Top Ten Best American Metal Bands

They may all be good, but compared to Metallica, all of these bands are amateurs. Fact. If it wasn't for Metallica, none of them would exist. Hands down, the best band, metal or not. They really know how to write music, especially by today's standards.
And they're doing the best they can considering how old they are now, with some of their songs being played faster than the recorded version. Metallica, keep writing awesome, tasteful music! Love you guys!
"Not What They Used to Be" would only be accurate before "Death Magnetic" came out. That album is total thrash metal like their old stuff, and it's an extremely underrated album. Just listen to "All Nightmare Long," it's so awesome!

This band is just awesome. I just love them. Can't believe they're so low on the list!
*Ahem* Did we forget Megadeth is an American band?
Very speedy and full of great solos. Megadeth is the best American band.

M. Shadows is a one-of-a-kind vocalist, and I love his higher vocal range and falsetto. He can growl like any other metal band, which, in my opinion, is better than James Hetfield and Corey Taylor. This makes A7X better than Metallica, but I agree Metallica should top them because Metallica is one of my favorite metal bands ever. Dream Theater should be in second place.
Slipknot is a great band with a bunch of great songs, but Avenged Sevenfold is Avenged Sevenfold, with such awesome guitarists, a superb vocalist, and the world's best drummer. RIP Jimmy.

Why is Slayer not number one? They are definitely the best thrash metal band, and both Megadeth and Metallica are thrash. Slayer has released the best thrash metal album (Reign in Blood) and definitely deserve to be number one.
My list:
1. Slayer
2. Megadeth
3. Dio
Every member is incredibly influential and brought something unique to metal.

Pantera is the best. Rex is a badass bassist. Vinnie Paul can wail on the drums and has an amazing sound. You know his drumming. Phil is the greatest frontman, hands down. I just saw PHA and the Illegals. Awesome. But Dimebag is metal. He's the best. Period. Notice metal fell off after that idiot ruined it.
I saw Pantera along with most of the bands on this list. No one can come close to Pantera. The connection between the fans and the band may never be duplicated. Slayer is close in that category, but they lack the ferocious vocals of Phil and the amazing guitar of Dime. Pantera influences all new metal and set the bar when Far Beyond Driven debuted at #1.

Do I even have to explain why Dio is the greatest American metal band? Dio's voice is overwhelmingly powerful, the riffs are cool as hell, and the songs have great lyrics. No doubt, the greatest American metal band ever.
With vocals like that, Dio is the boss. Plus, he was in Black Sabbath, and I love them.

Their music is beautifully complex and yet heavy at the same time. They also have a variety of songs with different styles, all of which are amazing. Surely they should take first place.
Why only fifth place? I mean, the others are all pretty cool, but DT gives us chills, gives us masterpieces, and makes us believe they're gods. Yay.
Listen to the Falling into Infinity album!


Death made 7 decent albums (many of them much more than decent) while Metallica only made 3.5 decent albums. Come on, I can't believe how extremely overrated that band is. Death, on the other hand, made true, good quality metal.
Ridiculously good riffs, extreme heaviness, overall musical proficiency, very good lyrics (towards the end of their career), and no sellouts. Chuck Schuldiner was always true to metal, making brilliant music and giving metal a new meaning, and for that, I thank him.
Recommended songs: Crystal Mountain, Misanthrope, Zombie Ritual, Pull the Plug, Spirit Crusher, The Philosopher, Cosmic Sea, Flesh and the Power it Holds.

Slipknot is one of the best bands I have ever heard. I'm a big country music fan, but Slipknot and Misfits have pulled me into this whole world of music. I love Slipknot!
Slipknot is so amazing. The best songs, in my opinion, are Eyeless, My Plague, or Wait and Bleed. The best album is Slipknot. If you like Nu-Metal, go on iTunes and check them out.
Slipknot should be higher than Avenged Sevenfold. They should be in the top 3!
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They should easily be top 10. Joey Belladonna and Scott Ian are legendary together.


Lamb of God is the most talented on the list. Obviously, people think it's little 8th graders voting, but I'm in year 9. I know good music when I hear it.
Linkin Park is on this list? Awful. That's why I voted for LOG. They're the best, and people need to realize it.
It's called "Pure American Metal" for a reason. They NEED to be number 1.


As much as I want to give this to Disturbed, I have to give it to Korn. Metallica copied other metal bands such as Judas Priest and Black Sabbath, bringing nothing new to the table of metal. Bands like Cannibal Corpse and Death were just too heavy for non-metalheads. When Korn came around, they introduced something heavy enough for real metalheads and soft enough for non-metalheads - the perfect combination.
It is true that if Korn never came around, Slipknot and maybe even Disturbed would never have made it. I love Disturbed and Slipknot, but this is just the cold hard truth. Avenged Sevenfold definitely would not have made it without Korn. Why are they even on this list? They are closer to emo than actual metal.



Overkill at #56? After dozens of mediocre bands, some of them not even metal? Shame on this list.

They have been a significant influence in the history of metal, especially in genres such as power metal, symphonic metal, Viking metal, war metal,... read more

The band is set together between Maynard James Keenan (Vocals), Danny Carey (Drums), Adam Jones (Guitar) and since 1995 Justin Chancellor (Bass).
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One of the most unique and influential acts in recent metal.

Their songs have emotion and meaning, and they deliver it through their music.
Come on, this should be in the top 5!

This should be in the top ten. This shows a true American brutal death metal band.


Diverse and ever-evolving. Extremely talented musicians.
Because Trivium kicks all of the others' asses.

These guys should be higher. They have great songs like Down with the Sickness, Stricken, Indestructible, and Asylum.
Listen to the songs, and if you like them, come back to the list and vote for them.
Amazing band. They deserve to rank higher than Slipknot and Avenged Sevenfold.
They deserve to be higher in the ratings. David's voice is incredible.