make it happen.

Riffs are cringe.

I myself am looking forward to the inevitable qawalli/atmo BM fusion record. Nusrat fateh Ali khan meets WITTR. Please someone make it happen.

We sort of just discussed a variation of this.

https://forum.metal-archives.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=135126

I'm struggling to come up with a unique take from what I already mentioned there. To summarize I think the main tentpegs of metal subgenres have already pretty much been driven in by around the turn of the millennium. Anything since then is either a minor evolution, a slightly different rehash, or we collectively decide that it doesn't count as metal because it has too much other stuff going on in it, which might be kind of a problem in terms of the longevity of metal at some point in the future.

Those are not new genres but new (sort of) developments and scenes of already existing genres. These grow and come to attention on a semi-regular basis at least, but they are not as groundbreaking as to be a new ofshoot and a new subgenre of its own such as black or death metal were back in the 80s. I think this has more or less been the stage at which metal has been for the last 20-ish years, not branching out in large strides but slowly pushing the envelope in the form of variations on a theme into the boundaries of the genre. And I think this will still be the case in the foreseeable future, at least until the tides of popular music as a whole evolve into something that may allow metal to push into new territories once again? I guess only time will tell.

What was the last "new" subgenre of metal?

Blackgaze?

Those are not new genres but new (sort of) developments and scenes of already existing genres. These grow and come to attention on a semi-regular basis at least, but they are not as groundbreaking as to be a new ofshoot and a new subgenre of its own such as black or death metal were back in the 80s. I think this has more or less been the stage at which metal has been for the last 20-ish years, not branching out in large strides but slowly pushing the envelope in the form of variations on a theme into the boundaries of the genre. And I think this will still be the case in the foreseeable future, at least until the tides of popular music as a whole evolve into something that may allow metal to push into new territories once again? I guess only time will tell.

Thanks!

or we collectively decide that it doesn't count as metal because it has too much other stuff going on in it, which might be kind of a problem in terms of the longevity of metal at some point in the future.

There's plenty of new styles of extreme music coming out these days. This forum just doesn't like any of it. That is to say, it may not fit neatly into a metal subgenre.

would undoubtedly actually own

Icelandic black metal

I think we saw the glimmer of something new in extreme metal with bands like Portal, Impetuous Ritual, Akhyls, Qrixkuor, Swallowed, Irkallian Oracle and Grave Upheaval. There's definitely a subsect of metal that is very influenced by horror soundtracks and the type of tonal experimentation/oddity that you can only find therein. It definitely has a unique sound to it and yet it almost doesn't have a name.

I'd say it'd be Nightmare Metal

Svartidaudi
Mispyrming
Zhrine
Sinmara
Carpe Noctem
Arstidir Iifsins
Wormlust
Nadra
Mannveira

Have fun!

Every now codified genre was a spin-off/reimagining of something that already existed, so we should be open to including fusions as 'new genres'.

I'd ask the question whether or not other types of music usually have as many sub-genres as metal?

I know that hip-hop/rap has a fair number of styles like east coast, west coast, southern, gangster, etc, and there are tons of different styles of punk, but are there as many sub-genres of jazz, blues, classical, folk, etc as there are of metal?

I think it's possible that metal may actually have more sub-genres than many styles of music, so I don't know how necessary it is that we keep creating more.

I mean we need different STYLES, but every band has its own style that can vary radically from another within the same sub-genre. I'd like to hear something entirely new, but at the same time, I'm not sure that metal needs to keep adding more and more sub-genres to evolve. There is still always plenty of room to do more even within a given sub-genre without it differing to such an extent that it's actually a whole new one.

I think dance music has similar amount of sub genres. And equal amount of gate keeping. Off top of my head:

Disco
EBM
Minimal Techno
Dark wave
Acid Techno
Progressive House
Industrial Dance
Drum n Bass
Jungle
Breakbeat
Psychedelic trance
Gabba
Electro
Gothic dance

So on and so forth. I’m likely missing hundreds of others. Each genre has its own independent scene.

Yeah, I've never known much about electronic music in general but every time I hear about it I'm overwhelmed by the number of styles. I've heard some stuff I really like from some of those sub-genres like electro, breakbeat, speedcore, electronica, dub, illbient, Trip hop, trance, and a few others. Not all of it's "dance music" necessarily, but all sorts of electronic stuff. I'd like to get more into some of it but I never really know where to start.

I'd ask the question whether or not other types of music usually have as many sub-genres as metal?