Thought I'd see if there are any metalheads lurking around here. As you might see from my long-standing avatar, Iron Maiden hold a special place in my life. I'm especially fond of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and likeminded bands like Motorhead, Saxon, Judas Priest (now, sadly, retiring), Angel Witch, Diamond Head and Holocaust, and also the early German power metal bands like Helloween, Running Wild, Stormwitch and Heavy Load. Other than Maiden, my fav band is probably Manowar, regardless of their cheese, and I'm fond to a lot of the newer European Death Metal and Power Metal scene, even it's gotten a bit bloated in the last five years or so.

Sadly, North America has few offerings for real heavy metal fans; stuff like Deftones, Tool and System of a Down are okay, I guess, but it's pretty sad that the best of the continent like Iced Earth, Dream Theatre, Manowar and 3 Inches of Blood are pretty much still pseudo-underground, despite in most cases being decades established. To the Europeans on this board, let's just say I envy you.

Any likeminded fellows around here?