Monday, March 26, 2007

100 Greatest Metal Songs Of All Time Pt.5--20-01

Ok...time for the BIG 20...the songs which,in my opnion, are the 20 best metal songs ever...shall we begin?

20. Tornado Of Souls--Megadeth(Rust In Peace)
Another song from RIP, yeah I love everything about this album. This was one of the first metal songs I had heard, I was into Gn'R, Bon Jovi, Led Zep and stuff but this song is responsible for introducing me to metal music along with many of Metallica's works. Great thrasher this one, godly riffing!!!

19. The Trooper--Iron Maiden(Piece Of Mind)
A fan favourite....this song truly depicts what IM are about...a legendary song this one.

18. Creeping Death--Metallica(Ride The Lightening)
My favourite song off this album...'lica were at their ferocious best on this one. Godly guitar work.

17. Cowboys From Hell--Pantera(Cowboys From Hell)
Dimebag at his nastiest best!! on this one. The opening riff to this one is worth many albums by some other good bands.

16. Eyes Of A Stranger--Queensryche(Operation Mindcrime)
Queensryche's greatest song to date IMHO. Everything about this song is perfect..the atmosphere...the build up...and the chorus is....well, for lack of a better word...HEAVENLY.

15. The Divine Wings Of Tragedy--SymphonyX(TDWOT)
EPIC....POWERFUL...25 minutes of musical madness. It's not one of those casual listens though....best enjoyed late in the night right before going to sleep...listen to it with a pair of good headphones..close your eyes and turn the lights off.

14. Hangar18--Megadeth(Rust In Peace)
What can I say that hasn't been said before.....the solos on this one are definitely among the top 10 of all time.

13. Symphony Of Destruction--Megadeth(Countdown To Extinction)
One of the highest charting metal songs ever made...not too technical..not too fast as Megadeth should be...but still one of the most entertaining ever made.

12. Smells Like Teen Spirit--Nirvana(Nevermind)
Hmm..I go grunge again:) I remember the time Nevermind was released, I must have been 12-13 years old...it was Nirvana everywhere...we sang the songs in classrooms...blasted their songs all the time at home....of course..my tastes have changed over time...and I hardly listen to Nirvana anymore....but this song still has a special place in my heart. When I first heard it, I thought..nothing could get angrier and heavier than this....the angrier bit applies till today:). RIP Kurt Cobain.

11. Enter Sandman--Metallica(Metallica)
To borrow from what I said above...some songs will always hold a special place in my heart. The Black Album single handedly turned me from a classic rock/ hard rock listener into a metalhead....and I'm pretty sure it applies to many others in my age group too. I don't judge the quality of music for how much airplay it gets on MTV and Radio. I don't believe in the term "sell-out". Even if I did..I would say "sell-out" is when you conform to already established gimmicks/standards of success, did Metallica do that? Instead..they made a standard themselves...if songs like Enter Sandman..Sad But True..Through The Never...The Unforgiven..Wherever I May Roam..Nothing Else Matters are sell-outs...then damn!! every band on the planet should sell-out!! I listen to the likes of In Flames..Dark Tranquillity..Dismember..Soilwork..Carcass...Obituary..Cryptopsy etc now...Metallica gets play-time very seldom..but it was..is..and forever will be my DEAREST!!! metal album of all time. Pheww!!..glad I got that off my chest...lol

10. Angel Of Death--Slayer(Reign In Blood)
Infamous...Butcher..Angel of Deaaaathhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!Everything sounds messed up...for most parts you can't even figure out the notes Hannemann and King are shredding...the solos are totally screwed up...Araya's vocals are laughable when he hits the high notes....BUT!!! This is as good as speed/thrash can get....go figure:)

09. Hallowed Be Thy Name--Iron Maiden(Number Of The Beast)
Legendary band..legendary song...one of the most covered songs in metal history. Gigantic...epic..mammoth....ummmm..u know the rest..lol

08. Cemetery Gates--Pantera(Cowboys From Hell)
Never have harmonics been used so menacingly in all of metal. A complete metal song...heavy..beautiful...technical....and might I add one of the better "singing" performances by Phil Anselmo. RIP Dimebag

07. Highway Star--Deep Purple(Machine Head)
Do I need to say anything here? No, I guess...you can laugh at me for this choice or you can completely agree with me.

06. One--Metallica(...And Justice For All)
This song was my introduction to the land of double-bass mayhem. When the shredding/double bass kicks in aroun the 3/4th mark, you feel an adrenaline rush you never imagined could be attained by music....of course now the art has been mastered by many pounders but at that time...Lars Ulrich was THE man.

05. Paradise City--Guns n' Roses(Appetite For Destruction)
I know, I'm crossing the limits of aggravating the "true" metalheads; but I am what I am. This song, this album, this band...all are so dear to me that I just couldn't resist. I know, it's not metal...but it's heavier than atleast 20 songs on the whole list..and has one of the most infectious rhythm riffs ever. Don't agree? Sue me

04. Sad But True--Metallica(Metallica)
Refer to no. 11..lol..I'm getting lazy.

03. Fear Of The Dark--Iron Maiden(Fear Of The Dark)
Yes..yes..and yes. This is indeed my favourite IM song. I don't care for nostalgia and I don;t believe in the conception that older is always better. Yes, Trooper..Number of the beast..Hallowed Be thy name are all great songs...but this one takes the crown, for me atleast. If you've watched Iron Maiden live or seen their shows..you'll know what I mean.

Hmm...so the list is finally coming to an end; now we'll see the top 2 greatest metal songs of all time. To some..one or even both of them might be surprises!! I think I need to take a break....see you later:)

Ok....I'm back..so here they are........

02. Holy Wars...The Punishment Due--Megadeth(Rust In Peace)
Well well well....I was really confused between this and No. 1...I just couldn't decide, but given the fact that No.1 is actually 4 years older and is still considerably heavier and faster and technically better than this one, I made the choice of making this No.2. I won't go into the details...but the last two minutes of this song kick more A** than the wholoe discography of thrash bands like Anthrax(Why they are included in the "Big 4 of Thrash", I'll never understand), Exodus, Kreator etc(these are good bands too).

Hmm...so the moment we(or I rather..lol) have been waiting for. The greatest metal song of all time...you know what...I'd like some people to take a guess first. It's been quite sometime I've been putting up this list and only one good soul, list-a-maniac, has posted a comment. I'll put up the greatest metal song ever made after I get about 3-4 guesses from some people..lol. I know, it's a bit selfish....but that's the way it is:)...untill then adios amigos.

UPDATE--List-a-maniac got it right in the first guess!! So it's no use keeping it hidden now...the greatest metal song, IN MY HUMBLE OPINION, ever made is......

(1) Master Of Puppets--Metallica(Master of Puppets)
If you've read the TOP 100 METAL ALBUMS OF ALL TIME by Martin Popoff or seen any other Album lists, you'll know that Master Of Puppets, almost always claims the top spot. This song is THE reason. Battery, Orion, Sanitarium, Damage Inc.(none except Battery figure in my list..did you notice?) are also very highly regarded...but this song singlehandedly helps the album to rise above the competition. You replace this song with any other great Metallica song....One..Enter Sandman..or something else, and Rust In Peace...Reign In Blood will beat it to the top spot,heck even their own Ride The Lightning will beat it....that's my opinion though. Anyway coming on to the song; This song is, and forever will be the yardstick by which every other Thrash Metal band on the planet will be judged...that's including Metallica!!!The opening riff is the BEST EVER, I don't think even Metallica can better it in their lives; the breakdown through halfway....the solo..and then the bulild up again is an energy monster; Hetfield's vocals are the best he's ever done..I could go on and on and on...so I'll just say that it is the COMPLETEST!!! metal song ever made, and there's about 00.01% probability that any band(including Metallica) will ever be able to better it.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

100 Greatest Metal Songs Of All Time Pt.4--40-21

Sorry for the long delay...had been busy with Holi. Here are numbers 40 to 21.

40. Painkiller--Judas Priest(Painkiller)
Great riffs...great vocals...this song was so influential on the newer extreme metal acts that death actually covered it in one of their albums.

39.This Mortal Coil--Carcass(Heartwork)
The classic song off what is arguably the most influential death metal album ever. This is like Morbid Angel meets Megadeth meets Iron Maiden meets Judas Priest meets Obituary meets Metallica.

38.Blind--KoRN--(KoRN)
Who doesn't know this one....aaaaaaaarrrrreeeee you readyyyyyyyyyyyyyy???One of the greatest headbangers ever.

37. The Enemy Within--Arch Enemy(Wages Of Sin)
Blistering..bludgeoning....hard as steel!!! Pure metal mayhem this one. Angela Gossow may be a woman but she can scare the pants off many a death metal growlers.

36. Welcome To The Jungle--Guns N Roses(Appetite For Destruction)
Me and my friends grew up listening to this stuff....Axl's voice has never sounded so menacing!! It has what is probably the greatest hard rock vocal performance ever.

35. The Four Horsemen--Metallica(Kill 'Em All)
I was actually confused between this and Mechanix(killing...good--megadeth) but this wins hands down in the end. This is what started the whole thrash metal revolution in the true sense.

34. Death Certificate--Carcass(Heartwork)
Is it heavy metal..is it thrash...is it grindcore..is it death metal....or is it classic hard rock?? This was the beauty of this Carcass album released in 1993. This was actually the FIRST MELODIC DEATH METAL ALBUM recorded. In flames, Dark tranquillity, At The Gates...and newer acts like Trivium..Killswitch Engage owe a lot to Carcass. The opening riff of this song will tell you how Papa Roach make their insanely unoriginal, insipid,stupid, bogus music. Without doubt the best death metal song I've heard....except one!..you'll see later.

33. Pull Me Under--Dream Theater(Images And Words)
DT's most "metal" song to date..insane riffing patterns this one has. I'm sure you've heard it.

32. Black Is Black--AC/DC(Back In Black)
AC/DC's crowning achievement...this is rock n' roll metal at its best!!

31. December Flower--In Flames(The Jester Race)
How can death metal be played so tastefully??? Of course, it has the growling, screaming vocals, but the music on this one is pure bliss!! and the solo is definitely one of the 5 greatest metal solos ever.

30. Sweating Bullets--Megadeth(Countdown To Extinction)
Menacing Mega-Dave Mustaine never ceases to bombard us with vintage metal. Blazing riffs....immaculate solos...typically classic Megadeth.

29. Breaking The Law--Judas Priest(British Steel)
Short and sweet doze of classic heavy metal this is. My favourite as well as one of the most popular Judas Priest songs.

28. Aces High--Iron Maiden(Powerslave)
You can't really go wrong with Iron Maiden..everything they touch seems to be pure gold. The legendary intro guitar lick and then the galloping rhythm...this one has one of Maiden's best choruses.

27. Wherever I May Roam--Metallica(Metallica)
Purists can go to hell....no matter what all the pseudo-hardcore kids say..the Black Album was a classic and this song is one of many classics it had...period.

26. Smoke On The Water--Deep Purple(Machine Head)
No need to say anything here. This is probably the most covered/played/requested song in hard rock/metal history.

25. Raining Blood--Slayer(Reign In Blood)
40 seconds of speed metal mayhem....then about half a minute of atmospheric sounds and lightning..and then what has to be one of the most memorable riffs in thrash history. This songs just kills!! RIB is arguably the most revolutionary album in Metal history..second only to Black Sabbath's debut I guess.

24. Number Of The Beast--Iron Maiden(Number Of The Beast)
Everything about this song is legendary..I'll just stop at that.

23. Black Dog--Led Zeppelin(Led Zeppelin IV)
Snarling vocals by Robert Plant..and one of the grooviest and unorthodox, if I might add rhythms ever. Led Zeppelin's best song IMHO

22. Chalice of Blood--Forbidden(Forbidden Evil)
One of the most adrenaline pumping Thrash songs ever. This one has like.... 800 riffs in it!!

21. Crazy Train--Ozzy Osbourne(Blizzard Of Ozz)
Legendary opening riff this one has...one of the cathiest metal songs ever!!

well ...that's it for now...see ya later