26046037[/URL], member: 212830"]Some thoughts on all of this:
In the vein of a Thrash/Death/Groove combo, I'm not much into groove, but love some Thrash/Death stuff. The Crown, as posted earlier, would be my go to in that vein. However, The Haunted are also top contenders (and were founded by former members of At the Gates after their original dissolution). Vader is phenomenal, and really borders the line of thrash/death to me. They've been around forever. In regards to Kreator, they're one of my favorites, though typically straight thrash. Another band that straddles more of the death metal side of things would be Dew-Scented. And though not really death metal, Tankard is an amazing thrash band. Their lyrics are often humorous, which I quite enjoy.
Per your list of bands, etc., I will only give some suggestions of similar things:
Death - if you like the proggy style stuff, try some Mekong Delta. German thrash, but with all sorts of prog influences. They even did an entire instrumental album of orchestra covers just because. They had a vocalist, just didn't use him. Vektor are somewhat similar if memory serves, but that's a buddy's recommendation. I've never gotten around to them.
Entombed - not my favorite old school Swedish death metal, but obviously a milestone band. I prefer Dismember for that tone. Grave has already been mentioned. Then there's Unleashed and Bloodbath. All are in the same vein. There's an entire sub-genre of HM-2 derived death metal. Gatecreeper and At The Gates are often considered part of that movement.
Carcass - Heartwork is my go-to for them, but I feel that Necroticism is also overlooked. I don't like their first two albums as much, as they are prototypical grindcore which just isn't my thing. Swansong is also underrated. Their newer material is a blend of Heartwork and Necroticism, which is great. Arch Enemy's earlier stuff is also in a similar vein. I prefer their original and second vocalists to their current singer. I feel that they had better instrumentation early on, but none of their albums is bad by any stretch. If you're looking for more of the melodic death metal stuff (which it seems you are, based on some of these bands) early In Flames is phenomenal. Anything up until 2004ish really hits the spot for me, though it's been years since I've listened. Their newer material is still good music, but a distinctly mellower stylistic change overall. I'd also recommend Darkest Hour, Dark Tranquillity, Feared (who actually run the gamut of musical styles, with some songs being very-Pantera-ish), Hypocrisy (a sort of blend of Dismember and old In Flames stylistically), Amorphis, Amon Amarth (if you like Vikings), Soilwork, and Nightrage are also great. Fear My Thoughts went virtually unnoticed, but I loved them while they were around.
In regards to black metal - it took me forever. There are some bands I love, some I simply can't stand. Typically, I like the more proggy stuff, but sometimes the rawness of Mayhem or Darkthrone speaks to me. As far as lyrics, I don't usually care, because I don't often understand them. I often view vocals as simply another instrument. Some of my favorite black metal bands are Immortal, Dissection, Emperor, Dark Funeral, and Nargaroth.
I think that covers it. Most of the other things you posted either fall into something I already put up there or I have no real info about. Doom metal is actually one of the genres I know the least about! I spent years pretty much worshiping Northern European metal.
And I wasn't scarred by a BF-2, maybe that helps. But I just sold my broadcast, and I was thinking about buying a Polychrome, but maybe it should be a cheaper flanger and a phase 90 or something.
