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- Nightwish. 1,373 votes. Nightwish, a Finnish symphonic metal band, has consistently pushed the boundaries of the genre since their formation in 1996. Integrating classical elements, intricate orchestrations, and soaring melodies, they create epic soundscapes that are both powerful and enchanting.
- Epica. 962 votes. Epica, hailing from the Netherlands, has been a formidable force in the symphonic metal scene since their inception in 2002. Combining dynamic, complex arrangements with hauntingly beautiful female vocals, and aggressive growls, Epica presents an engaging duality that defines their sound.
- Within Temptation. 971 votes. Within Temptation has made their mark as one of symphonic metal's most successful and influential bands. Formed in 1996, the Dutch group masterfully fuses rich orchestration, gothic undertones, and a powerful rock sensibility to create a truly immersive sound.
- Kamelot. 528 votes. Kamelot, an American-based symphonic metal band, has been captivating fans since the early 1990s with their blend of progressive, power, and symphonic metal elements.
- X Japan - Art of Life
- Sirenia - Riddles, Ruins & Revelations
- Haggard - Eppur Si Muove
- The Young Gods - L’Eau Rouge
- Aesma Daeva - The Eros of Frigid Beauty
- Delain - Lucidity
- The Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction
- Avantasia - The Metal Opera
- Labyrinth - Return to Heaven Denied
- Bal-Sagoth - Starfire Burning Upon The Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule
In the early 90s, X Japan (née X) were at their height of popularity. With fame and fawning came limitless self-indulgence. Band leader Yoshiki purchased a Hollywood recording complex and dug into his Scrooge McDuck-ian vault to hire London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to join him on Art Of Life’s two-year-long recording journey. Rife with everyt...
Pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a symphonic metal band, Sirenia’s 10th studio album Riddles, Ruins & Revelations embraced the darker side of the human psyche, as themes of addiction and declining mental health took centre stage in this sprawling epic. The Norwegians welcomed huge, melodic death metal elements to an already bustling pa...
Asis Nasseri has overseen Haggard’s development from early 90s prog-death hopefuls to an extraordinary chamber orchestral metal collective, employing oboe, clarinet, flute, kettledrum and crumhorn. With an impressive 28 credited musicians, their third album Eppur Si Muove – based around the life of Italian astronomer Galileo – was an undertaking as...
No one has ever made symphonic metal quite like Geneva’s The Young Gods. If their self-titled debut album’s looped samples of classical music and barbed riffs instigated a cataclysmic new dawn for heavy music, the follow-up was stealthier yet no less devastating. From La Fille De La Mort’s invoking of molten new landscapes from the most pastoral of...
A collective masterminded by obsessive leader/boundary-pusher John Prassas, this Minnesota-based ensemble were unique for a number of reasons, their combination of avant-garde metal with gilded chamber music and modern classical being one of them. Aesma Daeva pushed additional buttons with The Eros Of Frigid Beauty’s use of drum programming, and fl...
Former Within Temptation keyboardist Martijn Westerholt intended Delain to be a studio project, but his ambitious vision melded cinematic orchestration and bombastic metal into an extravagant gothic symphony too good to be kept locked away. Appearances from previous bandmate Sharon den Adel and then-Nightwish bassist Marko Hietala helped Delain’s c...
Devin Townsend is no stranger to the kitchen sink approach. Such was the scope of the third album of his eclectic Devin Townsend Project venture, and the sheer volume of ideas crammed in, that the symphonic elements weren’t actually the headline act. But even with the Canadian’s eccentricity and humour doing their best to hog the limelight on Decon...
The brainchild of Tobias Sammet, this debut album from Avantasia featured a raft of top vocalists, including Michael Kiske of Helloweenand Sharon den Adel from Within Temptation, on a concept album based around the witch trials in Germany in the 16th and 17th centuries. The album lived up to the title, having a massive, almost Wagnerian approach th...
This Tuscany sextet lean more towards power metal than full-on symphonic metal, but their strength lies in how huge they make the traditional guitar/bass/drums/keys line-up sound. The speed and fluidity of Return To Heaven Denied nudged ahead of early Dragonforce and Sonata Arctica on the timeline, but their incorporation of classical guitars, keyb...
The Yorkshire black metallers suffered from horrendous technical issues on this second album, but it forced them to be inventive, and the result is one of the finest symphonic black metalalbums ever released. Not only was it inevitably brutal, they took inspiration from movie composers such as John Williams, turning towards the wildly imaginative a...
- Spencer Grady
Sep 6, 2023 · Classically Trained Female Singers in Metal. Symphonic metal singers are known for their wide vocal range. A number of bands feature operatic vocals that have become integral parts of the genre's development. Over the years, a number of symphonic bands have emerged that are led by classically trained female singers.
Sep 15, 2023 · 1. Nightwish. Nightwish are from Finland, formed back in 1996 and still making music today! They are one of the most successful and influential bands of the genre, which is mainly due to the great talent of the band members. Tuomas Holopainen is the founder of the band and is still responsible for the songwriting.
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- Dave Ling
- Blind Guardian – Nightfall In Middle-Earth (1998) Though some may claim they have more in common with power metal, Blind Guardian also deserve a place on any roll call of symphonic metal’s finest, thanks largely to the way they compose and arrange their songs.
- Rhapsody – Symphony Of Enchanted Lands (1998) Few albums have attained a finer, cleaner blend of orchestral sounds and heavy metal than Symphony Of Enchanted Lands.
- Haggard – Awaking The Centuries (2000) The name of Haggard may be unfamiliar to casual fans of symphonic metal but the Germans have existed since the 1990s, albeit in more death metal-style earlier incarnations.
- Symphony X – V: The New Mythology Suite (2000) New Jersey’s Symphony X have been blending symphonic, neo-classical and power metal with progressive elements for more than two decades to create some of the most striking and colourful music around.
THE 25 GREATEST SYMPHONIC METAL ALBUMS. It’s become one of metal’s most enduring subgenres - and it’s even spawned some of our biggest bands. Grab your keyboard and come dig inside some classics WORDS: HYWEL DAVIES, MALCOLM DOME, ELEANOR GOODMAN, CHRIS CHANTLER, CONNIE GORDON, SPENCER GRADY, ADAM REES, JONATHAN SELZER.
Perhaps the most pioneering and prominent examples of symphonic metal bands are Swedish band Therion, Finnish band Nightwish, German band Xandria, Italian band Rhapsody of Fire, American bands Lorna Shore and Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and Dutch bands Epica and Within Temptation.
