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1->''Lord of all Noldor\
2A star in the night and a bearer of hope\
3He rides into his glorious battle alone\
4Farewell to the valiant warlord''
5-->[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWDR_ncgqwg "Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill)"]], Music/BlindGuardian
6
7[floatboxright:
8Primary Stylistic Influences:
9+ SpeedMetal, ThrashMetal, NewWaveOfBritishHeavyMetal
10]
11[floatboxright:
12Secondary Stylistic Influences:
13+ ProgressiveRock, ClassicalMusic, HardRock
14]
15
16Remember how all Metal is descended from Music/LedZeppelin? Rememeber how once in a while, Zeppelin would reference Literature/LordOfTheRings in their lyrics? Power Metal is the logical continuation of that - metal about epic fantasy, history, and mythology.
17
18Power metal is a subgenre of metal which grew out of TraditionalHeavyMetal and SpeedMetal with the help of progressive rock in [[TheEighties the late eighties]], and is characterized by a more melodic sound than most other subgenres. An emphasis on speed, especially fast guitar solos, is also frequently present. Many power metal bands also have [[HeavyMithril fantasy-based lyrics and themes]] with singing styles usually being higher-pitched clean vocals, operatic vocals or SopranoAndGravel; however, lower-pitched cleans and HarshVocals are not unheard of, as are lyrical themes beyond just sword-and-sorcery.
19
20Because the genre formed practically simultaneously in Europe and North America, there are distinct differences in styles from the two scenes. While both scenes share similar influences from the NewWaveOfBritishHeavyMetal, American styled power metal tends to be more riff-focused and also influenced by the harder sound of classic thrash metal, codified by bands such as Music/IcedEarth, Vicious Rumors, and Music/JagPanzer. European power metal, on the other hand, is more influenced by ProgressiveRock and ProgressiveMetal, lending European acts a brighter and more melodic sound with a heavy emphasis on choruses and the addition of keyboards and orchestral elements. Among the codifiers are bands such as Music/{{Helloween}} and Music/BlindGuardian, with more recent but no less popular torchbearers including Music/RhapsodyOfFire, Music/{{Nightwish|Band}}[[note]](both of which are also SymphonicMetal, a genre European power metal frequently crosses over with)[[/note]], Music/{{Sabaton}}, and yes, Music/{{Dragonforce}}.
21
22To add to this, beginning in TheNineties and ramping up in [[TurnOfTheMillennium the 2000s]], Japan began to produce its own brand of power metal, with many Japanese bands drawing heavily from both the existing European power metal style and neoclassical metal acts like Music/{{Stratovarius}} and [[Music/YngwieMalmsteen Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force]] along with the shreddy flair of Japan's own melodic metal pioneers such as Music/XJapan and Music/{{Loudness}}. Japanese codifiers include Music/{{Galneryus}}, Concerto Moon and Music/{{Versailles}}.
23
24South American power metal (most prominent in Brazil and Argentina, as well as Colombia and Peru to a lesser extent), meanwhile, tends not to fall into any distinct style, but the scene's most popular and codifying bands like Music/{{Angra}} and Shaman blend the soaring and progressive European sound with the copious lead guitar shredding and neoclassical influences of J-Power. Other famous South American acts include Music/RataBlanca, Viper, and Hibria.
25
26Additionally, Finland is home to a variant of it that blends the typical Europower sound with its requisite
27Scandinavian MelodicDeathMetal; Finnish melodeath/power codifiers include Music/ChildrenOfBodom, Norther, and Kalmah.
28
29Lastly, there is shred; while usually not viewed as a power metal subgenre, it has historically had extremely heavy overlap with the genre due to shred-style leadwork in power metal and guitarists from established acts forming instrumental rock and metal side projects and thus gets a mention. The aforementioned Music/YngwieMalmsteen is one of the earliest and most influential examples.
30
31Power metal is also known for the ease it can be fused with other styles, to the point that SymphonicMetal, Neo-Classical Metal, ThrashMetal and, correctly or otherwise, ProgressiveMetal are often considered directly linked to power metal, and a lot of early progressive metal acts (Fates Warning, Crimson Glory, and, to a degree, Watchtower) overlapped with the genre. 3 Inches of Blood is a blatant fusion of ThrashMetal and power metal and Symphony X is the TropeCodifier of progressive power metal.
32
33Or in laymans' terms: power metal is what would happen if you take five teenagers, lock them in a room with every single Music/IronMaiden, Music/{{Rush|Band}} and Music/{{Metallica}} CD, a few classical records, and every ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' sourcebook ever, let them out ten years later, and made them really good at playing instruments.
34
35Not to be confused with [[AppliedPhlebotinum literal metals for powering up your goods]].
36
37%%NOTE: Don't mind the weird indexing, it's the only way to keep items that aren't suppose to be indexed from being listed.
38----
39
40!!Examples of bands frequently associated with power metal:
41
42Due to the stylistic differences between American, European, and Japanese PowerMetal, this list is sorted by region.
43
44[[index]]
45'''North American Power Metal:'''
46
47* [[Music/ThreeInchesOfBlood 3 Inches of Blood]]
48* Adamantis
49* Aether Realm (also melodic death metal and folk metal)
50* Music/AgentSteel (also SpeedMetal)
51* Music/{{Apocrypha}}
52* Music/{{Attacker}}
53* Music/BlackMajesty (an Australian band straddling the line between American and European styles)
54* Music/BrocasHelm
55* Music/EricCalderone
56* Music/CauldronBorn
57* Music/{{Cellador}}
58* Music/CrescentShield
59* Music/CrimsonGlory (also ProgressiveMetal)
60* Music/DamienSteele
61* Music/DeadlyBlessing
62* Music/DemonBitch
63* Music/DemonsAndWizards
64* Music/FatesWarning (the John Arch era, also ProgressiveMetal; the Ray Alder era is straight prog)
65* Music/FifthAngel
66* Music/FlotsamAndJetsam (also ThrashMetal and/or GrooveMetal, depending on the album)
67* Music/{{Forte}} (also ThrashMetal)
68* Heathen (also ThrashMetal)
69* Music/HeirApparent
70* Music/{{Helstar}}
71* Music/{{Hexx}} (was death/thrash during the ''Morbid Reality'' era)
72* Music/HolyGrail
73* Music/IcedEarth (also ThrashMetal for their early releases)
74* Immortal Guardian
75* Impellitteri
76* Music/JagPanzer
77* Music/{{Judicator}}
78* Music/{{Kamelot}} (decidedly Europower-leaning)
79** 2003-5 - ''Music/EpicaAlbumSeries''
80** 2012 - ''Music/{{Silverthorn}}''
81* Leatherwolf
82* Music/LiegeLord
83* Music/LizzyBorden (also HairMetal)
84* Music/ManillaRoad (also DoomMetal, ThrashMetal, and traditional heavy metal, very much on a song-by-song basis)
85* Music/{{Manowar}} (arguable [[TropeMakers Trope Maker]] for ''both'' scenes of power metal)
86* Music/MeliahRage (also thrash)
87* Music/NastySavage (their 1985 self-titled debut is considered seminal USPM, but all of their following albums lean much closer to ThrashMetal)
88* Music/MetalChurch (also ThrashMetal and SpeedMetal, depending on the album, but the Mike Howe and Ronny Munroe-era material is almost strictly power metal)
89* Music/NecromancingTheStone
90* Music/{{Nevermore}} (overlaps with ProgressiveMetal, ThrashMetal, and (believe it or not) [[GrooveMetal djent]])
91* [=NovaReign=]
92* Music/{{Omen}}
93* Outworld (also ProgressiveMetal)
94* Paladin (some melodic death metal elements)
95* Music/{{Pentakill}} (Originally a side project, evolved into legitimacy when they hit No. 1 on Metal charts after their second album. Also IndustrialMetal.)
96* Music/{{Pharaoh}} (mixed with ProgressiveMetal)
97* Music/{{Powerglove}} (a video game music cover band)
98* Project: Roenwolfe (also thrash metal)
99* Ravage
100* Realm (also prog on ''Suiciety'')
101* Music/{{Riot}} (began as traditional metal but shifted into power with ''Fire Down Under''. It and ''Thundersteel'' are early TropeMakers for USPM.)
102* Music/{{Sanctuary}}
103* Music/{{Savatage}} (also ProgressiveMetal)
104** ''Music/StreetsARockOpera'' (1991)
105** ''Music/HandfulOfRain'' (1994)
106** ''Music/DeadWinterDead'' (1995)
107** ''Music/TheWakeOfMagellan'' (1998)
108** ''Music/PoetsAndMadmen'' (2001)
109* Music/SevenKingdoms
110* Slauter Xstroyes (also ProgressiveMetal)
111* Music/{{Spellcaster}}
112* Music/{{Starkill}} (also MelodicDeathMetal in the Finnish vein)
113* Music/{{Symphony X}} (also ProgressiveMetal; much closer to Europower in style)
114* Music/TempleOfBlood
115* Music/{{Theocracy}} (also ProgressiveMetal)
116* Music/{{Thor}} (Possibly the UrExample, having used elements of power metal in their music since the late 70s.)
117* Music/{{Toxik}} (also ThrashMetal)
118* Music/UnleashTheArchers (started with more MelodicDeathMetal influence but shifted towards ProgressiveMetal by ''Apex'')
119* Music/ViciousRumors
120* Music/VirginSteele
121* Music/{{Visigoth}} (also some epic doom elements)
122* Music/{{Watchtower}} (also a TropeCodifier for ProgressiveMetal)
123* Music/AlissaWhiteGluz
124* Witherfall (also ProgressiveMetal)
125* Music/JonathanYoung
126----
127
128'''European Power Metal:'''
129
130Germany
131* Music/AngelDust (also ThrashMetal)
132* Music/AngusMcSix
133* Music/{{Avantasia}}
134* Music/AxelRudiPell (notable for having [[Music/{{Crush 40}} Johnny Gioeli]] on vocals, aka "the guy who sings the songs for [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic]]")
135* Music/{{Axxis}}
136* Music/BeyondTheBlack
137* Music/BlindGuardian (also SpeedMetal, later ProgressiveMetal and SymphonicMetal)
138* Music/{{Edguy}}
139* Music/EternitysEnd (a Music/ChristianMuenzner project)
140* Music/{{Firewind}}
141* Music/FreedomCall
142* Music/GammaRay
143** Music/KaiHansen
144* Music/GraveDigger (USPM-influenced; also SpeedMetal)
145* Music/HeavensGate
146* Music/{{Helloween}} (also SpeedMetal; one of the TropeMakers for the European sound)
147* Music/IronSavior
148* Music/{{Masterplan}}
149* Music/{{Majesty}}
150* Music/OrdenOgan
151* Music/{{Paradox}} (also ThrashMetal)
152* Music/PinkCream69
153* Music/{{Powerwolf}} (albeit much heavier and darker than the majority of Euro-power bands)
154* Music/{{Primal Fear|Band}}
155* Music/{{Rage|Band}} (also SpeedMetal)
156* Music/RunningWild (also SpeedMetal; somewhat closer to USPM sound-wise)
157* Music/SacralRage (also in the style of USPM)
158* Music/SavageCircus
159* Music/{{Scanner}}
160* Music/SchlafesBruder
161* Music/SilentForce
162* Music/{{Stormwarrior}}
163* Music/VanCanto
164* Music/{{Xandria}}
165
166Sweden
167* Music/{{Amaranthe}}
168* Music/{{Bloodbound}}
169* Music/BrothersOfMetal
170* Music/{{Civil War|Band}}
171* Music/{{Dragonland}} (Overlaps with MelodicDeathMetal, although they rarely use the traditional deep throated screams.)
172* Music/DreamEvil
173* Music/{{Dynazty}}
174* Music/{{Evergrey}} (falls under ProgressiveMetal as well)
175* Music/{{Falconer}} (also FolkMetal)
176* Music/HammerFall
177* Music/HeavyLoad
178* Music/MachinaeSupremacy fuses this with ElectronicMusic
179* Music/{{Majestica}} (formerly [=ReinXeed=], also SymphonicMetal)
180* [[Music/YngwieMalmsteen Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force]]
181* Music/{{Narnia}} (a ChristianRock example)
182* Nocturnal Rites
183* Music/{{Persuader}}
184* Portrait (''Burn the World'', earlier material was traditional heavy metal)
185* Music/{{Sabaton}}
186* Music/TadMorose
187* Music/TwilightForce (An AffectionateParody to PowerMetal and HeavyMithril tropes, although not as overt as Music/{{Gloryhammer}}.)
188
189Finland
190* Music/{{Altaria}}
191* Music/AmberianDawn
192* Music/{{Arion}}
193* Music/BattleBeast
194* Music/{{Battlelore}}
195* Music/BeastInBlack
196* Music/ChildrenOfBodom (overlaps with MelodicDeathMetal)
197* Music/TheDarkElement (overlaps with SymphonicMetal)
198* Music/{{Ensiferum}} (also MelodicDeathMetal and FolkMetal)
199* Music/{{Kalmah}} (Overlaps with MelodicDeathMetal. Later albums replace the power metal element with ThrashMetal)
200* Music/{{Kiuas}}
201* Music/{{Nightwish|Band}} (also SymphonicMetal)
202** Music/TarjaTurunen
203* Norther (also MelodicDeathMetal)
204* Music/SonataArctica
205* Music/{{Stratovarius}}
206* Music/{{Symfonia}}
207* Music/{{Tarot}}
208* Music/{{Terasbetoni}}
209* Music/{{Thunderstone}}
210* Music/{{Turisas}}
211* Music/{{Wintersun}} (also MelodicDeathMetal)
212
213Misc.
214* Adagio (France. also ProgressiveMetal, later material has some djent elements)
215* Music/{{Alestorm}} (UK)
216* Music/AncientBards (Italy)
217* Music/{{Artch}} (Norway)
218* Music/BlackMajesty (an Australian band straddling the line between American and European styles)
219* Cloven Hoof (UK, early material is NWOBHM)
220* Music/DaedricTales (Austria. Overlaps with SymphonicMetal and MelodicDeathMetal)
221* Music/DarkMoor (Spain)
222* Music/{{Derdian}} (Italy)
223* Music/{{DragonForce}} (UK)
224* Elegy (Netherlands. Also ProgressiveMetal)
225* Music/{{Epica}} (Netherlands)
226* Music/{{Epidemia}} (Russia)
227* Music/EvilInvaders (Belgium. Also ThrashMetal and SpeedMetal)
228* Music/{{Fairyland}} (France)
229* Music/FrozenCrown (Italy)
230* Music/{{Gloryhammer}} (UK. An AffectionateParody)
231* Music/{{Heavenly}} (France)
232* Music/{{Keldian}} (Norway)
233* Creator/ChristopherLee (UK)
234** ''Music/{{Charlemagne}}''
235* Music/{{Lonewolf}} (France)
236* Manticora (Denmark. Also ProgressiveMetal)
237* Mercenary (Denmark. Also melodic death)
238* Music/MoonlightHaze (Italy)
239* Music/{{Neonfly}} (UK)
240* Music/{{Pathfinder}} (Poland)
241* Music/PowerQuest (UK)
242* Music/PrettyMaids (Denmark)
243* Music/RadioTapok (Russia)
244* Music/RhapsodyOfFire (Italy)
245* Music/SavageMessiah (UK. Also thrash)
246* Music/SerenityBand (Austria)
247* Music/LucaTurilli (Italy)
248* Music/VisionDivine (Italy)
249* Music/VisionsOfAtlantis (Austria)
250* Music/WindRose (Italy)
251* Music/{{Wisdom}} (Hungary)
252* Music/WutheringHeights (Denmark)
253
254'''Japanese Power Metal'''
255* Music/{{Aldious}}
256* Music/{{Alhambra}}
257* Music/AncientMyth
258* Ark Storm
259* Music/{{Bridear}} (also {{Metalcore}})
260* Music/ConcertoMoon
261* Music/CrossVein
262* Music/{{Cyntia}}
263* Music/DragonGuardian
264* Music/DoubleDealer
265* Music/FateGear
266* Music/FatimaHill
267* Music/{{Galneryus}}
268* Music/{{Jupiter}}
269* Music/LightBringer
270* Music/LivMoon
271* Music/{{Lovebites}}
272* [[Music/MarysBlood Mary's Blood]]
273* Music/MatenrouOpera
274* Music/{{Megaromania}}
275* Music/{{Minstrelix}}
276* Music/{{Octaviagrace}}
277* Music/ScarletValse
278* Sex Machineguns (also SpeedMetal, likely a TropeMaker)
279* Music/TearsOfTragedy
280* Unlucky Morpheus (they started out making Music/TouhouFanMusic, and have a folder on that page)
281* Music/{{Versailles}}
282* Music/WizardsHymn
283* Music/XJapan (also ProgressiveMetal, SpeedMetal and ThrashMetal)
284* Music/YajimaMai
285* Music/ZekeDeux
286
287'''South American Power Metal'''
288* Almah
289* Andre Matos (solo band of the former Angra and Viper vocalist)
290* Music/{{Angra}} (also prog and folk)
291* Barilari (solo band of Rata Blanca vocalist Adrian Barilari)
292* Music/{{Dragonheart}}
293* Edu Falaschi (solo band of the former Angra and Almah singer, also prog)
294* Hangar (also prog)
295* Hibria
296* Rata Blanca
297* Shaman (also prog)
298* Tierramystica (also prog)
299* Viper
300
301'''Shred'''[[note]]do not add individual guitarists who have not released solo material, and do not add technical solo guitarists who lack any power metal in their sound (e.g. Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert, Greg Howe, or Jason Richardson); shred in this context is instrumental guitar-oriented music that uses power metal and traditional heavy metal as its foundation[[/note]]
302* Michael Angelo Batio
303* Jason Becker
304* James Byrd
305* David T. Chastain (not to be confused with Chastain, which he also helms and is a full band)
306* Rusty Cooley
307* Gus Drax
308* Gus G (earlier material, his later works are vocal-oriented and mostly fall under hard rock)
309* Stephane Forte (some djent and industrial elements, but ultimately rooted in power metal)
310* [[Music/{{Megadeth}} Marty Friedman]]
311* Darren Housholder
312* [[Music/FiveFingerDeathPunch Andy James]]
313* Toby Knapp
314* Andrew Lee (Andrew Lee's Heavy Metal Shrapnel specifically)
315* Music/JeffLoomis
316* [[Music/{{Angra}} Kiko Loureiro]]
317* Tony [=MacAlpine=]
318* Music/YngwieMalmsteen (TropeCodifier, mostly on his earliest material; he generally stuck to power metal after that)
319* Vinnie Moore
320* Music/ChristianMuenzner
321* Joe Stump
322* [[Music/{{Galneryus}} Syu]]
323* [[Music/JagPanzer Joey Tafolla]]
324* Derek Taylor
325* [[Music/FallingInReverse Jacky Vincent]] (some metalcore elements, but his solo work is ultimately rooted in power metal)
326* Paul Wardingham (some djent elements, but ultimately has enough power metal influence to qualify)
327[[/index]]
328
329!!Tropes commonly associated with power metal:
330
331* EightiesHair: Very, very common among musicians in the scene, even in more modern acts, and usually the hairstyle choice for many J-power and some Europower artists.
332* AmericansHateTingle: The genre isn't nearly as popular in the U.S. as it is in Europe, Japan, and Brazil. Naturally, the [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff reverse]] is often true for American power metal bands in these countries, with those bands often performing to far bigger crowds than they do at home.
333* ArcWords: Dragons, fire, warriors, heroes and even [[CaptainObvious roundabout things]] such as [[RatedMForManly men being manly]] and ''swords made of steel''.
334* EarnYourHappyEnding: A very frequent theme of power metal. Possibly the only reason why power metal stays on the idealistic end of the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism despite lyrics about war, bloodshed, conquest and/or violence.
335* EpicRocking: Typically, bands will have one very long and complicated song per album. Particularly oversized examples include Blind Guardian's "And Then There Was Silence" (14:15), Helloween's "Keeper of the Seven Keys" (13:38), Symphony X's "The Odyssey" (24:14), Manowar's "Achilles: Agony and Ecstasy in Eight Parts" (27 minutes!), and X Japan's "Art of Life" (29 minutes, and the only song in the album of the same name).
336* HeavyMithril: Many power metal bands sing about mythology and fantasy. Equally common are power metal bands that make {{Rock Opera}}s that take place in original fantasy settings. Some bands opt for low fantasy or science fiction-based themes. It's so prevalent that before this page existed, Power Metal redirected to Heavy Mithril.
337* HotBlooded: The genre itself.
338* {{Instrumentals}}: The entire shred genre, though some artists may feature vocalists on select tracks.
339* LargeHam: Very common in vocalists thanks to the genre's strong focus on theatrical performances.
340* LighterAndSofter: Than its sister genre, ThrashMetal, and its parent genre, SpeedMetal, but not always. In turn, Europower is this to USPM.
341* MetalScream: More prevalent in the American scene, where vocalists tend to favor [[Music/JudasPriest Halford]]-esque shrieks or Dio-esque midranged belting over cleaner [[Music/IronMaiden Dickinsonian]] operatic vocals; European acts are typically more about clean, operatic styles, but a ballsier, more aggressive approach is still commonly seen in German and (to a lesser degree) Swedish acts. Japanese and South American acts also typically skew towards cleaner styles, but Halfordesque (Hibria) and Dioesque (Concerto Moon) deliveries can still be found in both scenes. It has become increasingly common for modern power metal vocalists to employ gruff, throaty vocals similar to thrash or, as with some bands, HarshVocals.
342* ProgressiveMetal: It is relatively common for power metal bands to cross over into progressive metal since both genres focus heavily on musicianship. Watchtower, Fates Warning, and Crimson Glory were all roughly equally responsible for planting those seeds.
343* PunctuatedForEmphasis: All. Of. The. Time!
344* RatedMForManly: The genre overflows with manliness due to the ubiquity of HeavyMithril and HotBlooded {{Large Ham}}s in the scene. Most USPM bands favor bold, aggressive, hard-knocks machismo and conventional male power fantasies, while Europower aesthetics lean more towards a posh, cultured masculinity with a love of history and heroism. Less prominent in J-power, in part due to overlap with the [[CostumePorn extremely flamboyant]] VisualKei scene, and in part because of Japan's large number of female-fronted and all-female power metal bands.
345* RockMeAmadeus: The genre (particularly Japanese, South American, and some European bands) is notable for its extreme emphasis on painfully fast and technical guitar shredding, which is often inspired by or outright ripped off from famous ClassicalMusic pieces. Somewhat less present in USPM with bands preferring aggressive power-chord guitar work and pentatonic blues-based leadwork, but various bands (namely Symphony X, Heathen, Helstar, Apocrypha, and Toxik) are still famous for flashy neoclassical leadwork. Lastly, while the vast majority of shred players are neoclassical, some (namely Gus G. and Derek Taylor) are blues or jazz-based.
346* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: The majority of power metal is very, ''very'' idealistic, though some USPM bands can be ''very'' cynical.
347* SopranoAndGravel: Some power metal vocalists freely alternate between soaring operatics and gruff snarling vocals. Other bands employ a more traditional dual-vocal setup.
348* SpecialGuest: Guest musicians are second only to HipHop in their frequency. This is the entire point for [[Music/{{Avantasia}} some]] [[Music/{{Ayreon}} bands.]]
349* StartMyOwn: A common phenomenon within shred, as most guitarists in the genre either get their start playing in full bands before starting solo projects, or start out as solo guitarists before forming full bands.
350* ThrashMetal: The parent genre for USPM (and the sister genre of power metal in general), as it shares the same aggressive delivery, extremely masculine attitude and approach to musicianship. As with ProgressiveMetal, many non-USPM bands cross over into thrash. This creates some confusion for those new to the genre, as both PowerMetal and ThrashMetal feature super-fast musicianship and excessively manly aesthetics.
351* TropeCodifier: Manowar, Jag Panzer, Riot, Helstar, and Iced Earth for USPM; Versailles and Galneryus for J-Power; Angra and Rata Blanca for South American power; Stratovarius and Rhapsody for Europower, and Yngwie Malmsteen and Tony [=MacAlpine=] for shred.
352* TropeMaker: Music/{{Helloween}} for the European scene, Music/XJapan and Sex Machineguns for the Japanese scene, Angra for the South American scene, Music/YngwieMalmsteen for shred[[note]]though the argument could be made that while Malmsteen compiled all of the shred tropes into a recognizable package, the tropes had already been created by Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Ritchie Blackmore, George Lynch, and Uli Jon Roth[[/note]]. The lineage of the American scene is a bit more muddled. Manowar, Jag Panzer, Manilla Road, Riot, Omen, Vicious Rumors, and Helstar are all safe bets, however.
353* UrExample: Manowar, Manilla Road, Jag Panzer, or Helstar for the American form, arguably Helloween for the European form, Rata Blanca and Viper for the South American form, arguably X Japan's ''Vanishing Vision'' for the Japanese form, and Yngwie Malmsteen's ''Rising Force'' for shred. Some people have even suggested that the song "Stargazer" by Music/{{Rainbow}} from 1976 is the ultimate ur-example of power metal, while most people will point to Music/JudasPriest, Music/IronMaiden, Music/{{Accept}}, and the collective works of Music/RonnieJamesDio as being the bands that were necessary for the creation of power metal.
354* WorldOfHam: Arguably the most hammy genre of music in existence.

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