Most Underrated Band

[Grim]

Can I be devil's advocate here and say Megadeth and Anthrax?

[Devotee]

Megadeth underrated? Really? Anthrax are overrated if anything.

[Buslady]

Tarot are great. I have a couple of their cds, as well as the recent live cd/dvd. Bill (Horns666) here turned me on to them years ago. I really dig Marco's voice & his bassplaying and have actually picked up a few other things just because of his involvement.

That's awesome man, Marco & Zac are my inspiration. Cos of Marco, I started bass...then I saw them live and watched Zac just about the whole time LOL...ok I gotta learn guitar, that just looks like so much fun.
Spell of Iron MMXI, the anniversary album is out today if you wanna check it out...well, might be on the iTunes down there...I was surprised to see it on the US iTunes on the release date. Im happy.

[Prince Vultan]

The Atomic Bitchwax - http://www.theatomicbitchwax.com/The...chwax/TAB.html

These dudes have managed to distill beer, sunshine, dirty flared jeans, patchouli oil, faded t-shirts, sideburns and smoke into riffs. I'm amazed that they haven't been crowned Kings of the Cosmos. There's something magic about a power trio, isn't there?

I'd also like to throw in an honourable mention for Monster Magnet, if only for Dave Wyndorf's awesome lyrics.

Lots of good choices in this thread. As a newcomer to the group, I'd just like to confirm that you guys have ( mostly ) exquisite taste. I love Sabbat, but I'm not sure if they deserve the title on the strength of their debut ( the second album was a bit dodgy wasn't it? ) but I agree that Y+T have to be strong contenders.

No mention of Manowar? I guess they're more misunderstood than underrated...

[Nimitz]

Anthrax are overrated if anything.

+1

I think the name of the band and T-shirt sales really got these guys a long way...

[VitaminG]

That's awesome man, Marco & Zac are my inspiration. Cos of Marco, I started bass...then I saw them live and watched Zac just about the whole time LOL...ok I gotta learn guitar, that just looks like so much fun.
Spell of Iron MMXI, the anniversary album is out today if you wanna check it out...well, might be on the iTunes down there...I was surprised to see it on the US iTunes on the release date. Im happy.

cool. I'll have to check it out.

I'd also like to throw in an honourable mention for Monster Magnet, if only for Dave Wyndorf's awesome lyrics.

Space lord mother! Saw them at the Soundwave festival back in Feb. Great set.

[jgcable]

hmmmm, most underrated bands....

i'd go with:

leatherwolf
wolfsbane
edguy
scorpions

i am sure there are others, but those are the ones that jump to my head first and foremost as groups that really did/do a great job but never got/get the credit they deserve.

you may be curious about my edguy and scorpions picks as being underrated, so here is my perspective...

edguy - they started as a run-of-the-mill helloween rip-off band, and they were good at it. then as they grew up an bit, they have (in my opinion) spearheaded the "new wave of hair metal" by putting out a couple un-abashed, hard rock albums that easily blend everything that was great from the '80s along with the heavier music of the '90s and the new millenium. plus, they put on a KILLER live show.

scorpions - yes, they had HUGE success in the '80s, but their work from the '70s is highly underrated, except for the accolades uli jon roth receives. that period of the scorpions' career has noticeable influences on glam rock, hard rock, heavy metal, power metal, speed metal, shred...even their first album, "lonesome crow", has some great psychadelic/jazz fusion-esque jamming on it. take their first album with uli roth, "fly to the rainbow", and you have classic tunes like "speedy's coming" with crazy whammy-bar soloing that pre-dates vai by almost a decade!!! the title track from that album is a very clear precursor to euro-power metal, with its drum pattern, the harmony guitars at the intro, and the galloping bass line. move through the rest of their '70s catalog and you will find AWESOME songs that have, sadly, almost completely vanished from their fans' memories.

another reason i find them underrated is because most casual scorpions fans (the bulk of them from the '80s) don't realize that they have continued putting out good records all through the '90s and the new millenium. these records are standard scorpions fare at this point (ballads and rockers), they are quite heavy and rather impressive for a bunch of guys that have been putting out albums on a rather consistant basis since 1972.

How could you include The Scorpions as underrated?? They are one of the most popular and successful metal bands in history. Everybody loves them.. everybody respects them. They have had several hit songs on the radio and many hit music videos and have sold millions and millions of records. Guitar players respect Mathias, Rudy, Michael and of course Uli. Klauss is ranked right up there with Ozzy, Dio, Dickenson and Halford.

[markD]

not everyone loves and/or respects the scorpions. there are many that believe they are just a "hair band" and have NO idea about their music before the "blackout" album. especially here in the US. the scorpions themselves thought it bizarre that when they played songs off "lovedrive" and "animal magentism" when they toured the US with whitesnake many of the US fans thought they were NEW songs!!!

you hit the nail on the head when you said "guitar players respect". yes, guitarists. musicians. but even then, not ALL musicicans. and remember, having hit songs doesn't equal repsect. we debate that all the time on this forum. the average person that listened to "pop" music in the '80s was a scorpions fan. did they know about uli? probably not. did they know or care about the ongoing issues with michael schenker? probably not. IF they stumbled across a scorpions album that was released on RCA records - and found in the budget bin of most record outlets - and bought it, would they have enjoyed jamming out to "polar nights"? probably not.

as a musician that also produces music for popular consumption i tend to consider if something is under- or over-rated by the way the general public responds to a collected body of work, not just what a bunch of guitarists consider.

that, my friend, is how i considered the scorpions underrated.

[NextInLine]

If I were to name one I'd say Savatage.

There are some really cool bands/albums out there now, who deserve much more attention though.

[petez0r]

i didnt read 6 pages so i dont know if anyone has said Opeth but..........yea

OPETH.

i know the heavy growls arent tops in most peoples tastes, but give them 5 minutes of your time and enjoy the intertwining guitar melodies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luZIx5ZVQ28&feature=fvsr

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdWB7-uL3fE&feature=related

http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdRmyAM8PAY

[Devotee]

Opeth? Oh come on man, EXTREMELY overrated.

[Nimitz]

Opeth? Oh come on man, EXTREMELY overrated.

+1

[Hellbat]

I'm going to go along with Opeth being underrated. I don't know anybody that is not into metal who has ever even heard of them. Master's Apprentices is another great track from them.

I tend to really like how Swedish singers sound though.

[Devotee]

Dude seriously, Opeth cannot be underrated in any sense when they're currently signed onto the biggest Metal label in the world, have toured the globe, played countless festivals worldwide on numerous occasions (i've been to Wacken twice and they were playing on both occasions) and their main man Mr. Åkerfeldt's signature guitar is a... wait for it... PRS. Underrated? Really?

EDIT:

Almost forgot about this:

[Nimitz]

... and PRS