Origins In the late 1990s, a wave of
metalcore bands began incorporating elements of
melodic death metal into their sound. This formed an early version of what would become the melodic metalcore genre. The first band to make use of this fusion was
Overcast, who were soon followed by
Shadows Fall on
Somber Eyes to the Sky (1997), Undying on
This Day All Gods Die (1999),
Darkest Hour on
The Prophecy Fulfilled (1999),
Unearth on
Above the Fall of Man (1999) and
Prayer for Cleansing on
Rain in Endless Fall (1999).
CMJ writer Anthony Delia also credited Florida's
Poison the Well and their first two releases
The Opposite of December... A Season of Separation (1999) and
Tear from the Red (2002) as "design[ing] the template for most of" the melodic metalcore bands to come.
Killswitch Engage have also been called a pioneering force in the genre by publications such as
Revolver, along with artists such as
7 Angels 7 Plagues,
Chimaira,
Dead to Fall and
Heaven Shall Burn. Belgian groups also played a large part in the development of the genre in its early years, as bands such as Arkangel began embracing the sounds of melodic death metal in their traditional metalcore sound, as early as 1998. such as
Jinjer,
August Burns Red and
Miss May I. By 2004 the genre saw increasing prominence, with
Shadows Fall's
The War Within debuting at number 20 on the
Billboard album chart.
Trivium released their sophomore album,
Ascendancy, in 2005, which peaked at 75 on the
UK Albums Chart, made the band one of the more prominent bands in the scene at that point, despite changing their style away from melodic metalcore on many occasions.
Killswitch Engage's 2006 effort
As Daylight Dies was described by Brandon Tadday of
Overdrive Magazine as "without a doubt one of the most impactful releases for melodic metalcore during the mid-2000s", In 2008 the
All That Remains' single "
Two Weeks" peaked at number 9 at the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the U.S., and on the Modern Rock Tracks chart at number 38. In 2007, the song "
Nothing Left" by
As I Lay Dying was nominated for a Grammy award in the "Best Metal Performance" category.
An Ocean Between Us (the album that included "Nothing Left") itself was a commercial success, debuting at number 8 on the
Billboard 200. Welsh melodic metalcore band
Bullet for My Valentine's third album
Fever debuted at number 3 selling more than 71,000 copies in its first week in the U.S. and more than 21,000 copies in the UK during 2010 alone. Australian melodic metalcore band
Parkway Drive's third album
Deep Blue reached number three on the Billboard Rock Charts in 2010, along with
Miss May I's album
Rise of the Lion having reached number 6 in 2014. Melodic metalcore band
Bury Tomorrow's fifth studio album
Black Flame reached number eleven on the Billboard albums chart in less than a week. ==Characteristics==