Atara - Hang Them (album is a split with the band Miserable Failure but album only found under Atara name)
Back Door to Asylum – Cerebus Millenia
Evil United - Honored By Fire
Heartist – Feeding Fiction (various singles available from the album at this time)
John 5 - Careful With That Axe
The Paramedic – Diary of my Demons
Unisonic - Light of Dawn
Upon a Burning Body - The World Is My Enemy Now
other new releases:
Grifter - Return Of The Bearded Brethren
Release dates are based on physical CD US or Import release information and subject to change. All titles listed as being on X-Box Music Marketplace were available on the X-Box Music Marketplace at the time of this post. These releases can be added or removed from the X-Box Music service at any time.
These lists I can always take with a certain grain of salt and since they made it pretty clear that 'successful' was a criteria of making their list; the finished product made a lot of sense. My personal tastes leaned more towards some of their honorable mentions.
I thought I would take the time to point out some other bands, for the most part, that could just have easily been in someones countdown like this without success being a criteria.
10. Tool, I would replace with Porcupine Tree/Steve Wilson.
Porcupine Tree came before and put out some albums while Tool has been doing whatever they been doing. Porcupine Tree is in kind of the same situation now that Steve Wilson is concentrating on solo stuff but for this style of progressive/art rock music if you like Tool you should enjoy Porcupine Tree.
9. Korn, I would replace with Downset.
It has always been interested how genres of music take on certain flavors based on their geographical location. Thrash, hardcore, rap, and other forms of music have these little bits of flavor that just scream out where a band is from. I really never saw much of a difference between Korn, Godsmack, and Disturbed who all made the original list. Only unlike thrash and other forms of music my enjoyment stuck pretty much to the west coast style. Deftones (surprised they didn't make the Watchmojo list), (Hed) PE, Rage Against the Machine, Manhole (Los Angeles), and Downset were some of the bands that defined what would be called nu-metal sound for me being a California boy. Most of those bands have gone away and Downset has had its ups and downs but released their first album in 10 years recently and showed that Rey, Ares, and crew kick ass still.
8. Godsmack, I would replace with Amen.
Like I mentioned in the above post about Korn. Godsmack I never thought was much different from them except bringing a sophisticated New England flavor to it. Since I really don't listen to bands with this kind of sound I thought I would pull one of drummer Shannon Larkin' past bands. Though in some ways I guess Amen fits in because of their relationship with Ross Robinson got clumped in with those groups of that time even though they were definitely more Black Flag than Public Enemy.
Amen has been pretty much on recording hiatus since Larkin joined Godsmack but looking to be making another return with Dave Lombardo of Slayer fame filling the drum kit for at least some appearances in Europe and hopefully something will come of it more then some nostalgia cash-in festival appearances.
7. Lamb of God, I would replace with Entombed A.D.
Unfortunately, in my opinion, the groove of Lamb of God has become to much about keeping the Pantera spirit alive. It is fine and dandy but a butt load of bands are doing it. L.O.G. is doing it better than most but with so many bands stuck in that groove though I would throw out another band with a recognizable groove. Unlike Pantera which tragically isn't around, Entombed A.D. or Entombed are still kicking around even with slight name changes and fighting among past and present band members.
They started off straight up death metal that many bands started aping and went for a death and roll sound starting with the Hollowman ep that started a groove that many bands would go on to imitate. How many bands can come up with two different styles of signature sounds that led to many imitators?
6. Rammstein, I would replace with Laibach.
Laibach really isn't a all out metal band but when I first heard Rammstein it was hard for me not to compare the two since I had been introduced to Laibach years earlier. The vocal approach and industrial leanings are very similiar but Laibach is for the most part is a cover band but truly sounds original for how much they deconstruct the original songs.
5. Linkin Park, I would replace with Devin Townsend Project.
I have never owed any albums form the band; thus leaving my relationship with Linkin Park to be the radio singles. The way the Watchmojo video made it sound the band doesn't stick to one formula and that is what Devin Townsend has pretty much done with his Devin Townsend Project explore different things with each of his albums.
4. Disturbed, I would replace with Gojira.
Again Disturbed brings this midwest thing and replaces Korn' scats with oh's, ah's, and other grunts. I could go with another midwest band like Broken Hope or something like that but let us head over to France instead and Gojira.
Gojira really are a metal monster that crosses over so many metal styles they can't be pigeon-holed. Just trying to do a YouTube search of Gojira band came up with so many covers it was hard to find official video without a more stringent search. That right there is a clue that people think you should know this band.
3. Avenged Sevenfold, I would replace with Trivium.
To be honest I am not the biggest fan of either Avenged Sevenfold or Trivium but I give them props for helping introduce the kids to the same riffs that got me into metal in the first place. I understand kids being turned off to something because their parents listen to it but both these bands show their influences so plainly on their sleeves and give praise to those forefathers it is hard not to like them for keeping the spirit alive. I just still listen to the original bands.
2. Slipknot, I would replace with Fear Factory.
When I got that Slipknot debut from Roadrunner Records my first thought and it is still hard to get out of my head all these years later was this is Fear Factory; but with dj scratching and sampling in place of the industrial electronic sampling.
1. System of a Down, I would replace with Kontrust.
I don't think anyone really sounds like System of a Down since like Gojira they just mix so much stuff together it can't be pigeon-holed. Though not really cross-over bands because so much of the cross-over elements are metal I thought I would work off that to suggest a band and came up with Kontrust.
From Austria they may be known more for their lederhosen fashion and fun videos but when you dig in to their music it is metal tinged with everything from polka to reggae. A true cross-over band of genres outside the metal realm. All together the band is fun and refreshing. Something that sticks out in the serious metal world but to me not like a sore thumb.
Lists are just so time consuming. Music, I am just so passionate about it so looking at long careers and trying to come up with a list is just to tough. A lot of the bands I mentioned wouldn't be in my top ten hard rock/metal bands. I just hope this gets people to try some new bands or get someone to listen to an album they haven't heard in awhile.
