What Was Your Metal Gateway Band? Spiritbox, GWAR, BMTH and More React

Every metal fan, even the most seasoned and snobby among us, had a gateway band that introduced them to the genre. No one began their journey plunging into the depths of obscure black-metal or putrid goregrind. Whether it was Slipknot, Metallica, Black Sabbath or any of the other titans of shred, every headbanger started somewhere, so we asked bigwig metal and rock musicians - including members of Spiritbox, GWAR, Bring Me the Horizon, Halestorm, and more - to reveal the band that first introduced them to what would become a lifetime of heavy.
Watch now and let us know your gateway metal band in the comments!
Background Music: Armageddon by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommon...
---
Subscribe to our channel: www.youtube.com...
---
Revolver on the web:
Revolver on Shopify: revolvermagazi...
Revolver on Facebook: / revolvermag
Revolver on Twitter: / revolvermag
Revolver on Instagram: / revolvermag
Subscribe to the Revolver Newsletter: signup.e2ma.ne...
#metal #metalband #gateway #spiritbox #gwar #bringmethehorizon #halestorm #baroness #wecameasromans #suicidesilence #inflames #cherrybombs #tetrarch #orbitculture #crownthempire #bloodywood #mikesdead #airbourne #taipeihouston #vended #slipknot #metallica #blacksabbath #korn #systemofadown

[@kraj2571]

I absolutely love how half of these heavy bands cited bands like Linkin Park. You even saw them squirm a little when saying it like they’re embarrassed. They shouldn’t be! Not every band needs to be brutal. Metal needs MORE gateway bands the rest of the metal community needs to understand their significance and be welcoming.

[@crhuble]

I remember getting to the parts where Chester would scream and feel this rush. I needed more, and so it began…

[@EtopiaCA]

They should be embarrassed, Linkin Park is mediocre.

[@isaac1670]

Linkin Park was the band that did it for me as well. I came for the rap but Chester's screams got a hold of me and didn't let go.

[@Psych_FM]

This is what Ghost is today

[@guts8126]

@@EtopiaCA shitty take

[@adamcadle7078]

I love how Metallica and Slipknot kids said everything but their dad’s bands 😂😂😂

[@shaunrevell5594]

Was thinking exactly that. 😂

[@lurchorum]

Thats probably because their dads, as musicians, didnt listen to bullshit luke Linkin Park. They knew what was up.

[@TheWhills]

Metallica and Slipknot ARE my Dad's bands...I'm 27. Lol

[@TheNeo349]

who are the slipknot kids?

[@konantb8322]

@@TheNeo349 Vended

[@acerimmer8338]

People love to shit on nu-metal but it has its own place in music. It's a great balance between accessible yet heavy and intense. Some really talented and creative artists as well. Really deserves more respect, even w/ some of the cringe.

[@G-Unit1111]

Yeah I used to be one of those people, then I very quickly got over it and started enjoying the genre and all the different subgenres. I am a 90s kid from California, so growing up I was into most of the bands KROQ was playing like Depeche Mode, The Offspring, Soundgarden, Nine Inch Nails, 311, Green Day, Mars Volta, Incubus, I could go on and on. A lot of those I still listen to.

[@TheRecklessMetalhead]

I've always loved nu-metal and still do. KoRn is good shit!🤘

[@dame9187]

@Dragon Ball fans can't read but all the bands that are considered nu-metal are amazing

[@daverichards9141]

Nu metal is amazing!!!!

[@onionheadguy7094]

I'm so happy that numetal gets more respect these days it was a rough 20 years haha

[@CountNazgul93]

Except it doesn't and never will.

[@rogerbakheim1195]

I still have a lot of hate to give! ;-)

[@MetalPersonJ]

It should be 100 more.

[@deafworldstudios8644]

@@CountNazgul93 Well tough titty, it is. Sad for you my guy.

[@sheldoncooper8199]

@Onion Head Guy System of a Down, KoRn and Slipknot were Never disrespected. By Metal Fans. Only LinKin Park and Crazy Town Coal Chamber and Statik X and P.O.D. were disrespected by Some

[@chigon89]

Happy to hear nu metal being a factor into introducing metal to many people. It was for me. Korn was my gateway band. Sepultura was the band that helped broadened my metal horizon and eventually lead me into death metal

[@CountNazgul93]

Oof..

[@RichardDeBerryOfficial]

@@CountNazgul93 You've been negative throughout this entire comment section. You just need to just lighten up and chill.

[@CountNazgul93]

@@RichardDeBerryOfficial Cry

[@RichardDeBerryOfficial]

@@CountNazgul93 Negativity is bad for the soul, man. It's a waste of time. You need to go out, exercise, do something but center your life around hate. It makes life so much better. Trust me, I speak from experience.

[@Grimeyhoob]

@@RichardDeBerryOfficial problem with the metal community is that they don’t appreciate the importance of gateway albums such as the Black album or Hybrid Theory or Significant Other or Follow the Leader. Without the gateway bands or albums many kids would never be introduced to metal. No kid gets into Behemoth or Cannibal Corpse straight away. They need something more mainstream and catchy first. Then they move on to heavier stuff over time. But without that gateway you can’t get new kids to like metal and if new kids don’t like metal then it will become a fairy tale of history. So without gateway bands metal wouldn’t have survived. The metal community doesn’t see how gateway bands and albums are what ensure that fans continue to listen to the genre through generations.

[@gagypetkovic]

Linkin Park first two records are masterpieces,also Slipknot for sure.

[@joshhale9355]

Linkin Park for me. I was maybe 10 and my friend lent me his brother’s Hybrid Theory CD and immediately it clicked. They are a type of rock that’s easily accessible to everyone and provide a great starting point to heavy music if you’re interested; if not then you can just enjoy their music as is.

[@arsonne]

I had no idea people might not like No More Tears. That album and specifically the title track absolutely SLAPS

[@ekims_echoes]

Courtney LaPlante's comment about how media like MTV would never have introduced her to good metal shows a sad change in music. Seeing, on MTV, Metallica's video for One changed my life and Headbanger's Ball introduced me to so much good music. It's sad how much that changed by the 2000s.

[@ChrisRaghoobar]

She’s not wrong, but at the same time, System of a Down was regularly played on MTV during their Mesmerize/Hypnotize era. BYOB in particular was in heavy rotation.

[@AnsticePalo]

She's a generation too young. In the 90s Pantera, Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax all had regular airplay on MTV before it became the fashion network it would become. Less heavy bands like the hair metal bands such as Motley Crue saw play, as did Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Ozzie Osbourne. You pretty much had music videos, Road Rules and the weird shit that came on late at night with Beavis & Butthead and Aeon Flux. 90's MTV was just mindblowing compared to what it would become shortly after.

[@Void-Realm]

I thought she was saying bands were played on MTV but now we have to dig around. I remember the 00's being full of music that's pretty underground now due to the big rise in popularity in the scene, emo, mosh crowd.

[@Luissv72]

Three Days Grace's One X and Evanescence's Fallen were probably the 1st full albums I ever heard, definitely the 1st ones I remember.

[@Madchris8828]

I loved Evanescence and still do, them Seether, Three Dayys Grace. I was exposed to some Slipknot and Korn as a kid, but really only like Limp Biscuit at that time and the heavier Papa Roach songs. I wasn't exposed a lot to metal until my mid teenage years.

[@PapaSmurf11182nd]

One-X is Three Days Grace’s most consistent, best release

[@moparguy1995]

One X is the only album to this day that I fully engage with 100%. I think On My Own/Over and Over are the weakest tracks on the record, and they’re still great. Solid 9.5/10.

[@kingexclusivo]

@@moparguy1995 On My Own is one of the best songs lmao

[@carpediemearth]

For me, it was Korn, Evanescence and Tool, I first got into them as a teen in the early 2000s, loved them and continued discovering more and more hard rock and metal from the 90s and 2000s, including the likes of Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Skipknot and looked back to Motörhead, Iron Maiden, Rush, and so on. All of them are still some of my favorite bands today among others. Also made me realize I have a wide taste in rock and music general as I enjoy different vibes

[@abeldanffy1445]

I got into harsh vocals by gradually travelling back in time in BMTH's discography. I would listen to a record and find it too heavy and screamy only to give it another try a few months later and fall in love with it.

[@ptr_does_music7042]

Same thing here! I remember being more of a hard rocker, and count your blessings straight up scared me at first, lol. And maybe 2 months later I would grow to love it, and extreme metal in general

[@hipyhippo3829]

Exactly how it happened to me, the heaviest of bmth was sempiternal then I liked there is a heaven. But everything else was too heavy. Soon enough I started liking suicide season then theyre deathcore albums. Now deathcore is one of my favorite genres and especially blackened deathcore 😂

[@DropThatRamen]

@@hipyhippo3829 Yo thats dope to hear. Glad people still are getting into their heavier stuff since that's when I first discovered them. They've had a really interesting style progression as a band. Glad they've seen alot of success recently.

[@robreeto]

Pretty cool effect they've had going in a pop direction bringing more fans into heavier music, ive seen them 6 times since 07 and I've been a fan of every album they've put out including Amo

[@livetra168]

That's what started my journey

[@digitaleyes99]

My first few metal bands I ever listened too when I was little were Limp Bizkit, System Of A Down, I got into Slipknot heavily when I was like 9 or 10, and then around middle school is when I dived deeper into Coal Chamber, Static X, Korn. As soon as I got to high school, I discovered Deftones and they were and still are the only band that's ever changed me in ways I didn't think were possible.

[@GarzaPodcast]

Thanks for having me💥🎸-GaЯza

[@joeysnowynoey]

My gateway band into metal was Slipknot. I remember being a little kid and my friend that rode the bus would always bring these cool cds with him for us to listen to and one day he brought Vol. 3. It changed my world! I never heard music so strange and exciting. I never looked back since.

[@jacksonconstantine5740]

I was the same dude. It was after school. I was in the bank with my mate and his mum cause he was opening his first bank account, we were on the way to have a sleepover. I was bored in the waiting room, listening to Queens of the Stone Age when out of nowhere Duality came on. I’d never heard anything like it.

[@TheRecklessMetalhead]

Vol. 3 = Best Slipknot album Don't get me wrong, the entire discography of Slipknot is great and they haven't made a bad album yet. They're all equal, though. Cheers!🤘

[@mr.paleface5962]

There were a few influences on me growing up, Linkin Park, Metallica etc. But the first album that really got me in deep was "Believe" by Disturbed. Super underrated gateway band

[@TheRecklessMetalhead]

Can't go wrong with Disturbed's first 5 albums, though.🤘

[@stazey1746]

Not gonna lie as I got old enough the WWE games from like 2000-2009 were massive influences. Honestly a ton of videos growing up shaped my music taste looking back at it now I’m so glad I was able to experience so much good music

[@TheRecklessMetalhead]

Man, video games used to have hard rock music back then.

[@Pwnage9191]

Defo linkin park, limp bizkit and korn were prolly the earliest for me, but I have this super vivid memory of hearing raining blood for the first time, with all those lightning sounds and feedback and that DUN DUN DUN on drums into that iconic riff. The atmosphere they created just filled me with this sense of dread but also just wanting to fly around the room and kick shit off the walls and that was the moment I knew for sure I was a metal head.

[@barbiegirl985]

mine was soad too. my mom gave me a bunch of cd's when i was like 11 and i listened to all of them, but toxicity was the one i kept going back to the most and loved!! glad this is a common experience haha

[@Smoke.stardust]

Common experience for posers

[@MySkilletfan]

@@Smoke.stardust you really showed him buddy. Better go do your chores before daddy gets home

[@TheRecklessMetalhead]

Mesmerize did that for me, and it's SOAD's heaviest album. Of course, that was long before Korn, Metallica, and Metallica.

[@southernmetalhead1535]

Mudvayne was my first and it was when Dig came out whenever I was 8 years old. A year later I found Slipknot, Mushroomhead, Korn, Coal Chamber, Kittie, and Statix-X. And stayed with that till I was 13 and got more into thrash and death metal and evolved more over time and still listening to this day and I'm 29 now

[@matthewshelley1365]

Metallica's Black Album, full stop. That was the game changer. Honorable mentions to White Zombie, Megadeth and Pantera, I clearly fell into the right crowd in high school

[@shanedeel2]

Same

[@CountNazgul93]

Sounds like the wrong crowd to me.

[@MrProzacmilkshake]

Metallica black album was the full stop for me for different reasons I was 17 angry and susssssssssssss as **** but I love everything now even glam metal all is forgiven

[@MrProzacmilkshake]

Slayer in 1987 made my shorts blow off I was 13 😳

[@DaveHazard95]

The start of Metallica’s decay. But at least it helped people get into metal

[@Amanda-kf7pm]

My gateway into finally finding metal was actually by way of emo! Pierce the Veil, Of Mice and Men, Sleeping with Sirens, Thursday. At the time the catchy melodies helped me “tolerate” the heavy/screaming sections until I started craving hearing more heavy vocals. Then I finally graduated by way of We came as romans, Woe is Me, and old Bring Me The Horizon. Now I'm in love with anything remotely metal, Lamb of God, Deftones, Gojira, Infant annihilator, Lorna Shore, Veil of Maya, Machine Head, Korn, Cattle Decapitation, Spiritbox, etc, etc. Really grateful to these bands for easing me into my favorite genre and they still have a special place in my heart

[@calvinelamparo3936]

Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory was the gateway album / band that got me into the metal world, RIP Chester.

[@d-lowz-no9931]

I grew up with metal influence from my dad but the first band I got into on my own without my dad showing me it was definitely Linkin Park. Hybrid Theory kicked open a lot of doors for a lot of folks. RIP to Chester Bennington.

[@TravfromTO]

I was in the 9th grade in 1990 listing to rap music of the time. All of a sudden the Nevermind album came out and I was hooked. I wanted everything grunge all this time. A classmate gave me Fear Factory's soul of a new mechine album. I had never heard growling before and I loved it.

[@Kwisgaar]

Hybrid Theory, Meteora and Toxicity. Those albums opened me up to this wonderful world of metal

[@BloodandSoilNS]

White Zombie, Coal Chamber, Pantera, Korn, and Ultimately, Slipknot, which no other band has came close to matching, since '99 were my gateway bands into the amazing world of metal.

[@lilithdeath1388]

I went from Hanson to Manson , but growing up it always heavy. my dad favorites are king diamond, cannibal corpse, immortal to name a few. So been listening to this stuff all my life..

[@chilly6470]

Hanson to Manson.... Love that!

[@unai49999]

The lack of du hasts kind of gives away how much we focus on America. That song was everywhere.

[@sethrabin833]

When I was 8, 9 years old, I was still into boy bands, but I was also watching MTV and discovered Korn, Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach, and POD. It was still several years before I could call myself a metalhead, but those were the first bands that got me hooked.

[@marcgaskett]

A split between Pantera - Cowboys From Hell and Sepultura - Roots for me, I was introduced to them both at the same time when the older kids used to play the cassette tapes on the school bus, instantly hooked 🤘🏻

[@silverblood9456]

Mine was Adema. I remember watching their music video for Immortal while playing Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, and I was blown away by it because I had never heard music like that before. I looked them up on Pandora radio and they became the first metal band I was a fan of. Years later, I'm listening to everything from metalcore to DSBM, but I'll always have a deep appreciation for Adema

[@mikeyfishhorror3635]

Watched that music video ALL THE TIME lol

[@nicholaslindsey7087]

Godsmack was mine, way back when I was 11 years old and received their album ‘Faceless’ as a gift.

[@thunderdawg94]

Sevendust is so criminally underrated

[@jesseinfinite]

What introduced me to heavy music were all the songs that WWE would use for their PPVs. One of those bands that I really liked back in the day was Bloodsimple. I was looking up one of their songs and somebody mentioned that Bloodsimple sounds really similar to Slipknot. And then I discovered Psychosocial and the rest was history.

[@ijsbeer9137]

My first real ‘heavy’ songs were some of Limp Bizkit and Rammstein around when I was around 8 or 9. I saw Rollin on MTV and heard Du Hast as the leader for some game review tv show, and started downloading more songs by those bands on Winamp, which took like 20-30 minutes for most songs. That was around 2000 I think. Then about a year later i came accros Hybrid Theory, Black Album. And the flood gates openend with bands like Maiden, Korn, Trivium, Static-X, Heaven Shall Burn and on.

[@CidsaDragoon]

I thought about this one and I think for me it was Rammstein and the visual kei scene. I also remember finding Slayer by complete accident online too and loved that.

[@NMbass906]

A friend sent me a mix tape (folder of mp3s over AIM lol) that had a bunch of extreme metal. I knew the big names, but didn't know any of the smaller bands. Opeth, At the Gates, Children of Bodom, tons of other bands. Thanks Eric lol.

[@cainedicarde]

I grew up on lots of Hip Hop, R&B and Soul but my father would often listen to Phil Collins, Yanni and Yes so i was aware of rock music but the first album I ever sat down and listened to front to back was Dookie by Green Day. I'd hear other stuff over the years but Nu Metal was where I went all in. Bands like Linkin Park, Papa Roach, Mudvayne, Mushroomhead, American Head Charge, Fear Factory and downthesun were where i fell in love with metal.

[@j.m.1928]

That's wassup bro. Growing up in a black Christian household, all I heard was Gospel, rap and R&B. Got tired of that and started listening to some contemporary Christian music where I heard Newsboys and Switchfoot, my major gateway into the Rock genre as a whole. Fast forward some years and I came across P.O.D. That shit gave me a whole new perspective on music. Now metal is practically all I listen to. 5 out the 8 bands you listed I listen to and many many more.

[@alexgtp0130]

I love No more tears, that is definetely my favorite Ozzy's album, i can listen to it over and over again, never get tired of it.

[@zz-.-]

Surprised to not hear more Pantera and Slayer on this list. Old head answers = slayer, Metallica, maiden, sabbath, Pantera, etc. Younger crowd - linkin park, trivium, slipknot, etc. All are good answers 😎

[@mgakamedman6662]

Growing up in the late 90s and early 00s I'd say my go to bands were Linking Park, Slipknot, Limp Bizkit, Mudvayne and Fear Factory. Later I discovered Metallica, Pantera and Messugah but the one thing that started it all was Tony Hawk pro skater 2, more specifically the ost. I heard songs like Blood brothers by Papa Roach or Guerrila radio by ratm and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. I will be forever grateful to this video game for expanding my musical tastes and interests.

[@mandacpr]

I saw Slipknots duality music video and became obsessed. The masks, the music, the lyrics, I couldn’t get enough.

[@BlueBeetle1939]

Growing up my favorite band was Relient K until the day I found a copy of jobforacowboy's doom ep on the side of the highway

[@CosmoCreamer]

Having older siblings I was lucky enough to get exposed to heavier music when I was in elementary school.I remember being 8 years old getting home from school and listening to Pantera and white zombie on my brother's tapes.With pretty much being a kid in the start of the nu metal genre and the deftones still being my favorite band, I'm surprised I didn't hear them get mentioned.

[@laurisaarinen1126]

Deftones are my favorite also, but they never had the popularity of Linkin Park or even SOAD. And they're not the most easily accessible either. I only heard of them when i was 21 and i grew up on nu metal.

[@theiranxican7412]

The fact that Courtney's gateway band for metal was SOAD just makes me solidify my love for her (and Spiritbox) that much more! Now if only SOAD can put aside their differences and make some damn music...

[@arkangelarkangel5348]

Well... their last two albums weren't that good. I stick to the first two albums, the rest is meh.

[@arbuznazarov9326]

@@arkangelarkangel5348 mezmerize was pretty cool and steal this album is basically toxicity 2

[@arkangelarkangel5348]

@@arbuznazarov9326 Well, I totally dislike Malakian's singing which is way too dominant on Mezmerize imo. He should stick to playing the guitar and shut up. :D "Steal This Album" had good songs, however lots of fillers.

[@arbuznazarov9326]

@@arkangelarkangel5348 I see, thanks for your opinion

[@arkangelarkangel5348]

@@arbuznazarov9326 🙂

[@v.l.h.9193]

Older Nightwish, resonated with me being a young fantasy nerd, perfect background music when reading fantasy books :D also Iron Maiden, my parents listen to them. Not sure if Nightwish was because of my uncle, or because of my class mate, don't remember from whom I heard it first Edit: also Alice Cooper! Someone else's comment reminded about it, and yes, thanks to my parents about that, too :D

[@saintsabbathi]

White Zombie - La Sexorcisto Still remember my older brother putting that yellow disc in a cd walkman with a cassette player adapter into our moms 89 Suzuki Sidekick when we left the Wherehouse music store.

[@clear804]

Bloodywood was for me. It was the first time I heard about metal and then kept exploring more metal.

[@cd5642]

Sabbath, Metallica, Megadeath as an entry to metal. Sepultura and Pantera were the two that brought the anger though……that anger over 35 years listening has brought me to a place of peace! Believe it or not bands like Cabal, Hippotraktor, Psychonaut, and Black Crown Initiate are hard af and yet they bring a calm to my life.

[@shona5512]

My gateway metal band was A Day To Remember and early Falling In Reverse. Those were the first bands I actively listened to when I was getting into metal. But it turns out I was subconsciously exposed to Linkin Park and bands like Disturbed, Bullet For My Valentine & Static-X through video games as a child.

[@miketaylor9544]

I listened to Metallica, Nirvana, Korn. Etc. Then went to rap for a while. Oddly Taproot, Chevelle, Slipknot, System of a Down, Linkin Park and that era of music got me back into rock. Then Atreyu's Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses and From Autumn to Ashes The Fiction We Live started me into the screaming side of music.

[@dcinsc]

My brother was 4 years older than me and was big into collecting Maiden albums. We shared a room and he would show me all the secret references on their album covers as well as all the evolutions of Eddie. Maiden isn't my favorite metal band but it was definitely my introduction.

[@aaryamannambiar6677]

Linkin Park and Korn were my gateway bands, but Korn is without a doubt my favorite band of all time.

[@ZappaSheik]

For me it was Black Sabbath. Was cruising through my fathers excellent record collection when I was 6. Found this album that had a weird, for me, silhouette and that album was Paranoid. I listened to that LP for hour and hours, learnt every song on all the instruments and was hooked. I also found Bathory, Venom and really early Death Albums but it just sounded like noice to me back then. At age 11-12 it was In Flames, At the Gates, Dark Tranquillity, Entombed mixed with Savatage and of course DIO who I meet in 92 when I was 6 for the first time.

[@donnyramay2635]

Damn I'm old. I was a child in the 80's and teenager in the 90's. MTV introduced me to so much music during that era. Headbangers Ball with Rikki Rachtman every Saturday night open my eyes to a lot of bands along with metal mags. First heard and bought Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer cassettes when I was in 6th grade in 1989.

[@doleo_metal]

Same. When I first started, I remember buying Slayer Decade of Aggression on cassette because I couldn't afford the CD version

[@CountNazgul93]

You one of the real ones

[@donnyramay2635]

@@CountNazgul93 the late 80's and early 90's had some of the best music. From Jane's Addiction, Faith No More, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden and Primus. Then you had thrash like Slayer, Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth, Testament, Exodus, Suicidal Tendencies and Overkill. You had the Tampa Death Metal scene with Morbid Angel, Deicide and Death. You had Pantera and Sepultura. Second wave black metal. The list goes on.

[@geographyinaction7814]

You are far from old.

[@NinoJoy]

yep, Korn, Sepultura, Slipknot, Pantera, In Flames, Lamb Of God

[@mugenaitest]

Slipknot, Linkin Park and Mudvayne are the 3 bands that opened my eyes to metal. I remember clear as day, in 2003 when I first arrived in Portugal, MTV played Left Behind by Slipknot, followed by Dig by Mudvayne and followed by Somewhere I Belong by Linkin Park.

[@courtneyscott6085]

Maiden for me. Their influence is so wide, it helped me get into everywhere from melodeath to thrash to prog to power metal. From there my tastes got heavier and more extreme, like osdm and black metal. Before maiden though, metallica was my first love since I was around 7 years old. I don't really listen to them as much as I used to, still on occasion, but they will always be my first love and hold a special place in my heart

[@atomicpunk2360]

Hearing one of my favorite bands ever (BMTH) also have love for Nu-Metal is definitely nice haha

[@gwaptiva]

Thanks for making me feel ancient. Never thought saying "Motorhead, Iron Maiden, Anvil, Raven" would make me a relic

[@biohazard_613]

If you’re ancient with those bands, I must be prehistoric. Mine were Black Sabbath and Judas Priest, when they were still new, thanks to my dad. You have some great choices there. Don’t hear Anvil or Raven mentioned much, they don’t get the respect that they deserve.

[@jimthar17]

Def Leppard was my gateway into heavy rock and metal. The world premiere of the PSSOM video literally changed my life.

[@magusking9215]

Mine was definitely the first Rage Against The Machine album circa 92/93. Being 12 Years old then. But even back then I did not consider them Metal, more like Fusion or the then new term of Alternative Rock, so a classmate made me listen to Metallica ( the classic four records pre Black Album - which was already all over the Radio back then and unavoidable ) I borrowed the Kill 'Em All cassette tape at the time and played it in constant "Auto Reverse" mode until the batteries on the old Walkman gave out. I remember loving the fact that they had a song that was basically a Bass solo ( Anesthesia - Pulling Teeth ) and that the Bass player was like a prodigy who kinda looked like Jaco Pastorius who was a friend of my Dad and uncles. So that was a really big deal for me. "Anesthesia", "Four Horsemen" and "One" left an indelible impression on me for sure. And the song "Angry Again" by Megadeth - which was on the soundtrack of a movie called Last Action Hero with Arnold Schwarzenegger - LOL - that's kind of a thing you don't really admit but hey everyone in my generation went through that phase of Action movies - But beyond the time I never was a big Megadeth fan, while I still listen to the first 5 by Metallica... And RATM to this day

[@laurisaarinen1126]

Jaco was a friend of your dad? How cool is that! He is a bass legend. RATM was also one of my first - i also don't consider them metal but i was OBSESSED with them at 13 year old.

[@torringames]

When I was 8 I was listening to bands like Green Day, Sum 41, Linkin Park, got my first acoustic guitar at 8, started listening to Metallica and Nirvana at 10 and started playing Smells like Teen Spirits unplugged and my mom got me an electric guitar 3 weeks later for my birthday. I'm a 90s born kid whose parents listened to Def Leppard, Motley Crue, ACDC, Scorpions, Poison. I liked it and the first metal bands I really got into were Iron Maiden and Metallica. The first band I really liked with screaming were Lamb of God and A Day To Remember. Junior high and high school approached I slowly started into death core and this specific band called Death. Master of Puppets is what got me into music the way I am today almost 30 years old

[@lars5174]

For me it was four different gateways of metal that I discovered more or less at the same time: 1. It was the time of Nu metal and Alt Metal with Marilyn Manson, Slipknot and P.O.D, Korn, Limp Bizkit, RATM and SOAD being some of my favorites at the time. In Germany there was also a brand of Rap Rock we used to call "Crossover" a few years prior with bands like Guano Apes and H-Blockxx that I really enjoyed. 2. I was in boarding school at the time and we were a bunch of nerds playing Magic the Gathering. One unwritten rule was that whoevers room it was, that we were playing Mtg in, got to decide the soundtrack. The metalhead in our group had the largest room so we would play in his room a lot and he would blast bands such as Dimmu Borgir, Manowar, Metallica, Luca Turilli, Masterplan, Iron Maiden, Blind Guardian, Rage, Judas Priests Painkiller Album and Dios Holy Diver all the time. 3. At the same time I also discovered Punk and Hardcore including metallic sounding stuff like Beat the Bastards by Exploited and that ultimately lead to me discovering Grindcore with Napalm Death and The Berzerker becoming some of my favorites. 4. The few girls in our little scene in Boarding School were into different stuff with Operatic Metal and Rock like Within Temptation, Nightwish and Evanescene becoming something I consumed almost daily. Another honourable mention was a dude that showed me Gorgoroth, Darkthrone and Immortal around the same time. It just took several more years for me to fully appreciate that sound.

[@HarambeKojima]

For me, my brother introduced me to Metallica - Load and Mudvayne - L.D 50. Never looked back.

[@richgerow3472]

Seeing as how my two favorite genres of metal these days are thrash metal and death metal, I'm still in awe that Linkin Park was the gateway for me. Definitely wouldn't have thought that Hybrid Theory and Meteora would one day lead to Slayer and Cannibal Corpse.

[@dalendahl5160]

A Day to Remember for me. I remember listening to You Had Me At Hello and thinking…I should check these guys out a little more. Then starting the album with Heartless and wondering what I got myself into 😂

[@arkangelarkangel5348]

omg

[@anovak0726]

My dad introduced me to iron maiden as a kid which I fell in love with, but I also began to take in the bands out there when I was a kid like linkin park, evanescence, drowning pool, and that furthered my love even more!

[@oyeearvin2236]

14 years old ..first time when I listened to sic by slipknot. It blew mine mind away. So heavy

[@drewskiee9254]

I got into metal fully from Slipknot and SOAD but my first taste of metal was Cthulu Dawn by Cradle of Filth. Ten year old me went nuts.

[@sammylane21]

I started my love of Metal in the deep end of the pool with one of the G.O.A.T. in METALLICA. ONE was my introduction into metal. I was then hooked on them in the 6th grade. Everytime I listen to Fuel I remember my days head swooshing on my 6th grade bus rides to school and home. My Uncle got me into METALLICA. RIP Uncle H. Miss ya!

[@chilly6470]

As a 7 year old in the 80's, my gateway band was actually Bon Jovi.🤣🤣 From there, Iron Maiden, Guns n' Roses, Metallica, RATM, TOOL, System and Slipknot to name a few.

[@ShotByHale]

i grew up listening to a lot of different genres but my dad got me into metallica, judas priest, and SOAD. but my mom got me into linkin park and and motley crue. eventually i stumbled upon BMTH’s Sempiternal and it spiraled from there

[@Automotive_Intervention]

Grew up on my dads taste, Black Sabbath, pantera, sepultura, Alice n chains. My dad took my brother and I to see SOAD and that to this day is the band that my brother my dad and I will always see together. And now as I grew older got into the 200s metal core. I’m heavy into Spite, the ghost inside, after the burial now. Get chills just thinking of all these bands. Metal is apart of my soul I feel. 🤘🏻

[@NJtriple7]

Linkin Park and Breaking Benjamin were my gateway to “heavy” music. As I Lay Dying was my intro to metalcore and it was just a roller coaster since then.

[@zaneschmidt5544]

Architects, haven't been listening to heavy music for long but FTTWTE was the first record i gave a try and i loved it

[@alexscheuerman8899]

Slipknot was mine. Eventually Cradle of Filth showed me black metal.

[@alecoram7874]

I was into rock like acdc, floyd, and zeppelin growing up, but soad was definitely my first exposure to metal that got me hooked.

[@Smoke.stardust]

Soad is a poser band

[@alecoram7874]

@@Smoke.stardust hahaha nice joke

[@MrCornWolf]

From my parents Ratt and ozzy got lots of play and I liked it (still do) but I think the bands that really kicked open the door for me were NIN and Marilyn Manson. Hearing Sweet Dreams and March of the Pigs was life changing for my pre teen brain.

[@Smoke.stardust]

Ratt Is for queers

[@lesterama6110]

Garza saying that his introduction is Got the Life using a "chamber music" t shirt is me in my teens. Love him

[@ianmcpeck424]

Soundgarden got me into the heavier side of rock. As far as metal bands go, Black Sabbath, Chevelle, Pantera, and Godsmack. Now I cover almost all the sub-genres, but the one I always fall back on is prog/tech death. Rivers of Nihil, Archspire, Opeth, Gojira, etc.

[@Smoke.stardust]

Prog/tech is for posers

[@mrvonel3016]

@@Smoke.stardust and what is tech death for rEaL mEtAlHeAdS, may I inquire?

[@dxm028]

I think the band and specifically the song that turned me into a metalhead was Disturbed, Down With the Sickness. I basically listened to what my older sister did, and I remember her playing it in the car and I loved it

[@chuckles_rockz5637]

It’s hard for me to narrow down which was the specific band that got me into metal. The timeline of it gets blurry for me but I known that it was one of the following five bands: Disturbed, A7X, Metallica, Manowar, or Sabaton. I can think of one or two songs from each band specifically. A7X: Hail to the King or Shepherd of Fire Manowar: Warriors of the World or Die With Honour Metallica: Whiskey in the Jar or Enter Sandman Disturbed: Indestructible Sabaton: To Hell and Back Also, AC/DC being one of Airbourne’s gateway bands is one of the most predictable things I have ever encountered.

[@ImBarryScottCSS]

So I'm a similar age to a lot of people in these comments, and yeah Bizkit, Linkin Park, SoaD, Metallica, Korn, they were all big when I was coming in to music properly. Buuuut. The band that really got me interested in heavy music was Maiden, particularly exploring their back catalogue and working my way back from the reunion era to their earlier work. I learnt so much about metal from Maiden that's stayed with me to this day.

[@Jimmy07413]

Started with the 70s rock bands my parents listened to...then I heard spit it out by slipknot....then it went from there! 🤘

[@tbfünke]

My dad had Boston self-titled in his truck's CD changer at all times, then later on I found Linkin Park's Meteora lying around. Thanks dad

[@WarriorEsoteric]

Korn, brother brought home a dubbed cassette tape with 4 songs from korn’s debut album , I was 13, 1996, changed my life as far as music goes

[@izzafiramdhani4486]

My metal gateway band was Avenged Sevenfold. In 2016, I played their mv because it always showed up in my youtube recommendation and enjoyed it so much. Then i played guitar flash and discovered many metal genres and started to liked it. Until now i can enjoy deathcore and some brutal death metal. I can't believe i become a metalhead lol and i'm happy about it because back in the day i used to listened pop genre and laugh to metal music like what the hell they even saying is just inaudible.

[@jcrtv83]

My gateway metal band would be KoRn and that was 23 years ago when I was 16 during the NU Metal era. My mind was blown when I first saw them on my classmate’s vhs tape of Woodstock 99.

[@lphantasmo967]

White Zombie - Feed the Gods is what started it for me. It opened the door to Carpathian Forest, Arch Enemy, Kataklysm, Kreator, Opeth, Behemoth, Amon Amarth, Napalm Death, ya name it

[@kingmarx810]

Gateway hard rock band I liked was Poison. Yep, Poison. Then that got me into Metallica Master of Puppets and I was just floored. I remember listening to that album thinking I'm going to hell. I had a conservative mom. If this was the music of hell, well alrighty then. But, now I know that was bs. But life long metalhead. 🤘

[@XxTheGoOfYxX]

Korn's Issues album and Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory was that for me

[@sourgummyworms45]

I would have to say it was 3 bands that got me into the metal scene. Black Veil Brides, Escape the Fate & Falling in Reverse. I was in high school, at a friend's house hanging out and he was playing a lot of stuff in the background but what stuck out was BVB ETF & FIR! 🤘

[@twiztid133]

Can’t believe Tetrarch didn’t mention Slipknot since their music is quiet similar and one of the guys have a Slipknot shirt on.

[@yousefbhacker8160]

System of a Down for me too, more so than Metallica in the early days. Later on for extreme metal is was Trivium and TBDM.

[@Smoke.stardust]

Soad is a queers band

[@River_Medd]

I remember I used to be a huge Christian and I was terrified of metal for the longest time but then my sister forced me to listen to black veil brides while we were in the car and I was scared shitless at first but then I just started thinking "wait, this is actually kinda cool." The lyrics were so uplifting that I realized I had nothing to worry about. Now I'm a huge deathcore and metalcore fan😂

[@Smoke.stardust]

Oh God, a fuckin Christian. Stay out of metal and follow your God blindly

[@Brian-kl1gf]

Hello from New England...First metal album I bought at 14 was Viovod's second album and a month later got Testament's practice what you preach..not sure when those were actually released but I got them when I was 14 yrs old..Great vid.. Peace ✌️

[@vishalnagaraj5343]

I'm 19. I had learnt the opening riff of Dance of Death by Maiden, but never heard the song lol First heavy track I heard was Papa Roach Last Resort at 13 years old, I had to learn the riff on acoustic guitar. Then my friend showed me Fade to Black by Metallica, and now I like extreme metal Oddly enough, I only delved deep into the Maiden discog last year

[@pr1m0n]

I remember when me and my sister used to listen to non-metal music and our big brother told us ”one day, you will learn what real music is”. Unfortunate, Im the only one of us who converted to a metalhead through Sabaton and Volbeat. Thanks to my brother

[@atlys258]

The first modern heavy song I ever remember hearing/seeing was the musice video for Slipknot's "Wait and Bleed" on a public access music channel called _The Box_ back in the late 90's, but it wasn't until 4th grade in '99-'00 that really started listening to my own music when a family friend introduced me to my gateway Linkin Park with "Papercut", it was heavy and felt powerful but had melody that I could sing to as a 9-10yr old, and what completely hooked me was the last minute of the song with that electronic counter melody and the bass. Still among my all-time favorite moments/sections of a song.