Power metal

Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens, born as Timothy S. Owens on September 13, 1967 in Akron, Ohio. The young Ohio salesman and tribute band frontman made headlines in 1996 when from a fan he became the frontman for the British metal act Judas Priest, filling the shoes of Rob Halford (and, by doing so, inspired the movie Rock Star, which was later discredited by the band). Despite numerous rumours that Rob Halford would reunite with Judas Priest, Owens recorded two studio albums with his childhood heroes, as well as two live albums and a 2002 DVD release.

Custard were a masterful band of pop craftsmen with an uncanny grasp of the two-minute-something single who seemed to have equal amounts of Devo, Pavement and, oddly, disco in their genetic makeup. They were also blessed with singer Dave McCormack, whose voice was innocent and boyish-sounding enough to get away with things that might ordinarily cause a fuss – from songs about speed labs to geeky dedications to Jim Henson and an infamous declaration that “music is crap”.

Originally formed in Adelaide South Australia in mid 1998, Skintilla create their own style of power and THRASH metal, that blends dual attacking guitars, a pounding rhythm section with ground shaking power vocals, all coming together to make their live performances both entertaining and unforgettable. Inspired By Dio, Judas Priest, Pantera, Iron Maiden

Sabaton was formed back in 1999 in Falun, Sweden and worked hard with demos and small club shows just like any other band. An album was recorded in 2002 bearing the name of Fist for Fight on an independent label in Italy, but was never released. By 2004, the band was becoming increasingly frustrated with the lack of marketing opportunities available for their album, so eventually they decided that their best strategy would be start over with new material .