Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York. Formed in 1980, the group is known for lyrics based on fantasy and mythology, as well as numerous songs celebrating the genre and its core audience. The band is also known for a loud and emphatic sound. 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 two occasions. They also hold the world record for the longest heavy metal concert after playing for five hours and 1 minute in Bulgaria in 2008. They also have been known for their slogan "Death to false metal".
HammerFall is a Swedish power metal band from Gothenburg. The band was formed in 1993 by ex-Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak.
Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band formed in Suffolk in 1991. The band's musical style evolved originally from black metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic metal and other metal genres. Their lyrical themes and imagery are heavily influenced by Gothic literature, poetry, mythology and horror films. The band consists of its founding member, vocalist Dani Filth, drummer Martin 'Marthus' Škaroupka, bassist Daniel Firth, guitarists Marek 'Ashok' Šmerda and Donny Burbage, and keyboardist Zoe Marie Federoff.
Stephen Percy Harris is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the bassist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, primary songwriter, founder, and leader of heavy metal band Iron Maiden. He has been the band's only constant member since their inception in 1975 and, along with guitarist Dave Murray, the only member to appear on every album.
Paradise Lost are an English gothic metal band. Formed in Halifax, West Yorkshire in 1988, they are considered to be among the pioneers of the death-doom genre and regarded as the main influence for the later gothic metal movement. Bands that have cited Paradise Lost as an influence, or have covered them, include My Dying Bride, Anathema, The Gathering, Amorphis, Cradle of Filth, Katatonia, Moonspell, Lacuna Coil, HIM, Nightwish and many others. As of 2005, Paradise Lost have sold over two million albums worldwide.
Paul Andrews, better known by his stage name Paul Di'Anno, is an English heavy metal singer who was the lead vocalist for Iron Maiden from 1978 to 1981. In his post-Maiden career, Di'Anno has issued numerous albums over the years, as both a solo artist and as a member of such bands as Gogmagog, Di'Anno's Battlezone, Killers, Rockfellas, and more recently, Warhorse. Together with fellow Iron Maiden member Dennis Stratton, he joined Praying Mantis for the recording of their 1990 live album Live at Last.
Shadows Fall is an American metalcore band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1996. Although Shadows Fall has experienced several line-up changes, for most of its recording career, Shadows Fall has been composed of guitarists Jon Donais and Matt Bachand, bassist Paul Romanko, lead vocalist Brian Fair and drummer Jason Bittner.
Orange Goblin are an English heavy metal band from London. Formed in 1995, the band's lineup currently consists of singer Ben Ward, guitarist Joe Hoare, drummer Chris Turner, and bassist Harry Armstrong. Their most recent album Science, Not Fiction was released in July 2024.
Unleashed is a Swedish death metal band that was formed in 1989 by Johnny Hedlund in Stockholm. Common lyrical themes found in the band's music include Viking culture, recollection of a pre-Christian world, and Norse folklore. A number of their recent songs also contain references to J. R. R. Tolkien. Unleashed is considered one of the "big four" of Swedish death metal.
Master's Hammer is a Czech black metal band formed in Prague in 1983. They were active, with several lineup changes, until 1995, and again from 2009 onward. As of 2024, they have released eight studio albums, five demos, one EP, two split albums, one live album, and several compilations.
Oliver Hartmann is a German metal vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and producer who performed in various acts, either as guitarist, solo or choir singer. He is best known for his role as vocalist and one of the founders of the band At Vance, his own band Hartmann and his guest appearances on albums of several prominent metal bands, including Freedom Call, Edguy, Rhapsody, Genius rock opera, Iron Mask, Aina's metal opera Days of Rising Doom and the metal opera Avantasia where he participated as a vocalist in 4 albums and also as a guitarist of the live and studio line up. He is also guitarist and vocalist with the Pink-Floyd tribute band Echoes.
Avian is an American heavy metal band founded in 2002 by guitarist Yan Leviathan. Musically, they are influenced by bands such as Iron Maiden, HammerFall, Savatage, and Megadeth.
Powerwolf is a German power metal band founded in 2003 in Saarbrücken by members of Red Aim. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as "Attila Dorn", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as "Matthew Greywolf", bassist/rhythm guitarist David Vogt as "Charles Greywolf", keyboardist Christian Jost as "Falk Maria Schlegel" and drummer Roel van Helden. The group uses religious themes and images, contrary to traditional power metal music, as well as corpse paint, gothic-tinged compositions and songs about werewolf and vampire legends.
Insomnium is a Finnish melodic death metal band formed in Joensuu in 1997. The sound and lyrical themes of their music portray darkness, sorrow, loss, pain, and nature. Their music includes elements of progressive metal, black metal, folk metal, and doom metal.
From The Depths is the debut full-length album from British progressive death metal band Karybdis. It was recorded in 2011 at Parlour Studios and mixed and mastered by Russ Russell. It was released in July 2012 digitally and in physical format on 21 November 2012.
Battle Beast is a Finnish heavy/power metal band established in Helsinki in 2008 by Anton Kabanen, Juuso Soinio and Pyry Vikki. The initial line-up consisted of guitarists Soinio and Kabanen, and drummer Vikki, who were high school friends. The rest of the original lineup, bassist Eero Sipilä, keyboardist Janne Björkroth and lead singer Nitte Valo, joined the band after auditions.
Bleed from Within are a Scottish heavy metal band from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, formed in 2005. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Scott Kennedy, drummer Ali Richardson, bassist Davie Provan, lead guitarist Craig Gowans, and rhythm guitarist, clean vocalist Steven Jones. The band has released six studio albums and three EPs, with their latest Shrine released on 3 June 2022 through Nuclear Blast.
Trials was an American metal band who formed in Chicago in 2008. They played a blend of groove metal, thrash metal and metalcore and their music also has melodic and progressive elements.
Ingested is an English death metal/deathcore band from Manchester, formed in 2006. The band consists of vocalist Jason Evans, guitarist Sean Hynes and drummer Lyn Jeffs. The band has released seven studio albums since formation, with the latest being “The Tide of Death and Fractured Dreams” in 2024 via Metal Blade Records.
Venom Prison are a Welsh death metal band. Stephen Hill of Metal Hammer described their second album as "2019’s most anticipated extreme metal albums". Their lead vocalist Larissa Stupar was described by Kerrang! as "metal's most important - and uncompromising - voice". The band has released four studio albums.
