Bring Me The Horizon　

Fronted by a tattooed clothing designer and influenced by death metal, grindcore, and emo, Bring Me the Horizon aren’t the average deathcore band. The group was formed in 2004 from the ashes of sev ..more

Dokken　

At a time when the charts were ruled by pop-metal acts, Dokken was a major attraction throughout the 1980s. With vocalist Don Dokken’s captivating stage presence and guitarist George Lynch ..more

Motley Crue　

Motley Crue were undeniably one of the most popular hard rock/pop-metal acts of the 1980s. Combining the theatrics and glam of Kiss with the hard power pop hooks of Cheap Trick, the Crue o ..more

Exodus　

Once the kings of the Bay Area metal scene -- the birthplace of thrash -- Exodus were unceremoniously demoted from their post with the arrival of Los Angeles’ Metallica in 1982. And while they p ..more

Black Country Communion　

A band featuring four veteran heavy hitters of British and American hard rock, Black Country Communion are rooted in an alliance between bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple) and blues- ..more

Slayer　

Slayer were one of the most distinctive, influential, and extreme thrash metal bands of the 1980s. Their graphic lyrics dealt with everything from death and dismemberment to war and the horrors of ..more

Dream Theater　

The technically proficient guitar playing of John Petrucci elevated Dream Theater to the upper echelons of contemporary heavy metal. While its lineup has continuously evolved, the Long Island-ba ..more

Sonata Arctica　

Finnish prog metal quartet Sonata Arctica specializes in a soaring, orchestral variation on European heavy metal, fusing the sweeping, romantic bombast of bands like Europe with the over-t ..more

Children Of Bodom　

Combining elements of melodic death metal, power metal, neo-classical, and thrash, Children of Bodom have been one of the world’s most expansive and hard to define bands since their formation in 19 ..more

Europe　

Originally a progressive rock group, Europe didn’t achieve success until they reworked their sound into bombastic yet melodic pop-metal. In their first incarnation, the Swedish band was called Forc ..more

Winger　

A former member of Alice Cooper’s band, bassist Kip Winger formed his own group in 1986; in addition to vocalist/bassist Winger, the group featured guitarist Reb Beach, bassist Paul Tayl ..more

Firewind　

Yet another power metal ensemble showcasing the widely acknowledged and always in-demand talents of Greek guitar hero Gus G. (whose real name is Kostas Karamitroudis, and whose other credits inc ..more

U.D.O.　

Stryper　

Heavy metal has been associated with ol’ Beelzebub ever since its inception, but a few acts took the opposite route and put their Christian beliefs in hard-rocking songs, such as Stryper. Formed in ..more

Praying Mantis　

England’s Praying Mantis was one of the more melodic bands to emerge from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal scene. They combined a Thin Lizzy-style twin guitar approach with Def Leppard- ..more

Marty Friedman　

One of the ultimate ’80s guitar shredders, Marty Friedman first made his name with the speed-burning virtuoso outfit Cacophony, but landed his most widely renowned gig as the lead guitarist of { ..more

Lillian Axe　

This melodic rock quintet, originally from Michigan, was formed by Ron Taylor (vocals), Steve Blaze (guitar), Jon Ster (guitar, keyboards), Rob Stratton (bass), and Danny King (drums). ..more

Tygers of Pan Tang　

Hailing from the tiny town of Whitley Bay in North-East England, the Tygers of Pan Tang (whose name originated from the Michael Moorcock novel Stormbringer) formed when aspiring vocalist Je ..more

Extreme　

Extreme’s music was never easy to classify, since it rarely confined itself to heavy metal, hard rock, or pop. The Massachusetts-based band formed in 1985; guitarist Nuno Bettencourt had already ..more

Vandenberg　

Led by guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, this Dutch hard-rock band also included singer Bert Heerink, bassist Dick Kemper, and drummer Joe Zoomer. After failing to break through, the band broke ..more