Power Metal
Power metal is often considered heavy metal's nerdy little brother, and rightfully so.
Power metal has strong fantasy elements. The songs are about the might of wizards, the clashing of swords, the virtues of knights, the tyranny of necromancers and the multitudinous wonders of enchanted lands. It is, in short, almost unbearably dorky. The music also tremendously difficult to perform. Power metal is known for inhumanly fast guitar playing and keyboard solos that can break the fingers of who are unprepared. Watch the videos of these guys performing - their hands fly up and down the frets like startled birds. Power metal is also known for "clean vocals:" clear, high pitched singing as a counterpoint to the deep "death growls" of black and death metal. At times, power metal vocalists hit notes commonly reserved for castrati, but in conjunction with the insane technical skills of the instrumentalists, the best power metal can shake the very pillars of heaven and call down Valhalla on the world.
Power metal appeals to people who like classical metal, clean playing and lyrics that favor the ancient battlegrounds of antiquity over the Stygian depths of Abbadon. So mount your steed, call your armies and vow to never let the blood dry on your blades. Welcome to the world of power metal.
Through the Fire and the Flames We Carry On
Power metal is in some ways the most accessible form of heavy metal. The singing is clean, the songs aren't all about Satan and necrophilia, the instrumentation is jaw-droppingly good and the tales of battles of fantasy and antiquity will keep your inner nerd happy forever. It has it's roots in the neoclassical and New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) metal movement. Fusing neoclassical's nods to classical music and NWOBHM's mix of classic metal and British punk, power metal upped the tempo and incorporated thrash metal guitar and drumming techniques. Later bands would bring in heavy keyboard use, multiple rhythm and thrash guitars. and other general craziness. Put broadly, and this is a highly subjective opinion, power metal was mostly a European thing and Americans stuck to thrash and sludgy, doomy, grindy death metal. There are some home grown bands like Manowar, Helstar and Iced Earth, but American interest in power metal really took off after Dragonforce blew up here, with "Through The Fire and The Flames" becoming a big deal, both as a music video and as a playable song in the Guitar Hero series of video games.
I am an avid power metal nut, having spent my adolescence growing out my hair and playing Dungeons and Dragons. Below are my selections for the great albums to start with in the wide world of power metal. Also, power metal often dovetails nicely into symphonic metal, and one can easily be a gateway drug to the other. If you like this stuff, you may want to check out our bitchin' Symphonic Metal guide.
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