10 Overlooked Masterpiece Songs By Legendary Hard Rock Bands
9. Van Halen - The Seventh Seal
Hailing from 1995's Balance, probably one of the least-loved Van Halen albums, this ambitious, wall-of-sound number holds up very well.
Balance was the last Van Halen album to feature Sammy Hagar on lead vocals, and was recorded largely at Eddie Van Halen's 5150 studios. By all accounts, Eddie was attempting to embrace sobriety at this time, following years of heavy smoking and hard drinking.
The Seventh Seal, which earned itself a Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock Song, was apparently written by Eddie Van Halen before the band even formed (as recounted in this 2012 interview with Guitar World). The title is taken from passages in the Bible, specifically the striking Book of Revelations; the seventh seal in question being the last which secures a book, the opening of which will signal the Second Coming and the start of the apocalypse.
That's suitably dramatic material for a hard rock song, and the band do it full justice, with full-on guitars, wailing discordance, irrepressible, chugging riffs and chanting monks. Note the suitably disturbing image on the album's cover. Balance, it's said, was originally due to be titled The Seventh Seal.