Gothic metal has also sometimes been viewed as 'a combination of the darkness and melancholy of goth rock with heavy metal'. The adjective 'dark' is commonly used to describe gothic music in general while other terms that are less frequently used include deep, romantic, passionate and intense. The music of gothic metal is generally characterised by its dark atmospheres. In the gothic metal subgenre, members from such groups as After Forever, HIM and Nightwish have similarly downplayed or dismissed the gothic label from their music. Some musicians have disputed the gothic label associated with their bands, including Rozz Williams of Christian Death and Andrew Eldritch of The Sisters of Mercy. Since then, fans have often been at odds with one another as to 'which bands are, or most definitely are not, authentically Goth'. The term gothic entered heavy metal music with the release of Paradise Lost's Gothic album in 1991. In the US, however, only a few bands such as Type O Negative, HIM, Lacuna Coil, Evanescence and Cradle of Filth have found some degree of commercial success. In the 21st century, gothic metal has moved towards the mainstream in Europe, particularly in Finland where groups such as Entwine, HIM, Lullacry and Poisonblack have released hit singles or chart-topping albums. By the end of the decade, a symphonic metal variant of gothic metal had been developed by Tristania and Within Temptation. During the mid-1990s, Moonspell, Theatres des Vampires and Cradle of Filth brought the gothic approach to black metal. Norwegian band Theatre of Tragedy developed the 'beauty and the beast' aesthetic of combining aggressive male vocals with clean female vocals, a contrast that has since been adopted by many gothic metal groups before them but not as a regular trademark. Other pioneers from the first half of the 1990s include Type O Negative from the United States, Tiamat from Sweden, and The Gathering from the Netherlands. Pioneers of gothic metal (although the bands themselves never claim the title of gothic-metal) include Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride and Anathema, all from the north of England. Lyrics are generally dark and introspective with inspiration from gothic fiction as well as personal experiences.

The genre originated during the early 1990s in Europe originally as an outgrowth of death-doom, a fusion of death metal and doom metal. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music. Gothic metal (or goth metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal and gothic rock that combines the heaviness of heavy metal with the dark atmospheres of gothic rock. Symphonic gothic metal, gothic black metalД®ngland, Finland, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Italy, Poland, United States, Greece Vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, synthesizers, cello, violin Heavy metal, gothic rock, death-doom, doom metal, progressive rock