If you have additional info about any of the listed bands - or one that should be listed but is not - please don't hesitate to mail me!
Curly brackets, "{" and "}", mean that the enclosed band or artist is itself an entry in the list.
-M-
Magnum:
Bob Catley (vo), Tony Clarkin (gu), Richard Bailey (ke), Colin Lowe (ba), Kex Gorin (dr) (1980)
Founded in 1976 in Birmingham, Magnum released their third album Marauder in 1980. They began to reach a larger audience in 1986 with the release of Vigilante, their first album on a major label. Their last album of the eighties, Wings of Heaven, came in 1988.
Led by guitarist Tony Clarkin, Magnum always maintained a low profile but struggled on with only a few member changes throughout the decade and sold well enough, even if they never really reached the top of the charts. Rather than being a genuine Heavy Metal band, Magnum played a heavy kind of symphonic rock. In fact, they were by many metalheads considered the canonical example of a nerdy, half-measure Metal band. I'll be surprised if it really bothered them, though...
The Magnum & Bob Catley Official Web Site.A Storyteller's Night - a Magnum web site.
Hit and Run (136 K) from the album Eleventh Hour (© Jet Records)Yngwie Malmsteen:
In 1970, when Yngwie Malmsteen (or Yngve Lannerback as was his name at the time; he took his mother's maiden name Malmsteen - or rather Malmsten - a few years later) was seven years of age, he saw a TV program about Jimi Hendrix, and from that day on, guitar was his main interest in life. Apparently he didn't feel comfortable at school, and decided instead to put all his energy at becoming a guitar master. Later he discovered the qualities of classical music, and especially that of violinist Nicolo Paganini. Throughout his career he has struggled to combine these two sources of inspiration - Rock n' Roll and classical music.
In the early eighties the young Swedish guitarist was discovered by the founder of Shrapnel Music, Mike Varney, who brought him to Los Angeles and had him join {Steeler}, which featured Ron Keel (who later formed {Keel}) behind the mike. Yngwie was soon widely recognized as an extraordinary talent, and was asked by none other than Phil Mogg to join {UFO}, which was at the time reforming. Instead, Yngwie went on to {Alcatrazz} (apparently because he felt he would have more room for his own songwriting there), at that time led by Graham Bonnet (ex. {Rainbow} and {MSG}) before finally releasing his first, mostly instrumental, solo album Rising Force in 1984. Rising Force was the name of an old project of Yngwie's from his days back home in Stockholm. Yngwie had now really begun to make a name for himself, and the year after he was voted "Best Rock Guitarist" and released his second solo album, Marching Out. The third album, Trilogy, was perhaps the record to mark the height of Yngwie's 1980's, and the sky seemed to be the limit.
Unfortunately the good times took a definate end in 1987, which proved to be a disastrous year indeed. First he had a serious accident involving his Jaguar and a tree (apparently growing way too close to the road) in which he was hurt so bad it was uncertain if he would ever be able to play his guitar again. Right after that, his mother Rigmor, with whom he had a very close relation, died of cancer. As if this wasn't enough, his manager took off with just about every dime he owned, an incident which Yngwie later claimed didn't bother him all that much... Against all odds, Yngwie managed to rise from the ashes, and in 1988 he released Odyssey which featured another Rainbow-vocalist; Joe Lynn Turner. This record showed a more commercial side of Yngwie, and was the last album to be released under the name Rising Force. In 1989 Yngwie did a number of ground breaking performances in the Soviet Union. Also, while being successful enough in Europe and the USA, Yngwie was always immensely popular in Asia in general and in Japan in particular.
Perhaps being the most well-known of the eighties "guitar shredders", Yngwie Malmsteen was a very fast-playing and technically skilled guitarist who managed to combine influences from such diverse sources as Jimi Hendrix, Richie Blackmore, classical composers and oriental music into dynamic, virtous Heavy Metal compositions. Even if he has sometimes been accused of building his guitar playing on all technique and no "feeling", there is no doubt that the bursts of notes from his Fender Stratocaster inspired a whole generation of "neoclassical" guitarists. Professionally, his main problem seemed to be a troublesome inability to cooperate with other musicians, at least for very long periods of time.
The official Yngwie Malmsteen web site.
Far Beyond the Sun (180 K) from Rising Force (© Polydor)
Manilla Road:
Mark Shelton (vo, gu), Scott Park (ba), Rick Fisher (dr) (1980)Every single bio or article you're likely to find about Manilla Road will describe them as the cult Metal band, so I thought I would try to find a different angle. I failed. The thing is, when you think of a cult band, you think of a band that are generally considered good but underrated, innovative and having a loyal following without really being that commercially successful. And that simply happens to be a very good description of Manilla Road.
When they first started out in the small city of Wichita in Kansas, USA (which apparently has a nice zoo, by the way...) in 1980, they sounded more or less like a fairly typical Hard Rock band. They released two albums, 1980's Invasion and 1982's Metal, before they decided to set out in a new musical direction. Possibly because they had discovered the New Wave Of Brittish Heavy Metal sound, beginning with their third album Crystal Logic from 1983 (see image, © Black Dragon), Manilla Road suddenly sounded a lot darker and a lot more Heavy Metal than before. That's not to say they abandoned their Hard Rock roots entirelly, however. Rather, they developed a fairly unique blend of slow, gloomy Heavy Metal with Hard Rock influences, topped off with epic songwriting. Manilla Road released three more albums in more or less the same tradition; Open the Gates in 1985, The Deluge in 1986 and Mystification in 1987, now featuring new drummer Randy Foxe. Manilla Road released a couple more (less well received) albums before internal problems tore the members apart in 1990.
The Official Web Site of Manilla Road.Manowar:
Eric Adams (vo), Ross the Boss (gu), Joey DeMaio (ba), Donnie Hamzik (dr) (1982)
Manowar debuted in 1982 with Battle Hymns, and from the very start they came through as a totally uncompromising and aggressive Heavy Metal band. They continued in this raw style, releasing one album each year, up until 1985 and the release of Sign of the Hammer. During this time, Manowar managed to build up a reputation and a fair base of devoted fans. With the next album, Fighting the World from 1987, they took a slightly more commercial and polished path, however, and honed their epic and bombastic qualities. "Commercial" in this case has to be taken with a pinch of salt; they were still as heavy and agressive as always and were miles away from being a mainstream band or playing AOR. Apart from eposes like Carry On and Defender, Fighting the World also featured more Speed Metal-inspired songs like Black Wind, Fire and Steel. The follow up to this album, Kings of Metal, was released in 1988 and followed in the same musical footsteps. Although reaching a larger audience, Manowar never managed to really break through, however, and the same year Ross the Boss decided to leave the band. This was the first change to the lineup since Donnie Hamzik was replaced for Scott Columbus five years earlier.
The time is now!This quote is from the back cover of Fighting the World, and is quite representative of Manowar. They always embraced all the typical poses and attributes of Heavy Metal such as leather clothes, motorbikes, album artwork depicting the band members as "metal gods" and lyrics about violence and bloodshed (which is in fact the title of one of the songs on Fighting the World.) They also took the habit of playing at an absurdly loud volume level at their live performances and spicing their albums with pompous monologues and solo-bass renderings of classical pieces such as the William Tell overture (Battle Hymns) and Flight of the Bumblebee (Kings of Metal). All this put together meant that it was sometimes hard to determine whether Manowar were in fact serious or a parody on themselves along the lines of Spinal Tap.
We cannot be stopped!
We are riding up, riding hard on the will of the people.
The battle rages--Choose your side
DEATH TO FALSE METAL
Forever
Fighting the World
The Kingdom of Steel - official Manowar site.
Carry On (171 K) from Fighting The World (© Atlantic)
Megadeth:
Dave Mustaine (vo, gu), Chris Poland (gu), Dave Ellefson (ba), Gar Samuelson (dr) (1985)
Dave Mustaine was one of the original members of {Metallica}, but he was kicked out in 1983. Exasperated but not discouraged, he soon put together his own band, Megadeth. Megadeth's first album, Killing is My Business... and Business is Good, was released in 1985 and was a reasonable success, and rendered them a record contract with a major label. The first album
on their new label Capitol, Peace Sells... but Who's Buying (see picture, ©
Capitol Records) was released in 1986. After this album, Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson
were kicked out of the band and by the time So Far, So Good, So What, the last album of
the eighties from Megadeth, was released, they had been replace by Jeff Young and Chuck Behler,
respectively. Eventually they too had to leave the band and were in turn replaced by Marty
Friedman from {Cacophony} and Nick Menza.Megadeth, with Dave Mustaine as the obvious front figure, were one of the leading Thrash/Speed Metal bands, along with {Metallica} and {Slayer} among others. As the name of the albums suggest, Dave Mustaine liked word games and his lyrics were often considerably more conscious and meaningful than the average piece of rock text. Unfortunately, while being both dynamic and charismatic, Dave had a bit of a soft spot for drugs, which apparently made him a bit difficult to cooperate with at times. This was perhaps one of the reasons behind the frequent member changes. For instance, on an early tour supporting {Motörhead}, he was apparently wasted to the point where Motörhead had no choice but to find another supporting act. Fortunately, he later pulled himself together and is since leading a very healthy life indeed.
Megadeth.com - official site.
Peace Sells (121 K) from Peace Sells... but Who's Buying (© Capitol Records)
Mercyful Fate:
King Diamond (vo), Hank Schermann (gu), Michael Denner (gu), Timi Hansen (ba), Kim Ruzz (dr) (1983)
Danish band whose distinctive sound was easily recognized thanks to King Diamond's remarkable voice, which he had perfect control over, being able to shift from a dark growling to a high pitched shriek in a fraction of a second. The neoclassical, cooperative riffs of the two lead gutarists was also quite typical of the band. It was perhaps just as much the lyrics and image of the band, however, that won them such a large and devoted fan base. The lyrics of Mercyful Fate were all, or at least with very few exceptions, concentrating on evil and the occult. Musicwise, Mercyful Fate were not really a typical Black Metal band, however; their sound was more Gothic, spiced with some of the dynamic speed of the NWOBHM bands. Unfortunately, Mercyful Fate were disbanded after only two albums, Melissa from 1983 and Don't Break the Oath from 1984, due to internal indifferences. Apparently Shermann wanted the band to move in a more commercial direction, and consequently King Diamond started a new band, aptly named {King Diamond}.
The Official King Diamond & Mercyful Fate Web site.Metal Church:
David Wayne (vo), Kurdt Vanderhoof (gu), Craig Wells (gu), Duke Erickson (ba),
Kirk Arrington (dr) (1984)Originally named Shrapnel, Metal Church was founded in Seattle by guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof. Metal Church, by the way, was a name that he had used once before for a short-lived band in San Fransisco. At the time, Thrash Metal was still a very young phenomenon, but after appearing on a couple of compilations, Metal Church made their full length debut in 1984 with Metal Church (see image). This album was instantly successful, and a year later is was re-released on a major label and helped many a fan open their eyes to the genre. Obviously it is difficult to follow up such a success, and sure enough many felt that the second album, The Dark, released in 1986, was a bit of a disappointment. Leaning slightly more towards Speed Metal than Metal Church, The Dark was by no means a bad album though, featuring several strong tracks such as the steamroller-heavy song Ton Of Bricks.
By now, Metal Church were well established on the Metal Scene, and toured with their good friends {Metallica} around the globe. Unfortunately, when it was time to record a third album, the member problems began piling up for Metal Church. Apparently, founder and guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof was sick of touring and all the rest that comes with being a rock star, and decided to concentrate on songwriting and producing. Hence he left the band and was replaced by John Marshall. Singer David Wayne too decided to leave the band for good, after having come and gone for some time. He was replaced by Mike Howe from {Heretic}, and in 1989 Metal Church's last album of the eighties, Blessing In Disguise, was finally released. Although this album, just as The Dark, was generally not considered to live up to the high standards set by the debut album, it certainly had it's qualities, and there is no doubt that Metal Church played an important role in bringing Thrash Metal to the masses.
Metal Church Official Home Page.Metal Duck:
Huttie (vo), Fozzy (gu), Keith (ba), Dave (dr) (1988)
Metal Duck was formed in the late 80s in Cheshire, North West England. Metal Duck was really a joke band, taking the more humorous side of Metal. The band was made up of Dave (drums), Fozzy (guitars), Huttie (vocals) and Keith (bass). They recorded their first album, Quack Em' All, in 1988, which was on a split LP with Lawnmower Deth (another joke band, which went on to make some more albums in the early 90s, but then split up in 1994) which was released by R.K.T. Records. In 1990, Metal Duck recorded their second album, Auto Ducko Destructo Mondo. After that, they split up.
Thanks to Leon Makepeace for writing this bio.
Metallica:
James Hetfield (vo), Kirk Hammett (gu), Clifford Burton (ba), Lars Ulrich (dr) (1983)
When Metallica was founded in Los Angeles in 1981, it was in fact a duo consisting of James Hetfield and the Danish drummer Lars Ulrich. Eventually Dave Mustaine (vo, gu) and Ron McGowney (ba) joined the band, but these two were fired again in 1982 and were replaced by Kirk Hammet (formerly in {Exodus}) and Cliff Burton. Mustaine apparently got a bit cross about this and formed his own band, {Megadeth}. Metallica's album debut, Kill 'em All, arrived in 1983 and was an instant success. Inexplicably, the record company disagreed with the first name suggestion for the album, "Metal Up Your Ass"... Anyway, Thrash Metal as a genre was still in it's primal stage at the time, and Metallica rapidly became one of the most important and well-known Thrash bands. Kill 'em All was followed up by Ride the Lightning in 1984 and Master of Puppets in 1986. The latter rendered Metallica a larger audience, perhaps thanks to being slightly more accessible than the previous albums. Metallica allowed themselves to be more varied and even made frequent use of acoustic guitars.
Just like so many others ({Hanoi Rocks}, {Yngwie Malmsteen} etc.), Metallica were then struck by misfortune just when things were going better than ever, as bassist Cliff Burton was killed in a bus accident in 1986 while touring in Sweden. Metallica soon recovered, however, and Cliff Burton was replaced by Jason Newsted from {Flotsam and Jetsam} later the same year (although the band members later confessed that Jason really had to struggle for several years to become a "real" member of Metallica, most likely due to the trauma caused by losing Cliff Burton). The first record (apart from the cover EP Garage Days revisited) with this new constellation was the ambitious and epic double album ...And Justice for All, released in 1988. This gave them a hit single with One as well as a Grammy award for best Heavy Metal act, even though some fans felt they were compromising with their Thrash Metal roots.
Metallica were hard-working and ambitious, and unlike many other that were largely focused on their image, it was always the music itself and nothing else that mattered for Metallica. As a matter of fact, their deep-felt hatred towards the so called Hair Metal that was particularly strong in Los Angeles during their first years played an important role in forming their sound, and the title of their debut album is no doubt aimed at those Hair Metal acts. And again, there is no denying that they played a very important role (together with Megadeth and {Slayer} etc.), if not the most important role, in popularizing Thrash Metal.
The Official Metallica SiteA quick survey indicates that roughly 25% of all internet sites are dedicated to Metallica. Well, almost at least...
Motorbreath (130 K) from Kill 'em All (© Metallica)
Gary Moore:
Irish guitarist and singer who had been a member of several different bands, including
{Thin Lizzy} (twice, actually...), during the seventies. When the eighties began, Gary Moore had
gone solo and was struggling for commercial success in Europe, while his career was
moving along at a far better pace in Japan. The 1981 album Dirty Fingers was released in
Japan before it was released in Europe, for example. He didn't have to wait long before the
European breakthrough came, however, as the album Corridors of Power, released just
one year later, was far more successful than his previous attempts. Gary Moore continued to release successful albums
throughout the eighties, once in a while complemented by singles, such as the ballad Empty
Rooms from 1984, Out in the Fields from 1985 (together with Phil Lynott from
Thin Lizzy, see image) and Over the Hills and Far Away from 1987, that were successful (at least
in Europe) well outside the traditional Hard Rock audience.Gary Moore was perhaps more reliant on "feeling" and atmosphere than other more technically oriented guitar "shredders" such as {Yngwie Malmsteen}. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that he was one of the most skilled and influential guitarists in the eighties Hard Rock community. He was also one of the candidates for the having-worked-with-the-largest-number-of-other-musicians award(™). Apart from the aforementioned Phil Lynott he also worked with drummer Ian Pace (from {Deep Purple} and {Whitesnake}), bass player Neill Murray (from Whitesnake), singer Glenn Hughes (from Deep Purple et al) etc. etc.
The Official Gary Moore Web Site.
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (135 K) from the album Dirty Fingers (© Jet Records)Morbid Angel:
David Vincent (vo, ba), Trey Azagthoth (gu), Richard Brunelle (gu), Pete Sandoval (dr) (1989)
Apparently mainly inspired by the Death Metal bands such as {Slayer}, Possessed and {Death}, guitarist Trey Azagthoth formed Morbid Angel in Tampa, Florida, in 1984. They didn't release their debut album, Altars of Madness, until 1989, however. But Abominations of Desolation, which was released in 1991, was really recorded in 1986 as a demo. Even before Altars of Madness was released, Morbid Angel had already worked up quite a reputation for themselves, for example by touring in England with {Napalm Death}. Morbid Angel played fast, brutal and energetic Death Metal of the kind that was as far away from mainstream music as you could possibly get, and thereby destined to never gain any real commercial success, but they were definately one of the big names in the Death Metal genre.
The Official Morbid Angel Web Site
Immortal Rites (120 K) from Altars of Madness (© Earache Records)
More:
See {Wildfire}.
Mötley Crüe:
Vince Neil (vo), Mick Mars (gu), Nikki Sixx (ba), Tommy Lee (dr) (1981)
Founded in Los Angeles in 1981, the band went through a number of name changes before the band members finally agreed on Mötley Crüe. They soon got a reputation, at least locally, as an outstanding live act, and so they decided to release their debut album Too Fast for Love on their own label. This album was surprisingly successful, and they soon got a contract with a major record company, Electra, which later re-released a remixed version of Too Fast for Love. In 1983 Mötley Crüe released Shout at the Devil, which was an instant hit in the US, but also rendered some criticism aimed towards the band's supposed flirts with satanism, obviously stemming from the title of the album, but also from the overly provocative video for the single Looks That Kill.
Mötley Crüe were now one of the major (Glam) Metal acts, at least in the US, but their luck turned towards the end of 1984 as Vince Neil found out about the perils of drinking and driving the hard way; crashing into another car Vince Neil killed his friend Razzle from {Hanoi Rocks} and seriously injured several other people. Neil was tried in court and sentenced to one month in jail, 200 hours of community service and a fine of $2.6 million dollars. On top of this, he was apparently very close to being thrown out of the band. This didn't stop their 1985 album Theatre of Pain from becoming their biggest hit to date, though. Among other tracks this album included the single Home Sweet Home, which became a massive hit and paved the way for a whole new genre; the infamous (among metalheads at least) power ballads. The same year, Nikki Sixx was treated for his drug abuse. Apparently the treatment wasn't very efficient, since he almost died from an overdose while touring following the release of Girls Girls Girls in 1987, Mötley Crües most melodic album so far.
The turbulence around Mötley Crüe continued as they all joined a drug rehabilitation program which they returned from just in time to face another lawsuite in 1988. This time from a man called Matthew John Trippe who claimed to have been a stand in for Nikki Sixx from 1983 to 1985. Eventually the charges were dropped and Mötley Crüe released another album, Dr. Feelgood, in 1989. This was to be their most successful album to date, reaching number one on the American charts. The days of glory for the band were already numbered, however, as the popularity of the entire Heavy Metal genre was waneing at the same time as bands like {Guns 'N' Roses} were beginning to take over the former Mötley Crüe fans.
Pehaps more than any other band, Mötley Crüe have really tried their best to live the Rock n' Roll myth of sex and drugs to the full, and more than any other band they became synonymous with the "outrageous" LA rock scene of the early and mid eighties. They also reveled in leather clothing, make-up and poodle haircuts, clearly influenced by acts like {Kiss} and {Alice Cooper}. Their music was also inspired by Glam Rock and Sleaze, and Nikki Sixx, who wrote most of the material, proved more than once that he had a flair for writing catchy metal riffs.
The official Mötley Crüe web site.Absolute Mötley Crüe - Another Crüe site. Don't miss the "Classic Crüe" section!
Motörhead:
Ian "Lemmy" Kilminster (ba, vo), Phil Campbell (gu), Michael "Wurzel" Burston (gu), Philip "Philthy Animal" Taylor (dr) (1987)
In 1980, Motörhead had already existed for some years without managing to make much of a name for themselves. All that changed that year as they released the album Ace of Spades, featuring the well known single of the same name, followed by the excellent live album No Sleep 'til Hammersmith which hit number one on the charts in their home country England the year after. Motörhead also toured in the US, but never reached the same level of success on the other side of the Atlantic ocean.
The following years the band had some difficulties maintaining their newfound status, and
eventually they broke up with their record company. This prevented them from recording any new
albums for two years, but when Orgasmatron appeared in 1986 it proved to be a worthy come
back and was well received among their fans. On Orgasmatron, Motörhead to some extent
displayed some new aspects of their music, especially on the ultra-heavy, grinding title track.
Apparently, Lemmy was extremely displeased with the production of the album, but that didn't stop
it from becomming one of their more successful pieces of work. In 1987 they released
Rock N' Roll, which was also quite successful and turned out to be their last studio album
of the eighties.Whereas Lemmy has always been a member of Motörhead, the other members have come and gone, come back again and gone again in a never ending stream. Apart from those mentioned above, members have included guitarrists "Fast" Eddie Clarke (later in {Fastway}) and Brian Robertson (ex {Thin Lizzy}) and drummer Pete Gill from {Saxon}.
For obvious reasons, Motörhead never managed to reach the commercial sucess of other more well-polished bands like {Bon Jovi} or NWOBHM acts like {Iron Maiden}. On the other hand, their exceptionally fast, aggressive, filthy, uncompromising and almost primitive Metal sound, which paved the way for thrash metal, gave them a large base of totally devoted fans. This, and their habit of cranking up the volume to levels that register on the Richter-scale when performing live, has also given them a reputation well outside the Heavy Metal community; most peple who have never listened to Heavy Metal in their entire lives have at least heard of Motörhead. Most fans also agree that it is when perfomed live that the music of Motörhead really does itself justice.
The image above shows the Motörhead logo.
The Official Motörhead Web Site.
(We Are) the Road Crew (152 K) from Ace of Spades (© Mercury)
MSG:
Gary Barden (vo), Michael Schenker (gu), Chris Glen (ba), Paul Raymond (ke), Cozy Powell (dr) (1981)
Born in Germany, Michael Shenker had previously been a member of {Scorpions} (together with his older brother, Rudolph) and {UFO}, but in 1980 he had gone solo and released his debut album The Michael Schenker Group, produced by Roger Glover (from {Rainbow} etc.) It wasn't until 1981, however, that the name was shortened to MSG and a more permanent band with the above members was put together. The second album, MSG, was released the same year, but was generally considered a slight disappointment in comparison with the first one. MSG continued to release albums, to mixed reviews, and change members throughout the eighties. The band got somewhat of a revival in 1986 when singer Robin McAuley joined. Apparently Robin's ego couldn't quite cope with the fact that the name of the band focused so entirelly on Michael Schenker, though, and they conveniently decided to keep the name MSG, only now it was an acronym for McAuley Schenker Group rather than Michael Schenker Group... The first album with Robin McAuley was Perfect Timing, released in 1987, and he also sung on the last album of the decade for MSG, Save Yourself, from 1989.
Mondria's Michael Schenker Web Site.
-N-
Napalm Death:
Nick Bullen (vo, ba), Justin Broadrick (gu), Mick Harris (dr)
It's easier said than done to name the members of Napalm Death, as they came and went like... well, like Gene Simmons' groupies or something, making the band seem more like an ongoing project than an ordinary rock band. In fact, their debut album contained songs recorded by two completely different line-ups; only drummer Mick Harris played on all the tracks, whereas the other two of the above members were replaced by vocalist Lee Dorrian, guitarist Bill Steer and bassist Jim Whitely on the flip side. Anyway, the band was founded in Birmingham, England, in 1982 but they didn't release their debut album Scum until 1987. By the time they released their second album, From Enslavement to Obliteration (featuring 54 tracks, no less!), in 1988, Napalm Death had evolved into one of Europe's leading Thrash Metal bands with their fast, dynamic, experimental and anything but melodic sound. They referred to their own music as "grindcore". From Enslavement to Obliteration was to be their last record, bar a pair or EP:s, of the eighties. It was also the last record to feature their original, inimitable sound.
Among the other bands that members of Napalm Death have been involved in are Carcass (Billy Steer), Godflesh (Justin Broaderick), Cathedral (Lee Dorian), Benediction (Barney Greenway), Righteous Pigs (Mitch Harris) and Terrorizer (Jesse Pintado).
The Official Napalm Death Site - Down the last time I tried it, but it's supposed to be here...Twisting the Knife - a Napalm Death site.
Nasty Idols:
Andy Pierce (vo), Jonnie Wee (gu), Dick Qwarfort (ba), George Swanson (dr),
Roger White (ke) (1989)Nasty Idols started out in the mid eighties in Malmö, Sweden. Influenced by acts like {Alice Cooper}, {Kiss} and {Hanoi Rocks} they were at first mainly oriented towards punk and glam, but eventuelly they became more of a Sleaze band. Apparently they were very good at marketing themselves and acting like true rock stars, even when they were still virtually unknown, and following a self-financed single they got a record contract and released their debut album Gigolos on Parole in 1989. Apart from replacing guitarist Jonnie Wee with Peter Espinoza, that's about all they had time for before the end of the eighties.
Nasty Idols was in a unique position, however; while the interest in Heavy Metal in general was definately on the wane, Sleaze Metal still had a few, short good years coming up, not least thanks to the rise of {Guns n' Roses}. Thus, Nasty Idols still had their greatest moments ahead of them.
The image shows Nasty Idols after Peter Espinoza had joined the band.
Thanks to Andy Pierce for letting me use the picture!
The Official Nasty Idols site.Nazareth:
Dan McCafferty (vo), Manny Charlton (gu), Billy Rankin (gu), Pete Agnew (ba), John Locke (ke), Darrell Sweet (dr) (1980)
The Scottish band Nazareth is another example of the kind of acts that were really not primarily a Heavy Metal band but more of an ordinary Rock 'n' Roll band, but were all the same popular among many metalheads - at least in the US, were the band members mostly stayed. Furthermore, Nazareth really had their heydays in the seventies (they were founded in 1969), even if they released albums throughout the eighties as well, from Malice in Wonderland released in 1980 to Snakes 'n' Ladders released in 1989. They were, however, without a record contract for many years in the mid-eighties.
The official Nazareth web siteNirvana:
Kurt Cobain (vo, gu), Chris Novoselic (ba), Chad Channing (dr) (1988)
Most well-known for their exceptionally successful album Nevermind from 1991, and not least for the monster hit Smells Like Teen Spirit, Nirvana's album debute came in 1989 with Bleach. This album was nowhere near as popular as it's successor, but was a harbinger of the Grunge/Seattle Rock wave that was about to wipe traditional Heavy Metal off it's feet. Nirvana was founded - or was at least re-named Nirvana - in 1987 in Aberdeen; a small town some 150 kilometers from Seattle.
Soaked in Bleach - Lot's of info about Nirvana.Nuclear Assault:
John Connely (vo, gu), Anthony Bramante (gu), Dan Lilker (ba), Glenn Evans (dr) (1986)
Nuclear Assault was founded in New York by Dan Lilker in 1983, after he had left {Anthrax}. Whereas the Music of Nuclear Assault was not totally different to that of Anthrax, it did perhaps contain a mlarger dose of hardcore. Their debut album {Game Over} came in 1986, and with their ultra-fast and elaborate sound they soon became well-known in the Speed- and Thrash Metal community, and were often compared to bands like {Metallica} and {Megadeth}, even if they were definately faster than those two.
Nuclear Assault released a total of four albums in the eighties, the last of which, Handle With Care from 1989, was the most political and socially conscious of the lot. That is not to say, though, that the lyrics were not always very important to Nuclear assault. All of the band members were also involved in side projects like {S.O.D} and CIA.
The official Nuclear Assault site.-O-
Obituary:
John Tardy (vo), Trevor Peres (gu), James Murphy (gu), Frank Watkins (ba), Donald Tardy (dr) (1989)
Originally named Xecutioner, Obituary was, along with {Death} and {Morbid Angel}, one of the earliest real Death Metal bands. And just like the aforementioned bands, Obituary were founded in Florida; in this case in Brandon in 1985. Unlike Morbid Angel, Obituary didn't gourge in satanism. In fact, singer John Tardy more often than not ignored the morbid lyrics all together and simply made howling, mourning or wheezing sounds to the music, which served to make the music of Obituary all the more monstrous. Furthermore, Obituary preferred a more dark and heavy sound, at times reminiscent of {Black Sabbath}, rather than the uncompromising speed of their Death Metal colleagues.
Obituarized - An Obituary site.
Odin:
Randy 'O' Roberg (vo), Jeff Duncan (gu), Aaron Samson (ba), Shawn Duncan (dr) (1985)
Playing a blend of traditional Metal and Glam, Odin started out in Los Angeles, USA during the first half of the eighties. Pretty soon, they gained a reputation in the Heavy Metal community as an exciting up-and-coming act, and despite ever-shifting line-ups, they struggled on and built up quite a strong fan base. Their vinyl debut came in 1985 with the release of the EP Don't Take No for an Answer. The EP more or less lived up to the expectations, and helped build up Odin's popularity even further. Unfortunately, soon thereafter disaster struck...
When Penelope Spheeris filmed her (in)famous documentary "The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years" (see Thesaurus), she interviewed many Metal fans, but also band members, both established stars and less well-known musicians. In all fairness, many (if not most) of those interviewed didn't exactly come across as Nobel Price candidates, but few managed to make such complete fools of themselves as Odin. Inevitably, their credibility took a serious blow from this, and all of a sudden very few wanted to be associated with Odin at all... Odin never really recovered from this, and even though they released an occasional album featuring various line-ups in the following years, they slowly drifted into obscurity.
Omen:
J.D. Kimball (vo), Kenny Powell (gu), Jody Henry (ba), Steve Wittig (dr) (1984)
Despite being an American band (they were formed in Los Angeles, California), Omen arguably had a sound that had more in common with many English NWOBHM acts than with most of their contemporary American fellow rockers. They released their debut album Battle Cry on the classic Metal Blade label in 1984. This record (which is perhaps the record they are most fondly remembered for by most Metal Heads) was followed by three more studio albums, the last one being Escape to Nowhere from 1988, before Omen seemed to disappear from the face of the earth together with so many other Heavy Metal acts at the time. In Omen's case, things were made worse by the fact that singer J.D. Kimball had left the band, and Omen had also begun to move away from their original sound. Although being far from unsuccessful, Omen (perhaps unfairly) never reached the highest levels of fame and fortune.
Death Rider (122 K) from Battle Cry (© Metal Blade)
Onslaught:
Paul Mahoney (vo), Nige Rocket (gu), Jase Stallard (ba), Steve Grice (dr) (1985)
The English band Onslaught debuted in 1985 with the fast and furious Death/Thrash Metal album Power From Hell. This album was fairly well received, but nonetheless several changes took place in the band. First of all, vocalist Paul Mahoney stepped back to play the bass instead. Sy Keeler was brought in as the new vocalist. Also, be it the cause for or the effect of Paul Mahoneys change of careers, Jase Stallard switched from bass to guitar. After all, having two guitarists is much more common than having two bassists... Musically, too, the band had changed slightly since the debut, and their second album The Force, which was released in 1986, was not as uncompromisingly fast as it's preceeder, featuring more vanilla Thrash Metal. In 1989, when Onslaught's last effort In Search Of Sanity was released, the line up had changed again. This time around, Onslaught featured Steve Grimmet (from {Grim Reaper}) behind the mike, Rob Trotman on guitar (replacing Jase Stallard. Poor guy. Maybe he should try tambourine...) and James hinder on bass (replacing Paul Mahoney. Oh well, I guess he could always team up with Jase Stallard...)
After I wrote this bio, Paul Mahoney contacted me to tell me that he and Jase Stallard did in fact team up to form a band called "Militia", although eventually nothing really came of it. Well, that's what you get for trying to be witty, I guess... He also told me that alas Jase Stallard couldn't play tambourine because "he's all over the place", whatever that means. Heh. Anyway, huge thanks to Paul Mahoney for this information.
Overkill:
Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth (vo), Bobby Gustafson (gu), D.D. Verni (ba), Sid Falck (dr) (1984)
Formed in New York in 1984, Overkill soon gained a reputation as an unusually fast and brutal act. They quickly attracted many devoted fans and landed a record deal, and their first album Feel the Fire was released in 1985, following a self-titled EP released the previous year. Overkill released three more full length albums in the eighties, Taking Over in 1987, Under The Influence in 1988 and The Years Of Decay in 1989.
After the release of The Years Of Decay, guitarist Bobby Gustafson left the band. This was not the end of Overkill, though, as he was soon replaced by no less than two new guitarist; Rob Cannavino and Merritt Grant. Whether this was because the new guitarists were only half as good as Gustafson or a deliberate setting change in order to achieve a new sound is unclear... Anyway, despite remaining faithful to their rather agressive and non-compromising thrash sound (or possibly because of this), Overkill had no problems surviving the transition into the nineties, and many fans claim they still had their best albums ahead of them at this point in time.
WreckingCrew.com - The Official Overkill site.
Feel the Fire (54 K) from the album Feel the Fire (© Megaforce Entertainment)
Ozzy Osbourne:
English-born singer Ozzy Osbourne (John D Osbourne) is one of the true icons of Heavy Metal.
He started out as one of the founding members of the legendary band
{Black Sabbath} back in 1969(!), but in 1980 he decided to go solo. With the aid of guitarist
Randy Rhoads from {Quiet Riot}, bass player Bob Daisley from {Rainbow} and drummer Lee Kerslake
from Uriah Heep he recorded his solo debut Blizzard of Ozz the same year. This album
was instantly successful and was soon followed by the equally successful Diary of a Madman
in 1981, this time with Rudy Sarzo playing the bass and Tommy Aldridge behind the drums.
Ozzy and Randy Rhodes stayed together, however, and formed a vital dynamic duo of Heavy Metal.
Alas, Randy Rhodes was killed mid-tour in a plane accident in 1982 in Florida. Ozzy took
this very hard, and Randy had also been largely responsible for the musical direction of the
band.Nevertheless, Ozzy managed to pull himself together and apparently he had a flair for finding talanted guitarists that he could cooperate with, as he (after a short interlude by Brad Gillis) soon began working with Jake E Lee from {Ratt}. The first album he did with Jake was Bark at the Moon, and whereas the other musicians would come and go, Ozzy and Jake worked together for many years. As if this wasn't enough, Ozzy came up with yet another guitar find in 1988; Zakk Wylde. Ozzy's career kept going up and down throughout the eighties, and while he never quite reached the commercial success (even if he was by no means unsuccessful; all of his five studio albums in the eighties went gold or platinum) of some of his more hit-oriented colleagues, his simple riffs and dynamic stage appearances enabled him to maintain a loyal fan base.
It's no exaggeration to say that Ozzy's voice was technically never perfect, but when it came to stage shows and visual appearance, he was second to none. He flirted heavily with bizarre, occult or satanist imagery; anything for maximum effect. Unfortunately, despite of being a Christian believer, this has also rendered him some unfair criticism, which culminated in the late eighties when he was accused of having caused the suicide of a teenager through his "satanist" lyrics. Eventually, he was acquitted. This has not been his only problem, however; throughout the eighties (and, indeed, the seventies) Ozzy struggled with a serious drinking problem, according to himself stemming from low self-esteem. When all is said and done, however, "the Prince of Darkness" remains a living legend of Heavy Metal.
Ozzynet - the official Ozzy Osbourne site.
Bark at the Moon (169 K) from Bark at the Moon (© Virgin Music)
Oz:Ape DeMartini (vo), Speedy Foxx (gu), Spooky Wolff (gu), Jay C. Blade (ba), Mark Ruffneck (dr) (1982)
Finnish band following in the footsteps of NWOBMH bands such as {Judas Priest}, but with a darker touch. They released their debut album Heavy Metal Heroes in 1982. Apparently, this album had previously been released in Finland under the name "The Oz". The debut was followed by Fire in the Brain in 1983, III Warning in 1984 and Decibel Storm in 1986, after which they disappeared from the Heavy Metal scene and did not return until the nineties.
Their fascination with darkness and satanism is not least apparent in the brilliantly titled 1983 EP Turn the Cross Upside Down. The image shows the cover of that EP. Notice the "Super Sound Maxi" sticker in the upper right corner. Who needs THX, DVD audio, Dolby Surround and other such crap technologies when you have glorious vinyl Super Sound Maxis?
-P-
Pantera:
Terrence Lee (vo), Darrel Abbott (gu), Rex Brown (ba), Vince Abbot (dr) (1983)
If the first Pantera record you ever heard was Vulgar Display of Power or even Far Beyond Driven, you'd probably be very surprised if you heard any of their earlier albums. You'd also be excused for not having heard any of their eighties stuff, because not many people have...
Pantera spent most of the eighties struggling to find their musical identity. From their first album Metal Magic, released in 1983, through 1984's Projects in the Jungle and 1985's I Am the Night, Pantera explored several areas of the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal landscape. Commercially, at least, things didn't go very well. It wasn't until 1988 and the release of Power Metal that they began to find their distinctive hard-hitting sound, perhaps owing to their new singer, Phil Anselmo, that is today so familiar to Pantera fans around the world. The real breakthrough for Pantera came with their next album, Cowboys From Hell, however. But that wasn't until 1990, so who cares, right?
The official Pantera site. Oddly, this site pretends like Cowboys From Hell was the first Pantera album...Penance:
See {Dream Death}.
Pentagram:
Bobby Liebling (vo), Victor Griffin (gu), Martin Swaney (ba), Stuart Rose (dr) (1985)
Together with bands like {Candlemass}, {Trouble} and {Saint Vitus}, the American band Pentagram were among the vanguards in the Doom Metal genre. And just like the aforementioned bands, Pentagram too were heavily inspired by {Black Sabbath}. But what really sets them apart from the others is that they started playing together as early as 1971, and recorded their first single in 1972. They did not, however, release their full length debut Pentagram until 1985. Before this, they had called themselves Death Row for a couple of years. Even though they had played for so many years without a record contract (or maybe because of that?), Pentagram only released on more album in the eighties; 1987's Day of Reckoning, before disbanding in 1988. Before that, though, they found the time to replace their drummer with Joe Hasselvander, who also played with {Raven}.
Thanks to Gabriel of GL Productions for providing most of the info for this bio.
Phenomena:
See this entry in the thesaurus.
Poison:
Bret Michaels (vo), C C DeVille (gu), Bobby Dall (ba), Rikki Rocket (dr) (1986)
American Hard Rock/Glam Metal band, formed in Harrisburg in 1984, but soon relocated to Los Angeles. The debut album, Look What the Cat Dragged In, released in 1986, was a real low budget production. Nevertheless it slowly rose to platinum status in the USA, whereas the band had a harder time breaking through in a big way in Europe. The second album, Open Up and Say... Ahhh! from 1988 was equally successful, but after this, which was to be the last album of the eighties for Poison, they were largely outmanouvered by other bands in the same genre, like {Guns n' Roses} and {Mötley Crüe}.
All Glam-inspired bands at the time payed just as much attention to their visual appearance as to their music - if not more. In the case of Poison, this was further emphasized by the fact that drummer Rickki Rocket was also a hairdresser, and as such responsible for the band's clothes, make-up and, naturally, hair.
The official Poison web site.
Every Rose Has Its Thorn (49 K) from the album Open Up and Say... Ahhh! (© Capitol Records)
Cozy Powell:
English drummer who is most well-known for having played drums in some of the biggest Heavy Metal acts of the time, including {Rainbow}, {MSG} and {Whitesnake}. But Cozy Powell also found the time to release two solo albums in the eighties. The first of these was Tilt, released in 1981, on which Cozy cooperated with among others Jeff Beck and {Gary Moore}. The second one was Octopus from 1983.
The Official Cozy Powell Home Page.Praying Mantis:
Tino Troy (vo, gu), Chris Troy (vo, ba), Steve Carrol (vo, gu), Dave Potts (dr) (1981)
As so many other NWOBHM bands, Praying Mantis emerged in England around 1980. What made them stand out from the rest was primarily their having three vocalists, which lended their sound a more harmonious - and (arguably) more "middle of the road" - touch than the rough and unpolished sound of most other contemporary NWOBHM bands such as {Saxon} and {Iron Maiden}. Praying Mantis released a full length album, Time Tells No Lies, in 1981, and despite the fact that they kept on going throughout most of the century and saw numerous member- and name changes (they were also named "Escape", "Tigon", and "Stratus"), that was their first and last release of the eighties.
The Praing Mantis Website.Pretty Boy Floyd:
Steve 'Sex' Summers (vo), Kristy 'Krash' Majors (gu), Vinne Chas (ba), Kari 'The Mouth' Kane (dr) (1989)
Glam Metal band along the lines of Poison with (is it possible?) even more makeup. The kind of band that made 'true' metalheads run screaming. Their debut release Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz (released in 1989) came a little late to the glam party and the band neve really got the acclaim they deserved. They released two videos from the album, I Wanna Be With You and Rock & Roll (Is Gonna Set The Night On Fire) that received limited MTV airplay. Unfortunately for the band, the Glam Metal scene was in decline at the time and they never received decent backing from their record label (MCA).
A million thanks to Jon Graham for writing this entry!
Pretty Maids:
Ronnie Atkins (vo), Pete Collins (gu), Ken Hammer (gu), Alan Owen (ke), Phil Moorhead (dr) (1983)
Apparently equally inspired by NWOBHM and beautyful women, judging from the sound and the name of the band respectively, the Danish band Pretty Maids released their debut, a self-entitled mini-LP, in 1983. The next year they released their first full length album, Red Hot and Heavy, which sold platinum and enabled them to tour heavily in Europe. The followup, Future World from 1987, was equally successful but took the band one step further away from the raw, straightforward metal sound of their debut. After some touring the band now took a two year brake and returned to the recording studio in 1989 to record an album produced by Roger Glover (from {Rainbow}, {Deep Purple} etc.), but the resulting record, Jump the Gun, wasn't released until 1990.
The Official Pretty Maids Web Site
Back to Back (54 K) from the album Red Hot and Heavy (© Sony Music Entertainment)
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