The Elements of Power Metal

One of several top genres in metal bands must be power metal. It has a traditional heavy metal style while using speed of present day metal. American speed metal was the start of power metal and some European metal. These metal music bands were on the way to produce the latest subgenre of music. This change is what the new age of metal music was going to. 

Different Factors of Power Metal

The vocals for power metal are usually growling with a clean harmony. These growls or screams are similar to what you should find in death or black metal. There are several vocalists who have had an impact on power metal vocals. Vocalists like Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden), Rob Halford (Judas Priest) and Ronnie James Dio (Dio) lead the way for power metal. Higher notes slowly became a brand new wave for this style of metal music. Vocalists like Timo Kotipelto (Stratovarius), Michael Kiske (ex-Helloween), Michele Luppi (Vision Divine) and Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear) took this new wave of singing and enhanced it.

You will discover a number of bands that sing about fantasy and mythology in power metal. But there will always be bands to sing about religion and politics. There is always a fictional twist to their music whatever they sing about. Artists like Symphony X, Hammer Fall, DragonForce and 3 Inches of Blood. Lost Horizon, Gamma Ray and Helloween sang a lot about positive situations. Artists like Sabaton, Iced Earth, Firewind and Manowar sang with a dark view on their lyrics.

Technique and Instruments of Power Metal

Like most band power metal is no different, they'll use guitars, bass, drums and keyboards. But their chord progression and harmonic tempo is using a slower pace than other metal music. Power metal is know for those intense crazy fast guitar solos within the breakdowns of their music. The bass sits in the back of the music that is often not heard because of the volume of the electric guitars.

Most drummers for power metal use a dual bass drums or double bass pedal. You'll discover a lot of this in heavy metal music. Most double bass playing will play the double bass constant through the whole song. Some can change up their regular beats with quick bursts of double bass. This style is no different than other style of heavy metal.

This type of metal music genre has been known to use keyboards within their music. The uses of keyboards for symphonic elements are used by bands like Nightwish and Rhapsody. Most keyboards are used for accents in metal music, but there are more and more who have melodies overlaying the harmony of the music.

Cultures within Power Metal

Americans started to experiment with power metal in the 1990s and it was obviously a branch from heavy metal, speed metal and thrash metal. American power metal is a faster and is more similar to heavy metal than what was evolving with European power metal. American power metal had higher vocal singing and heavier distortion in their music. If you need to see more about American power metal check out Manowar, Iced Earth and Savatage.

Most European Metal has more of a melodic sound for their metal music. Folk metal is a very well-liked in European countries and have been a big part of impact in metal music. You'll receive faster palm mutes and less guitar distortion in their power metal. But even with the change of metal music, power metal is still one of the most popular metal genres for the European community. Bands like Helloween, Sonata Arctica and Stratovarius are in the top for European power metal.