The Best of Heavy Metal Style Music

A look at the best of heavy metal style music from the early days to today.

Introduction

Heavy metal is a genre of music that often features distorted guitars, emphatic rhythms, and aggressive lyrics. Metal songs often deal with topics such as death, violence, and rebellion. The style developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, mainly in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Despite its aggressive sound, metal music can be very technical and dynamic. Many metal bands incorporate complex guitar work, extended solos, and intricate drumming into their songs. As a result, metal songs can be both musically challenging and fun to listen to.

If you’re looking for some good heavy metal music to listen to, check out our list of the best heavy metal songs below.

Defining the genre

To ask what heavy metal is, is to ask what rock music is. It’s a question with many answers, all of them correct in one way or another. In its broadest sense, heavy metal is rock music that is both louder and more aggressive than what came before.

Characteristics

Though there are many subgenres of heavy metal, some general characteristics can be identified. These include aggressive vocal style, distorted guitars, bass guitar prominence, and drums characteristically playing fast rhythms. Heavy metal also often incorporates fast-paced instrumentation and riffs.

The genre sometimes features guitar solos and instrumentals, though these are not always present. The tempo of heavy metal songs is usually quite fast, though there are some slower songs within the genre as well.Heavy metal lyrics often deal with dark or violent subject matter, though some bands have adopted a more positive or humorous outlook in recent years.

Differences with other genres

Other genres have often been at odds with heavy metal, with some howling in outrage at the very suggestion that metal and, say, country music could ever find common ground. This rift between metal and other genres is nothing new, of course — in the late ’60s and early ’70s, hard rock was the focus of much derision from the more strait-laced members of society. But metal has always had its fair share of detractors, and this is likely due to the fact that metal is such a polarizing force in music. It’s either loved or despised, with very little middle ground.

One of the things that sets heavy metal apart from other genres is its emphasis on guitars. Metal is all about giving the guitars room to breathe, and this often means that other instruments are pushed to the background. This isn’t to say that metal is devoid of melody — far from it. But the guitars are always front and center, and they’re often played in a very aggressive style. This can be off-putting for some listeners, but it’s also one of the things that makes metal so special.

Another key element of heavy metal is its use of distortion. This was once seen as a sign of incompetence on the part of the musicians, but it’s now an essential part of the genre. This distorted sound givesmetal its unique identity, and it’s one of the things that sets it apart from other genres.

Last but not least,metal is also characterized by its lyrical themes. Metal lyrics often deal with dark subjects like death, violence, and war. This can be off-putting for some listeners, but it’s also one of the things that makes metal so special.

The history of heavy metal

It all started with Black Sabbath, a band from Birmingham, England. Sabbath is often cited as the first heavy metal band. They blended blues and rock to create a sound that was both heavy and dark. Sabbath’s 1970 self-titled debut album is considered a classic. It includes the song “Iron Man,” which is considered one of the most influential metal songs of all time. Sabbath continued to release groundbreaking metal albums throughout the 1970s.

Origins

The term “heavy metal” was first used in a song by Steppenwolf called “Born to Be Wild” in 1968. The phrase has been used by many other bands since then, but it was not really associated with a specific genre of music until the 1970s.

In the 1970s, there was a lot of experimentation with hard rock, and some of it crossed over into what we now think of as heavy metal. This new style was characterized by distorted guitars, aggressive vocals, and – most importantly – a much heavier sound than anything that had come before. It was this heavier sound that distinguished heavy metal from other genres and led to its popularity.

In the early 1980s, bands like Metallica and Megadeth took the sound of heavy metal to new heights (or depths) with their ultra-fast tempos and aggressive lyrics. This new subgenre, which came to be known as thrash metal, was even heavier and more extreme than what had come before. It was at this time that heavy metal truly began to develop its own culture, with its own fashion and attitude.

Since then, heavy metal has continued to evolve, with new subgenres constantly appearing. But at its core, heavy metal remains characterized by its dark atmosphere and aggressive sound.

The golden age

The golden age of heavy metal is a term used by music critics and historians for a period in the late 1970s and early 1980s when heavy metal music was at its commercial and artistic peak. The exact timeframe of the golden age is disputed, but most agree that it was between 1977 and 1986.

Heavy metal evolved out of the blues rock and psychedelic rock scenes of the late 1960s. Early innovators like Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, electric blues bands such as Cream and Led Zeppelin combined blues rock with distorted electric guitars, grandiose vocals, aggressively driving rhythms, and often occult or horror-themed lyrics. This style would come to be known as heavy metal.

As metal continued to evolve in the early 1970s, new subgenres like hard rock and proto-metal began to emerge. Bands like Rainbow, Judas Priest, Aerosmith, Kiss, Cheap Trick, Queen, UFO, Boston, Van Halen, Rush, Styx, Ronnie James Dio’s Elf (later renamed Dio), Montrose, Ted Nugent’s Amboy Dukes (later renamed Ted Nugent), Starz (later restarted as Lizzy Borden), Molly Hatchet, Foghat evolved the sound further with a more commercialized approach that incorporated pop hooks and arena rock sensibilities. These bands Prescott achieved mainstream success with albums that often charted on Billboard’s Top 40.

This era saw the formation of many successful record labels like Jet Records (whose artist roster included Def Leppard and Whitesnake), Chrysalis Records (whose artist roster included UFO and Iron Maiden), Atco Records (whose artist roster included Pat Travers Band and AC/DC), Elektra Records (whose artist roster included Motorhead and Queensrÿche) and Epic Records (whose artist roster included Manowar). Artists signed to these labels would go on to sell millions of records worldwide during the 1980s.

The golden age of heavy metal came to an end in the early 1990s with the rise of grunge music out of Seattle Washington. Bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam , Soundgarden , Alice in Chains , built on the foundation laid by earlier heavy metal bands but stripped away many of the excesses that had come to be associated with the genre . Grunge was also more introspective lyrically than previous forms of hard rock , dealing with themes like angst , alienation , betrayal and apathy . This shift in focus away from traditional heavy metal subject matter signaled the end of the genre’s golden age .

The new wave of British heavy metal

The new wave of British heavy metal (commonly abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a period in the late 1970s and early 1980s when a number of bands from the United Kingdom, influenced by hard rock and previous British metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, and Thin Lizzy, began to experiment with heavier sounds and rougher textures. The approach of these bands was generally more aggressive than that of their predecessors. They began emphasising the twin-guitar sound popularized by Sabbath, and broadened their compositions to include instrumentals and anthems based on their English heritage.

NWOBHM bands were often signed to independent record labels such as EMI’s fledgling Heavy Metal Records label; Option in Germany; Roadrunner in the Netherlands; Megaforce in North America; Combat and Music For Nations in the UK; FM Revolver in Italy; and Leviathan Records in France—all of which helped promote the new wave of British heavy metal internationally. Many songwriters and musicians within the movement went on to have prolific careers within other genres: Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott would later co-found the hard rock band Down ‘n’ Outz; Diamond Head’s Sean Harris would join Iron Maiden as their lead singer; “Fast” Eddie Clarke would join Motorhead after his former band Fastway failed to achieve commercial success; Venom’s Cronos would later form the black metal band Venomous Concept with members of Napalm Death, Carcass, Bolthrower, and Coroner; Diamond Head’s Brian Tatler would co-found power metal band DragonForce.

The best heavy metal bands

There are countless great heavy metal bands out there. But which ones are the best of the best? That’s what we’re here to find out. We’ll be looking at a variety of different metal bands and styles to find the answer to that question.

Metallica

Formed in 1981 by Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield, Metallica has become one of the most successful and influential heavy metal bands of all time. Selling over 100 million albums worldwide, they are considered one of the “Big Four” of thrash metal, along with Megadeth, Anthrax, and Slayer. With a style that is both aggressive and melodic, they have inspired countless other bands.

Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden is an English heavy metal band founded in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. The band’s first album, 1980’s Iron Maiden, was written primarily by Harris and vocalist Paul Di’Anno. keyboardist Keith Emerson was a member of the band for their first album only.

Maiden’s early material has been described as proto-metal and agilely combines the ferocity ofammers Judas Priest with the speed and precision of Motörhead. Maiden quickly became one of the most successful heavy metal bands of all time with both critics and fans hailing them as one of the genre’s most significant bands.They have released 44 albums, including 16 studio albums, 13 live albums, four EPs, and seven compilations.

Megadeth

Formed in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1983, Megadeth is an American heavy metal band that earned critical and commercial success with their debut album, Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good! The band is led by founder, lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter Dave Mustaine. Megadeth has released fifteen studio albums to date, and has been classified as a thrash metal band. Their music often features progressive elements, complex arrangements and fast rhythms.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Heavy Metal style music is a great way to get your adrenaline pumping. It is perfect for when you need to get up and move, or when you just want to headbang and let loose. There are many sub-genres of Heavy Metal, so there is sure to be something for everyone. So crank up the volume, and enjoy the best of Heavy Metal style music!