Yep. You betcha. Another top 10 list - only this one doubles the ante.
But first things first: what exactly does the term "Power Metal" mean? Well, it goes back to Sam Dunn who, way back in 2005 came up with his heavy metal family tree. (He revised and expanded it a great deal a few years later). And, while I of course won't say that I 100% agree with every little detail of his list, I think, overall, he did a superb job of constructing it. So, "Power Metal" in this case essentially just means fantasy-themed metal. And while yes, of course, I took a few liberties: like, while I know that Megadeth and Savatage aren't power metal in the strictest sense, they have a couple of songs that fit the category, hence their inclusion here. And I also tried to do a little bit of a balancing act, and not make this strictly my personal all-time favorites. For example, while I personally am not a huge Scorpions fan, not having at least one of their songs here would have been absolutely criminal. And, regarding Black Sabbath, while many would agree that they were the first metal band, it could, by extension, be said that the Wizard was the first fantasy metal song.
So, all that being said, here's my selection:
1) Manowar: the Power
2) Rainbow: Gates of Babylon
3) Rhapsody: Warrior of Ice
4) Nightwish: Nemo
5) Dio: Holy Diver
6) Helloween: Halloween
7) Nightwish (via Andrew Lloyd Webber): Phantom of the Opera
8) Kamelot: Ghost Opera
9) Manowar: Heart of Steel/Herz Aus Stahl
10) Rhapsody of Fire: Triumph or Agony
11) Luca Turilli's Rhapsody: One Ring to Rule Them All
12) Savatage (via Edvard Grieg): Hall of the Mountain King
13) Symphony X: the Odyssey
14) Dio: Mystery
15) Iron Maiden: Powerslave
16) the Scorpions: Rock You Like a Hurricane
17) Hammerfall: At the End of the Rainbow
18) Megadeth: Five Magics
19) Black Sabbath: the Wizard
20) Primal Fear: Tears of Rage
But first things first: what exactly does the term "Power Metal" mean? Well, it goes back to Sam Dunn who, way back in 2005 came up with his heavy metal family tree. (He revised and expanded it a great deal a few years later). And, while I of course won't say that I 100% agree with every little detail of his list, I think, overall, he did a superb job of constructing it. So, "Power Metal" in this case essentially just means fantasy-themed metal. And while yes, of course, I took a few liberties: like, while I know that Megadeth and Savatage aren't power metal in the strictest sense, they have a couple of songs that fit the category, hence their inclusion here. And I also tried to do a little bit of a balancing act, and not make this strictly my personal all-time favorites. For example, while I personally am not a huge Scorpions fan, not having at least one of their songs here would have been absolutely criminal. And, regarding Black Sabbath, while many would agree that they were the first metal band, it could, by extension, be said that the Wizard was the first fantasy metal song.
So, all that being said, here's my selection:
1) Manowar: the Power
2) Rainbow: Gates of Babylon
3) Rhapsody: Warrior of Ice
4) Nightwish: Nemo
5) Dio: Holy Diver
6) Helloween: Halloween
7) Nightwish (via Andrew Lloyd Webber): Phantom of the Opera
8) Kamelot: Ghost Opera
9) Manowar: Heart of Steel/Herz Aus Stahl
10) Rhapsody of Fire: Triumph or Agony
11) Luca Turilli's Rhapsody: One Ring to Rule Them All
12) Savatage (via Edvard Grieg): Hall of the Mountain King
13) Symphony X: the Odyssey
14) Dio: Mystery
15) Iron Maiden: Powerslave
16) the Scorpions: Rock You Like a Hurricane
17) Hammerfall: At the End of the Rainbow
18) Megadeth: Five Magics
19) Black Sabbath: the Wizard
20) Primal Fear: Tears of Rage
