There are few musical genres in the world that display as much musical intensity and youthful aggression as heavy metal. Long hair, leather, arrogance, and tattoos are combined with harsh screams, fast guitar riffs, and the pounding of drums. It is at the same time the most furious musical genre and one of the most sensitive and emotional. And one of the best sources for this style of music is Germany.

This place is almost as known for its incredible heavy metal as it is for its beer and top-of-the-line luxury cars. And here are some of the bands that have contributed to the charging of the metal hordes in no particular order of importance:

* Blind Guardian: Equally influenced by Queen, Black Sabbath, Tolkien and Broadway, Blind Guardian is known as one of the best speed / power metal bands in the world. Led by the charimatic Hansi Kursch, Blind Guardian has dominated it for nearly two decades with their epic music and technical mastery of their instruments. Album to watch: “Dusk in Middle-earth”

* Gamma Ray: With his guitarist Kai Hansen handling the vocal duties, Gamma Ray has pushed himself to the top of the metal heap. With their powerful voice and intricate musicality, Gamma Ray is one of the few bands that has made better albums over time. Album to watch: “Land of the Free”

* Helloween: In the 80s, there were few German bands that could compete with Helloween for influence. Many bands across Europe adopted some of the basic Helloween style for their purposes and heavy metal has never been the same since. Album to watch: “Keeper of the Seven Keys”

* Kreator: One of the biggest names in thrash metal, who has consistently produced quality albums, would definitely be Kreator. Taking their heavy music to new heights, along with fellow countrymen Sodom and Destruction they would be pioneers in the death metal genre, containing many of the elements present in modern death metal. Album to watch: “Terrible Certainty”