10 Most Important Metal Bands Of All Time
Music to shake the earth.
At the end of the glowing '60s, the rock world as a whole was starting to shift a bit. While originally known as an idealistic wonderland of sound, the psychedelic movements led to things getting a lot harsher, with bands discovering and running with guitar distortion. Things were bound to get heavier, but no one could have anticipated just how heavy.
Unlike hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin or Aerosmith, metal is a genre that moves something different in your gut. You can get a buzz off a great riff, but the sound of metal is so visceral that it feels like an unleashing of every aggressive emotion at once. Though the genre has assumed many forms over its history, every band characterized as metal has exuded that raw attitude that almost makes you take a step back when you hear their music.
Regardless of what stripe of metal the band hails from, each of these artists helped pave the way for something much heavier than the rock world was used to. After these acts clawed their way to the top of the musical food chain, the rock scene was a much tougher beast. The innocent early days of rock now had fangs...
10. Van Halen
Towards the end of the '70s, metal had certainly come a long way from the blues tradition from which it was birthed. Instead of playing just a typical expansion on the regular blues sound, these new bands were taking the next step in musical evolution and bringing more intense playing to the table. Though a lot of bands may have been heavier than Van Halen, heavy metal would not exist in its present state without them.
Emerging after being discovered by KISS' Gene Simmons, Van Halen were one of the main draws coming from California with one of the greatest guitarists in the world in tow. Instead of cribbing from jazz or classical, Eddie Van Halen was one of those rare guitar players who didn't sound like anybody else. Taking the initial glam rock style of the day to mammoth proportions, each party anthem these guys played became unstoppable with the intense tapping solos going on just underneath.
When this amazing playing paired with the charismatic stage presence of David Lee Roth, the world had found their next favourite metal band. Van Halen may get the credit (or blame) for starting the hair metal movement, but their tunes went beyond just '80s fashion and quickly became adopted as some of the greatest hard rock tunes ever written.