Today's installment of Metal Mayhem's Top 100, we are looking at five wonderful and diverse bands including a power metal icon, one of today's best progressive metal/rock bands, the quintessential shock rocker, one of Europe's greatest symphonic metal bands, and a hard rock outfit that heavily influenced every metal band.
On with the list!
35. Bruce Dickinson
Bruce Dickinson is a British heavy metal vocalist who is most famous for being the lead singer for the iconic British metal band, Iron Maiden. He has also had quite the distinguished solo career as well. His solo career began when he was approached to do a song for A Nightmare On Elm Street 5: The Dream Child Soundtrack, and he wrote "Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter" in 1989. This solo effort led to the release of his first solo albums, Tattooed Millionaire in 1990. In 1994, Dickinson released Balls to Picasso which featured one of my favorite songs, "Tears of the Dragon." His third and fourth albums, titled Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding are both metal classics. While he dedicates most of his time to Iron Maiden, Bruce Dickinson's solo career has been incredibly viable and successful.
Here is "King in Crimson."
and "Tears of the Dragon."
34. Coheed and Cambria
Coheed and Cambria is an American band from Nyack, New York that formed in 1995. They are truly one of the great bands that consistently puts out great music. One problem: Coheed and Cambria doesn't quite fit into any one genre, they could be included in heavy metal, progressive rock, post rock, and alternative rock. Their sound is like if Rush met Pink Floyd, then mated with Iron Maiden. I include them here because their albums are so epic in terms of scale that I had to include them somewhere on this list. If they were more of a metal band, they would certainly be ranked higher. The driving forces behind the band are lead singer and guitarist Claudio Sanchez and lead guitarist Travis Stever. All of their albums are concepts based on an original tale called The Armory Wars with each album progressing the story further. Their album, Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume 1: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness is one of the best albums that I have ever heard. Possible in my personal top ten. Here is "Mother of Men."
and "Welcome Home."
33. Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American shock rocker whose career originated in Detroit in the 1960's who has influenced every metal act that has ever used any kind of theatrics in their shows. Artists from Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, Ozzy Osbourne, Slipknot, and Gwar have all shown appreciation for the king of shock rock. There isn't much that can be said about this iconic figure that hasn't been said ad nauseam for years. On a personal level, I have always appreciated Cooper's satirical lyrics and his often cheesy musical style. I have never listened to a bad Alice Cooper album. One of the few things the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has gotten right was the induction of Cooper into their establishment in 2011.
Here is "No More Mr. Nice Guy."
and "Poison."
32. AC/DC
AC/DC is an Australian hard rock band that formed in founded in 1973 by Malcolm and Angus Young. While the band should be classified as a hard rock band, their influences on the heavy metal genre is immense. Their albums Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, Highway to Hell, Back in Black, For Those About to Rock . . . We Salute You, and T. N. T. are all classics. The band was even able to survive the tragic death of their long-time lead singer Bon Scott in 1980 when they made the smooth transition to Brian Johnson at vocals. I simply love this band! Their live show is incredible! They are just a fun band to listen to.
Here is "Highway to Hell."
and "Back in Black."
31. Nightwish
Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band that formed in 1996 by keyboardist Tuomos Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and vocalist Tarja Turunen. They are the best selling metal band from Finland, and have been very successful in the United States as well. In 2007, Turunen was replaced as lead singer by Annette Olzen. The band has released two wonderful albums with Olzen, Dark Passion Play and Imaginaerum. I know that I may be in the minority, but I actually prefer the two albums with Olzen to the ones with Turunen. The band has recently announced that they have parted ways with Annette Olzen as their lead singer, and have temporarily replaced her with Dutch singer Floor Jansen from After Forever fame. Thematically, the band focuses on mythology and fantasy. Nightwish has influenced many prominent bands such as Epica, Evanescence, and Within Temptation.
Here is "Restcalm."
No comments:
Post a Comment