I am fine with the basics (e.g. classical vs rock/punk vs pop based on instruments) but there’s loads of other terms that aren’t very intuitive.
What is the difference between “alternate” rock and I guess “regular” rock? What is the difference between rock and punk? What is post-(insert subgenre here, like punk)? What is pop rock (the music subgenre, not the fizzy candy rocks), and how is it different from rock pop? What makes music “progressive”? What on earth are the “blues”? What is the difference between rock, metal, hard metal, heavy metal, etc. aside from an increasing level of angriness and decreasing level of clarity? etc etc
A lot of subgenres are entirely made up.
What makes Speed Metal different than Thrash Metal? They sound the same. What makes Death Metal different than Black Metal? They sound the same.
It is just ways for people to sound very technical for no reason other than to pretend they’re so different.
They sound the same to you. While I agree that gatekeeping and snobbish "whell achtually"s are just pointless and annoying, they are still useful to people experienced within those genres to identify common styles and just as a fast and efficient way of describing the piece. The genres definitely have their purpose. If they have no use to you personally, don’t use them, that is fine, and you shouldn’t be criticised for that.
Nah. I’m not even a big metal fan and unless a band is blending the genres (“blackened death” etc.) they’re pretty distinct, the vocal style in particular should be pretty easy to tell apart. As a rule of thumb, Black Metal vocalists croak, Death Metal vocalists growl.
As a metalhead, metal subgenres are fucking exhausting. I don’t know how to describe bands I like without sounding like a fucking douche.