Sludge metal

This sound was expanded upon by the Melvins towards the end of the decade and the bands they influenced in both the Seattle grunge scene, and in Louisiana with Eyehategod, Crowbar and Acid Bath.

In the 1990s and 2000s, the sound of sludge diversified: bands including Neurosis, Isis and Cult of Luna helped to pioneer post-metal, while Baroness and Mastodon fused the genre with progressive metal, while Dystopia did so with crust punk and Grief with anarcho-punk.

[17] Furthermore, Los Angeles band Saint Vitus, one of the forefront groups in the still emerging doom metal genre, released their self-titled debut album through SST Records in 1984.

[28] Neurosis' transition from playing hardcore to a droning, ambient and progressive style of sludge metal helped pioneer the post-metal genre, then joined by Boston's Isis and Umeå's Cult of Luna in the following years.

[2] Around the same time, Orange County, California's Dystopia released their debut album Human = Garbage which merged sludge metal with influences from crust punk and grindcore,[29] while Boston's Grief did the same with anarcho-punk.

[23] Damad formed in 1991 in Savannah, Georgia, releasing two studio albums Rise and Fall (1997) and Burning Cold (2000) which showcased both sludge and grindcore influenced punk.

[31] Damad's influence led to Savannah developing a significant sludge metal scene in the 2000s which included Baroness, Black Tusk and Kylesa.

Bands in the scenes' equal parts influence from punk, metal and rock led to writers like J.J. Anselmi referencing a "Savannah sound".