Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in East London, formed in 1975. The band is directed by founder, bassist and songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the group has released a collective total of thirty albums: fourteen studio albums, seven live albums, four EPs and five compilations.

Pioneers of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, with such an original sound they achieved success during the early 1980s and after several lineup changes, went on to release a series of platinum and gold albums. These include the US platinum-selling landmarks The Number of the Beast in 1982, Piece of Mind in 1983, Powerslave in 1984, the acclaimed live album Live After Death in 1985, Somewhere In Time in 1986, and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son in 1988. Their second most recent studio effort, A Matter of Life and Death, was released in 2006 and peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200 and at number 4 in the UK. The album was certified gold in the UK. Their newest album, The Final Frontier, will be released later this summer.

As one of the most successful heavy metal bands to date, Iron Maiden has sold over 75 million records worldwide under EMI Rec. label.The band won the Ivor Novello Awards for international achievement in 2002,[6] and were also inducted into the Hollywood RockWalk in Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California during their tour in the United States in 2005. As of October 2009, the band has played just over 2000 live shows during their career, and are often cited as one of the most influential bands in rock history.
Iron Maiden was formed on Christmas Day 1975, by bassist Steve Harris, shortly after he left his previous group, Smiler. Harris attributes the band name to a movie adaptation of The Man in the Iron Mask from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, which he saw around that time, and so the group was named after the iron maiden torture device.

Steve Harris and guitarist Dave Murray remain the longest-standing members of Iron Maiden. Original vocalist Paul Day was fired as he lacked "energy or charisma onstage".He was replaced by Dennis Wilcock, a Kiss fan who utilised fire, make-up and fake blood during live performances. Wilcock's friend, Dave Murray, was invited to join, to the frustration of guitarists Dave Sullivan and Terry Rance.This fueled Harris to temporarily disunite the band in 1976,though the group reformed soon after with Murray as the sole guitarist.

Iron Maiden recruited another guitarist in 1977, Bob Sawyer, who caused a rift between Murray and Wilcock, prompting Harris to fire both Murray and Sawyer.A poor gig at the Bridgehouse in November 1977, with a makeshift line-up including Tony Moore on keyboards, Terry Wapram on guitar, and drummer Barry Purkis resulted in Harris firing the entire band.Dave Murray was reinstated and Doug Sampson was hired as drummer.

By 1981, Paul Di'Anno was demonstrating increasingly self-destructive behaviour, particularly through alleged drug usage, although Di'Anno himself denies the charge.His performances began to suffer, just as the band was beginning to achieve major success in America. At the end of 1981 the band dismissed Di'Anno and sought a new vocalist.

Bruce Dickinson, previously of Samson, auditioned for Iron Maiden in September 1981 and joined the band soon afterwards. He then went out on the road with the band on a small headlining tour. In anticipation of the band's forthcoming album, the band played "Children of the Damned", "Run to the Hills", "22 Acacia Avenue" and "The Prisoner" at select venues, introducing fans to the sound that the band was progressing towards.

Fear Factory

Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band. Formed in 1989, they have released seven full-length albums and a number of singles and remixes. Over the course of their career they have evolved from a succession of styles, as well as steadily pioneered a combination of the styles death metal, groove metal, thrash metal and industrial metal.The resultant sound proved to be enormously influential on the metal scene from the mid-90s and onwards.

Fear Factory disbanded in March 2002[citation needed]following some internal disputes, but they reformed later that year minus founding member Dino Cazares adding bassist, Byron Stroud, and casting then-bassist Christian Olde Wolbers as guitarist.

In April 2009, a new lineup was announced with founding guitarist Cazares returning, and Gene Hoglan being added as drummer. Bell and Stroud are both reprising their respective roles, and the band has completed a studio album, Mechanize. Former members Christian Olde Wolbers and Raymond Herrera (both currently playing in Arkaea) dispute the legitimacy of the new lineup, and a legal battle is underway from both parties.

The band has performed at three Ozzfests as well as the inaugural Gigantour and has had singles in the US Mainstream Rock Top 40 and albums in the Billboard Top 40, 100 and 200. Prior to 2001 they have toured around 2000 shows. They have sold over 1 million albums in the U.S. alone
Fear Factory's roots lie in an outfit formed by guitarist Dino Cazares (formerly of The Douche Lords) and drummer Raymond Herrera in Los Angeles, California in 1989. Their first line-up was completed with the addition of vocalist Burton C. Bell (ex-Hate Face), allegedly recruited by an impressed Cazares upon overhearing him singing New Year's Day by U2 in the shower at a common boarding.Cazares played bass on the first 3 Fear Factory albums Concrete, Soul of a New Machine and Demanufacture.

They started out under the name Ulceration, apparently picked for no real reason other than that Burton C. Bell and/or other members thought it would "just be a cool name" for the band,but they subsequently shifted to Fear Factory in 1990 ; the new moniker being more reflective of their burgeoning new death metal sound, influenced just as much by early British industrial metal, industrial music and grindcore as much as it continued to remain firmly rooted in a conservative extreme metal approach; a facet of their music that eventually saw the band’s appeal spread out over a wider music audience.

The earliest demo recordings of the band are strongly reminiscent of the early works of Napalm Death and also Godflesh, an acknowledged influence of the band, in the grindcore driven approach of the former and the mechanical brutality, bleakness and vocal stylings of the latter. The demos are remarkable for integrating these influences into their death metal sound and for Burton C. Bell’s pioneering fusion of extreme death growls and clean vocals in the same song, which was to become a significant and influential element of the band’s sound throughout their career.The use of grunts and "throat singing" combined with clean vocals has later defined the nu metal and newer genres of metal. Many vocalists, in today's metal scene, use two or more methods of singing and vocalizing lyrics. The band contributed two songs to the L.A. Death Metal Compilation in 1990.They played their first show on Wednesday, October 31, 1990

DEATH

Death was an American death metal band founded in 1983. The band's founder, Chuck Schuldiner, is considered a "pioneering death metal vocalist/guitarist."The band ceased to exist after Schuldiner died of brain cancer in 2001,though remains an enduring heavy metal brand.

Death is considered one of the most influential groups in death metal. The band's debut, Scream Bloody Gore, has been described as "death metal's first archetypal document".One music biographer has referred to Schuldiner as the "Father of Death Metal"while another has claimed that Schuldiner is "readily acknowledged as the true founder of the U.S. death metal scene".Music biographer Garry Sharpe-Young considered Death "a genre breaking band...centred upon frontman Chuck Schuldiner" and that the band "would become one of the prime instigators of the death metal movement".

However, Schuldiner dismissed such attributions by stating, in an interview with Metal-Rules.com, "I don’t think I should take the credits for this death metal stuff. I’m just a guy from a band, and I think Death is a metal band".

As of 2008, Death have sold over 2 million albums worldwide, with over 500,000 copies sold by December 2009 in the US alone (excluding the numerous sales before the SoundScan era) making them the top-selling death metal band worldwide, and only topped in the US by Cannibal Corpse
Founded in 1983 by Chuck Schuldiner under the original name of Mantas in Orlando, Death were among the more widely known, early pioneers of the death metal sound along with California's thrashers Possessed. In the late 80s, the band was both a part of and integral in defining the death metal scene which gained international recognition with the release of albums by a number of area acts.

Together with Kam Lee (Barney Lee), and Rick Rozz (Frederick DeLillo), Schuldiner started to compose songs that were released on several rehearsal tapes in 1984.These tapes, along with the Death by Metal demo, circulated through the tape trader world, quickly establishing the band's name. In 1984, Schuldiner dissolved Mantas and quickly started a new band under the name Death. Its members included the same Rick Rozz and Kam Lee. Another demo was released, called Reign of Terror.

In 1985, after the Infernal Death tape was recorded and released, Schuldiner fired Lee and Rozz in favour of Repulsion's bassist and guitarist, Scott Carlson and Matt Olivio, respectively. However, a drummer could not be found; consequently the band dissolved again. Schuldiner moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and recruited DRI drummer Eric Brecht, but he was not happy with this incarnation of Death and moved back to Florida without a band. There, in 1986, Schuldiner got an invitation from early Canadian thrash band Slaughter to play on their album, which he accepted, moving to Canada. This only lasted two weeks, however, as he found the situation not to his liking. He returned to Florida, then moved quickly to the San Francisco Bay Area again, where he joined with Chris Reifert. They recorded the Mutilation demo, which led to a deal with Combat Records, owned by Important Distribution (later becoming Relativity), that enabled them to record the first LP.

Scream Bloody Gore was released in 1987. Schuldiner briefly had a second guitar player, John Hand, but Hand did not appear on the album (though his photo did). By this time Schuldiner moved back to Florida, leaving Chris Reifert behind. There, Schuldiner teamed up with former bandmate Rick Rozz and two members of Rozz's band Massacre, Terry Butler and Bill Andrews.

Lamb of God

Lamb of God is an American heavy metal band from Richmond, Virginia, formed in 1994. Lamb of God consists of vocalist Randy Blythe, guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler, bassist John Campbell, and drummer Chris Adler. The band is considered to be a member of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal.

Since its formation, Lamb of God has released six studio albums, one live album, and three DVDs. The band's cumulative sales equal almost two million in the United States. In 2007 the band received a Grammy nomination for their 2006 album Sacrament. Lamb of God has toured with the Ozzfest twice and appeared on Slayer's The Unholy Alliance Tour in 2006. They have also played at many other major festivals around the world including Download Festival and Sonisphere Festival in the UK, Soundwave Festival and Gigantour. Recently, (as in 2008-2009) they have toured with Metallica (World Magnetic Tour). Lamb of God will be on the main stage of Rockstar Mayhem Festival in 2010.

In 1990, guitarist Mark Morton, drummer Chris Adler and bassist John Campbell started a band named Burn the Priest. The band members knew each other from the college they were all attending, Virginia Commonwealth University, in Richmond, Virginia.Morton left the band soon after its inception to receive his master's degree. Adler and Campbell replaced Morton with Abe Spear. For the next five years, the band practiced in Richmond and around Virginia. In 1995, the band released its self-titled first demo. After the demo, Burn the Priest recorded two split albums with Agents of Satan and ZED respectively.After the band's first three demos, Burn the Priest added vocalist Randall Blythe to its line up.


In 1997, Morton returned to the band after taking time out to participate in the National New Zealand sheep shearing competition. Two years later, the band released its first full-length self-titled album, Burn the Priest, through Legion Records. Mikey Bronsnan of Legion Records saved up $2,500 for the recording and then broke them in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania through DIY shows.The album was produced by Today Is the Day guitarist and vocalist Steve Austin. Spear left the band, leaving an open position for a guitarist. Chris Adler's brother, Willie Adler, became the band's second guitarist a year later, and a deal with Prosthetic Records was signed.After being banned from playing in certain places (some venue owners believing the band possessed an "evil" name),Burn the Priest changed their name to Lamb of God.

Lamb of God was originally an instrumental band called Burn the Priest, and included vocals after Randy Blythe joined. Since the success of the release of 2004's Ashes of the Wake the band has been considered a leader of the "New Wave of American Heavy Metal".

Guitarist Mark Morton performing at 2004's OzzfestBurn the Priest and early Lamb of God has been defined as a thrash metal, death metal and hardcore punk or grindcore hybrid with a strong element of power groove, which often connects Lamb of God with the influential metal band Pantera. Another connection between Pantera and Lamb of God is the fact that both were and are highly influential metal bands from the Southern United States, Texas and Virginia, respectively. Lamb of God could currently be helping to strengthen a young tradition of great southern metal that was first pioneered by Pantera.Burn the Priest and early Lamb of God include growling death metal vocals.The style has been considered to vary between several different genres, including hardcore punk, thrash metal, and even possessing sludge metal influences.

New American Gospel continues in a similar style as Burn the Priest, with drum-heavy production of alternate picking and double-kick drumming.Here, the band has been considered by Allmusic to be effectively bridging the 1990s' tendency towards technicality and early metal's focus on riff construction and plays a brand of heavy metal described as not unlike Meshuggah without some of their mathematical components.

2003's As the Palaces Burn saw the band's compositions focusing more on what some have called "memorable" riffs.On 2004's Ashes of the Wake, they continued the progression of As the Palaces Burn with more frequent guitar solos.

Sacrament, released in 2006, was described by critics as more technical, especially considering the vocal performance. Again, the band experimented with more melody and guitar solos; however, the band has also been often reproached by the critics for the similarity of the songs within their albums.This album is the primary representative of a growing development in the direction of the epic. Specifically 'Sacrament' and 'As the Palaces Burn' share many elements that could be considered musically 'darker' than opposing releases (extensive use of minor classical scales, for example).

Due to the variety of influences, stylistic elements and changes throughout the band's career the press has chosen several genres and terms to describe Lamb of God's music. Lamb of God has been labeled as a Groove Metal band. Campbell, on the Walk With Me in Hell DVD, says that Lamb of God is "a punk band that plays heavy metal", while Chris Adler refers to Sacrament as a speed metal album.

Cradle of Filth

Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band from Suffolk formed in 1991. The band's musical style evolved from death metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic black metal and other extreme metal styles, while their lyrical themes and imagery are heavily influenced by gothic literature, poetry, mythology and horror films.

The band has successfully broken free from its original niche by courting mainstream publicity (often to the chagrin of its early fanbase), and this increased accessibility has brought coverage by the likes of Kerrang! and MTV, frequent main stage appearances at major festivals such as Ozzfest, Download and even the mainstream Sziget Festival, and in turn a more "commercial" image. They have sometimes been perceived as Satanic by casual observers, although their outright lyrical references to Satanism are few and far between, and use of Satanic imagery has arguably always had more to do with the shock value than any seriously-held beliefs. According to a 2006 issue of Metal Hammer magazine, they are the most successful British heavy metal band since Iron Maiden

Cradle of Filth's first three years saw three demos and a rehearsal tape recorded amidst the sort of rapid line-up fluctuations that have continued ever since, the band having more than twenty musicians in its history. The band also recorded an unreleased album entitled Goetia prior to the third demo and their style shift. Goetia was set for release on Tombstone records, but all tracks were wiped when Tombstone went out of business and could not afford to buy the recordings from the studio.The band eventually signed to Cacophonous Records and their debut album, The Principle of Evil Made Flesh, was also Cacophonous's first release in 1994. A step up in terms of production from the rehearsal quality of most of their demos, the album was still nevertheless a sparse and embryonic version of what was to come, with lead singer Dani Filth's vocals in particular bearing little similarity to the style he was later to develop. The album was well-received however, and as recently as June 2006 found its way into Metal Hammer's list of the top ten black metal albums of the last twenty years.


Sarah Jezebel Deva joined the band in 1996.Cradle's relationship with Cacophonous soon soured; the band accusing the label of contractual and financial mismanagement. Acrimonious legal proceedings took up most of 1995,and the band finally signed to Music for Nations in 1996 after only one more contractually obligated Cacophonous recording: the EP Vempire or Dark Faerytales in Phallustein which, it has since been conceded, was hastily written as a Cacophonous escape-plan.Despite the circumstances of its release however, its handful of tracks are staples of the band's live sets to this day, and "Queen of Winter, Throned" was listed among twenty-five "essential extreme metal anthems" in a 2006 issue of Kerrang! magazine.The EP also marked Sarah Jezebel Deva's debut with the band, replacing Andrea Meyer, Cradle's first female vocalist and self-styled "satanic advisor".Deva has appeared on every subsequent Cradle release and tour, but has never been considered a full band member, having also performed with The Kovenant, Therion and Mortiis, and fronted her own Angtoria project along with Cradle's current bass player, Dave Pybus.

Dimmu Borgir

Dimmu Borgir started as a Satanic melodic black metal band in 1993. Formed by Shagrath, Silenoz, and Tjodalv, the band released an EP in 1994 entitled Inn i evighetens mørke ("Into the Darkness of Eternity" in English). This short EP sold out within weeks, and the band followed up with the 1994 full length album For all tid ('For all Time' in English) This album featured vocal contributions by Vicotnik of Ved Buens Ende and Dødheimsgard and Aldrahn of Dødheimsgard and Zyklon-B. The initial lineup consisted of Shagrath playing drums with Tjodalv on guitar and Silenoz contributing backing vocals. This line-up changed before the release of Stormblåst (translates to "Storm Blown") on Cacophonous Records in 1996. Stormblåst received high praise from many melodic black metal fans, and is often regarded as a highlight of the band's career[citation needed]. It is also the last album which features all lyrics written and sung in Norwegian.

After Stormblåst, Keyboardist Stian Aarstad left the band due to his obligation to serve in the Norwegian army, thus being unable to participate in the 1996 recording of Devil's Path. That period was also marked by the departure of bassist Brynjard Tristan and the arrival of Nagash. Stian Aarstad returned for the recording of 1997's Enthrone Darkness Triumphant. While on tour to support the album, he had trouble attending rehearsals and being on tour, and was subsequently fired[citation needed]. Enthrone Darkness Triumphant was a huge success for the band, and was their first release signed to Nuclear Blast, a German record label. The album was recorded in the Abyss Studios, owned by Hypocrisy's frontman Peter Tägtgren
Dimmu Borgir is scheduled to release their ninth studio album in 2010.Silenoz explained that the growing periods of time between albums was because the band had stopped writing music while touring, which affected the quality of the music. He said the new album will have an "eerie and haunting feel to it," further describing the material as "epic," "primal," atmospheric and ambient.

A promotional image released with the statement showed Shagrath returning to the keyboards.

In April 2010, Galder gave an interview to Kerrang! When asked about possible new members of the band, he stated: "We're pretty close with like all of the musicians in the heavy metal scene. I'd personally like a real fast drummer like Emilio Márquez (Sadistic Intent) or Tim Yeung (Divine Heresy) but we'll have to see. And with regards to bass, anyone who really wants the job!"

Children of Bodom

Children of Bodom is a heavy metal band from Espoo, Finland, formed in 1993. The band consists of guitarist and vocalist Alexi Laiho (vocals, lead guitar), Roope Latvala (rhythm guitar), Janne Wirman (keyboards), Henkka Seppälä (bass), and Jaska Raatikainen (drums). In total they have released six studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, and one DVD.

The band's third studio album, Follow the Reaper, was their first album to receive a Gold certification in Finland, and since then, all six of the band's studio albums have reached the same status. In Finland, Children of Bodom has released three consecutive albums that debuted at number one on Finnish album charts,and has also seen chart positions on the United States Billboard 200.

The band has incorporated many different musical styles, leading critics and fans to label them as melodic death metal,black metal,thrash metal,and progressive metal.

Children of Bodom was formed in 1993 by guitarist Alexi "Wildchild" Laiho and drummer Jaska Raatikainen under the name of IneartheD. Both musicians had known each other since early childhood and had shared an interest in heavy metal, especially Death Metal groups, such as Entombed, and Obituary. Bassist Samuli Miettinen completed the initial line-up of the band. IneartheD recorded its first demo, Implosion of Heaven, during August of the same year.

Samuli was the main composer of the band's lyrics for the two years that he took part in IneartheD, but his family moved to the United States in 1995, making it impossible for him to remain in the band. His last contribution to IneartheD were the lyrics of the songs from their second demo, Ubiquitous Absence of Remission which was first time they worked with producer Anssi Kippo at Astia-studios (Lappeenranta, Finland). In this demo, keyboards were incorporated into the band's songs for the first time. In order to achieve this, both Laiho and Raatikainen played the keyboards separately, and subsequently mixed the recorded track with the other instruments. Laiho, who had previously only composed the melodies of the songs, assumed the role of the band's lyricist.

At the time, Raatikainen played French horn in a local big band, and during a rehearsal he met Alexander Kuoppala, a trumpet player and also a proficient guitarist. Shortly after the recording of their second demo, Kuoppala was invited to join IneartheD as a rhythm guitarist.

The bassist chosen to replace Samuli was Henkka "Blacksmith" Seppälä, whom Laiho and Raatikainen had previously known from school. Apart from playing the bass, Seppälä also often doubles as the band's backing vocalist. Also, the band recruited a musician to specialize on keyboards, whose name was Jani Pirisjoki. Both joined IneartheD in early 1996.

With this new line-up, IneartheD proceeded to record their third demo, entitled Shining. This demo did not impress record labels any more than the previous ones had, and none took interest in the band.[9] Despite their efforts, their music got little exposure and managed only to play at local events. As a last resort, the band decided to record an independent, self-funded album. Considering that none of the musicians had much money to begin with, it was an audacious move.

Laiho wanted to make use of the keyboards more effectively, though Pirisjoki was not attending rehearsals; thus, he was fired and replaced by a friend of Raatikainen's, a jazz pianist named Janne "Warman" Wirman.

Wirman was the component which was previously missing from IneartheD. His presence allowed the band to assume the style which would later characterize Children of Bodom. With Wirman, the band successfully recorded their first album in 1997. Their debut, Something Wild, was supposed to be released by a small Belgian label, Shiver records, but second vocalist Sami Tenetz (from Thy Serpent) acquired a copy of their album through the hands of Kuoppala, both worked for the same company at the time. Shortly after IneartheD signed this contract, Spinefarm Records' boss immediately became interested in signing them for a country-wide release.[citation needed] The latter deal was much more attractive to the band, since the Belgian label was offering them close to no help, to the point where they would have to distribute and sell the album themselves.

The band was required to create a new name to sign up to Spinefarm Records. The contract with Shiver records had already been signed under the name of IneartheD. The answer to that problem came as, members looked for good names in their local phone book. When they stumbled upon Lake Bodom, they realized that it was a name with impact and one which had an interesting story behind it. A long list of possible names involving the word Bodom was then made, and they settled with Children of Bodom. The band's name is derived from the Lake Bodom murders.

Slipknot

In late 1998, Slipknot entered the recording studio to work on their debut album.In the early new year, guitarist Brainard decided to leave the band due to personal reasons.His replacement, Jim Root, left the band with the line-up they retain.Recording finished in early 1999, with "Me Inside" and "Purity",and the band attended the Ozzfest which began in March.On June 29, 1999, the band released their eponymous album Slipknot.Regarding the album, Rick Anderson of Allmusic wrote "You thought Limp Bizkit was heavy? They're The Osmonds. Slipknot is something else entirely."The band performed in the Livin La Vida Loco tour in support of Slipknot.

Slipknot included variations of previously released songs, including "(sic)"; a version of the previous song "Slipknot". These versions were faster than their previous recordings and this shift in intensity was welcomed by old fans.In the same year, Slipknot released their first home video Welcome to Our Neighborhood (which was later released on DVD in 2003).In early 2000, Slipknot was certified platinum, a first for an album released by Roadrunner Records.In July 2001, Q named Slipknot as one of the "50 Heaviest Albums of All Time".The band has stated that their primary influences include Kiss, Black Sabbath, Slayer, Judas Priest, Korn, White Zombie, Led Zeppelin and Beastie Boys.Death metal, black metal and heavy metal have been mentioned as a key influence on the band's musical direction alongside nu metal, the category the band is generally listed as.They have also stated that they are influenced by industrial bands like Head of David, Godflesh and Skinny Puppy as well as Neurosis and jungle music like Roni Size.

Slipknot are seen as pioneers of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. They can be compared with groups such as Pantera, Machine Head, Biohazard, Life of Agony, and Prong and are known for often chaotic and energetic live shows.The extreme performance style provided by their large line-up featuring a typical heavily down-tuned guitar set-up (lead, rhythm, and bass guitars), two percussionists in addition to the primary drummer, and electronics (samplers and turntables).Robert Cherry of Rolling Stone compared the band's sound to "a threshing machine devouring a military drum corps".

Their early work hosted a diverse range of vocal styles, ranging from growled vocals, rapping and occasional melodic.In more recent work, this vocal style remains present, but now includes more melodic singing as well as less rapping.The lyrics generally follow a very aggressive tone and feature themes such as darkness, nihilism, anger, disaffection, love, misanthropy and psychosis.Rick Anderson of Allmusic regards the group's lyrics as "not generally quotable on a family website".There has been controversy surrounding Slipknot's lyrics, including a case in which a pair of young killers blamed the lyrics from the song "Disasterpiece" for their vicious crime and a case in 2006 in which lyrics from the song "Surfacing" were found at the site of a grave robbing.

Deicide

Deicide was formed in Tampa, Florida on July 21, 1987, after guitarist Brian Hoffman called Glen Benton, replying to an advertisement the latter had placed in a local music magazine. They are influenced by bands such as Destruction, Sodom, Venom, Bathory, Possessed, Death and Slayer. The band consisted of Benton (bass/vocals), Hoffman, Hoffman's brother Eric (guitars) and Steve Asheim (drums).Within a month, they had recorded crude Feasting the Beast 8-track demo in Benton's garage and had started playing the occasional gig in the Tampa area.In 1989, Amon recorded their second demo, Sacrificial, at Morrisound with producer Scott Burns.

After a number of lineup changes, Benton assumed the additional role of vocals and the band was renamed Carnage

Malevolent Creation guitarist Phil Fasciana recalls an early Carnage show: "It was like Slayer intensified a thousand times." "I guess Carnage had hollowed out a mannequin blood and guts from a butcher shop... and then they threw the thing on the floor. Morbid Angel had these pit bulls with them back then and they were just tearing the meat up. It was a really weird scene, man. There was blood and meat everywhere."
Shortly after, the guitar roles were then filled by ex-Cannibal Corpse guitarist Jack Owen, and Vital Remains guitarist Dave Suzuki. Following the tour, Suzuki was replaced by Ralph Santolla, formerly of Death, Iced Earth and Sebastian Bach. Santolla stated he is a Catholic and this has received a small amount of shock and ridicule from some metal fans. In spite of this, Deicide's eighth studio album The Stench of Redemption album received rave reviews, and is one of their biggest sellers yet.[citation needed]

On May 24, 2007, it was announced Ralph Santolla had left Deicide.Subsequently, he joined Florida's Obituary and appears on their album Xecutioner's Return as well as the tour. Then on July 20, 2007 guitarist Jack Owen (ex-Cannibal Corpse) announced that Deicide is "on hiatus" and he has joined Ohio based death/thrash combo Estuary for touring purposes.The band did a Balkan tour, dubbed "Balkans AssassiNation Tour", in October 2007 alongside Krisiun, Incantation and Inactive Messiah.

By November 2007 Deicide began work on its ninth studio album at Florida's Morrisound Studios. Entitled Till Death Do Us Part, the follow-up to 2006's The Stench of Redemption promised to be Deicide's "most savage and aggressive [offering] to date," according to a press release. Drummer Steve Asheim recorded drum tracks and Benton started recording vocals in December.By April 2008 two songs off this album were posted online.It was finally released on April 28, 2008.

On January 6, 2009, Deicide posted a blog on their official Myspace page saying they had signed a worldwide record deal with Century Media, with Ralph Santolla returning to the band for a European tour. They were said to be working on material for a summer 2010 release.Guitarist Kevin Quirion of Order of Ennead joined the band in the summer of 2009.In early 2009 they toured with Vital Remains and Order of Ennead.

Cannibal Corpse

Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band from Buffalo, New York, formed in 1988. The band has released eleven studio albums, one boxed set, and one live album. Although Cannibal Corpse has had little radio or television exposure, a cult following began to build behind the group with albums such as 1991's Butchered at Birth and 1992's Tomb of the Mutilated. Cannibal Corpse reached over one-million in record sales worldwide in 2003,including 558,929 in the United States, making them the top-selling death metal band of all time in the US, and second worldwide.

The members of Cannibal Corpse were originally inspired by thrash metal bands like Slayer, Kreator, and Sodom, as well as other death metal bands like Morbid Angel and Death.The band's lyrics and its album art (most often done by Vincent Locke),which draw heavily on horror fiction and horror films, are highly controversial. At different times, several countries have banned Cannibal Corpse from performing within their borders, or have banned the sale and display of original Cannibal Corpse album covers.
Cannibal Corpse was made up of members from three earlier Buffalo-area death metal bands, Beyond Death (Webster, Owen), Leviathan (Barnes), and Tirant Sin (Barnes, Rusay, Mazurkiewicz). The band played their first show at Buffalo's River Rock Cafe in April 1989, shortly after recording a five-song demo tape, Cannibal Corpse. Within a year of that first gig, the band was signed to Metal Blade Records, apparently after the label had heard their demo that was sent in by the manager of the record store at which Chris Barnes was working,and their full-length debut album, Eaten Back to Life, was released in August 1990.

The band has had many line-up changes over the years. In 1993, founding member and guitarist Bob Rusay was dismissed from the group (after which he became a golf instructor) and was ultimately replaced by Malevolent Creation guitarist Rob Barrett. In 1995, singer Chris Barnes was dismissed and was replaced by Monstrosity singer George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher. Barnes went on to perform with the band Six Feet Under, and later Torture Killer.

In 1997, Barrett, who had originally replaced Rusay on guitar, left Cannibal Corpse to rejoin his previous bands Malevolent Creation and Solstice. After Barrett left, he was replaced by guitarist Pat O’Brien, who first appeared on Cannibal Corpse's 1998 release Gallery of Suicide. Founding member and guitarist Jack Owen left Cannibal Corpse in 2004 to spend more time on his second band, Adrift. He joined Deicide in late 2005. Jeremy Turner of Origin briefly replaced him as second guitarist on 2004's Tour of The Wretched Spawn. Barrett rejoined the band in 2005 and was first featured on the album Kill, released in March 2006.

Writing for the next album began in November 2007, as presaged in an interview with bassist Alex Webster.Evisceration Plague, Cannibal Corpse's eleventh studio album was released February 3, 2009,to a highly positive response from fans. The band will tour in support of the album in the spring of 2009

Opeth

Opeth is a Swedish Progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. While the band has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force since joining promptly after its inception.

While firmly rooted in Scandinavian death metal, Opeth has consistently incorporated influence by progressive music, folk, blues rock and jazz into their usually-lengthy compositions. Many compositions include acoustic guitar interludes and strong dynamic shifts, as well as both growling and clean vocals. Though they rarely toured in support of their first four albums, Opeth conducted their first world tour after the 2001 release of Blackwater Park.

Opeth has released nine studio albums, two live albums, two box sets, and two DVDs. The band released its debut album Orchid in 1995. Although their eighth studio album Ghost Reveries was quite popular in the United States, Opeth did not experience American commercial success until the 2008 release of their ninth studio album, Watershed, which peaked at number twenty-three on the Billboard 200, and topped the Finnish albums chart in its first week of release.
Opeth was formed as a death metal band in the autumn of 1990 in Stockholm, Sweden by vocalist David Isberg.Isberg asked former Eruption band member Mikael Åkerfeldt to join Opeth as a bassist. When Åkerfeldt showed up to practice the day after Isberg invited him, it became clear that Isberg had not told the band members, including the band's current bassist, that Åkerfeldt would be joining. An ensuing argument led to all members but Isberg and Åkerfeldt leaving to form a new project.The band name was derived from the word "Opet," taken from the Wilbur Smith novel The Sunbird.In this novel, Opet is the name of a fictional Phoenician city in South Africa whose name is translated as "City of the Moon" in the book; the name might be a reference to Opet Festival or the Egyptian goddess Taweret, also known as Opet.[citation needed]

Isberg and Åkerfeldt recruited drummer Anders Nordin, bassist Nick Döring, and guitarist Andreas Dimeo. Unsatisfied with Opeth's slow progress, Döring and Dimeo left the band after their first performance,and were replaced by guitarist Kim Pettersson and bassist Johan DeFarfalla. After the next show, DeFarfalla left Opeth to spend time with his girlfriend in Germany, and was replaced by Åkerfeldt's friend, bassist Peter Lindgren. Lead guitarist Pettersson left following the band's next performance, and Lindgren switched to guitar. After losing interest in the band, Isberg quit in 1992 because of creative differences.

With three members in the band, Åkerfeldt took over vocal duties and the trio spent the next year writing and rehearsing new material. The group began to rely less on the blast beats and aggression typical of death metal, and incorporated acoustic guitars and guitar harmonies into their music; developing the core sound of Opeth. Stefan Guteklint joined on bass in 1993, but was dismissed by the band after signing its first record deal with Candlelight records in 1994. The band initially employed former member DeFarfalla as a session bassist for the recording, and he went on to join on a full-time basis following the release of Opeth's debut album in 1995.

Morbid Angel

Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida. They, along with Death, Possessed, Obituary, Massacre, Deicide, Death, Cannibal Corpse, and a handful of others were crucial in the development of the death metal genre and its standards, separating it from thrash metal completely. UK music magazine Terrorizer ranked two Morbid Angel albums in its "Top 40 Greatest Death Metal Albums," with their 1989 debut Altars of Madness appearing at number 1. Decibel Magazine also rated guitarist Trey Azagthoth as the number 1 "Death Metal Guitarist Ever". The band's songs are complex in arrangement, owing to the considerable technical skills of both Azagthoth and drummer Pete Sandoval (who also played in the grindcore/death metal band Terrorizer). According to Nielsen SoundScan, Morbid Angel is the third best-selling death metal band in the United States with sales over 445,000[1] in the United States alone, and releasing the best-selling death metal album in the United States of all time, Covenant, with sales over 127,000.
Current line-up

Morbid Angel, 2008Trey Azagthoth – guitar, guitar synthesizer, keyboards, backing vocals (1983–present)
Pete Sandoval – drums, percussion (1988–present)
David Vincent – bass guitar, vocals (1986–1996, 2004–present)
Destructhor – guitar (2008–present)
[edit] Former members
Bass guitar
Dallas Ward – bass guitar, vocals (1983–1985)
John Ortega – bass guitar (1985–1986)
Sterling Von Scarborough – bass guitar (1986)
Drums
Mike Browning – drums, percussion, vocals (1983–1986)
Wayne Hartsell – drums (1986–1988)
Guitar
Richard Brunelle – guitar (1985–1992, 1994, 1998)
Gino Marino – guitar (1992–1993)
Erik Rutan – guitar, keyboards (1993–1996, 1999–2002, 2006)
Tony Norman – guitar (2003–2006)
Vocals
Kenny Bamber – vocals (1985)
Michael Manson – vocals (1986)
Steve Tucker – vocals, bass guitar (1997–2001, 2003–2004)
Jared Anderson – vocals, bass guitar (2001–2002)

Napalm Death

Napalm Death were formed in the village of Meriden near Coventry, in the United Kingdom, in May 1981 by Nic Bullen and Miles Ratledge while the duo were still in their early teenage years. The duo had been playing in amateur bands since 1980 as an extension of their fanzine writing, and went through a number of names (including "Civil Defence", "The Mess", "Evasion" and "Undead Hatred") before choosing Napalm Death in mid 1981.

The band were initially inspired by the early wave of punk bands, particularly the Anarcho-punk movement (a sub-genre of punk music focused on anarchist politics) and groups within that genre such as Crass.
The first stable line-up of the group consisted of Nicholas Bullen on vocals and bass, Simon Oppenheimer on guitar, and Miles Ratledge on drums, and lasted from December 1981 to January 1982. Graham Robertson joined on bass in January 1982. Simon Oppenheimer left the group in August 1982 and was replaced by Darryl Fedeski who left the group in October 1982: at this point, Graham Robertson began to play guitar and Finbarr Quinn (ex- Curfew) joined on bass and backing vocals.
The group played concerts throughout 1982 (playing their first concert on July 25, 1982 at Atherstone Miners Club) and 1983 (sharing billing with Anarcho-punk groups such as Amebix, The Apostles and Antisect), and made 4 demo recordings in 1982 and 1983, one of which contributed their first released recording to the Bullshit Detector Volume 3 compilation released by Crass Records in 1984.
The band entered a period of hiatus from the end of 1983 onwards, playing only one concert in 1984 (a benefit for striking mine workers) with additional vocalist Marian Williams (ex-Relevant POS, and sister of the drummer of the group Human Cabbages from Coventry, UK). During this period, Nic Bullen met Justin Broadrick, a guitarist from Birmingham with whom he shared an interest in the music of bands such as Killing Joke, Throbbing Gristle, Crass, Amebix, Swans, and the developing Power Electronics scene. Bullen joined Broadrick's Final project for a period in 1983.

In July 1985, Napalm Death briefly reformed in order to appear at a concert at the Mermaid in Birmingham which was also notable as the last concert by Final. The group consisted of a 4-piece line-up of Miles Ratledge - drums, Bullen - vocals, bass and guitar, Graham Robertson - guitar and bass, and Damien Errington - guitar.
After this concert, Miles Ratledge and Bullen asked Broadrick to join Napalm Death as guitarist, with Bullen as vocalist and bassplayer. The band began to develop a musical style which blended elements of Post-punk (particularly Killing Joke and Amebix), heavy Punk in the vein of Discharge, and Thrash metal (with particular reference to Possessed and Celtic Frost).

The group played their first concert as a trio on 31 August 1985 (playing 2 concerts on the same day: Telford with Chumbawamba and Blyth Power, and Birmingham with We've Got a Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It), and began to play regularly in the Birmingham area (particularly at The Mermaid public house in the Sparkhill area of Birmingham) with a wide range of musicians including Icons of Filth, Concrete Sox, The Varukers, Decadence Within, and The Groundhogs.[citation needed]

In September 1985, Peter Shaw (ex-Autism) joined on bass. The 4-piece line-up recorded Hatred Surge (the band's 5th demo recording) on 23 October 1985 which the band made available at their concerts and by mail.

Following the recording of the demo, Bullen and Broadrick wished to extend their exploration of a more extreme musical style which created a split in the group with Ratledge: as a result, the group splintered and Mick Harris(a local fan) was asked to join as drummer in December 1985.

The trio - Bullen on vocals and bass, Broadrick on guitar and Harris on drums - made their first performance on 15 December 1985 and went on to play many concerts in 1986, predominantly in the Birmingham area, with musicians such as Amebix, Antisect, Chaos UK, Varukers, Disorder and Dirge.

The group recorded a 6th demo, From Enslavement to Obliteration, on 15 March 1986, which the group made available at their concerts and through mail, before making a 7th recording later that year, Scum, which was provisionally intended to form part of a split LP with the English hardcore band Atavistic on Manic Ears records. This recording later became the first side of the band's debut album Scum in 1987.

cover for the Hatred Surge demo recording from 1985. From left-right: Justin Broadrick, Nicholas Bullen, Mick HarrisThe band then faced a number of line-up changes. Nic Bullen was becoming frustrated with the musical direction of the group, and began to lose interest as a whole: as a result, Jim Whiteley was asked to join as bass player. The band played a number of concerts as a four-piece before Justin Broadrick left the group to play the drums for local band Head of David. The group attempted to find a new guitarist by asking Shane Embury (ex-Unseen Terror and a fan of the group) to join and giving a trial period to Frank Healy (ex-Annihilator, later of Cerebral Fix and Sacrilege). After Broadrick's departure, Nic Bullen's dissatisfaction with the musical direction of the group led him to leave the group in December 1986 (in order to focus on his studies in English Literature and Philosophy at university).

Manowar

Manowar is a heavy metal band from Auburn, New York, United States of America, formed in 1980. They are known for writing lyrics with an emphasis on the heavy metal genre itself, fantasy (particularly sword and sorcery) and mythological topics (particularly Norse mythology). Manowar's sound is loud and bombastic; in an interview for MTV in February 2007, bassist Joey DeMaio lamented that "these days, there's a real lack of big, epic metal that is drenched with crushing guitars and choirs and orchestras... so it's nice to be one of the few bands that's actually doing that."In 1984 the band was included in the Guinness Book of World Records for delivering the loudest performance, a record which they have since broken on 2 occasions. They also hold the world record for the longest heavy metal concert after playing for 5 hours and 1 minute in Bulgaria in 2008.
Although the band has never been a mainstream commercial success in the United States, they maintain a strong cult following there. In contrast, they are extremely popular in the heavy metal scene in Europe, Japan, Australia and South America. Dedicated fans are known and referred to by the band as "Manowarriors" or "Immortals", and collectively their fans are known as the "Army of Immortals".

Dream Theater

Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts, before they dropped out to support the band. Though a number of lineup changes followed, the three original members remain today along with James LaBrie and Jordan Rudess.

Dream Theater has become a successful progressive metal band. Although the band has had one successful hit ("Pull Me Under" in 1992, which received extensive MTV rotation), they have remained relatively low mainstream.

The band is well known for the technical proficiency of its instrumentalists, who have won many awards from music instruction magazines. Dream Theater's members have collaborated with many other notable musicians. Guitarist John Petrucci has been named as the third player on the G3 tour six times, more than any other invited guitarist, following in the footsteps of Eric Johnson and Robert Fripp. Drummer Mike Portnoy has won 23 awards from Modern Drummer Magazine and is also the second youngest person (at the age of 37) to be inducted into the Rock Drummer Hall of Fame.

The band's highest selling album is the gold selling Images and Words (1992), which reached #61 on the Billboard 200 charts.[1] Both the 1994 release Awake and their 2002 release Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence also entered the charts at #32 and #46 respectively and received mostly positive reviews. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence also led to Dream Theater becoming the initial band reviewed in the Music Section of Entertainment Weekly during its opening week of release, despite the magazine generally preferring more mainstream music. In 2007, Systematic Chaos entered US Billboard 200 at #19.[1] Dream Theater has sold over two million albums in the U.S.,[2] and over 8 million records worldwide.[citation needed] The band's tenth studio album, Black Clouds & Silver Linings, was released on June 23, 2009. It entered the US Billboard 200 at #6 and Eurochart Hot 100 at #1, marking their highest entry on either chart.

Sepultura

Sepultura was formed in 1984 in Belo Horizonte, the capital city of Minas Gerais, Brazil.At the core of the band were brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, the impoverished sons of model Vânia and Graciliano, a well-to-do Italian diplomat whose fatal heart attack left his family in financial dire straits.Graciliano's death deeply affected his sons, providing them the impetus to start a band.They chose "Sepultura" as the group's name after Max Cavalera was translating the lyrics of the Motörhead song "Dancing on Your Grave".

The brothers' early likes included popular heavy metal artists of the early 1980s, such as Van Halen, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, AC/DC, Judas Priest and Ozzy Osbourne.Their listening habits changed dramatically after being introduced to Venom. As Igor Cavalera put it,
I remember the first time I listened to Venom, it was on a friend's borrowed tape. It was similar to Motörhead, only a lot heavier. I remember someone saying: it's the devil's Motörhead! After we got acquainted with Venom, we stopped listening to Iron Maiden and all that lighter stuff.

From then on the Cavaleras rapidly started listening to bands such as Kreator, Sodom, Metallica, Exodus and Exciter.
After constant band member changes, Sepultura established a temporary line-up of Max on electric guitar, Igor on drums, vocalist Wagner Lamounier, and bassist Paulo Jr..Lamounier exited the band in March 1985 after disagreements with the band, and moved on to become the frontman of the Brazilian black metal pioneering band Sarcófago. After his departure, Max took over the vocal duties. Jairo Guedes was the invited to join the band as their lead guitarist.

After about a year of performing, Sepultura signed to Cogumelo Records in 1985. Later that year, they released Bestial Devastation, a shared EP with fellow Brazilian band Overdose. In 1986, the band released their debut full-length album, Morbid Visions, which is widely considered as one of the first pure death metal albums.[citation needed] It was initially released in the United States on New Renaissance Records, a record label owned by Ann Boleyn.[citation needed]

New Renaissance Records was heavily criticized by the media for signing and promoting Sepultura. However, their song "Troops of Doom" gained them higher airplay.[citation needed]

Pantera

Pantera were formed in 1981, with the original line-up consisting of drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, his younger brother, lead guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott (then known as "Diamond Darrell"), rhythm guitarist Terry Glaze, bassist Tommy Bradford, and vocalist Donnie Hart.At its conception, the members of Pantera were in 11th grade.They played Kiss and Van Halen covers as well as original material in the glam metal vein in Texas nightclubs. Along with adopting the glam metal sound, the band members frequently performed in spandex and teased-up hair, a common appearance in the glam metal scene.

In 1982, Hart left the band and Glaze became the group's vocalist, leaving Darrell as the sole guitarist. Later that year Bradford also departed and was replaced by Rex Robert Brown (then known as "Rexx Rocker"). Pantera became an underground favorite, though its regional tours in this era never took them past Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. The band began supporting fellow heavy metal acts such as Stryper, Dokken, and Quiet Riot, who in turn promoted Pantera's debut, Metal Magic. Metal Magic was released on the band's record label with the same name in 1983 and produced by the Abbott brothers' father, Jerry Abbott (referred to as "The Eldn"), at Pantego Studios.Shortly after Power Metal was released, "Diamond Darrell," as he was then known, auditioned for Megadeth's vacant guitarist slot, and was invited to join the band. Darrell insisted his brother, bandmate Vinnie Paul, be included, but because Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine had already hired a drummer, Nick Menza, Darrell declined and Mustaine instead decided on Marty Friedman. The Abbott brothers refocused their attention on Pantera, and in 1989 they were given their first shot at commercial success.
The following year, Pantera released its second album, Projects in the Jungle. Though still very much a glam metal album, the band members crafted songs that had less overbearing melodic influences than songs from Metal Magic. Another change was Terry Glaze's name, as he was henceforth credited as "Terrence Lee." In addition, a music video for the album's lead track, "All Over Tonight," was eventually created. Projects in the Jungle was also released on the independent Metal Magic Records label and produced by Jerry Abbott.

In 1985, Pantera again released a full-length album with Metal Magic Records, entitled I Am the Night. As with Projects in the Jungle, this album saw Pantera's sound becoming heavier (though still rooted in glam metal), and the heavy metal press took more notice of the band. Because of poor distribution, I Am the Night was a costly album to many fans. Around 25,000 copies of I Am the Night were sold. Pantera's second music video was produced for the track "Hot and Heavy."

Black sabbath

Following the breakup of their previous band Mythology in 1968, guitarist Tony Tommi and drummer Bill Ward sought to form a heavy blues band in Aston, Birmingham.The two enlisted bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, who had played together in a band called Rare Breed, Osbourne having placed an advertisement in a local music shop: "Ozzy Zig Needs Gig- has own PA". The new group was initially named The Polka Talk Blues Band (after a cheap brand of talcum powder Osbourne saw in his mother's bathroom)and also featured slide guitarist Jimmy Phillips and saxophonist Alan "Aker" Clarke.
After shortening the name to Polka Tulk, the band changed their name to Earth (which Osbourne hated)and continued as a four-piece without Phillips and Clarke.While the band was performing under the Earth title.Black Sabbath were signed to Philip's Records in December 1969, and released their first single,"Evil Woman" through Philip s subsidiary Fontana Records in January 1970. Later releases were handled by Philip's' newly formed progressive rock label, Vertigo Records. Although the single failed to chart, the band were afforded two days of studio time in late January to record their debut album with producer Rodger Bain. Iommi recalls recording live: "We thought 'We have two days to do it and one of the days is mixing.' So we played live. Ozzy was singing at the same time, we just put him in a separate booth and off we went. We never had a second run of most of the stuff.In February 1971, Black Sabbath returned to the studio to begin work on their third album. Following the chart success of Paranoid, the band were afforded more studio time, along with a "briefcase full of cash" to buy drugs."We were getting into coke, big-time"Ward explained. "Uppers, downers, Quaaludes, whatever you like. It got to the stage where you come up with ideas and forget them, because you were just so out of it.
Production completed in April 1971, and in July the band released Master of Reality, just six months after the release of Paranoid. The album reached the top ten in both the US and UK, and was certified gold in less than two months,eventually receiving platinum certification in the 1980s and Double Platinum in the early 21st century.Master of Reality contained Black Sabbath's first acoustic songs, alongside fan favorites such as "Children of the Grave" and "Sweet Leaf".Critical response of the era was again unfavorable, with Lester Bangs of Rolling Stone dismissing Master of Reality as "naïve, simplistic, repetitive, absolute doggerel", although the very same magazine would later place the album at number 298 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, compiled in 2003.