The Top 10 Heavy Metal Music Videos on YouTube
Contents
Check out our top 10 list of the best heavy metal music videos on YouTube. From Metallica to Slayer, these videos will get your head banging.
Introduction
YouTube is a great place to find music videos, and there are plenty of heavy metal options to choose from. Whether you’re looking for classic metal or modern metal, there’s something for everyone.
In this article, we’ll count down the top 10 heavy metal music videos on YouTube, based on views. We’ll also give you a little bit of information on each video, so you can decide if it’s something you want to check out.
So, without further ado, here are the top 10 heavy metal music videos on YouTube!
“Enter Sandman” – Metallica
“Enter Sandman” is a song by American heavy metal band Metallica, released as the first single from their self-titled fifth album, Metallica in 1991. The music was written by Kirk Hammett, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. Vocalist Hetfield wrote the lyrics, which deal with the concept of a child’s nightmares.
The music video for “Enter Sandman” was directed by Wayne Isham. It features a young boy being awoken from his dream by his father (played by actor Chris Nelson). The father tries to reassure the boy that there is nothing to be afraid of, but the boy is still visibly disturbed. The video then cuts to Metallica performing in a stadium, interspersed with footage of the boy having nightmares about various things (including a clown, an elephant and a snake). At the end of the video, the boy’s father comes into his room and finds that he has been transformed into a skeleton.
The video was nominated for several awards, including Best Metal Performance at the 1992 Grammy Awards and Best Hard Rock Performance at the MTV Video Music Awards. It won several awards, including Viewer’s Choice at the MTV Video Music Awards and Best Hard Rock Video at the Kerrang! Awards.
“Aenima” – Tool
This hard-hitting metal tune from Tool’s 1996 album Ænima is accompanied by a sinister music video full of dark imagery. The video starts with a close-up of a man’s face contorting in pain, and it only gets more unsettling from there. Interspersed with shots of the band performing are graphic images of abandonment, betrayal, and death, along with footage of real-life tragedies like the Hindenburg disaster and the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. “Aenima” is a powerful song, and the video does an excellent job of complementing its dark themes.
“Paranoid” – Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid” is one of the most popular heavy metal songs of all time, and the band’s accompanying music video is just as iconic. Filmed in an abandoned asylum, the video features Ozzy Osbourne and his bandmates performing the song surrounded by eerie imagery. The video was so popular that it helped propel Black Sabbath’s album “Paranoid” to the top of the charts, making it one of the best-selling heavy metal albums of all time.
“Battery” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “Master of Puppets” which was released in 1986. The video was directed by Wayne Isham and it features the band playing in a destroyed city. This is one of the most popular Metallica songs and the video has over 100 million views on YouTube.
“One” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “And Justice for All” which was released in 1988. The video was directed by Bill Pope and it features the band playing in a war-torn city. This is one of the most popular Metallica songs and the video has over 100 million views on YouTube.
“Enter Sandman” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “Metallica” which was released in 1991. The video was directed by Wayne Isham and it features the band playing in a desert. This is one of the most popular Metallica songs and the video has over 100 million views on YouTube.
” Sad but True” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “Metallica” which was released in 1991. The video was directed by Wayne Isham and it features the band playing in a dark room with strange creatures crawling around them. This is one of the most popular Metallica songs and the video has over 100 million views on YouTube.
“(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “Cliff ‘Em All” which was released in 1987. The video was directed by Bill Pope and it features bassist Cliff Burton playing his instrument while people are roaming around him doing various things. This is one of the most popular Metallica songs and the video has over 9 million views on YouTube.
“Whiplash” – Metallica
This music video is from the album “Kill ‘Em All” which was released in 1983. Thevideo was directed by Thomas Whitman and it features the band playing live at a concert. This is one ofNOT THE MOST popular Metallica songs butthe videohas over 8 million views on YouTube.
.”For Whom THE Bell Tolls “-Metallicafromthe album “RideThe Lightning”, releasedin 1984 .Thevideo, directedby Thomas Whitman, isset duringa warandfeatures severalexplosions . Over7 millionYouTube usershave watchedthisvideo .
.” Welcome Home (Sanitarium) “-Metallicafromthe album “…And Justice for All”,releasedin 1988 .Thevideo,directedby Bill Pope,is setina mental hospitalandfeatures some disturbing images . Over 6millionYouTube usershave watchedthisvideo .
.” Seek & Destroy “-Metallicafromthe album “Kill ‘Em All”,releasedin 1983 .Thevideo,directedby Thomas Whitman,is set at alive concertandfeatures pyrotechnics . Over6 millionYouTube usershave watchedthisvideo .” Fade to Black “-Metallicafromthe album “…And Justice for All”,releasedin 1988 .Thevideo,directedby Bill Pope,features th eband performingin frontofa grave pyrotechnicsAt 6 millionsviews , thisisyet anotherpopular Metallicavideoon YouTube .” Master of Puppets “-Metallicafromthe album “Masterof Puppets”,releasedin 1986 Directedby Michael Salomon , this live performanc evideohas amassedover 5 millionsviews on YouTube .” Creeping Death “-Metallicafrom albumsLoad”,releasedin 1996Video directedby Stefan Nizeri& Marc Scarpa , thi s creepyvisualfeatures puppetsand clocks5 millionsYouTube userscan’t be wrong !
“War Pigs” – Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” has over 60 million views on YouTube, making it the most popular heavy metal music video of all time. “War Pigs” was released in 1970 as a single from the band’s album Paranoid. The song is about the Vietnam War, and the lyrics are critical of both the American and Vietnamese governments. The song’s popularity has continued to grow in recent years, with many newer generations of metal fans discovering it through YouTube.
Other popular heavy metal music videos on YouTube include Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” (over 50 million views), Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (over 47 million views), and AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” (over 45 million views). These three videos are all from the 1980s, and they continue to be popular due to their iconic status within the metal community. Metallica’s “One” is also from the 1980s, but it only has over 23 million views on YouTube, making it the ninth most popular heavy metal music video of all time.
The remaining six videos in the top 10 are all from the 1990s or 2000s. They are: Pantera’s “Walk” (44 million views), Slipknot’s “Wait and Bleed” (43 million views), Avenged Sevenfold’s “Nightmare” (41 million views), System of a Down’s “Chop Suey!” (37 million views), Linkin Park’s “In the End” (36 million views), and Disturbed’s “Down with the Sickness” (34 million views).
“One” – Metallica
“One” is a song by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as the third and final single from their fourth studio album, …And Justice for All (1988). Written by band members James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, “One” is an anti-war song that depicts a World War I soldier who has lost all of his limbs and eyes in battle and is begging God to take his life. The music video for “One” was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video at the 32nd Annual Grammy Awards.
“Duality” – Slipknot
The American heavy metal band Slipknot has released twelve studio albums, one live album, four live DVDs, thirty-five singles, eight video albums, and a variety of other videos. They have also released nine singles that did not have an accompanying music video. Originally forming in 1995 in Des Moines, Iowa, the group went through a lengthy series of lineup changes before settling on the nine-piece lineup that they would use from 1999 until 2010: Shawn “Circle Head” Crahan, Mick “Six Nine” Thomson, Corey “Tile” Taylor, Paul “Gray” Gray (died 2010), Craig “133” Jones (died 2010), Sid “Sick Boy” Wilson ( departed in 2008), Chris “Feldmann/Dirty Dan” Fehn (departed in 2019), Jim Root (departed in 2014) and Joey Jordison.
Slipknot’s first official music video was for their song “Wait and Bleed”, which was included on their self-titled debut album. Released on September 28, 1999, the video was directed by Thomas Mignone and features the band performing in a forest. It received moderate rotation on MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball. The success of the single helped Slipknot to achieve mainstream popularity.
The band’s next music video was for the song “Spit It Out”, which was included on their second studio album Iowa. Released on November 5, 2002, the video was again directed by Mignone and this time features the band performing in a warehouse. The video caused controversy due to its violent content, with many calling for it to be banned. Despite this, it still received significant airplay on MTV2’s Headbangers Ball.
Slipknot’s third studio album Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) was released in 2004 and contained the lead single “Duality”. The accompanying music video for the song was shot in Los Angeles and directed by Tony Petrossian. It features the band performing on top of a building as it collapses around them. The video received heavy rotation on MTV2’s Headbangers Ball and helped to propel the album to commercial success.
One of Slipknot’s most successful singles is “Before I Forget”, which was released as a single from their fourth studio album Vol. 4: The Subliminal Verses in 2005. The song topped both Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart as well as their Alternative Songs chart, making it one of only a handful of songs to ever achieve this feat. The accompanying music video for the song was directed by Dean Karr and features Slipknot performing in a Mental Institution intercut with shots of them being treated cruelly by doctors and nurses.
The following year saw Slipknot releasing another successful single in the form of “The Nameless”. Taken from their live album 9\.0: Live, the song topped both Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart as well as their Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart; becoming only the third song ever to do so after Metallica’s “…And Justice for All” and Linkin Park’s “Breaking the Habit”. The accompanying live music video for the song was filmed during Slipknot’s headline set at Download Festival 2005 and later released as part of their 2006 DVD compilation entitled Voliminal: Inside the Nine\.
In 2008 Slipknot returned with their fifth studio album All Hope Is Gone; featuring lead single “Psychosocial”. Upon release, Psychosocial reached number seven on both Billboard Hot 100 as well as UK Singles Chart; making it Slipknot’s most commercially successful single to date\. To accompany its release a heavily censored music video was created due to its overly violent content\. In spite of this censorhip it still managed to receive significant airplay across various channels including MTV2 \(\@No .3\) & Kerrang! \(\@No .1\).
2009 saw Slipknot releasing two separate singles; first with “‘Sulfur”‘ which acted as promotion for their forthcoming greatest hits collection \(Antennas to Hell\) & secondly with “‘Snuff'” which would go onto be included as part of their sixth studio album \(All Hope Is Gone\). Filmed back-to-back ‘Sulfur’ & ‘Snuff’ share many similar qualities such as both being set entirely within what appears to be Hell & also featuring direct interaction withSatan himself; albeit played by two different actors between videos\. In spite othissatanic subject matter ‘Snuff’ peaked at number seventeenon Billboard Hot 100 making it one of very few songs containing references tothe Devil himselfto ever achieve such commercial success,’Sulfur”s appeal seems totie more into nostalgia being oneof Slipknots final releases beforethe tragic deathof bassist Paul Grayand also due toreuniting guitarist Jim Rootwith Estonian singerTarmo Taivalmakiwho had previously collaborated with himon Stone Sour\’salbumHouseof Gold& Bones Part 1 \[2012\]. ‘Sulfur’ is also notablein that despite notappearingon any officialstudioreleaseit has amasseda staggering 164 millionviews makingits appealseemtotally independentof any lineageor promotionby eitherthe band orany record company highlightingthe massiveand uniquelevelof loyaltyenjoyedby fans oftheseninetroubled Iowans
“Snowblind” – Black Sabbath
“Snowblind” is a song by British rock band Black Sabbath, released on their 1971 album, Master of Reality. The song was written by Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi, and it is one of the band’s heaviest tracks. “Snowblind” is about cocaine addiction, and it was one of the first metal songs to deal with the topic of drug abuse.
The music video for “Snowblind” was released in 2015, and it features footage of the band performing the song live. The video was directed by David P. Edwards, and it received positive reviews from critics.
“Snowblind” is one of Black Sabbath’s most popular tracks, and it has been covered by numerous artists. The song was ranked #74 on VH1’s “100 Greatest Metal Songs” list, and it was included in Guitar World’s “100 Greatest Guitar Riffs of All Time”.
“Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” – Black Sabbath
Released in 1973, “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” was Black Sabbath’s fifth studio album. The album was a commercial success, reaching #6 on the UK album charts and #11 on the US Billboard 200. The title track, “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”, is a fan favorite and is often cited as one of the greatest heavy metal songs of all time. The music video for the song, which was released in 1974, is a classic example of early heavy metal imagery and remains one of the most iconic metal videos of all time.
