First American metal band???

Back story: While listening to metal bands, my wife will ask "who is this"? I say the band name and, I guess, a 'geographical descriptor' like "german power metal" or "Bay Area thrash" or "Florida Death Metal" or "LA 80's metal", etc etc. She asked "who was the first american heavy metal band"? I thought "I'm not really sure" as I have never remember any one band being credited with that "title". I remember bands like Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Alice Cooper, even Van Halen being called heavy metal in the 70's (as well as Queen, etc) but I do not consider any of them "heavy metal".

What are your thoughts regarding who would be the first american heavy metal band?
Just wondering.

Maybe Riot?

Okay, that's just my opinion and the term didn't exist at the time, but is this really a million miles from early Sabbath.

Way, way heavier than KISS, Aerosmith and the 70s hard rock crew.

I agree, Blue Cheer

I also think it's Blue Cheer.

Yes, Blue Cheer was definitely the heaviest band from the US at the time. They actually have more in common musically with the British groups than the sound of the US bands.

Technically I wouldn't call them "metal", but they were definitely influential.

MC5 was another psychedelic group that should be mentioned as well.

Yeah...I forget Blue Cheer was american. Always grouped them in my mind with british groups at that time.

Kramer, Wayne....

Heavy Metal is more than a "sound". I had this whole rant lined up, then lost it when a chicky phoned me. But, I think my main idea was, Metal is music + appearance + culture + and most importantly, attitude. So, with that sideways opinion stated, I would say this:

But, the first thought that came into my head was Armored Saint. so, Recognize the Saint! I'm out...

I would say Blue Cheer.

There will definitely be many opinions on what is "heavy metal". Motley Crue and Metallica and Black n Blue all recorded before Armored Saint. But, the sub-genres were already occurring by then. I really do not consider anything recorded before 1982 "US Metal", which is the topic of discussion. Blue Cheer were a stepping stone, and a damn good one. I just do not think they are in the spirit of the original question.

UNCLE SAXON'S KICKASS CDS wrote:

Blue Cheer were a stepping stone, and a damn good one. I just do not think they are in the spirit of the original question.

That was my concern before I posted it. If you were to ask Blue Cheer if they were Heavy Metal, they would most likely say no, there again Black Sabbath, Motorhead and Deep Purple would give you the same answer. The pioneers of any genre are always the template for what's to come. The first band that really took on the title of Heavy Metal was Judas Priest so really only bands that came after them can really be considered 'Metal'. So with that in mind, maybe Riot, but they weren't exactly heavy!

I'm starting to think that you may be right about cirith ungol!!!!

But as I'm much more of a fan of heavy music that the full on metal culture, I'm sticking with Blue Cheer (and Hendrix) as they influenced the kind of Metal I like.

Eyesore wrote:

Never heard these before, plan to hear a lot more.

Me likey! Me likey a lot!

Still Ken - SLB is not in the spirit of the original question. AllThings is undoubtably not looking for a history or lineage or "family tree" to developing
US Metal. Maybe I am making too much of it. But Kiss, Alice Cooper, and the rest were all Stepping Stones to US Metal. I really do not know how else to approach it.

Richie Ranno embodied "Metal", but not in some proggy way. So, do we say that just the classically trained musicians are US Metal? Or were does bubblegum come into it? Was all the American "Rush clones" the beginnings of US Metal?

This is dumb. Just, in my minds eye, US Metal is heavy riffs, pissed-off attitude, leather, and anti-social lyrics. Cirith Ungol, TKO, Crow, etc. THAT is where real American metal started.

If we're talking strictly "metal" (music+look+attitude) then whatever US band you choose would have to be "post-Judas Priest". Judas Priest was the first band I can think of that was only metal, they can not be confused for any other genre. They took the influences that came before them (Sabbath, Purple, etc) and used that as a building block to create the entire package we base traditional heavy metal around, both the sound and the fashion.

And I don't care what Hit Parader said in 1975...Aerosmith, Kiss, Ted Nugent & Alice Cooper were all heavy rock bands. They were all influential on the later 80s US metal scene, but they weren't strictly "metal".

Blue Oyster Cult came close, they had the whole dark artwork+leather look...but musically they were all over the map, they never had one signature sound, it kept evolving throughout their career.

So I don't really have an "answer" for first US metal band that meet all the criteria Sax mentioned, but I would think someone would fit that criteria pre-1982. Ciruth Ungol, The Rods?

UNCLE SAXON'S KICKASS CDS wrote:

Still Ken - SLB is not in the spirit of the original question. AllThings is undoubtably not looking for a history or lineage or "family tree" to developing
US Metal. Maybe I am making too much of it. But Kiss, Alice Cooper, and the rest were all Stepping Stones to US Metal. I really do not know how else to approach it.

No?

Allthingsmetal said, "I have never remember any one band being credited with that 'title.'"

Sir Lord Baltimore "are notable for the fact that a 1971 review of their debut record, Kingdom Come, contained the first documented use of the term "heavy metal" to refer to a style of music."

Sorry if somebody already said, but how bout Bang? They were Sabbath influenced, and I think from Texas, around 1971. Kinda sounded like the parents of Witchfinder General to me.

I like all the iput b/c these were the converations/debates I had in mind after my wife asked me that question. I get always stuck at the point where there was so much hard rock/heavy rock in the US, and then, it seems, all of sudden there were all these US metal bands---in various genres.

Just an interesting topic to me as I was around when all this came about, etc and don't remember any specific US band being "before" the others. They seem to have come about simultaneously.

It was not just Hit Parader and Circus that dubbed Alice Cooper, Aerosmith and Ted Nugent as heavy metal but most critics dubbed them as such ( mostly to trash them in ther press) granted the genre moved, morphed beyond their sound, but they are certainly the roots of American metal.

I agree that those mentioned bands were the 'roots' of american heavy metal. I guess it was so spontaneous that bands took the influence of, say Aerosmith and Alice Cooper, ( as well as the Scorpions and AC/DC, etc) combined it wth Van Halen and a dash or two of the NWOBHM 'sound" and then BAM! there were multiple US metal bands in various genres--seemingly overnight. I guess it is hard to think of a band that came before all the others.

Other important American bands/artist that may not have been metal, but certainly helped shape the genre were MC5, The Stooges and of course Jimi Hendrix.

tr00 arkayne Billy Joel steele ATTILA attacks from 1970! Ehehehehehehe