American power metal
American power metal arose in the early 1980s as a faster and more aggressive descendant of "classic metal" bands from the NWOBHM, such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Metal Church, Savatage, Jag Panzer, Manowar, and similar bands formed the core of this movement, which shared some characteristics of thrash metal. Some consider modern American bands like Iced Earth and Nevermore to be the descendants of this style, but others claim that the movement has ended, swallowed by more well-known styles like thrash and European power metal. Others consider the genre in America on the rise again, with fledging American power metal bands in places such as New York, home to Zandelle, Gothic Knights, Phoenix Reign, Twilight Odyssey and pioneers from the region, Virgin Steele. Also, a band from Florida called Kamelot has emerged as quite a popular band releasing a style associated with European bands, and featured the lead vocalist of Norwegian Black Metal band Dimmu Borgir on their latest album. Following Kamelot the Nebraska-based power metal band Cellador was signed August of 2005 to Metal Blade Records, signalling a return of the style by a homegrown band to a noted record label in America.
European power metal
It all started in the early 1980s with the German band Accept, who developed a new style of heavy metal by mixing Judas Priest-like riffs and AC/DC-style vocals with new elements taken from German folk and classical musical. They had epic and triumphant, catchy melodies in both guitar and vocal parts, while maintaining extremely rapid tempos and demanding guitar solos. Songs like "Breaker" and "Fast As A Shark" are to be considered as the starting moment of the whole European power metal movement.
In the mid-1980s, European bands such as Helloween (Germany) and Europe (Sweden) put even more attention to the melodic development of the songs. The Helloween albums Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part 1 (1987) and Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part 2 (1988) are generally regarded as a milestone of this genre. Subsequently, European-style "happy metal" has spread across the continent (particularly to Finland) and worldwide, though it is comparatively unpopular in the United States.
Recently, however, many power metal bands have abandoned the "happy-metal" sound of their predecessors, and have adopted a more epic sound combined with the power metal core. Bands such as Blind Guardian have combined their classic power metal sound with an orchestral background as Rhapsody or Angra have done.
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Musical characteristics
Power metal, as the term is used today, places primary importance on an "epic" sound, usually at high speeds and with catchy melodies. Whereas most rock lyrics focus largely on "the real world" - personal experience, historical incidents, social commentary, etc. - power metal often treats cosmological or metaphysical themes. Many power metal songs draw inspiration from science fiction, mythology, and fantasy, and they tend to be more optimistic than most metal lyrics. Power metal vocals are generally "clean", as opposed to the growling vocals that characterise death metal, and are delivered by a trained vocalist. Following in the tradition of Bruce Dickinson and Rob Halford, power metal vocalists tend to sing in a high register, often in falsetto. Some singers, such as Hansi Kьrsch of Blind Guardian, record multi-layered vocals reminiscent of Queen. Because of the primary importance of vocals in power metal, vocalists generally do not double as guitarists as in other styles of metal.
Power metal guitarists and bassists generally play rapid streams of notes, but change chords comparatively slowly, with a harmonic tempo of once per measure or slower. Fast and demanding guitar solos, however, are almost guaranteed.
Power metal drummers generally play with two bass drums for added speed, often playing a constant stream of sixteenth notes with snare drum accents on beats 2 and 4. Some bands defy this formula, but it is surprisingly universal.
Many bands also play with a keyboardist and a few, such as the Italian band Rhapsody, have been known to record with more symphonic elements. Rhapsody actually calls their style of music "Hollywood Metal," emphasizing its resemblance to modern film scores.
This style is most popular in Europe, Japan, and some countries of South America, and has a growing popularity in certain parts of North America.
Power metal vocals are generally "clean"
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