Non-metal bands with some good metal crunch!

[Nightwish]

What are some non-metal, just regular rock/pop bands that you think had enough crunch that they could easily have made the segue into metal? I noticed that a lot of pop and rock bands were flirting with the metal sound during the 80s, when metal started really coming into its own. But the two that come most readily to mind as hovering right on that edge, for a while anyway, are Queen and Journey. A lot of older Queen material - "Stone Cold Crazy," "Ogre Battle," "Sheer Heart Attack," et. - not only crossed firmly into metal territory, but also influenced legions of modern metal bands. And Journey really forayed into that area quite a bit with their Escape and Frontiers albums, songs like "Keep on Runnin'," "Dead or Alive," "Edge of the Blade," "Chain Reaction," and even "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)."

A few other bands that I think could have successfully made that crossover are Styx, Cheap Trick, and Boston.

[MOhillbilly]

SHEER TERROR

[Baby Lee]

Sum 41 what you're looking for?

[Nightwish]

Sum 41 what you're looking for?
Yeah, they've played around a bit with some traditional metal stylings. I saw them live last year, opening for Motley Crue. Not bad.

[jlscorpio]

old: The Cars and the Smithereens
now: Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age (My favourite band)

[Tribal Warfare]

Mud Vayne

[Reaper16]

Mud Vayne
Mudvayne are awesome. There are actually a good number of "nu-metal" bands (God, I hate that misnomer) that are pretty damn awesome. Spineshank was one of those.

To make a controversial post out of this, my answer is Pantera. :D

[jlscorpio]

please explain the inside Pantera joke...I must've missed it before

[Reaper16]

please explain the inside Pantera joke...I must've missed it before
No inside joke. :) The controversy lies in the assertion that Pantera isn't metal.

[jlscorpio]

Shocking

[Bugeater]

REO Speedwagon. Some of their early stuff like "Golden Country" and "Ridin' the Storm Out" was pretty heavy. Instead they went the bubble-gum Top 40 route in the 80's. Night Ranger comes to mind as well.

[StcChief]

REO Speedwagon. Some of their early stuff like "Golden Country" and "Ridin' the Storm Out" was pretty heavy. Instead they went the bubble-gum Top 40 route in the 80's. Night Ranger comes to mind as well.
REO I and II ...after that commercial took over. (Or their $$ contract kicked in)

[chagrin]

old: The Cars and the Smithereens
now: Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age (My favourite band)

ROFL

The music may have had SOME metal type qualities, but some 90s type sissy boy crying about his best friend isn't metal - EVER

[chagrin]

I think I am going to have to stay out of this one, I am obviously in disagreement with all of you.

Carry on.

[chagrin]

What are some non-metal, just regular rock/pop bands that you think had enough crunch that they could easily have made the segue into metal? I noticed that a lot of pop and rock bands were flirting with the metal sound during the 80s, when metal started really coming into its own. But the two that come most readily to mind as hovering right on that edge, for a while anyway, are Queen and Journey. A lot of older Queen material - "Stone Cold Crazy," "Ogre Battle," "Sheer Heart Attack," et. - not only crossed firmly into metal territory, but also influenced legions of modern metal bands. And Journey really forayed into that area quite a bit with their Escape and Frontiers albums, songs like "Keep on Runnin'," "Dead or Alive," "Edge of the Blade," "Chain Reaction," and even "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)."

A few other bands that I think could have successfully made that crossover are Styx, Cheap Trick, and Boston.

How friggin old are you boy? Cheap Trick "Heavy Metal"??
Journey, "Heavy Metal"??

Frankly, I am appalled Reaper gives this his blessing!

ABSURD

[jlscorpio]

Here we go again: What is and isn't metal. The thread is about non-metal bands whose sound at times teetered towards metal. I never said the Cars were more Metal than Dead and Count Grischnac from Mayhem.

[Reaper16]

How friggin old are you boy? Cheap Trick "Heavy Metal"??
Journey, "Heavy Metal"??

Frankly, I am appalled Reaper gives this his blessing!

ABSURD
This thread is about non-metal bands that have some decent heaviness going on. You're misunderstanding it.

[MOhillbilly]

Breakdown

[Nightwish]

please explain the inside Pantera joke...I must've missed it before
There are those who dispute whether Pantera, especially in their early days, were truly metal. In large part, this is due to the fact that their visual image early on was glam, although their musical style didn't really fit their fashion sense at that time. Cowboys From Hell was a solid metal album, in my opinion, but if you look at concert footage from that era, they basically looked like a pretty-boy hair band. They didn't really start dressing (and grooming) to match the music until Vulgar Display of Power.

Of course, you know Reaper and his technical grasp of the nuances of metal and its various subgenres, so he may have meant something entirely different.

[Reaper16]

There are those who dispute whether Pantera, especially in their early days, were truly metal. In large part, this is due to the fact that their visual image early on was glam, although their musical style didn't really fit their fashion sense at that time. Cowboys From Hell was a solid metal album, in my opinion, but if you look at concert footage from that era, they basically looked like a pretty-boy hair band. They didn't really start dressing (and grooming) to match the music until Vulgar Display of Power.

Of course, you know Reaper and his technical grasp of the nuances of metal and its various subgenres, so he may have meant something entirely different.
Pantera, to me, represent this link between thrash metal and "nu-metal." Pantera played a more groove oriented thrash-type brand of metal. Frequently, it sounds more rock than metal; thats just Dimebag's style. His playing was maybe the preeminent influence on the playing of "nu-metal" guitarists.

[ChiefFripp]

The Cure have some heavy stylings.

Try these songs if you don't belive me...

'Give Me' It and 'Bananafishbones 'from their album 'The Top'

The Kiss,Torture,All I Want,Shiver and Shake and Fight from 'Kiss Me, Kiss me, Kiss Me'

Plainsong, Fascination Street,Prayers for Rain off of their album Disintegration

...and At Night from their live album
'Paris'.

[jlscorpio]

On a side note...Chimaira covered "Fascination Street" on some Roadrunner comp. Very cool.

[htismaqe]

Pantera, to me, represent this link between thrash metal and "nu-metal." Pantera played a more groove oriented thrash-type brand of metal. Frequently, it sounds more rock than metal; thats just Dimebag's style. His playing was maybe the preeminent influence on the playing of "nu-metal" guitarists.

There were other heavy bands exploring "groove" at the same time as (or slightly before) Pantera.

Suicidal Tendencies comes to mind immediately.

[htismaqe]

I think the other band that contributed mightily to the "nu-metal" craze was Anthrax and it only took one song with Public Enemy.

[htismaqe]

old: The Cars and the Smithereens
now: Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age (My favourite band)

QOTSA rules.

[Braincase]

Evanescence, but Amy needs to wear tighter, more revealing outfits.

[morphius]

I think the other band that contributed mightily to the "nu-metal" craze was Anthrax and it only took one song with Public Enemy.
They also did "I'm the Man", which wasn't as popular, but was a bit fun when I was younger.

Plus I get to use it in every fight I get into with the wife, I just drop the, "'cause I'm the Man.", she laughs and the fight is over.

[ZepSinger]

Old skewl choice- Boston. While extremely poppy and harmonic, just listen to the guitars on the first album- Marshall powered all the way.

Z

[patteeu]

Ministry

[patteeu]

Sisters of Mercy

[Nightwish]

I agree on Sisters of Mercy. Ministry, though, is often billed as metal already, or sometimes industrial metal. They used to be punk, though, if I'm not mistaken, until they changed up their style.

[ChiefFripp]

I agree on Sisters of Mercy. Ministry, though, is often billed as metal already, or sometimes industrial metal. They used to be punk, though, if I'm not mistaken, until they changed up their style.
Ministry used to be a dance band in the vein of Depeche Mode believe it or not.

[ChiefFripp]

Garbage