It was a daunting winter for Very Friendly. We trudged through the insane slate of snowstorms. We suffered setbacks. We gave ourselves caffeine poisoning on many occasions. But spring is in full swing. The sunshine has renewed our spirits, and we are very close indeed to opening our doors to the public.
It has engendered a sense of triumph, the rising feeling that a battle is on the verge of being won. And as it gets warmer, it feels even more appropriate than usual to begin my yearly tradition of busting out all my favorite power metal classics.
I understand this is a contested field, that more serious and grim heads have probably already clicked off this article. To a large degree I understand; I didn’t really get into any of this stuff until my late 20s, after years of convincing myself that the whole arena just sounds like Nightwish. Maybe it’s just that I’m a little less self-serious than I used to be, but I now find the genre’s hallmarks — soaring riffs, fantastical themes, often piercingly high vocals — to scratch an itch that comes around annually and doesn’t leave until well into fall.
With that in mind, here are a few suggestions for those interested in dipping their toes into the world of power metal.
Running Wild - Death or Glory (1989)
Germany has a stranglehold over the genre for good reason; some of the greatest and most technically proficient bands in the scene hail from there. Running Wild might be the most consistent, with at least six solid gold classics under their belt. Their oceanic, swashbuckling themes certainly help them stand apart, but their monumentally triumphant riffs are what keep me devoted. Death or Glory is their highest watermark, an album almost obscenely stuffed with galloping riffs and multi-part vocal melodies. If you don’t leave its 50 minute runtime sprinting to your nearest marina to commandeer a vessel, I have to question your commitment to the lifestyle.
Riot - Thundersteel (1988)
Across the pond, New York’s own Riot (now performing as Riot V due to the introduction of the band’s fifth vocalist, the excellent Todd Michael Hall) were busy making a case for themselves as one of the chief practitioners of US power metal. Most of what we traditionally think of as “power metal” is of the European variety, where grandiosity is paramount. Americans kept things a little grittier and darker, both in the sonics and lyrics. Thundersteel is the sound of a reinvented band, after founding guitarist Mark Reale scrapped the old trad metal lineup and went for broke on a virtuosic show of force. It paid off. Thundersteel is near-perfect, retaining just the right amount of traditional songwriting mixed with Yankee scrappiness (shining most brightly on the terrific “Johnny’s Back”).
Helloween - Keeper of the Seven Keys Pts I and II (1987/1988)
If you only give power metal one shot, let it be with these. The German titans came out the gate strong with Walls of Jericho, but were out for blood with both Keepers. Founding guitarist Kai Hansen stepped aside as vocalist in lieu of the younger Michael Kiske, whose soaring four-octave range led the band into borderline neoclassical territory. Parts I and II of Keeper were released a year apart but feel very much like two parts of a whole, developing a shared mythology that frankly does not make a lot of sense under scrutiny. But sound-wise, it blends into around 90 minutes of the genre’s peak. There are radio-ready singles, lighthearted romps, midtempo barnburners and double-digit-length odysseys. The band would go on to release many, many albums after this, with varying lineups and of varying quality. But the mark left by these two records is undeniable.
Manilla Road - Mystification (1987)
Manilla Road, fronted by the formidable Mark “The Shark” Shelton, is probably the darkest power metal gets. Their first record, the flawed but memorable Crystal Logic is many listeners’ first engagement with the band, and while there are some killer tracks, the band would reach fearsome heights as they progressed. 1987’s Mystification is my personal favorite, a ghostly and Edgar Allen Poe-indebted romp. Unlike King Diamond’s stabs at the same subject matter (which, of course, I adore as well) Mystification is deadly serious, with Shelton’s voice losing its nasal register and solidifying into a powerful baritone. The riffs are jagged and the production keeps the haunted atmosphere alive. It’s a gothic horror fan’s dream, and a testament to one of the most undersung bands in American metal.
Brocas Helm - Defender of the Crown (2004)
Speaking of underrated, we close our list with the final effort from San Francisco’s Brocas Helm, a band with a fragmented history. They released three studio albums in 1984, 1988 and again in 2004, with a single and an EP in between. Defender of the Crown is the sound of a band picking up exactly where they left off, and features the best production of any of their albums. You can certainly accuse it of being too long, but I’d argue that it’s just stuffed with 16 years’ worth of material that was itching to get out. There’s frenetic bass tapping, certifiably over-the-top guitar work, vocals that verge on Tenacious D levels of self-seriousness and beneath it all, endless fun. Songs about drunk driving, skull-fucking and priest sacrificing collide with your usual fantasies. It is, of everything on this list, the album that most fully embodies the spirit of heavy metal.