Most Underrated Heavy Metal Bands
Savatage is the most underrated band in history and Criss Oliva is the most underrated guitar player in history!
Their 1991 concept album "STREETS - A ROCK OPERA" is a flawless masterpiece, deserving to be in every house just like "Dark Side Of The Moon" or "The Wall": anyone listening to rock, pop, metal, classical music SHOULD OWN A COPY. It's a raw and emotional story about the rise and fall of a rock star with a moving finale and huge stage potential, masterly sung, played and narrated by the charismatic Jon Oliva.
In a fair world, Savatage would be selling out headlining shows in stadiums and arenas, cashing in millions of dollars each night just like Metallica, Iron Maiden, AC/DC and Trans-Siberian Orchestra (a side project born from Savatage) do.
I have never met and been a part of a Circle of Fans more dedicated and loving. That there are so many Fan Pages, all with 'Sava-Family' participating and sharing between multiple groups, speaks volumes of the artistry and Family that this band was and still is today. Chriss Oliva has been gone many years and is still loved and deeply missed by his bandmates and friends. Daily, there are photos and tributes to him. Still THE favorite guitarist of many Metal fans. SAVATAGE is here to stay. His wife, who passed years later, would be proud. Worth checking out. Be prepared to be wowed.
Savatage is a very complete band. The melodies are complex and perfect, as if each instrument's line was carefully planned - yet, it all sounds so intuitive. The vocals too are amazing, I mean, very few singers can perform Hall of The Mountain King (oh, those high staccato notes! ). The lyrics are just pure poetry, they come up with these intricate stories, and make them so universal that everyone can relate to them. I could spend the rest of my life just listening to Savatage and Beethoven.
I have to admit that, while I liked Streets, my fave Savatage album will always be Sirens. I still remember buying it as an indie album with the original black and blue cover and being blown away by the production. Back in the 80s, buying an indie album was a crap shoot because a lot of them were poorly produced. Savatage was obviously ahead of the pack in that department and my fave era of the band was when Criss was there...mostly Sirens through Gutter Ballet (minus Fight for the Rock)
Diamond Head should be #1. They have great songs, plus bands such as Metallica and SLAYER have listed Diamond Head as a key influence. Metallica's song Am I Evil? Is actually a diamond Head song.
Syncopated droptuning guitar riffs, galloping through the forrests of medeival England, beheading the unjust purveyors of evil, upholding the swords of truth and justice. Timeless and immortal.
They directly influenced Metallica, and Lightning to the Nations is one of the greatest metal albums of all time.
The forefathers of all modern metal
Listen to 'Am I Evil' and you will be convinced
Absolutely underrated - they are never mentioned among the greatest metal bands although they were really great. How many metal bands have had such super-talented musicians like:
Dio (RIP), Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover, Cozy Powell (RIP).
They invented a bunch of metal subgenres and lots of metalheads enjoy them now. Rainbow influenced directly the non-bluesy metal sound of Judas Priest and Iron Maiden.
Check out these genre defining songs by Rainbow:
From the 1976 album: Stargazer, A Light in the Black, Tarot Woman
From the 1978 album: Gates Of Babylon, Kill The King, LA Connection
Really underrated p, they're never mentioned as one of the main influences of the later metal
Anvil defined metal back in the day. They were role models to Slash, Scott Ian, Lars Ulrich and other rock and metal profiles. Lemmy himself stated that he always liked Anvil. For some reason they never made it the whole way. That's the very DEFINITION of underrated! Avenged Sevenfold IS THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE! They are the most overrated bunch of douche bags I have ever heard of!
What?! A7X underrated? Black Veil Bride heavy metal?! For me there is only 5 heavy metal bands really underrated in this list : Sadus, Black Bomb A (but it's French, so it's understandable), Savatage, U.F.O. and the must : Anvil. I don't think that A7X has been left behind after something like 16 albums recorded. It's not like if they're headlined at every summer festivals... And what is ACDC doing in this list?! ACDC heavy metal? ACDC underrated?! Just remake yourself a culture in Heavy Metal!
I just saw Anvil October 6th in Toronto. They are incredible live. No drummer is as good as Rob Reiner period. I was blown away by the sheer energy. This band is still hungry 37 years later. Lips is a excellent front man and personality! His lead playing is impressive and original! A much more real from the heart concert experience.
Laugh out loud top 3 are possibly the most overrated of all time. Laugh out loud how can bands that get played on the radio 24/7 be underrated. Anvil is a classic influential metal band that only started gaining popularity with a fan-made documentary that wowed critics. Savatage is another good pick.
Jeff Waters is the man in this band - his fast and technical riffs and solos are exemplary. He is one of the top 3 lead G players in thrash, sharing this honor with Marty Friedman and Alex Skolnick but never gets the same credits.
By the way, I think Alex is underrated, too, but not as much as Jeff. It's because Annihilator are even more underrated than Testament.
Alisson Hell is one of the best songs I've ever heard. Is so complete, the guitars and the audible bass are perfect and their lines completely complete each other. Just fantastic! Jeff Waters is a beast
In my opinion annihilator has the one of the best heavy metal guitarists ever who is criminally underrated too...
Allison Hell and The Fun Palace are amazing songs. Very underrated,
Hard Lovin' Man, Child in Time, Speed King and Highway Star are definitely Metal.
Extremely underrated - inventors of metal and nobody cares.
I truly can't believe Coroner is in the top 10 here...must be some smart metalheads contributing to this list. Absolutely one of the most underrated metal bands ever...and one of the most talented. Mental Vortex is one of the greatest death/extreme metal albums ever recorded. Period. A masterpiece to go along with the rest of a strong catalogue.
They are considered as one of the most technical and proficient thrash bands - high level of complexity and musicianship.
They are a thrash/technical thrash band from Switzerland, active from 1983-1996, 2010-present.
Good Songs: Son of Lilith, Sudden Fall, Internal Conflicts, Masked Jackal, Metamorphosis and the instrumental Nosferatu
Theost underrated thrash band by far! Give them a listen, they are so good!
This is the stupidest list in the history of metal. SAXON behind avenged sevenfold, kiss, D.R. I, Overkill, Deftones? What! Saxon sould be AT LEAST #5.
Saxon should be number 1.
I think Anthrax is better than Slayer, almost as good as Metallica, a bit better than Testament. Megadeth is the ultimate thrash band of all time in my opinion, But I do agree that Anthrax is underrated in the context of the big four. But in general, they get a lot of recognition. The Big 4 goes like this for me: Megadeth, Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer.
Anthrax kick Metallica's ass any day. In the early days, they were just savage. They've had more bad luck than they deserve throughout their careers but they've pulled through each time. Now that is Thrash 'Til Death!
Are you kidding me?
How the hell are they under rated?
They are one the biggest thrash legends for God's sake
Whaat?!? Anthrax is not underrated has someone heard about the BIG 4? Anthrax is there, Anthrax IS the law
Listen to songs like: Death Machine, Overkill Exposure, Rules Of Engagement, Bloodwork, and Ghost Thief, AND TELL ME THIS BAND ISN'T BADASS!
Probably doest get as much recognition because they are a Christian band.
One of the best Christian Metal bands out there...
97 and 2000 albums are masterpieces, must listen
Most underrated metal band ever (along with Exodus). After 30 years they still sound fesh and hungry. Plus, their musicianship is amazing.
Overkill has never gotten the recognition that they deserve. Amazing band. Every album is spectacular.
THE underrated thrash metal band.
Heavy ass band. Their latest album is a step lower than the rest but its still good.
So underrated it makes me wanna cry
I rarely see these guys mentioned but what is wrong with this list? The ONLY band that belongs in the top ten is Anvil, the entire list is almost completely made up of commercial overrated nu-metal and metalcore
It's unbelievable that a band like Mercyful Fate is so underrated, they have been inspiration for great bands like slayer and Metallica. It is an amazing band and King Diamond's voice is outstanding.
Many Get Mad At Me,Mercyful Fate Is Overrated.One Of The Worst Ever,I Cold Come Up With Unsigned Bands That Can Smoke The Danish King On Stage.Just Listen To That Voice,Jeez.The Schmuck Rip Kiss Corpsepaint In The Eighties.Truth Hurts Bro.
Not a very well known band but could have hit the big time if their lead singer hadn't left. Their first album is so addictive and just... ARGH
Definitely underrated.
I really like them and their "experimental" way of doing music...
The only thing I don't like is about fans that always say: "The Rev, the best drummer of all time", "Afterlife, the greatest song of all time", "Syn, the greatest guitarist of all time"
The problem is fans, not the band
2 songs in video games, with 50 million plus views on YouTube per video. They aren't exactly underrated...
Avengers foREVer.. Rip jimmy. They should be on top, and always be! Eternally forever!
I wouldn't say they're underrated, just hated on by most people for no good reason!
They are the only metal band I know that has been improving over time - every next album is better than the previous one. Altogether 10 albums and almost 30 years of exemplary musicianship.
I just listened to their 2015 album and I have nothing but admiration for them! Similarly to other people, I'm also beginning to think that Blind Guardian are comparable to Maiden and Priest in terms of quality and consistency. And never seeing them in the top 10 best bands breaks my heart - instead of true metal bands like Blind Guardian I usually see poser bands in the top 10s.
These guys are very good and their amount of skill and talent shows in their music. Every album they make, they aim to surpass their last, and they do it every time. These guys have quality music and their skill is way beyond any other metal band I've heard
Based on their awesome 2015 album - Blind Guardian are also the new gods of symphonic metal!
Blind Guardian - top 10 most underrated!
Recently discovered how awesome Exodus are. Fabulous Disaster is so good an album I bought it after listening to each song first. A true Thrash band that won't go down without a fight, so get off your ass and Toxic Waltz!
Definitely deserve more shoutouts. I've only heard one song played on the radio and that was at midnight but what makes these people so cool is that they don't rely on screaming vocals or pounding screaming guitars. Sure their latest 2 albums are "soft" but it's the heavy (saddened) tonality that makes them one of my favorites. Depressive rock would be an accurate description, or think of Opeth.
Alex Webster is from Cannibal Corpse, the biggest death metal band out there