Nirvana

Nirvana band members Krist Novoselic (left) and Kurt Cobain at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.

Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987. Nirvana went through a succession of drummers, the longest-lasting being Dave Grohl, who joined the band in 1990. With the lead single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” from the band’s second album Nevermind (1991), Nirvana entered into the mainstream, bringing along with it a subgenre of alternative rock called grunge. Other Seattle grunge bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden also gained popularity, and as a result, alternative rock in general became a dominant genre on radio and music television in the United States during the early-to-mid-1990s. As Nirvana’s frontman, Kurt Cobain found himself referred to in the media as the “spokesman of a generation”, with Nirvana the “flagship band” of Generation X. Cobain was uncomfortable with the attention and placed his focus on the band’s music, believing the band’s message and artistic vision to have been misinterpreted by the public, challenging the band’s audience with its third studio album In Utero (1993). Nirvana’s brief run ended with Cobain’s death in April 1994, but the band’s popularity continued in the years that followed. In 2002, “You Know You’re Right”, an unfinished demo from the band’s final recording session, topped radio playlists around the world. Since their debut, the band has sold over twenty-five million albums in the US alone, and over fifty million worldwide.

Metallica

etallica at the O2 arena in 2008. From left to right: Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield and Robert Trujillo.

Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica’s line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett, while going through a number of bassists. Currently, the spot is held by Robert Trujillo.
Metallica’s early releases included fast tempos, instrumentals, and aggressive musicianship that placed them as one of the “big four” of the thrash metal subgenre alongside Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax during the genre’s development into a popular style. The band earned a growing fan base in the underground music community and critical acclaim, with the 1986 release Master of Puppets described as one of the most influential and “heavy” thrash metal albums. The band achieved substantial commercial success with Metallica (1991), which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. With this release the band expanded its musical direction resulting in an album that appealed to a more mainstream audience.
In 2000, Metallica was among several artists who filed a lawsuit against Napster for sharing the band’s copyright-protected material for free without the band members’ consent.  A settlement was reached, and Napster became a pay-to-use service. Despite reaching number one on the Billboard 200, the release of St. Anger alienated many fans with the exclusion of guitar solos and the “steel-sounding” snare drum. A film titled Some Kind of Monster documented the recording process of St. Anger.
Metallica has released nine studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, twenty-four music videos, and forty-five singles. The band has won nine Grammy Awards, and has had five consecutive albums debut at number one on the Billboard 200, making Metallica the only band, other than the Dave Matthews Band, to do so.[3] The band’s 1991 album, Metallica, has sold over 15 million copies in the United States, and 22 million copies worldwide, which makes it the 25th-highest-selling album in the country. The band has sold an estimated 100 million records worldwide as of the release of their latest album, Death Magnetic. As of September 2008, Metallica is the fourth highest-selling music artist since the SoundScan era began tracking sales on May 25, 1991, selling a total of 51,136,000 albums in the United States alone.

Megadeth

Megadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1983. Founded by Dave Mustaine following his departure from Metallica, the band has since released twelve studio albums, six live albums, two EPs, twenty six singles, thirty-two music videos, and three compilations.
As a pioneer of the American thrash metal movement, Megadeth rose to international fame in the 1980s, but experienced numerous line-up changes, due partly to the band’s notorious substance abuse problems. From 1983 to 2002, Mustaine and bassist Dave Ellefson were the only continuous members of the band.

Megadeth live at Brixton Academy, London, UK, 24 Feb 2008. (l-r) James Lomenzo, Dave Mustaine, Shawn Drover and Chris Broderick.

After finding sobriety and securing a stable line-up, Megadeth went on to release a string of platinum and gold albums, including the platinum-selling landmark Rust in Peace in 1990 and the Grammy nominated, multi-platinum Countdown to Extinction in 1992. Megadeth disbanded in 2002 after Mustaine suffered a severe nerve injury to his left arm. However, following extensive physical therapy, Mustaine reformed the band in 2004 and released The System Has Failed, followed by United Abominations in 2007; the albums debuted on the Billboard Top 200 chart at #18 and #8, respectively. Megadeth, along with their new lead guitarist Chris Broderick, released their twelfth studio album, titled Endgame, on September 15, 2009.
Megadeth is known for a distinctive guitar style, often involving complex, intricate musical passages, and trade off guitar solos. Mustaine is also known for his original “snarling” vocal style, as well as his recurring lyrical themes, often involving politics, war, addiction, and personal relationships.
Megadeth has had some commercial success worldwide and has sold more than 25 million albums, with six consecutive albums being certified platinum in the USA. The band has also received great critical acclaim with seven consecutive Grammy nominations for Best Metal Performance. In the band’s 24 active years, Megadeth has had 20 official members, with Dave Mustaine remaining as the driving force, main songwriter, and sole original member following the end of his musical partnership with David Ellefson in 2002, due to personal disagreements. In the mid-late 1980s, Megadeth were one of the “Big Four of Thrash,” along with Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax, who were responsible for creating, developing and popularizing the thrash metal sub-genre.

Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin in 1968. From left to right: John Bonham, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones

Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page (guitar), Robert Plant (vocals), John Paul Jones (bass guitar, keyboards, mandolin) and John Bonham (drums). With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre.  However, the band’s individualistic style drew from many sources and transcends any one genre. Their rock-infused interpretation of the blues and folk genres  also incorporated rockabilly,  reggae,   soul,   funk,  classical, Celtic, Indian, Arabic, pop, Latin and country.   The band did not release the popular songs from their albums as singles in the UK, as they preferred to develop the concept of “album-oriented rock”.   They charted ten singles in the US.
Close to 30 years after disbanding following Bonham’s death in 1980, the band continues to be held in high regard for their artistic achievements, commercial success, and broad influence. The band has sold an estimated 200 million albums worldwide,   includ  ing 111.5 million certified units in the United States  and they have had all of their original studio albums reach the top 10 of the Billboard album chart in the U.S.,   with six reaching the number one spot. Led Zeppelin are ranked #1 on VH1′s 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.   Rolling Stone magazine has described Led Zeppelin as “the heaviest band of all time”, “the biggest band of the ’70s” and “unquestionably one of the most enduring bands in rock history”.
On 10 December 2007 the surviving members of Led Zeppelin reunited (along with deceased drummer John Bonham’s son, Jason) for the Ahmet Ertegün Tribute Concert at The O2 Arena in London.

Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in East London, formed in 1975. The band are directed by founder, bassist and songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the group has released a collective total of thirty-five albums: fourteen studio albums, nine live albums, four EPs and eight compilations.

ron Maiden performing at 2008's Somewhere Back in Time World Tour. From left to right: Bruce Dickinson, Adrian Smith, Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Janick Gers.

As pioneers of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, Iron Maiden achieved success during the early 1980s and after several lineup changes, went on to release a series of platinum and gold albums. These include the US platinum-selling landmark The Number of the Beast during 1982 and Piece of Mind in 1983. Their most recent studio effort, A Matter of Life and Death, was released in 2006 and peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200. The album was certified gold in the UK.
As one of the most successful heavy metal bands to date, Iron Maiden have sold more than 70 million records worldwide,  without significant mainstream or radio support. The band won the Ivor Novello Awards for international achievement in 2002,   and were also inducted into the Hollywood RockWalk in Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California during their tour in the United States in 2005. Their influences include Thin Lizzy, UFO, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep   and Wishbone Ash.

Guns N’ Roses

Guns N’ Roses is an American rock band that was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The band, led by frontman and co-founder Axl Rose, has gone through numerous line-up changes and controversies since its formation. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs and one live album during its career.
The band has sold an estimated 100 million albums worldwide,  including over 43 million in the United States. The

Guns N' Roses in 2006 at the Download Festival. From left to right: Tommy Stinson, Axl Rose, Richard Fortus.

band’s 1987 major label debut album Appetite for Destruction has sold in excess of 28 million copies and reached number one on the United States Billboard 200. In addition, the album charted three Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including “Sweet Child O’ Mine” which reached number one.  The 1991 albums Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II debuted on the two highest spots on the Billboard 200 and have sold a combined 14 million copies in the United States alone and 35 million worldwide. After over a decade of work, the band released their follow-up album, Chinese Democracy, in 2008.
Their mid-to-late eighties and early nineties years have been described by individuals in the music industry as the period in which “they brought forth a hedonistic rebelliousness and revived the punk attitude-driven hard rock scene, reminiscent of the early Rolling Stones.

Green Day

From left to right: Tré Cool, Jason Freese, Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt

Green Day is an American rock trio formed in 1987. The band has consisted of Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals, guitar), Mike Dirnt (bass guitar, vocals), and Tré Cool (drums, percussion) for the majority of its existence.
Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene at 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. Its early releases for independent record label Lookout! Records earned them a grassroots fanbase, some of whom felt alienated when the band signed to a major label.  Nevertheless, its major label debut Dookie (1994) became a breakout success and eventually sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. and 15 million worldwide.  As a result, Green Day was widely credited, alongside fellow California punk bands The Offspring and Rancid, with reviving mainstream interest in and popularizing punk rock in the United States.  Green Day’s three follow-up albums, Insomniac, Nimrod and Warning did not achieve the massive success of Dookie, but they were still successful, reaching double platinum, double platinum, and gold status respectively.  Green Day’s 2004 rock opera American Idiot reignited the band’s popularity with a younger generation, selling five million copies in the U.S.  The band’s eighth studio album, 21st Century Breakdown, was released on May 15, 2009.
Green Day has sold over 22 million records in the United States.  They have won three Grammy Awards; Best Alternative Album for Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot, and Record of the Year for “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”.