Metallica is the self-titled fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica. Released on August 12, 1991 by Elektra Records, it received widespread critical acclaim and became the band's best-selling album. Metallica produced five singles that are considered to be among the band's best-known songs, which include "Enter Sandman", "The Unforgiven", "Nothing Else Matters", "Wherever I May Roam", and "Sad but True". A sixth song, "Don't Tread on Me", was also issued to rock radio shortly after the album's release, but the song did not receive a commercial single release. The album marked a change in the band's sound from the thrash metal style of the previous four albums to a slower and heavier one rooted in heavy metal. Metallica promoted the album with a series of tours. In 2003, the album was ranked number 255 on Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums of all time.
Nightwish is a symphonic metal band from Kitee, Finland. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka Nevalainen, and then bassist Sami Vänskä after the release of their debut album, Angels Fall First (1997). In 2001, Vänskä was replaced by Marco Hietala, who also took over the male vocalist role previously filled by Holopainen or guest singers.
Iowa is the second studio album by the American heavy metal band Slipknot. Released by Roadrunner Records on August 28, 2001, it was produced by Ross Robinson and Slipknot. The title derives from the band's home state, Iowa, which members have stated is one of their greatest sources of inspiration. With much anticipation for the album following the success of their 1999 self-titled debut, pressures on the band were high. Their relationships with each other suffered and this was later described as the darkest time of their career. It was also the first time that Jim Root had been significantly involved in a Slipknot album, the guitarist having featured on only two songs from their debut, due to his joining very late in the recording of that release. Despite troubles within the band and with Iowa's development, Slipknot promoted it for almost a year.
...And Justice for All is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on August 25, 1988, through Elektra Records. It is the first Metallica studio album to feature bassist Jason Newsted after the death of Cliff Burton in 1986.
Back in Black is the seventh studio album by Australian rock band AC/DC. It was released on 25 July 1980 by Albert Productions and Atlantic Records. It is the band's first album to feature vocalist Brian Johnson, following the death of previous vocalist Bon Scott.
Nuclear Blast is an independent record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The record label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label moved on to releasing albums by melodic death metal, grindcore, industrial metal, power metal and black metal bands, as well as tribute albums. It also distributes and promotes two post-hardcore/metalcore labels, SharpTone Records, focused on American scene, and Arising Empire, focused more on European bands such as Novelists, Imminence, Cold Snap and While She Sleeps.
Amorphis is a Finnish heavy metal band founded by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other genres, including progressive metal, and folk metal. They frequently use the Kalevala, the epic poem of Finland, as a source for their lyrics.
Sonata Arctica is a Finnish power metal band from the town of Kemi, Finland. Created as a hard rock band named Tricky Beans, they later changed to Tricky Means and finally to Sonata Arctica, when they shifted to power metal. The current line-up consists of singer, keyboardist and songwriter Tony Kakko, guitarist Elias Viljanen, bass guitarist Pasi Kauppinen, keyboardist and keytarist Henrik Klingenberg, and drummer Tommy Portimo. All the musicians of the band's history except Portimo also acted as backing vocalists.
Sinergy was a Finnish metal band started in 1997 by American musician Kimberly Goss. The idea for a "balls-out female-fronted metal band" was first formed when Kimberly Goss of Dimmu Borgir met Jesper Strömblad of In Flames whilst on tour in 1997.
Louder Than Love is the second studio album and major-label debut by American rock band Soundgarden. It was released on September 5, 1989, by A&M Records. After touring in support of their debut album, Ultramega OK (1988), Soundgarden left SST, signed with A&M and began work on its first album for a major label. The songs on the album featured a metal-leaning grunge sound with some songs featuring unusual or unorthodox time signatures.
Waltari is a band from Finland, known for its diversity and combination of music styles, frequently combining alternative metal, progressive metal, death metal, hard rock, heavy metal, hip hop, industrial, pop, punk, symphonic metal, techno and thrash metal.
The 69 Eyes are a multi-platinum-selling Finnish gothic rock band. They are currently signed to EMI Finland. The band's albums are now distributed worldwide. The End Records acts as the band's official North American distributor, as Nuclear Blast Records provides distribution in Europe. Australia will be handled by AmpHead Music. All Asian and Latin American releases are handled by EMI affiliates.
Roope Juhani Latvala is a Finnish guitarist, best known as the former rhythm guitarist for the band Children of Bodom from 2003 to 2015 and co-lead guitarist of Sinergy. He was also one of the founding members of Stone, which was one of the first notable bands in the history of Finnish heavy metal.
Anvil are a Canadian heavy metal band from Toronto, Ontario, formed in 1978. The band consists of Steve "Lips" Kudlow, Robb Reiner (drums), Matt Varley (guitar) and Chris Robertson (bass). As of early 2019, the band has released seventeen studio albums, and has been cited as having influenced many notable heavy metal groups, including Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax and Metallica.
Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980 - 1989 is a best of release by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, containing a selection of songs originally recorded for their first eight albums.
Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of heavy metal and/or doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The name references cannabis consumption. The term desert rock is often used interchangeably with the term "stoner rock" to describe this genre; however, not all stoner rock bands would fall under the descriptor of "desert rock". Stoner rock is typically slow-to-mid tempo and features a heavily distorted, groove-laden bass-heavy sound, melodic vocals, and "retro" production. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Monster Magnet and the California bands Fu Manchu, Kyuss and Sleep.
Stone is the debut album from Finnish thrash metal band Stone. It was originally released in 1988, and remastered and re-issued in 2003. It was re-released again in 2009, bundled with No Anaesthesia! in a 2 CD set. Several singles were released from the album.
A stone is a small piece of rock.
Villains is the seventh studio album by American rock band Queens of the Stone Age, released on August 25, 2017 through Matador. The album was announced on June 14, with a teaser trailer taking the form of a comedy skit featuring the band performing a polygraph test with Liam Lynch. The first single, "The Way You Used to Do", was released the following day along with the announcement of a world tour. Villains is the first Queens of the Stone Age album to not feature any special guest musicians and the second album to not feature Mark Lanegan.
