1 Queen
Queen are an English rock band formed in London in 1970. The original lineup was Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), and John Deacon (bass guitar, vocals). Before forming into Queen, Brian May and Roger Taylor had played together in a band named Smile. Freddie Mercury was a fan of Smile and encouraged them to experiment with more elaborate... read more Opera: Who wants to live forever
Hard rock: I want it all, Hammer to fall
Rock: One vision (and a lot more)
Glam rock: Now I'm here
Trash metal: Stone cold crazy
Blues: My melancholy blues
Funky: Another one bites the dust
Pop: Kind of magic
...etc.
Yup deserves number 1 just for their Hot Space album, not their best album but its very varied, it has Queen doing these genres, Pop, Rock, Funk, Disco, and R&B and Queen did pretty much perfected all the genres on that album.
No other band could be first. They are like a weird combination of opera, glam, metal, hard rock, sometimes dance and even pop
2 The Beatles
The Beatles were an English pop rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The members consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They were soon known as the foremost and most influential act of rock era. Rooted in skiffle, beat, and 1950s rock and roll, the Beatles later experimented with several genres, ranging from pop ballads and Indian music to psychedelia and hard... read more Overrated or what, you have to admit they were able to experiment with a wide range of music. You have your typical pop songs like Please Please Me to your wildly experimental song Revolution 9
3 David Bowie
David Robert Jones, known professionally as David Bowie (January 8, 1947 - January 10, 2016) was an English singer born in London, the son of a fundraiser and a waitress. He is credited for his experimental and creative musical discography which has won praise and accolades for many critics and fans.
The man who the world knew as David Bowie was an actor, a painter, a philosopher, and many other things. But first and foremost, and what he was known for most, he was a rock star, covering every genre from psychedelic folk to industrial. His influence on fashion, music, and pop culture in general remains as his legacy--along, of course, with his unforgettable music. I nearly voted for Queen, but I'd say Bowie's diversifying has been a bit more consistent in quality than Queen's (Hot Space, anyone? ).
4 Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English progressive rock band formed in 1965 in London, England. They achieved international acclaim with their progressive and psychedelic music. The band consisted of 5 members - David Gilmour (Vocals and Guitar), Syd Barrett (Vocals and Guitar), Nick Mason (Drums), Roger Waters (Vocals and Bass), and Richard Wright (Vocals and Keyboard). Barrett was replaced by Gilmour in 1968... read more Even within albums like The Wall all the songs are very different
5 Metallica
Metallica is an American Heavy/Thrash Metal band formed in 1981. The original lineup was James Hetfield (Vocalist and Rhythm guitarist), Dave Mustaine (Lead Guitar), Lars Ulrich (Drums), Ron McGovney (Bassist). The group came into mainstream from their Self-Titled album and the hit single "Enter Sandman"... read more Don't deserve to be too high but they are quite diverse a band. They can do power ballads, typical thrash metal, the more mainstream stuff like Enter Sandman. Stuff like St Anger and LuLu, hate them or not were the band experimenting and showing they deserve to be on this list
6 Blind Guardian
Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in the mid-1980s in West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres. Heavily influenced by Queen, they use the technique of overdubbing. They also incorporate large amounts of orchestral arrangements. Hansi Kürsch creates a huge choir effect by overdubbing his own voice multiple times in complex, overlapping harmonies. Thanks to overdubs and numerous backing vocals Blind Guardian stand out with a very dense sound. I can't name another metal band that tried several metal subgenres and nailed all of them, creating at least one masterpiece in the respective subgenres. There are other metal bands that experimented but failed at least at one genre. In contrast, Blind Guardian created some of the best songs in some subgenres.
1) Symphonic metal: Wheel Of Time, Sacred Worlds, The Throne
2) Thrashy speed metal: Majesty, Banish From Sanctuary
3) Progressive Power metal: And Then There Was Silence
4) Power metal: Mirror Mirror
5) Heavy Metal: Thorn, I'm Alive
6) Acoustic folk ballads: The Bard's Song (In the Forest), Skalds and Shadows
Also, many Blind Guardian songs can't be put in any of these subgenres because this band also tried some unusual subgenre combinations. And it worked. But what is the genre of Tanelorn (Into The Void) or Bright Eyes, for example? I will never know.
7 Buckethead
Brian Patrick Carroll, known professionally as Buckethead, is an American guitarist and multi-instrumentalist who has worked within many genres of music. If its about varied music artist then Buckethead beats every artists in this list. He has a very wide range of music. Rock, metal, funk, jazz, blues, and of course his experimental music. On metallum they have stated "various". He has played countless amount of music genres.
8 Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known as the lead singer of the British rock band Blur, the co-founder, vocalist, instrumentalist and principal songwriter of the virtual band Gorillaz. He was born on March 23, 1968, in Whitechapel, London, England. Albarn has been an active supporter of various charities and philanthropic efforts throughout his career as a musician and has been involved in various charity albums and singles. I was going to put Gorillaz and Blur on the list but decided that Damon Albarn himself deserves a spot. He clearly likes experimenting with different bands with different styles and also with the newer Hong Kong themed Blur album
9 Coldplay
Coldplay are a British pop rock band formed in 1996. The band consists of Chris Martin (lead vocalist and pianist), Jonny Buckland (lead guitarist), Guy Berryman (bassist) and Will Champion (drummer and backing vocalist). Manager Phil Harvey is often considered an unofficial fifth member. The band renamed themselves "Coldplay" in 1998. Before making their debut album, they recorded and released three EPs: Safety in 1998, Brothers & Sisters as a single in 1999, and The Blue Room in the same year. The Blue Room was their first release on a major label, after signing to Parlophone. ...read more.
10 Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is an English singer, pianist and composer. Collaborating with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967 on more than 30 albums, John has sold over 300 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He has more than fifty Top 40 hits in the UK Singles Chart and US Billboard Hot 100, including nine number ones in the UK and nine in the US, as well as seven consecutive number-one albums in the US. His tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997", rewritten in dedication to Diana, Princess of Wales, sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling chart single of all time. According to Billboard ...read more.
The Contenders
11 Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree are an English progressive rock band formed by musician Steven Wilson in 1987. The band began essentially as a solo project for Wilson, who created all of the band's music.
12 The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. You have the purer punk stuff then you have the reggae and rockabilly stuff. I tend to prefer the punkier stuff but it's all good
13 Eminem
Eminem, born Marshall Bruce Mathers III, is an American rapper, actor and music producer born on October 17, 1972 in St. Joseph, Missouri. Eminem has sold over 300 million records making him the bestselling hip-hop artist of all time. In addition to his solo career, he is a member of D12 and (with Royce da 5'9") half of the hip-hop duo Bad Meets Evil.
Rolling Stone ranked him 83rd on its list of 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, calling him the King of Hip Hop. Including his work with D12 and Bad Meets Evil, Eminem has had ten number-one albums on the Billboard 200 and 5 number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100, and 13 worldwide. Eminem is one of the most diversed artists when other rappers centrals around US and UK. Even Asians (me) know Eminem. Russia is the biggest fan of Eminem actually
14 The Mothers of Invention
The Mothers of Invention were an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows.
15 Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin was an English hard rock band formed in London in 1968 as the New Yardbirds. The group consisted of Robert Plant (Vocal), Jimmy Page (Guitar), John Paul Jones (Bass, Keyboard) and John Bonham (Drums) and was very much the child of Jimmy Page who even financed their first tour. He had tasted some previous success with The [original] Yardbirds and was friendly with some big names in rock... read more
16 The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. The first settled line-up consisted of Brian Jones (guitar, harmonica), Ian Stewart (piano), Mick Jagger (lead vocals, harmonica), Keith Richards (guitar), Bill Wyman (bass) and Charlie Watts (drums).
Their best works include songs like Paint it Black, Sympathy for the Devil, Satisfication (Which ranked no. 2 in The Rolling... read more Similar to David Bowie in the way that you can love one of their songs and hate another. I guess when a band lasts so long they like to play around with their music
I see it black
17 Billy Bragg
A small amount of people know this singer but he's one of my favourites and he varies his music a lot from folkier stuff to more punky songs. He can also do a good ballad
18 Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me is an American progressive metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Formed in 2000, the band consists of Tommy Giles Rogers, Jr.
19 Muse
Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The members are Matt Bellamy (lead vocal, lead guitar, piano, keyboard), Dom Howard (drums, percussion) and Chris Wolstenholme (bass, backing vocals). They've won several awards including 5 MTV Awards, 8 NME Awards, 2 Brit Awards, and 2 Grammy Awards.
20 Avril Lavigne
Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian–French singer-songwriter and actress. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more than $2 million.
21 The Isley Brothers
22 Alice In Chains
Alice in Chains is an American grunge/alternative metal band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley.
23 Slipknot
Slipknot is an American metal band formed in Des Moines, Iowa in 1996. The band is best known as one of the pioneers of the New Wave of American Alternative Metal during the late 1990s - 2000s and are distinguishable by the band's clothing choices, consisting of black/red jumpsuits and horror inspired masks... read more Their third album onward has a lot of experimental tracks, ranging from Heavy Metal, Hard Alternative, Hard Rock and even Alternative Rock and Soft Rock. Their fourth album isn't even Nu Metal, more leaning towards Traditional Metal and even having Thrash Metal elements.
24 Judas Priest
Judas Priest are a British heavy metal band that formed in Birmingham, England, in 1969. They are often referred to as one of the greatest metal bands of all time, and are even commonly called “The Metal Gods”, after one of the songs on their 1980 album “British Steel”.
They are known for several of their hit songs, which include “Painkiller”, “Breaking The Law”, You’ve Got... read more
25 Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band from Boston, Massachusetts. The band was formed in 1985 under the name of "Majesty", only to change its name to Dream Theater later.
The members of the band’s original lineup consisted of John Petrucci (Guitar), John Myung (Bass) and Mike Portnoy (Drums). The band had multiple keyboardists and singers, but as of and since 1991, the band's... read more