 | | Siblings Elizabeth and Arejay Hale, the core members of the hard rock band Halestorm, began the group in late 1997 near York, PA, with Arejay on drums and Elizabeth on vocals and keyboard. |
 | | With the debut of their self-titled 1998 EP, Lacuna Coil (which translates to "empty spiral" in English) turned a lot of heads in Italy's ambient/goth scene thanks in part to Cristina Scabbia's haunting but mesmerizing vocals. |
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 | | The onetime frontman for hair metal hitmakers Skid Row, singer Sebastian Bach was born Sebastian Bierk in the Bahamas on April 3, 1968. |
 | | Texas hard rock quartet Rockett Queen formed in 2002 around the talents of vocalist/guitar player Walter Lee, lead guitar player Chris Wild, bass player Stephen Doll, and drummer CC Harte. |
 | | This Swedish glam-metal quintet was formed in 1988 by vocalist Andy Pierce and guitarist Jonnie Wee, with Dick Qwarfort (bass), George Swanson (drums) and Roger White (keyboards) completing the line-up. |
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 | | Hard rockers Crucified Barbara hail from Stockholm, Sweden, where bassist Ida Evileye and guitarist Klara Force had played with several informal bands for years before hooking up with drummer Nicki Wicked in 1998, then vocalist and lead guitarist Mia Coldheart in 2001. |
 | | Formed by sisters Jody and Julie Turner at the tender age of 13 and nine, respectively, even in such infancy Jody proved a good guitarist and Julie showed considerable promise as a drummer. |
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 | | With their brutal, simple riffs and aggressive, fast tempos, Accept were one of the top metal bands of the early '80s, and a major influence on the development of thrash. |
 | | Fronted by veteran headbanger Lizzy Borden, Starwood is a 21st century band with a long list of '70s and '80s influences -- some hard rock and pop-metal, some punk, some glam rock. |
 | | Following in the footsteps of the Gathering and Lacuna Coil (goth-influenced "symphonic" metal bands with female vocalists), Nightwish was formed in Kitee, Finland, in 1997 by keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen. |
 | | Switzerland's most successful hard rock band, Krokus enjoyed international popularity in the 1980s and onward for their aggressive, straightforward variety of European metal. |
 | | For a brief spell during the mid-'80s, the heavy metal quintet Dio were one of the top U.S. concert attractions, boasting one of the most over the top stage acts of its time loaded with props and special effects (lasers, explosions, a giant dragon, etc. |
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 | | Born of a chance meeting and the innate musical rapport established between vocalist Maria Brink and lead guitarist Chris Howorth, In This Moment quickly grew from local cult favorites performing in Los Angeles clubs to a MySpace phenomenon before landing a deal with Century Media Records. |
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 | | Hollywood became the worldwide capital of hard rock and (some would call it) metal during the '80s, but the little-known truth is that the previous decade teemed with nearly as much local band activity -- albeit on a far more underground level. |
 | | Knoxville, TN, heavy metal band Straight Line Stitch were first organized at the turn of the century and self-released a demo EP and an album in the early 2000s. |
 | | Formed in 2008, the hard-rocking "supergroup" Chickenfoot features the talents of vocalist Sammy Hagar (Van Halen, Montrose), bass player Michael Anthony (Van Halen), drummer Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), and guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani. |
 | | Even by heavy metal's innately freaky standards, the artist known as Thor was an absolute superfreak! Straight-faced Norse god impersonator, semi-professional bodybuilder, on-stage wrestler, all-around performance artist (known to bend a steel bar between his teeth!), sometime actor, and, oh yeah, even occasional rock & roll singer, Thor (full fake name Jon Mikl Thor) was a Vancouver, Canada, native with a flair for both theater and music. |
 | | German heavy metal/hard rock goddess Doro Pesch is best-known for her years with the band Warlock, but she has had a long solo career and continued to command a small but loyal following (especially in Europe) long after Warlock's demise. |
 | | Often dismissed during their existence as a crass marketing gimmick, the Runaways have grown in stature over the years as the first all-female band to make a substantial impression on the public by playing loud, straight-up, guitar-driven rock & roll. |
 | | Taking a cue from '70s art rock stalwarts like Queen and ELO and the blistering attack of modern heavy metal revivalists like the Darkness and Coheed and Cambria, Los Angeles-based progressive rock outfit Bigelf aren't afraid to use the terms pop and heavy metal in the same sentence. |
 | | Hot Leg was formed by Darkness vocalist/guitarist/songwriter Justin Hawkins in 2007. The group, which also includes guitarist Pete Rinaldi, bass player Samuel SJ Stokes, and drummer Darby Todd, released the "single only" "Heroes" in early 2008 as a free download, followed by "Trojan Guitar," the first cut from their forthcoming debut later that year in anticipation of their Hands Up Who Loves Hot Leg summer tour. |
 | | After the departure of lead singer and guitarist Justin Hawkins, the remaining members of British rock band the Darkness immediately regrouped to form the harder-edged heavy metal band Stone Gods. |
 | | A leading force in the Swedish "sleaze rock" scene of the 2000s -- a revival of the glam metal (or hair metal) of the 1980s, but with a more pronounced punk element, often rawer in sound and raunchier in style -- Crashdïet formed in 2000, taking inspiration from Skid Row, Guns N' Roses, Kiss, W. |
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 | | Goth metal stars Within Temptation marry the guitar-driven force of hard rock with the sweep and grandeur of symphonic music, and the results have made them one of the most popular bands ever in the Netherlands. |
 | | Paying little attention to the extreme death metal sounds their hometown was renowned for, the four natives of Gothenburg, Sweden, who formed Hardcore Superstar in 1998 drew upon melodic, glammed-up hard rock, especially the sleazy L. |
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 | | The Wildhearts were the kind of band that the British rock press has wet dreams about: creatively brilliant, completely out-of-control, and utterly doomed from day one. |
 | | Finnish metal singer Ari Koivunen was born June 7, 1984 in Kouvola. Koivunen grew up influenced by the sounds of groups like Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Iron Maiden, playing drums and singing even as a school boy. |
 | | Formed in 2006, Las Vegas-based heavy metal outfit Taking Dawn specialize in rousing, riff-heavy, harmony-laden retro-metal that owes as much to the heydays of the Sunset Strip as it does to Sin City. |
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 | | Otep got their start in late 2000, when singer/band namesake Otep Shamaya brought her Marilyn Manson-meets-Kim Gordon style of singing to a crew of musicians known only as Rob, Moke, and eViL j. |
 | | After falling out with mentor Ozzy Osbourne following the recording sessions for 1995's Ozzmosis, guitarist Zakk Wylde struck out on his own with his first solo album, Book of Shadows, in 1996. |
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 | | Taking a cue from bluesy classic rock icons like Aerosmith and AC/DC, Baltimore, Maryland's Charm City Devils craft traditional hard rock anthems in the vein of Buckcherry and Aussie rockers Airbourne. |
 | | Airbourne are a straightforward rock band in the Aussie pub rock tradition of AC/DC, the Angels, and Rose Tattoo: four guys with beers in hand who would rather die than be caught wearing a pink shirt. |
 | | West Coast glam rock outfit Holy Ghost Revival were the brainchild of enigmatic frontman Conor Kiley, an unholy cross between Iggy Pop, Axl Rose, and Jim Morrison who has kept a rotating cast of musicians since the group's inception. |
 | | Boogie rockers Jackyl were instantly lumped into the hair metal category upon their debut in 1992, but their sound was only vaguely reminiscent of the genre. |
 | | Formed in 2008 around the talents of former Skeletonwitch bassist/vocalist Eric Harris, drummer Joe Fabio and guitarists Andrew Packer and Scotty Conant, Pasadena, California-based hard rockers GypsyHawk’ s retro-metal assault, complete with dual leads, infectious melodies, fantasy artwork and copious amounts of solos, found an enthusiastic local audience almost immediately. |
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 | | Formed Seattle in 1982, Metal Church consisted of vocalist David Wayne, guitarists Kurdt Vanderhoof and Craig Wells, bassist Duke Erickson, and drummer Kirk Arrington. |
 | | Although Tesla emerged during the glory days of hair metal, the band's music was equally indebted to contemporary blues and '70s-style hard rock, a fusion that helped differentiate albums like The Great Radio Controversy from its contemporaries. |
