Heavy Metal Madness: Sweet Sixteen Summary, Part 2

Post #214
Last month's set of readers polls saw the elimination of 4 more bands in this year's one-of-a-kind tournament. And 4 other bands got ever closer to the coveted title of 'Best Band of All Time' (at least for this blog). Without you making your opinions known with your votes, this blog would just be me picking my favorites all the time, so THANK YOU!

Before I break down all the details, let me say that last month's results were not without controversy! For the first time in this tournament, I had to invoke the tie-breaker rules I laid out in post #166 last October. In that post I stated that in the event of a tie, if the contest has not reached the Final Four, the band with the higher seed within their bracket advances. For the first time, one of the polls last month ended in a tie: Soundgarden and Foo Fighters both gathered 20 votes. Therefor Soundgarden (#7 seed) advanced over Foo Fighters (#11 seed). My apologies to all the Foo Fighters Fans out there who voted, but rules are rules. Next time, remember to get more of your friends to vote, and maybe we can avoid ties in the future? The last thing I'll say on this issue: Voting in the polls is pretty. Voting in the polls is good. All that the Foos needed was one more vote. This is a call to all my past blog-poll voters- come back, vote again, and spread the word!

Now, for the rest of last month's results:
In the Classic Rock bracket, Black Sabbath beat Kiss 33-8. Led Zeppelin beat AC/DC 28-13.
While in the Alternative/Grunge bracket, Alice In Chains upset Nirvana 22-19, and Soundgarden... well, I already told you how they got past Foo Fighters.

Lastly, my recommended songs for those bands now eliminated:
Kiss-War Machine

AC/DC-Hells Bells

Nirvana-All Apologies

Foo Fighters-This Is a Call

...Until the next tournament update, keep voting, and happy headbanging!

Heavy Metal Madness: Second Round Summary, part 2!

Post #208

Back on July 20th, the Heavy Metal Madness 2012 Tournament officially reached the 'Sweet Sixteen', as 8 more bands were eliminated as the second round polls closed. The results for last month's voting were as follows...

Megadeth beat Motorhead 25-11,
Judas Priest upset the #2 seed Slayer 21-14,

Nirvana beat Rob Zombie 21-15,
Alice In Chains dominated Lacuna Coil 30-7,

AC/DC beat Queen 23-14,
Led Zeppelin edged out a close match with Ozzy Osbourne 20-17,

Tool came from behind to beat Bullet for My Valentine 23-12,
and System of a Down won a close match with Korn 18-15.

With these results in the bag, it is now on to the Sweet Sixteen! The first half of this round is now open for voting through August 19th. Cast your votes in the right hand column before then. >>>>>>>>

Now let's reflect a moment on the bands who were just eliminated. Here's a recommended song from each of them:

Motorhead-Overkill

Slayer-South of Heaven

Rob Zombie-American Witch

Lacuna Coil-Trip the Darkness

Queen-Bohemian Rhapsody

Ozzy Osbourne-No More Tears

Bullet for My Valentine-Scream, Aim, Fire

Korn-Another Brick in the Wall

Until the next round summary... Happy Headbanging!

Remember to keep voting....

Heavy Metal Madness First Round Summary: Part Four

Post # 198

On May 19th, the last segment of the first round of Heavy Metal Madness came to a close, and once again there were some unexpected upsets, and tight races for these bands to make it to the next round.

For the Metalcore Block:

Tool beat Death by a comfortable margin of 39-11,

Bullet For My Valentine upset Opeth 26-19,

System of a Down narrowly escaped being upset by Amon Amarth, as they clung to a 31-25 lead at the end of voting.

...and Korn had the most convincing upset of the month knocking off the #4 seed, Shadows Fall 34-13.

In the Classic Rock Block:

Queen upset Guns N' Roses 31-18,

AC/DC topped the Scorpions 35-14,

Ozzy bested Van Halen 37-9,

and Led Zeppelin overcame Jimi Hendrix 34-14.

As the early pattern of voting has unfolded, it seems that the magic number for a 'safe' amount of votes to push a band into the next round is 30. In the closest races, the most votes collected by a losing band was 29 (Godsmack). Will this rule-of-thumb hold true for the rest of this tournament? Only time will tell...

With the first round now concluded, the matches are only going to get tougher. Fans will have a harder time deciding who to vote for. Those who's first choice of a Champion is now eliminated have the freedom to vote for another band in their place. At this point, many of your predictions can be thrown out the window. I know several of mine have been defenestrated.

So, now is the time to follow more closely than ever! Already, the second round is underway, and more upsets are brewing, while other favorites dominate. Inevitably, more face-offs will come down to a close decision. Help those bands whom you prefer by sharing this blog with your friends, and call for more fans of heavy metal music to cast their votes, and make their opinion count!

Now, as I have done before, I leave you with some of my favorite suggested tracks from those bands now eliminated from Heavy Metal Madness:
Death-Open Casket
Opeth-The Drapery Falls
Amon Amarth-Fate of Norns
Shadows Fall-Forevermore
Guns N' Roses-Welcome to the Jungle
Scorpions-Alien Nation
Van Halen-Source of Infection
Jimi Hendrix-Manic Depression

AC/DC-Highway to Hell

Post #108 Poll Winner: Favorite AC/DC album from the 70's.

AC/DC, one of the preeminent influences of hard rock & heavy metal music, established themselves in the mid-70's. Taking a strong inspiration from early blues & rock and roll bands from the 50's and early 60's, and mixing it with the harder-edged sound of other early-70's era bands like Led Zeppelin and The Who, they quickly became a major force of 70's heavy metal.

With each album, their popularity grew. Within a couple years they were touring outside their native Australia, and had become a global phenomenon. Their music appealed to a whole generation of teens, who craved this old-school rock & roll with a dark side. Their singles became top hits on almost every continent.

They closed out the decade with their best album yet, 'Highway To Hell'. Though they were still a band on the rise, this would be their last album with Bon Scott as their singer. He tragically died in early 1980 at the age of 33 after passing out after a night of heavy drinking. The legacy he left behind is one of the most memorable in heavy-rock music. Your choice of Highway To Hell as your favorite AC/DC album from the 70's is further evidence of that legacy.

Now, here are my favorite tracks I recommend from this album:

-Highway To Hell

-Girls Got Rhythym

-Shot Down In Flames

-If You Want Blood (You've Got It!)

-Night Prowler

AC/DC-Back In Black

Post #72 Poll Winner: Favorite AC/DC album from the 80's
After suffering the loss of their original singer, Bon Scott, AC/DC came back with one of their greatest albums: Back In Black. Back In Black was a statement album. AC/DC showed the world that they were not done with rock n' roll. It was a new decade, they had a new singer, a new album, and a new mission to prove they could still rock.

After the first track on the album, Hells Bells, there was no need for any argument. Almost every track is a hard rock classic. Angus Young displays some of the best guitar work up to this point in the band's career. AC/DC rock as hard as ever and set themselves up for a new decade where the sky was the limit!


My favorites from Back In Black:
-Hells Bells
-Shoot to Thrill
-Back In Black
-Have a Drink on Me
and of course...
-You Shook Me All Night Long