So just for fun, here are my favorite musical artists. And bucking the trend... this list goes to
11.
1,000 Eyes's 11 Favorite Bands (As Of Now)
11. Ahab
I'm not a fan of doom metal, yet these guys are great. Really great. The heaviness, the vocals, the themes they use - i.e. Moby Dick, the ocean - it's just so awesome. Not a band people hear about much but one doom fans should check out.
10. Def Leppard
Unlike many people, I actually love hair bands. And none of them were better than Def Leppard. I actually prefer their hair band years to their New Wave of British Heavy Metal years (though both were good). Hysteria is a great album, IMO.
9. Mercyful Fate
What can I say? Don't Break The Oath. It's a top notch album. King Diamond has the best falsetto ever; Michael Denner and Hank Shermann are one of the greatest guitar duos ever. New fans might not know them, but most true metalheads do.
8. Slayer
These guys pretty much play like they're dropping a bomb on the listener. Fast, aggressive, not the best musicians but who actually cares? Reign In Blood. Everyone was just amazed at that album. They're metal gods.
7. Queensryche
Queensryche really had only four good albums, but that's still the only ones you need to know. Operation: Mindcrime and Empire especially. They're the masters of the concept album; Geoff Tate is one of the best metal singers, and Chris DeGarma, among the others, is a great guitarist.
6. Death
Chuck Schuldiner is the godfather of death metal, and Death revolutionized both death and technical death metal. They've had no bad albums - their worst is at worst mediocre. Seriously. All seven albums are great albums. You cannot call yourself a death metal fan without listening to Death.
5. ABBA
Oh god the nostalgia. I can't even begin to talk about them.
4. Iron Maiden
These guys. Historical, literary, mythological, and downright fun. Packaged together with air raid siren vocals, excellent dual guitar, and killer bass. Iron Maiden is heavy metal for everyone.
3. Megadeth
There are time when I think about replacing Megadeth with someone else. Then I remember Hangar 18. It's a perfect song, and overall this band has some of the best members ever. Dave Mustaine, Marty Friedman, David Ellefson, the list goes on.
2. Led Zeppelin
They're still at #2 mainly for nostalgia reasons. But hey, who doesn't love Zep?
1. The Beatles
Better question - who doesn't like The Beatles? They're the most famous band ever, and while my taste in music has changed, they are still my favorite band... and probably always will be.
So that's my list at this point in time. Might do another one somewhere down the road.