Origins (1970s)
Doom metal is among the oldest forms of heavy metal, rooted in the music of early Black Sabbath, who were one of the first heavy metal bands. Their music is rooted in blues, but with the specific loud guitar playing of Iommi, and the then-uncommon dark and pessimistic lyrics and atmosphere, they set the standards of early heavy metal and inspired various doom metal bands. In the early 1970s both Black Sabbath and the American band Pentagram composed and performed this heavy and dark music, which would in the 1980s begin to be known and referred to as doom metal by subsequent musicians, critics and fans.
Development (1980s)
During the early-mid 1980s, bands from England (Pagan Altar and Witchfinder General) and the United States (Trouble, Saint Vitus and the aforementioned Pentagram) contributed much to the formation of doom metal as a distinct genre. The Swedish Candlemass would also prove influential. Some US acts such as Cirith Ungol and Manilla Road also influenced the rise of the style, especially its "epic" side which Candlemass defined on their debut album Epicus Doomicus Metallicus.
During the 1980s, doom metal was deeply underground and gathered only small circles of cult-following fans. In the 1980s, metal was dominated by speed and thrash metal, and in many commercial areas by glam metal. Slower, heavier and pessimistic in its nature, doom metal bands didn't receive much attention even among some die-hard metal fans of that time. Bands such as Trouble established the use of Christian imagery and themes in the lyrical side of doom metal which led these bands to be misinterpreted and alienated amongst some metalheads. It should be noted that although Trouble were Christian, many of the later doom bands weren't. However, many of them, such as Candlemass or Saint Vitus, still embraced elements of Christian imagery, not as a religious viewpoint, but as a lyrical symbolism for themes they deal with in their lyrics such as pain and suffering.
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