Stratovarius Alternatives

[grim2006]

Please forgive me if this is already on the forums or if this subject is not allowed on the forums.

I love Stratovarius. Apart from 4000 Rainy Nights, I love to listen to whatever Startomusic you can throw at me and I will hopefully own all their albums by the end of the year (5 down already).

But, as everybody should know, nobody likes just 1 artist. Stratovarius is great to listen to, but if 90% of my playlists keep being Stratovarius music, I'll eventually get bored of it (the songs, not the band), just like all music.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend some new band(s) for me?

Does anyone listen to Sonata Arctica? I just started to listening to them and was shocked at how similar the song "8th Commandment" was to some of Stratovarius' music. I can't place my finger on the song or album, but I know it's familiar. I was also shocked to find out that they played support gigs for Stratovarius.

I listen to Metallica, Rammstein, Kittie, System of a Down and Stratovarius and I plan to look further into Manowar, Sonata Arctica and Nightwish. Anyone out there with a similar taste who wants to recommend a band?

[MaFiaBoY]

I don't know any band that has te same feeling as Stratovarius (please don't tell me Sonata Arctica has :/). But in Power Metal you can try Angra who has really nice songs too or late Helloween (their earlier stuff is more Heavy Metal). As a huge prog fan, I'd also recommend you to give a try to Dream Theater or Symphony X.

[Xephonium]

Hey, I know what you mean, I got bored of Stratovarius after a while too, I explored all through metal, I got into Children Of Bodom, Emperor, then I went after Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Sonata Arctica. Dio is a pretty good band, same with Helloween, however, I returned back to Strat after re-discovering all the Tolkki era

[Twilight Legionnaire]

You sound like a fairly new metal brother (how cheesy am I, eh? ), correct me if I'm wrong.

All the bands Mafiaboy and Xephonium recomended are worth listening to, although I have my doubts that you'll enjoy Dream Theater or SymphonyX the first times you listen to them

Helloween, I prefer their earlier stuff, Walls of Jericho and the Keepers (I and II).

Sonata Arctica, they've definitely got their own style, and that's praisable, but they're not really MY style But they're good.

Iron Maiden have nothing whatsoever in common with Stratovarius, but if you don't like Iron Maiden..

Dio is a must-listen-to. Other stuff I'd also recommend is...

Blind Guardian - To me, the best speed metal band ever, although their last two albums are a more epic metal, although still with the same level of heaviness. They're all very skillful players, and the vocals are IMO one of the best.

Adagio - Neo-classical, progressive metal. This band is not very well known, but it definitely kicks ass.

Edguy - One of the best power metal bands out there, they're pretty good.

Manticora - Also a power metal band, although in a different style.

Kamelot - American school of power metal, they're the best in their field.

Rage - Also power metal. Excellent musicians, all of them.

If you're into more finnish bands, then I'd recommend Twilightning. Their first album was mixed by TT, if I'm not mistaken.

[MaFiaBoY]

Why couldn't he enjoy DT or SX the first time ? Both of them blew my mind te first time (i.e. the killer riff in Of Sins And Shadows and the insane dumming of 6:00). About Helloween, I also prefer their earlier stuff but there are great things on late albums too (Revelation on Better Than Raw-album is perhaps my all-times Helloween favourite). BG I agree too, though I only have two albums of them (Imaginations and Nightfall), both are great, and it has one of the best drummers in metal.

Another thng I could recommend is older rock, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rush... You could give a try to the Long Live Rock 'n Roll album by Rainbow, a true masterpiece.

[CottonCandy]

Andrew Bordoni

http://www.andrewbordoni.com

Dream Theatre meets Nightwish!

The first album "Earthcubed" is great!
They have gotten more progressive over the past couple years, though.
I like them very much, but I have to say I think he must've gotten some of his ideas from Stratovarius.
He admits he likes SymphonyX&Savatage, too.

[Twilight Legionnaire]

Why couldn't he enjoy DT or SX the first time

I speak for myself only I know I didn't enjoy them much the first times I listened to them. I only insisted because I kept being told to. And it was totally worth it.

[Xephonium]

One thing too I wanna mention about Maiden is....

If your going to listen to them, PLEASE dont go straight for Number Of The Beast and listen to that only. Maiden DO have other good Cds....Killers...No Prayer For The Dying, Somewhere In Time, Powerslave, etc.

Dont just go for the hits, I hate that.

Also....a couple of other bands I know of NU.CLEAR.DAWN, a pretty good Strato-ish band.

Kotipelto, Cant go wrong with Koti's solos.

Manowar is an excellent choice, their latest album Warriors Of The World is sweet, make sure you check out Louder Then Hell also.

Hammerfalls also another good band, I think Jens' brother plays Drums for them now....Im not sure

DragonForce

Another Maiden thing, check out the singers Solo collection, Its Also good

Thats all I can think of

[MaFiaBoY]

Why couldn't he enjoy DT or SX the first time

I speak for myself only I know I didn't enjoy them much the first times I listened to them. I only insisted because I kept being told to. And it was totally worth it.

I think I began with the right album TDWoT is a masterpiece from the killer opening riff of Of Sins & Shadows to the end acoustic guitar line of Candlelight Fantasia, I think it would have been differen if I had began with Twilight In Olympus .

@grim2006 : If you wan to get into SX, I highly recommend to buy this one, still their best album by far imo.

[Elazul]

Ok I list "some" good (Melodic) Power Metal Bands
Here we go:

Adagio (Symphonic Power Metal)
Angra (Power Metal with Brazilian Influences)
Avantasia (It´s a must have. One of the biggest Metal Operas. With many Guest-Musicians. Timo Tolkki included)
Blind Guardian (Great and very succesful Power Metal Band from Germany)

Dream Theater \
(Two of the greatest Progressive Metal Bands worldwide)
Symphony X /

Edguy (Great Metal Band. The Singer is the creator of the Avantasia-Projekt)
Gamma Ray (Very Heavy old school Power Metal)
Helloween (only Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part 1 & 2)
Iced Earth ("more aggressive" Power Metal from the USA)
Kamelot (Such a great Progressive Melodic Power Metal Band from the USA)
Rhapsody ("Film Score Metal" or lets say Symphonic Power Metal about Dragons and other creatures )

Ok these are a few bands to get into Power Metal

[grim2006]

You sound like a fairly new metal brother (how cheesy am I, eh? ), correct me if I'm wrong.

Nah, I'm not "new". I've been listening to Rammstein and Metallica since 2000. I just like a wide variety of artists across most common genres and so, although I place Metal as my favourite genre, I haven't really been expanding my Metal band knowledge as much as I should have been. Metallica, Rammstein and System of a Down have kept my attention for the past few years (where Metal is concerned, anyway), with my uptake of Stratovarius this year as amazingly quick (by my standards).

I use the P2P networks to find new music to buy (although, I found Nighwish and Sonata Arctica in "Related Searches" at Amazon.com), as most of my friends are not extremely into music and Metal knowledge amongst them is limited.

Another thng I could recommend is older rock, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rush...

I listen to the old stuff, too, like Black Sabbath, although I should listen to Led Zepplin and Pink Floyd more. Not all of that is my taste, but some of it I enjoy a lot.

Hey, I know what you mean, I got bored of Stratovarius after a while too

I'm not bored with Stratovarius. Everytime I learn the name of a new song I like, another song pops up that I love. I'm far from getting bored, but 90% of what I listen to is Stratovarius and I just want to broaden my horizons before I get bored and am left with nothing.

Thanks to everyone for your opinions. I shall check all those bands out, hopefully.

Hehe judging by Maniac Dance, seems like Stratovarius' new album may give me more music, which differs from normal Stratovarius, without me having to find a new band to listen to.

[Twilight Legionnaire]

Curiously, I was also a hardcore Metallica fan.. until I bought Visions of Europe.

[MaFiaBoY]

Another thng I could recommend is older rock, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rush...

I listen to the old stuff, too, like Black Sabbath, although I should listen to Led Zepplin and Pink Floyd more. Not all of that is my taste, but some of it I enjoy a lot.

Then I would highly recommend getting Relics, it's a kind of 1967-1971 Pink Floyd best-of, really great stuff (if you like early Floyd, that is lol).

[tony rage]

Ok, here are my other options!

Angra, Heavenly, DRAGONFORCE, Shaman (ex- members of Angra), Yngwie malmsteen, Children of Bodom, Sonata arctica, Skyfire, Blind Guardian (just recently bought the live DVD- me likes!-), Rhapsody, Rata Blanca!...
If you like american metal... id say some Lamb of god, God forbid, shadows fall... and you can never go wrong with some good ole PANTERA.

cheers!
Tony R.

[MaFiaBoY]

DRAGONFORCE

Whatever you do, STAY THE HELL AWAY of this crap !

[Twilight Legionnaire]

DRAGONFORCE

Whatever you do, STAY THE HELL AWAY of this crap !

I second that. :puke:

[CottonCandy]

DRAGONFORCE

Whatever you do, STAY THE HELL AWAY of this crap !

I don't know about the music, but DRAGONFORCE Forum sucks. It used to be almost totally Anti-Strato&they had the hatefullest Female Mod EVER!
I don't know how it is these days--surely the band did not approve.

[brought2ubyletterC]

The words "Stratovarius" and "alternative" should never be used in the same sentence together.

There is no alternative to Strato.

And you can read that any way you want.

Um, back to topic...a band you might enjoy is Queensryche. When I first heard Strato I was reminded of them, you may like them also. They are not as "power metal" as Strato, they are more progressive rock with touches of goth here and there (a lot of people would argue this with me, but I challenge any of them to listen to their Rage for Order album and deny any gothic-influenced sounds there), and for the most part very straight-forward rock. Their concept album Operation: Mindcrime is considered by many metalheads to be a staple in their collection.

[MaFiaBoY]

Um, back to topic...a band you might enjoy is Queensryche. When I first heard Strato I was reminded of them, you may like them also. They are not as "power metal" as Strato, they are more progressive rock with touches of goth here and there (a lot of people would argue this with me, but I challenge any of them to listen to their Rage for Order album and deny any gothic-influenced sounds there), and for the most part very straight-forward rock. Their concept album Operation: Mindcrime is considered by many metalheads to be a staple in their collection.

Opeartion : Mindcrime is indeed one of the greatsest albums ever. The Operation : Livecrime DVD kicks ass too.

[shadowedaethyr]

I was a fan of Stratovarius before Sonata Arctica, and when I first got "Ecliptica", I thought they were remarkably similar bands. Luckily, Sonata is working itheir way out of the impressive shadow of Stratovarius. Both spectacular bands, in my opinion!

And I know exactly the connection you're talking about. If you listen to "8th Commandment" and "Rebel", the way Tony and Kotipelto both bend the word "reality" at the end of the phrases is very much alike. I've finally found which song (months later)!

A lot of people here have given great examples of bands. Too bad I have nothing else to add!

- M

[Equinox]

U should listen to Rhapsody, their music is just...awesome.
Can't assure the same thing about the lyrics.
Freedom Call is allright.
Angra is great!
U should check Royal Hunt too.

[fifthtea_sausage]

1. Dream Theater
2. Symphony X
3. SONATA ARCTICA
4. DragonForce (Valley of the Damned album only)
5. Helloween
6. Elvenking?

[En extremt tråkig pe]

Helloweens Keeper of the Seven Keys I & II are two of the best albums ever made. They're still brilliant today, they don't sound dated one bit (which can NOT be said for most of that 80's stuff *cough*Dio*cough*). Shame what happened after those and that they couldn't keep that lineup together. Would Stratovarious sound like they do if those albums hadn't been made? Who knows?! I guess TimoTolkki does.

Other than Helloween, when I listen to heavier stuff now it's mostly stuff like Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, Opeth, Dark Tranquillity, Children of Bodom. Fantastic stuff if you can deal with the 'slightly unorthodox' vocal style(s).

[Stealth]

Mmmm, no one mentions a band that, in my opinion, is one of the best. This band is Labÿrinth; it is very underrated. "Return to Heaven Denied" is an amazing album, and their last two albums are also spectacular ("Labÿrinth" and "Freeman").

For those who love keyboards and symphonic bands, Fairyland is a great band. They only have one album so far, called "Of Wars in Osyhria". The only thing I really hate about it is the Rhapsody-style lyrics about dragons and mighty battles, however, if you are able to put up with that, the music is beautiful.

Another great album is Vision Divine's "Stream of Consciousness". The new singer fits the band perfectly.

[MaFiaBoY]

Mmmm, no one mentions a band that, in my opinion, is one of the best. This band is Labÿrinth; it is very underrated. "Return to Heaven Denied" is an amazing album, and their last two albums are also spectacular ("Labÿrinth" and "Freeman").

Isn't that the former band of the Rhapsody singer ?

[Stealth]

Isn't that the former band of the Rhapsody singer ?

Well yes, but Labÿrinth has five albums, and Fabio Lione only sang on the first one ("No Limits"), which is the worst album along with "Sons of Thunder". And Lione was never the leader. The leader at that time was Olaf Thorsen. Also, Lione sang in Vision Divine, which was Thorsen's other band, but now Thorsen left Labÿrinth and only plays in Vision Divine, while Lione left Vision Divine to focus on Rhapsody... Confusing? The guys moved around a lot!

[k-a-]

Easily the alts would be...
Edguy (Tolkki worked with Tobias Sammet on his Avantasia project, Part II).
Angra (Strato toured with the elder Angra, but I find the new stuff, especially Temple of Shadows is just downright amazing)
Kamelot (I cannot get enough of Roy Khan's voice).
And, Dragonforce, love em or hate em, they are an incredible bunch of musicians who lyrically sound alot like Stratovarius, however, they are extreme power metal. And yes, Herman Li is the best thrasher of the year, because Zakk Wyldee gave him the award!

Check out Viision Divine as well, incredible stuff.

[grim2006]

And I know exactly the connection you're talking about. If you listen to "8th Commandment" and "Rebel", the way Tony and Kotipelto both bend the word "reality" at the end of the phrases is very much alike. I've finally found which song (months later)!

Yea, I knew the word "reality" was almost exactly the same so I searched a lyrics site for a/the Stratovarius song with "reality" in its lyrics. I listened to them both, but I didn't really think they matched, but they probably do.

[Twilight Legionnaire]

Isn't that the former band of the Rhapsody singer ?

Well yes, but Labÿrinth has five albums, and Fabio Lione only sang on the first one ("No Limits"), which is the worst album along with "Sons of Thunder". And Lione was never the leader. The leader at that time was Olaf Thorsen. Also, Lione sang in Vision Divine, which was Thorsen's other band, but now Thorsen left Labÿrinth and only plays in Vision Divine, while Lione left Vision Divine to focus on Rhapsody... Confusing? The guys moved around a lot!

Yeah, I have Return to Heaven Denied, and it's actually pretty good.

[NeonVomit]

BLIND GUARDIAN if you like strato, you will LOVE BG.
Angra are also amazing.

Im not a huge powermetal fan, but those 2 bands i love, along with Strato of course heh.