I’m not the biggest music guy in the world, but sometimes I have to listen to something to pass the time at work.
A band I have always enjoyed is Apocalyptica (A metal band that uses cellos instead of guitars) and I was just turned on to this awesome group of 14 year olds who play metal
So what I am looking for is rock/metal that doesn’t have many (if any) lyrics. I just want to plug in, listen to come kickass rock, and not have to worry about hearing some dude singing or a story or anything.
Bonus points of the songs have some kind of orchestra in them, and the cooler the metal the happier I am
2Cellos - sort of the same idea, but without a backing band. It’s just 2 dudes with cellos playing rock/pop songs.
If you’re looking for metal-y metal, look into some of the old Jason Becker/Marty Friedman/Cacophony stuff on Shrapnel Records. It’s all very guitar-wanking kind of stuff, if you’re into that (or not).
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock. Post-rock bands are often without vocals.
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I don’t know any particular bands in this genre so I can’t get very detailed for you. Our college radio station has a 2 hour block of it on Sundays (right after 2 hours of country and western swing) so I catch it often. I think it’s similar to what you’re looking for, but may not be as heavy as you want.
That’s Terry Bozzio, Tony Levin and Steve Stevens (who also has some great instrumental albums out there, like Flamenco a Go Go) the best one is Situation Dangerous
Lemme know if any of that interests you and I can prolly recommend a couple of other artists that are similar.
I deliberately left out lots of stoner & doom metal because there are some vocals, even tho often not much. If you want me to list bands like that, lemme know.
Oh, and I threw a couple of curve balls in there.
I’m sorry I’ll get no bonus points, but for decent symphonic metal (with vocals), I can recommend these Italian rockers:
This isn’t really what you’re looking for – more pop than metal, with electric violins – but I immediately thought of Bond when I read your OP. I find it great music to work by, and when I was in grad school it was great music to write papers by: energetic, with no distracting lyrics.
Lord knows if you remember it Snowboarder Bo (and I doubt you do) but a good 5 years ago I started a thread about wanting to be introduced to metal, and you came in and gave me a whole education on bands and their sounds and everything.
I loved it. I got my favorite bands from you (Amon, Blind Guardian, Dark Tranquility) and I’ve never forgotton you since. And here you are again to save my hide.
There aren’t ENOUGH bonus point I can give you for that!
I did not recall that exact thread; luckily you haven’t started thousands so it was easy to find and fun to re-read. I chuckled (but did not throw stuff down into the quarry) at the fact that twice I recommended Rage as decent symphonic metal to you. I admit I don’t listen to much; it’s just not my thing.
Very glad to have been of help to you in the past; will be happy if I can help in the future.
Well, you’ve got about 120 more albums to choose from, not including one-offs and group efforts that don’t bear his name (Praxis, Cornbugs, Thanatopsis, etc.), oh and excluding live recordings.
Back in the late '80s and early '90s I used to do shows at a club in Tallahassee called The Musical Moon (later just The Moon). One of the acts that came in a couple/few times a year back then was a guitar player with a bass & drum rhythm section. Every time they were there, from 2pm to 4pm, the guitar player would stand on stage and play his whole rig, loud as hell. Non-stop, for at least 2 hours a day on stage. His roadies told me that he played several hours a day in his room or on the bus as well. He’s a phenomenally talented & technically gifted guitarist similar to Joe Satriani, but a bit more musically accessible (i.e. tamer and more prone to conventional voicings and conventions): Eric Johnson.
Blind Guardian They are a metal band from Germany with symphonic elements. They used to be all about Lord of the Rings, but perhaps for copyright reasons, have branched out the last few albums. Their material is still heavily fantasy based, just no longer LOTR related. The song I linked to is from the album Nightfall in Middle Earth and it’s one of my favorites.
Rhapsody (OF FIRE!) An Italian metal band that does epic fantasy with symphonic elements. Every album is another chapter in the same story, set in their own unique fantasy world. Fun Fact: They were known as Rhapsody until their 5th or 6th album, when they changed it to Rhapsody of Fire to avoid confusion with another band. They’re a bit heavy on the cheese (some of their English is a bit cringe inducing), but totally awesome, and their guitarist Luca Turilli is amazing. Bonus: They’ve worked with Christopher Lee (yes, the actor) Speaking of which…
Charlemagne features the 90 year old actor getting his metal on. Apparently Mr. Lee can trace his lineage back to Charlemagne, and the bands songs are all about his ancestors shedding the blood of Saxon men.
And as someone mentioned above, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is the ultimate blend of metal and symphony. The previous bands I mentioned are metal bands with symphonic elements, TSO is a perfect blend of both. They do have a lot of Christmas material, and they do a Christmas tour every year (which we’re going to see!), but my favorite are their two non Christmas albums, Night Castle and Beethoven’s Last Night. Beethoven’s is one of my “desert island albums”, it’s such a great story, such talented musicians and vocalists. Every song is perfect.
