Top 10 Metal Singers With The Craziest Growls
Metal music is not just about chunky riffs or relentless drums; it’s also about vocals that sound like they crawled out of the hellish underworld. Growling vocals are a key part of what makes metal so thrilling.
From classic groove metal icons to modern genre-mixing, ear-drum-rupturing screams, here’s a roundup of the ten most metal male and female vocalists whose growls are absolutely next level!
1. Daisuke Tsuda — Maximum The Hormone
Maximum The Hormone is one of those rare bands that give you something different in each song. It’s like that box of chocolates Forrest Gump’s been eating. Lead vocalist Daisuke Tsuda is the definition of loud chaos. He’s able to switch from guttural grunts to demonic squeals to playful rapping five times in a single song! Check out tracks like “Zetsubou Billy” or “What’s Up, People?!,” both of which are tied to the Death Note anime, to get a good sense of the Japanese vocal craziness, but my favorite is by far their collab with Atarashi Gakkou—Shimi.
2. Yukina — Hanabie
Yukina, vocalist of Japan’s rising metalcore band Hanabie, might look sweet and innocent, but don’t be fooled. Her incredible vocals are savage, crisp, and surprisingly powerful. Even male singers can’t always pull those off. Hanabie exploded onto the scene with their blend of metalcore and Japanese pop culture aesthetics. Songs like “Neet Game” showcase Yukina’s fierce growls layered with catchy melodic choruses. You just can’t wait until the chorus hits to headbang along with the music.
3. Phil Anselmo — Pantera
Some people categorize Panthera’s sound as “groove metal,” and with Phil Anselmo’s ferocious growls leading the way, it’s very much true. His vocals on albums like “Vulgar Display of Power” and “Far Beyond Driven” helped define 90s metal. The track “Walk” single-handedly got millions of metal fans onto the “heavy” side of things.
4. Alissa White-Gluz — Arch Enemy
Few vocalists have mastered both brutal growls and clean vocals quite like Alissa White-Gluz. Formerly of The Agonist, she joined Swedish melodic death metal titans Arch Enemy in 2014 and instantly won over the fans. On tracks like “War Eternal” and “The Eagle Flies Alone,” Alissa’s growls cut like a sharp, serrated knife, while her perfect enunciation and control make her one of the cleanest growlers in modern metal.
5. Spencer Sotelo — Periphery
Prog metal isn’t solely about heavy vocals, but Spencer Sotelo masterfully navigates this genre. He’s switching between high cleans, harsh screams, and monstrous growls so easily that one may think there are multiple people singing. His growls have a sharp, biting quality that complements the complex, technical music Periphery is known for. Spencer is a modern prog-metal powerhouse, and no one can deny that.
6. Helle Bogdanova — IGNEA
If you listened to IGNEA blind, you’d have no idea they were a Ukrainian metal band. These guys and gal blend melodic metal with Middle Eastern influences and symphonic elements to reach an incredible sound. Frontwoman Helle Bogdanova brings powerful, harsh growls that contrast beautifully with her clean vocals. On songs like “Jinnslammer” and “Alga,” Helle unleashes growls that sound both primal and precise, and we freaking love it.
7. Mikael Åkerfeldt — Opeth
Mikael Åkerfeldt might be known today for his mellow, clean singing on Opeth’s recent prog rock albums, but go back to their earlier hits like “Blackwater Park” and “Still Life,” and you’ll hear some of death metal’s finest growls. His vocals in those records are so deep and atmospheric that they made Opeth one of the best metal bands of that era.
8. Courtney LaPlante — Spiritbox
Courtney LaPlante, formerly of iwrestledabearonce (a really cool but also kinda dumb band name, btw) and now fronting the amazing Spiritbox, has rapidly become one of modern metal’s most admired vocalists, second only to our next female entry. Her growls are high-pitched yet textured, pairing brutality with vulnerability. Spiritbox’s “Circle With Me” is a prime example, featuring outstanding gutturals that shocked fans used to her clean vocals.
9. Johan Hegg — Amon Amarth
Few growls are as instantly recognizable as Johan Hegg’s. As frontman for Swedish melodic death metal band Amon Amarth, Hegg’s roaring vocals sound like they could command millennia-old zombie Viking armies. Tracks like “Twilight of the Thunder God” and “Guardians of Asgaard” show off his depth and insane vocal control. He’s a big reason Amon Amarth’s music feels both epic and fearsome.
10. Tatiana Shmaylyuk — Jinjer
Finally, we have the queen of rough vocals—Tatiana Shmaylyuk of Ukrainian metal band Jinjer. The band is pretty old at this point, but they only went viral when reaction YouTubers discovered her incredible range and control on “Pisces.” Her sudden switch from clean, jazzy vocals to monstrous growls is jaw-dropping. Many people could not comprehend how this tiny girl could sound so metal, so she did a so-called “one take,” singing the song “Judgement (& Punishment)” live in a recording booth. Yes, she’s that good. Heck, she’s probably even better!