Top Ten Metal Songs With the Most Unique Non-Electric Guitar Intros

We are looking for VARIETY here - intros that are different from the expected riffs. It may be acoustic, or bass intro, drum intro, piano, scream, sounds... Anything cool and maybe unexpected on a metal song.

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The Top Ten
1 Exit the Giants - Dead Brain Cells

Somebody's breathing out there... and then thrash explodes. Awesome transition (play the sample).

2 The Number of the Beast - Iron Maiden
3 Raining Blood - Slayer

Intro with drums and other sounds.

4 Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne

Zxm comment is a reply to the visitor who said it's a bass intro. However, the song starts with Ozzy saying "All aboard! Haha Ay Ay Ay...". Guitar starts after it and yes, it's not a bass guitar.

Oh that bass intro it was great then the late great randy rhoads kicks in that riff it was awesome

SOMEONE: add "Last Rites/Loved to Deth" by Megadeth. It begins with piano.

The song's electric guitar doesn't start with the riff. Actually it starts with a pick scrapping. If you notice.
(For the visitor's comment)

5 Mysteria - Edguy

Tobias Sammet shouts "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the freakshow" and then screams. His scream is one of the longest and most impressive intro screams I've ever heard.

6 One - Metallica

The intro to this song is gunshots, helicopter, war sounds. So it fits the requirements. Plus, it sets the tone for the song very well and makes for a fantastic song.

7 Disturbing the Priest - Black Sabbath

Psychotic and spooky screams from the master - Ian Gillan.

8 Painkiller - Judas Priest

This song is just awesome

A legendary drum intro

9 Spirit Horse of the Cherokee - Manowar

This is the most bizarre song I've ever heard, including the intro. Just give a listen to the song because it's description is gonna be long but useless. It's something you have to hear.
Should be in the top 10.

10 Fast As a Shark - Accept

What even is the intro?

The Contenders
11 Sacred Worlds - Blind Guardian

This is a very long intro (2:13) and perhaps the most impressive intro I know - symphonic orchestra. The song is one of the best out there.

12 Peace Sells - Megadeth

The intro is on a bass guitar not an electric guitar.

13 Majesty - Blind Guardian

It opens with a barrel organ version of Johann Strauss II's waltz The Blue Danube.

14 Gates of Babylon - Rainbow

Mystic intro with some oriental air to it. This intro slides into your head like nothing else.
Try the song sample below (only part of the intro though).

I heard it was synthesizer not sure though.

15 Don't Bring Me Down - Northern Kings

A short drum intro and a gorgeous melodic scream from Jarkko Ahola. This guy screams a lot and pretty good.
The song is a great ELO metal cover. There's no scream in the original. Northern Kings also changed the drum beat in the intro as well as many other things.
ELO = Electric Light Orchestra.

16 Gutter Ballet - Savatage

It wasn't that easy to find a cool piano intro because it's not very typical. This is a great song by a great but underrated band.
This intro was the theme song of some radio or T.V. show so I knew the tune and recognized it when I heard the song for the first time.

17 Oops! I Did It Again - Children of Bodom

An epic Britney Spears cover, haha. One of the funniest ever. This intro always puts a smile on my face - Alexi Laiho is such a badass (he spits, clears his throat, …)
I had to do some research to find out what exactly Alexi says: in the intro he yells "Perkele" - a Finnish word for the Devil/Satan used as a swear / curse word.

They did a Britney Spears cover?!

18 Stargazer - Rainbow

So legendary drum intro

19 Time What is Time - Blind Guardian

Cool acoustic intro (flamenco style) to a pretty heavy song.

20 Age of Shadows - Ayreon
21 No Love - Exodus
22 King of the Kill - Annihilator
23 Father Time - Stratovarius
24 Burnt Offerings - Iced Earth
25 Run to the Hills - Iron Maiden

I'm disappointed that this isn't already part of this list.

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