Clean vocals

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The term clean vocals is used to describe melodic and clear singing styles. It is most notably used to refer to heavy metal music, as an alternative to harsh, screamed or growled vocals, which are mainly displayed in extreme metal bands.

Bands can create this contrast in two ways. One way, employed by bands such as Opeth and My Dying Bride, have one singer produce both harsh and clean vocals. Other bands, such as Cradle of Filth or The Project Hate, employ two singers—one for each style. Bands such as Vintersorg and Arcturus often shift between clean and growled vocals.

A lot of melodic death metal bands use clean vocals. Soilwork, In Flames, Scar Symmetry, and Dark Tranquillity (though their album Character does not feature them) are four well-known examples. In the majority of songs, clean vocals are mainly used in the chorus or as back up vocals during verses, but songs like In Flames' "Only for the Weak" (Clayman) and "Ordinary Story" (Colony) are exceptions in that they use clean vocals in the verses and growled vocals in the choruses.

Clean vocals, when referred to in the context of metal music, can range from operatic vocals (such as Nightwish) to simple melodies to harsh yelling, which would only be considered clean vocals when compared to death grunts.