There are so many specific genres and subgenres within rock and metal that finding something that legitimately counts as fusion is not easy. Every so often, we come across a group that has taken their music to particularly unusual places, and these deserved to be celebrated for their creativity at the very least. Here’s a small selection of the most interesting we’ve found.
Wagakki Band
Perhaps more familiar to lovers of Japanese culture, Wagakki Band has a song style that is entirely unique compared to anything found in the West. They have blended metal with a host of traditional Japanese instruments and an almost hypnotic vocal style that is inherently Japanese from top to bottom.
Breaking into the mainstream in Japan around ten years ago, they provided the theme music for a number of TV shows, and their latest album, Tokyo Singing, has seen the band grow in stature enough to include vocal work from Amy Lee in one of the tracks. The band often swings towards ballads and plenty of prog material as well so their work is a varied experience, to say the least.
For their most mainstream, check out “Senbonzakura”, or “One-thousand cherry blossoms”, which is the song that took them global in the first place and remains their most popular.
Electric Six
This is a name that many older readers will either have on a playlist or will at the back of their minds. Those who do them probably have them listed as one-hit wonders given that they seemed to drop off the map shortly after their first two hits. It is true that “Danger: High Voltage” remains their most well-known track. It has found its way into many areas of pop culture, including TV and movies appearance spanning genres and even catching the attention of Big Time Gaming, one of the largest casino game providers who transformed it into an entirely unique slot game.
What many may find surprising is that the American group, who have previously combined such disparate genres as rock, metal, disco and new wave in single songs, are still active today. Their most recent studio release was Bride of the Devil back in 2018, and they toured for much of 2022.
Okilly Dokilly
The final mention here goes to the band with quite possibly the most unique and niche band concept out there. Without going around the subject too much, they are, or at least for the moment, a Ned Flanders-themed heavy metal band who are the definition of committing to the bit. Defining themselves as a Nedal group, they performed in full-character costumes and even had fans moshing in green sweaters.
Their music itself is an odd mixture of material, with songs named after Ned quotes and flip-flopping between metalcore and more poppy sound mid-song. The band is currently disbanded as of 2022 however, like most metal bands, that’s no guarantee it will stay that way.
If you ever get the chance to see any of the bands above, we can solidly recommend any of them just for the experience if nothing else.
