Of course this will not be a definitive guide or anything like it --- I don't have the next two years to work on that! --- but to give those of you who are less familiar with the genre a basic grounding in the more important aspects of Metal, here is an alphabeticised guide. As with the album reviews, Wiki links are provided if you want to look up further. So then, let's start, oh, I don't know, at the beginning?
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AC/DC: Australian metal band famous for such as albums as "Back in black", "Highway to Hell" and "For those about to rock, we salute you".
AC/DC - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ACCEPT: One of the most important of the German Thrash/Speed Metal bands of the eighties.
Accept (band) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ACE OF SPADES: Iconic track by British metal band Motorhead, title track of the album.
Ace of Spades (song) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AEROSMITH: Possibly more Hard Rock than Heavy Metal --- what's the difference between the two? Ask Unknown Soldier! --- Aerosmith still deserve a place here due to their huge influence on the genre with such hits as "Dude (Looks like a lady)", "Love in an elevator", "Livin' on the edge" and for mixing rap with metal with style when they teamed up with RunDMC for "Walk this way".
Aerosmith - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AIR GUITAR: A form of celebration/dancing in Heavy Metal, whereby fans mimick the solos of their heroes by pretending they have a guitar in their own hands. This is achieved with a varied range of success, but is so popular that an Air Guitar Championships exists. I kid you not! See also Headbanging.
Air guitar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ANNIHILATOR: Another Canadian Thrash Metal band, very influential on the genre.
Annihilator (band) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ANTHRAX: New York thrash metal band, one of the "Big Four", with Metallica, Slayer and Megadeth.
Anthrax (band) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ANVIL: Canadian metal band who are acknowledged as having been a big influence on the abovementioned Big Four, as well as others.
Anvil (band) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AXXIS: German power metal band.
Axxis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
That's all I can think of off the top of my head. Feel free to advise me of ones you think should be added as this ABC proceeds.