Albums That Look Heavy But Aren’t

[@westsidecater]

Brendon you really gotta do a “20 Worst Albums In My Collection” piece

[@tendraftsdeep]

Great idea and video! I must go with Meat Loaf "Bat Out of Hell". Long ago I always thought it be dark and heavy until I heard it!

[@brian-ld4vd]

Agreed!! Bat Out of Hell looks so Cool but it's not hard rock as a kid I bought it and my whole family liked it!!! Thought I was buying metal and heard two out of three ain't bad... My Mom loved it as well. LoL Brilliant Album though. An American Classic.

[@tendraftsdeep]

@@brian-ld4vd that's Awesome!

[@antonnee]

Excellent choice. Great album but cover definitely looked heavier than the music inside.

[@tendraftsdeep]

@@antonnee When I was a kid, saw it in store and thought it would be something like Slayer lol. It's definitely not heavy but certainly a classic

[@thebob01]

@@brian-ld4vd Agreed. The Bat out of Hell album cover looks cool but the music is terrible.

[@markrussell3414]

Another awesome video of cds and vinyl keep collecting your cds 📀📀👍🏻🇬🇧👍🏻Doro forever

[@JulianJones-rg1hr]

This looks a good one Brendon. Will have a watch later. Have a nice day .

[@markcloer2274]

A lot of the Blue Oyster Cult album covers looked more ominous than the music within.

[@richards3862]

Agree

[@ericv7720]

Especially their later albums. The first three records were every bit as metal as you'd think.

[@michaelelliot3532]

Great episode Brendon. Another very interesting topic and well researched! Best ~ Mike, Princeton NJ

[@speedking4951]

Cool topic Brendon. Those covers would often mislead us when shopping for metal music during the pre-internet era! You should do a video where you discuss albums with covers that don't look heavy, but actually are heavy. Cheers 🍻.

[@ericv7720]

I can think of heavy albums with lame covers: Ostrogoth "Too Hot," Fates Warning "No Exit," Riot "Fire Down Under," and Diamond Head "Lightning to the Nations."

[@samkeepintherockalive]

I love The Rods. They rock!!💥💥💥🎸🎸🥁🥁

[@HaakonOdinsson]

Great band and very underrated imho

[@samkeepintherockalive]

@@HaakonOdinsson They are! Their last album "Rattle The Cage" is killer!!

[@davidtrahan3062]

The old line “you hear what you see”. Can be very deceiving.🎉❤ great work ❤

[@Protometal66]

Was definitely fooled by Molly Hatchet but still glad I picked them up as they are probably my favorite southern rock band today and I guess , at least , heavy for southern rock. I love early Uriah Heep and when I saw Abominog , I definitely thought it was gonna be heavy and something I'd really like. The album still does nothing for me It's so hard for me to comment on Nazareth. I was buying those albums as they were being released and being a huge fan , I ended up automatically buying them and loving Expect No Mercy and No Mean City. I honestly can't remember what I thought about the covers . Great video Brendon !

[@rideon77]

The Beach Boys: Surf's Up, basically the whole Molly Hatchet discography

[@spaghetti.lee-69]

Beach Boys- "Surfs Up" is Misleading for A Dozen different reasons - Mike Love RAPS on it ! RAPS !!! - sorry Man its Just THAT ALBUM!!

[@rideon77]

@@spaghetti.lee-69 LOL I think that album in which he raps is "Summer In Paradise"

[@antonnee]

Yes, Molly Hatchet was disappointing. Thought music would be metal and not southern rock.

[@hodgestamez]

Nice video Brendon. Another album like that is "Taken By Storm" (1984) by Bronz, the artwork looks like made for an obscure European thrash metal band, with the Grim Reaper on horseback stealing a woman away, but the music is AOR or hard rock at best, like a combination of Foreigner with vocals similar to Denis DeYoung

[@retroactivejealousy-worldl1805]

When they put out the Motörhead album ‘0n Parole’ I was shocked! Also, most Meatloaf album covers used to look uber metal

[@GustavoScafuro]

Nice idea for a video Brendon! By the way, I'm doing a skull-a-day project (and contest, too!) about Skulls and Skeletons on album artwork, and some of these that you showed were already featured on the blog. Yeah I'm including all genres (not just metal) from what I have on my physical or digital collection, starting from the 70's and up. Right now I am almost entering the 90's era \m/

[@MrHankulley]

Excellent ! And what about KISS ? Always thought their image didn't reflect their music in the 70s...

[@ericmiller1881]

I love that Demon album. My son is really taking to it also😂. Thanks for the suggestion previously

[@brian-ld4vd]

I always thought Molly Hatchet albums always caught the attention whenever you saw it in a store they looked so Heavy. LoL

[@manofmiracles]

Rainbow strait between the eyes would be another one great topic

[@petelamb9965]

Brendon do you have the cds by tokyo motor fist ted poley and Steve brown very good albums hard to get .heard them when Steve was promoting aces new album .

[@LowNoiseJasonSkilz]

Molly Hatchet covers always fools me! I was also thinking of Celtic Frost (Gieger art) whenever I see the ELP Brain Salad album. Good prog record in the end. But def not metal.. good video man!

[@HaakonOdinsson]

That Nazareth album “No mean City” is a brilliant album 🤘

[@KellyLynch-hc5mi]

Haha i got fooled a lot by album covers back in the 80s and 90s too, but have you ever had the opposite thing happen? Album covers that are weak as hell but the music contained within is balls to the wall heaviness!?

[@ivostoyanov4850]

100 percent agree with you

[@erichyde1913]

I remember that Nazareth album in my brothers room. The music is good, but I remember being disappointed that it wasn't heavy metal.

[@by-fate-but-by-choice]

I remember when a friend of my family growing up was convinced that Erasure was a thrash metal band because of the artwork on the album cover for "the Innocents".

[@jimmycampbell78]

🤣

[@harveyguerrero3886]

Axe Nemesis and Offering. I had a copy of Nemesis in my cassettes that at least made my modest music collection look metal. The music on them was good and turned out to be something I played quite a bit over the years.

[@christianhaynes1954]

Yeah, I was fooled many times when I was young , thinking I was buying a heavy album and it turned out to be mellow or worse .

[@jeremesager5487]

I read rock , metal magazines , listened to metal shop radio show to know what was heavy and not .

[@purpletemple1]

Demon was the first album I thought of when I saw the title of the episode. I remember seeing the album when I was a kid and being really scared of the cover, but at the same time I couldn't resist listening to it (asked the seller to listen to it in the store) and was so disappointed when I actually heard the music. I was expecting something along the lines of Venom. It took me years to appreciate the music. I still believe that it is my attraction to the cover that made me want to eventually listen to the album again. I would have added Terry Reid-Rogue Waves, where he pauses like a guitar god on the cover, and gave me an impression it was going to be a Frank Marino/ heavy guitar-driven type of album but isn't at all...Not a bad album though. Great topic! Cheers.

[@e-dub6586]

When i was a kid i always thought that Molly Hatchet would be heavier just based on their covers. Funny that they made your list. Keep it up Brendon

[@PaulMazzoni]

That Molly Hatchet album, LOL. 100% on everything you said about it - name, art, everything. Took years until I heard them and was like, “WHAT?!”

[@thebob01]

That Uriah Heep album cover looks like it belongs more to a band like Deicide. They sound more like STYX than metal.

[@BrendonSnyder]

Exactly! For the longest time I was turned off by the album cover.

[@thebob01]

@@BrendonSnyder I remember seeing that album in a record store when I was younger and it scared the shit out of me.

[@markwilburn4962]

Great show and i would love to see the opposite of this too!

[@Mark-bi5dk]

The band demon also got me back in the day with the album the plague...looks very metal....good band though....great show

[@jimmycampbell78]

Definitely agree with you about ELP “Brain Salad Surgery”. Giger also did album covers for metal bands like Celtic Frost “To Mega Therion” and Carcass “Heartwork”. His artwork fits that type of band more than ELP. The music on Brain Salad Surgery does not fit the artwork at all, its not even remotely dark or evil imo. The music on that ELP album does not even fit the title Brain Salad Surgery or even the song title Karn Evil. I also thought about that Demon album and that gruesome Night of the Demon cover. You are totally right, they look death metal, doom metal or black metal but they sound more like UFO or maybe AC/DC.

[@seghj]

Another interesting topic: bands that made you think they are Metal because of their names but aren't: Massive attack Dead can dance Urge Overkill Grateful dead

[@topographic1973ify]

Abominog was an excellent album.

[@trv411]

Still is

[@H-mu4bo]

Abominog is a great album. My favourite Uriah Heep. A catchy rock album.

[@seghj]

The opposite way: Helmet - Betty

[@Douchemaster_McChest]

Pat Boone - In A Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy 😉

[@drewhaueter4502]

Always thought Meat Loaf Bat Out Of Hell

[@BrendonSnyder]

Yes that’s another perfect album to include

[@davej.meister5421]

I've got a suggestion for a future Brendon video. "Album covers that fooled or misled us because of the band's "rocking" appearance." Translation: Album covers that had the artist/band's picture on the cover, and it looked like maybe the artist rocks. Then you listen to the music, and the artist doesn't really rock all that much. Similar to this video, but more focused on the artist's appearance on the cover. There are many examples of this, but the one that comes to mind is Neil Young's 1968 S/T debut, where he looks tough on the cover. Then you pop in the disc, and just by listening, you feel quite disappointed by the music. The songs have a lighter sound that contrasts it from the album cover. Another example for me for is Player's 1977 S/T debut and their 1978 sophomore release "Danger Zone." The band has a "rocking" appearance on both covers. But once you hear the music, you feel really let down, because the music doesn't match what we see on the album cover. "Bad" by MJ (1987) another good example. A more modern example of this is "Talking Dreams" the eponymous 2013 debut LP by female-fronted pop-rock band Echosmith. What you see on the album cover is what looks like a tough looking arena rock band whose lead singer (the lovely Sydney Sierota) has big 80s style hair like most 80s AOR/melodic rock bands did back in the day. But once you listen to the disc, you'll quickly find out it's not at all an arena rock band. It's a mellow synth heavy pop-rock band whose music is more synth pop/new wave than it is pure rock. Anyway, just a thought.

[@SpookyKid_SpaceAce]

I thought it was Ungrateful Dead untill I was about 18 😂

[@silviodraco9393]

If you see the Sonora Ponceña cover you say wow looks like Manowar or Iron Maiden cover but not is Salsa music.

[@carlosorozco9403]

I really love "abominog" by Heep, actually "the night of the wolf" is heavy metal

[@samhouston1979]

yeah…do the reverse

[@tapanim6576]

🤘😎🤘

[@spaghetti.lee-69]

"Molly Hatchett & Uriah Heep" were Recording before their even was a legitimate " Heavy Metal" Genre - & In their defense Both were HEAVY for they're Time - In Fact They Helped Pave the way for " Heavy - Metal" as a legit Genre which didn't *really start till JUDAS PRIEST in '78.* Other Bands were Heavy but not " Heavy- Metal" also like " Rainbow & Ted Nugent" etc... If you Lived in the 70s those Bands & The Album art were REAL Heavy. Looking Back & Comparing them to Later Metal is Only gonna lead to One Obvious Conclusion " This isn't as Heavy as it Looks"..

[@nightdrive89]

I was fooled by Kevin Paige - s/t from 1989. Looks like it should be hard rock, but it's more like Michael Jackson. I'd also say that Toto - Hydra looks fairly sinister.

[@journeyintothebible]

Elf had some great songs, but I'm glad that Rainbow happened.

[@eerievon2208]

love Uriah Heep’s abominog…. i knew the band already when i bought this album on cassette bk then.. got to know them frm my dad’s vinyls collection… very ‘eavy very ‘umble was my intro to them… album cover wise.. as far as i can remember… it didn’t intrigue me.. i bought the album because of the band… love the album … Peter Goalby was just right for the band.. love their AOR direction .. i wouldn’t call them pop metal… they were more progressive rock then hard rock like Deep Purple.. the only thing that bind these two bands were their brilliant keyboardist… Ken Hensley for UH n Jon Lord for DP…. some older UH fans hated ‘abominog’.. frm its album cover.. musical style.. lyrics (no more fairytales wizardry lyrics).. Peter Goalby… n calling Ken Hensley’s departure made them change their sound.. well … as a young lad when i bought n listened to this album.. i loved it instantly… i was already into Iron Maiden.. Black Sabbath n Judas Priest.. this album has always been my all time favourite album ever… i don’t care much abt bad album cover.. if not i wouldn’t hv bought Black Sabbath’s born again n Megadeth’s killing is my business …. cheesy album cover somewhat attracts me until today… 😅😅 same goes to Nazareth.. Grateful Dead.. bk then only hv like the greatest hits for Nazareth… so basically i know their styles… for Grateful Dead.. till this day i only hv their greatest hits… somehow love the greatest hits album but can’t move on more than that… 😅😅 love ELP… i only hv the best of (the one with japanese painting… honestly bought that compilation album because of this japanese painting..😅).. for Molly Hatchet.. the deed is done was my first album of them.. for this yeah.. i was in the same boat as u… i was heavy into Saxon… Manowar etc bk then… looking at the album .. i straight grabbed them n went home to listen.. man.. i was disappointed at first… but somehow.. some of the songs hooked on me till this day.. eg man on the run.. another album that i got tricked into was Meatloaf’s dead ringer…. same i was heavily into Motörhead… Manowar.. etc… man… it was all good until i heard Meat’s voice.. but somehow .. i slowly like it.. n hv been collecting MeatLoaf’s albums including their last (which honestly to me not gd but love the album cover)… for RJD’s Elf… i somewhat knew RJD already by then through Black Sabbath.. Dio.. n not yet Rainbow (only to discover later as during that period i only knew Rainbow with Joe Lynn Turner n Graham Bonnet.. which i really like…. my first RJD Elf album was ‘trying to burn the sun’… which was an ok album to me.. there r some songs that i really like to this day… but bk then i still compare RJD works with Black Sabbath n Dio… so kinda not up to par… 😅😅

[@kennethnoisewater8170]

What about “bat out of hell” by meat loaf. Looks metal AF but it’s show tunes.

[@socaranectien1933]

Yeah, I would think that would come to mind first for most people

[@fjuczer667]

Music is up for interpretation. But I never understood why people don't count bands like Demon and Praying Mantis as metal. Just because there are keyboards, does it automatically make them hard rock?

[@BrendonSnyder]

They are both Metal. Praying Mantis is NWOBHM specifically. Having keyboards and being melodic does not negate Metal.

[@zoltanszabo4242]

+ anything from Iron Maiden. OK, just poking around, but there is some truth in there. Heavy metal covers are often more aggressive and gruesome than the music itself. Speaking of Giger: Debby Harry's KooKoo suggests it's at least dark, if not heavy. But not at all. Grateful Dead often misleads people. It's worth noting that they developed their aesthetic way before heavy metal.

[@mariogonzalez8185]

That's what I thought about Molly Hachet and Elf..I thought they were heavy,,by looking at the art work.. found out Molly Hachet is southern rock and Elf is hard rock.. ooh well I love both bands🤘🤘👍

[@sergefernandez3395]

Hello from France brendon, yes carrere is a french label 😊. In 1983, i've heard owner lonely heart from yes at the radio. Whaou ! Good rock! Good electric guitar! I didnt know yes 😊. I've bought the lp. At home, i've listened the lp and😢😢😢 . What is that 😂😂😂. It's not hard , It's not rock, It's progggggggg!!!!!!!! 😢😢😢😢😢. And you know what, i've always this lp😂😂😂. Brendon exuse me for my bad english 😂. Good bye brendon 😊

[@MetalFriscoDude79]

I honestly thought Gwar and Danzig were a lot heavier than they actually were

[@spaghetti.lee-69]

I Expected Danzig to be FASTER.. It took me 20 years to really appreciate it because it was so SLOW compared to his earlier Bands.

[@thebob01]

Sad Wings of Destiny by Judas Priest album cover looked a lot heavier than the music (even though Priest is metal)

[@kevinbukowski150]

That’s RJD on the Elf album cover, they put a fake nose and ears on him.

[@SpookyKid_SpaceAce]

I always thought KISS looked heavier than they actually were

[@d-hell]

I got really disappointed way back when I heard Krokus - Alive and Screaming in the store, thinking this has to be some nasty early Kreator’ish thrash metal…

[@MortenAastad]

Wow, Demon, talk about false advertisement! Yeah, they were labelmates with Saxon, a more «proper» NWOBHM band. Something that didn’t help either band. Carrere did not know, neither seemed to care much about what to do with bunch of UK hard rock acts they for some reason kept signing. Neither did they have the muscle to do much. But they did give acts who may never have gotten a deal to get their music out, not least on actual records. When Saxon fjnally got on EMI the momentum for those who hadn’t reached Iron Maiden status were sadly lost.

[@benedictdonald4338]

“Abominog” - the sleeve art is too silly to be “heavy”.

[@JanerDias]

🇧🇷

[@ronbaker8383]

Nazareth albums don't have to be heavy. The king of rock Dan McCaffertys voice is what matters in Nazareth

[@mallery7]

Early nwobhm albums aren’t that heavy compared to modern metal

[@ronbaker8383]

That's Fred on the Nazareth no mean city album. They brought him out if they was playing on Halloween night