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"Hell Awaits" is the track on the second studio album (Hell Awaits) by the American thrash metal band Slayer, released through Metal Blade Records in 1985. The band's previous release, Show No Mercy, became Metal Blade Records highest selling release, which led producer Brian Slagel wish to release another album. Slagel financed a recording budget (Show No Mercy was self-financed by band members) and recruited several experienced producers to help in the studio. Hell Awaits featured the band's most progressive and diverse work compared to their previous releases, having faster, thrash orientated songs, and is cited as an influence by many extreme metal bands. The album had several re-issues, including bonus tracks taken from the EP Haunting the Chapel. Although it did not enter any charts, Hell Awaits was noted for being Slayer's most progressive recording, featuring much darker thrash orientated style, adding unusual arrangements such as varying tempos, and dissonant nuances that "Paved the way to a wholly distinctive sound all their own," according to All Music Guide reviewer Eduardo Rivadavia. Rivadavia awarded the album four out of five stars, calling it an "irresistible force, but one could still make a confident point that Hell Awaits uniquely daunting compositions arguably proved just as influential to future extreme metal acts." E.N.Death of the blackened death metal band The Deviant from Norway says the song "Hell Awaits" and Slayer's music in general has influenced him as a musician, ranking the album in his top five. Lenzig Leal of the doom metal band Cephalic Carnage also ranked the album in his top five. The band Cradle of Filth covered "Hell Awaits" and released it on the Japanese release of their album Dusk and Her Embrace, which featured three bonus covers, "Hell Awaits" being one of them.

Heaven and Hell is an album by Black Sabbath, released in May 1980. This was the first album after the removal of singer Ozzy Osbourne from the band and was the first album featuring Ronnie James Dio , formerly of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow , who brought his own unique style of song writing and vocalisation to the band. With the changing of singers, a change in songwriting approaches, and the sound crafting skills of famous heavy metal producer Martin Birch, the band altered their trademark drudge rock to a faster, slicker and more melodic sound. Other notable tracks are "Neon Knights", "Children of the Sea" and "Die Young". Heaven and Hell remains one of Black Sabbath's best-selling albums, and was their highest charting album (#9 UK, #28 USA) since 1975's Sabotage. The album revitalised Sabbath's fortunes after what many saw as the death of the group following Ozzy's departure.

"High Voltage" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the eighth track of their Australian album T.N.T, released in December 1975 (see 1975 in music), and was written by Angus Young, Malcolm Young, and Bon Scott. "High Voltage" shares a name with the band's first Australian and international albums, and is also the ninth and final track on the international version, released in May 1976 (see 1976 in music). A little known fact about this song is that the chorus uses the chords A, C, D, and C in progression, after a suggestion from Angus and Malcolm Young's brother, George Young, who also produced the High Voltage album. In the song's lyrics, the singer answers questions from an unnamed second party, pertaining to the singer's physical appearance, interests, activities, and general existence. The singer's answer to every question is "high voltage rock 'n' roll." "High Voltage" is one of AC/DC's most popular songs, and has been included on four of the band's five official live albums: If You Want Blood You've Got It (sung by Bon Scott, 1978), Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition (sung by Scott's replacement Brian Johnson, 1992), Live from the Atlantic Studios (Scott, 1977), and Let There Be Rock: The Movie (Scott, 1979), with the last two being released in 1997 as part of the Bonfire box set.

"Iron Fist" is a song by the heavy metal band Motörhead. It was released as a single in 1982, in 7" pressings in blue, black and translucent red vinyls. The title track on the single is covered with (B-side's) "Remember Me, I'm Gone", which appears on CD re-issues of the Iron Fist album. In Spain the title track was put on the B-side of "Go To Hell" and was issued with a picture sleeve of the band dressed as warriors in skull masks.[1] This is the last single featuring the classic Motörhead line-up of Lemmy, "Fast" Eddie Clarke and "Philthy Animal" Taylor, as Clarke left following the recording of the Stand By Your Man EP. On March 27, 1982, Lemmy, Eddie and Philthy were interviewed by Tommy Vance on BBC Radio 1's 'Rock On Saturday' show, "Iron Fist", "Loser", and "Speed Freak" were played.[2] The song was covered by the German thrash metal band Sodom on their 1987 album Persecution Mania. Since 2004, the symphonic metal band Therion covered "Iron Fist" song on several live shows. One of the version is released on Celebrators of Becoming box-set.

"Testify" is a single by rap/rock band Rage Against the Machine off their third studio album The Battle of Los Angeles. The cover of the singles was taken from the 1968 Olympics Black Power Salute and the songs lyrics notably make reference to George Orwell's novel 1984. The Battle of Los Angeles is the third studio album by Rage Against the Machine. It was released on November 2, 1999, one day short of the seven-year anniversary of the release of their first album, and over three years after their second studio album, Evil Empire. Between Evil Empire and Los Angeles, the band released a live album, titled Live & Rare. The song "Calm Like a Bomb" is featured in the credits of The Matrix Reloaded. The videos to "Sleep Now in the Fire" and "Testify" were directed by documentor Michael Moore. The album debuted at #1 on Billboard's Top 200. "Guerrilla Radio" was featured in Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, albeit heavily edited on the Nintendo 64. Time Magazine named it the Best Album of 1999.

"Renegades of Funk" is a music track written and released as a single on the Tommy Boy label by Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force in 1984. It was originally produced and mixed by Arthur Baker and John Robie, and was rereleased on a CD in 1993. The song is an eclectic fusion of electronic music and heavy percussion, with politically fused rap lyrics that draw a connection between past revolutionaries and bohemians to present day street artists. This was also used by the Toronto Raptors as their entrance song during home games in 2006. In 2000, Rage Against the Machine recorded the song for their cover album Renegades. The video clip produced by Steven Murashige was a montage of film clips, mostly of rap, funk and hip-hop music and events of the Civil Rights movements, interspersed with mixed media stills of these individuals the song implies are 'renegades':

"Sober" is a song on Tool's first full-length album, Undertow. Adam Jones has stated in an interview that the song is about a friend of the band whose artistic expression only comes out when he is under the influence. "A lot of people give him shit for that," Jones explains. "If you become addicted and a junkie, well, that's your fault." A video for "Sober" was made in 1993. It was filmed using stop-motion animation, with characters' models designed by Adam Jones and directed by Fred Stuhr. It was the first of Tool's videos to be made in stop motion, the earlier promo video for "Hush" being live action and featuring all four band members. However, brief flashes of the musicians can be seen near the beginning, as well as a live-action figure twitching and vibrating violently (à la the film Jacob's Ladder). Besides being one of their first videos, it is also one of Tool's most ambiguous. Its protagonist is a small, humanoid being, who lives and sleeps in a rusty room sparsely decorated with a bed, table and chair. He happens upon a wooden box, which he opens near the beginning. Its contents are kept hidden for the majority of the video's duration, but it seems whatever it is has had adverse effects - there are repeated shots of the humanoid levitating in his chair, and his head and arm vibrating wildly. While experiencing these effects, he ventures through his living quarters and its many corridors. The climax provides a barrage of imagery and revelations: a figure attached to a wall behind a translucent screen, a sentry of sorts wielding a mobile, robotic cannon and a wormlike, organic creature hidden within the house's pipes. At the end, the box is empty, leaving the viewer to determine its meaning.

"Californication" is the Red Hot Chili Peppers' 4th single from their hit album, Californication. It was released in 2000, the song only reached #61 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA, and #16 on the UK charts, though it remains as one of Red Hot Chili Peppers' best known songs and has been played at nearly every concert since its release. It is notable for its sparse yet haunting combination of guitar and bass notes in the intro, and its unique music video. Californication is a unique video in that it takes the form of a video game from the point of view of the player. The video itself bears resemblance to many games, including Tomb Raider, Grand Theft Auto, Crazy Taxi, SSX, Resident Evil and the railcar level of Donkey Kong 64. Guitarist John Frusciante starts off on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He bumps into a celebrity, and jumps over three security guards, then picks up an asterisk. The action pauses and cuts to a shot of the band playing on top of a hill for a few seconds. (This happens each time a band member picks up an asterisk, which is the logo of the band.) Chad Smith, the Chili Peppers' drummer, is seen snowboarding down a hill (although he has never ridden a snowboard in real life). He falls into a ravine, but lands on a train. Lead singer Anthony Kiedis starts off swimming in an ocean, passing sharks and swimmers and picks up an asterisk. He gets out riding a shark and lands in his car. The registration plate on the car says "GERMS", which is a reference to The Germs, the band that Kiedis listened to as he grew up. Flea, the bassist, is seen in Muir Woods, and is about to pick up an asterisk, but he can't get past a bear guarding it, although he helps it out by kicking down a hunter about to shoot it. He goes on a mine-cart ride, and goes to another asterisk, but it's guarded by a pregnant teen (Dani of Dani California). He then gets surrounded by a horde of lumberjacks, but he jumps on top of a tree and sees all the other trees fall.

DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 - PULL OUT As of August 4, 2006 the band officially split. Jesse F. Keeler posted this (slightly dubious) message on the official Death from Above 1979 forum: “ I know its been forever since I wrote anything on here. I'm sure by now most of you assume the band isn't happening anymore since there are no shows, no work on a new album, etc. well. I wanted to let you know that your assumptions are correct. We decided to stop doing the band... Actually we decided that almost a year ago. We finished off our scheduled tour dates because there were good people working for us who relied on us to make a living and buy Christmas presents and pay rent etc. We couldn't just cancel everything and leave them out to dry... Plus I think we wanted to see if we would reconsider after being out on the road. Our label was really hoping that we would change our minds, so they asked us to keep quiet about the decision for at first. Well, it's been quite a while now and we are still very sure the band won't happen again, so I guess it's time to say something.(...) Death from Above 1979 were a Toronto based Canadian indie rock/synth rock duo. The members were Jesse F. Keeler on bass/synths and Sebastien Grainger on vocals/drums. Refusing to employ a lead guitarist, they played loud synth-infused dance-punk on the drum and bass combination alone, a sound described by critic A. Carlill (Mojo Magazine) as 'glam-noise'. This drew comparisons to Lightning Bolt, although DFA's music bears little resemblance to them. They were signed to Last Gang Records in Canada, Vice Records in the U.S. and 679 Recordings in the UK.

British Steel is a heavy metal album by Judas Priest, released on April 14 1980 (see 1980 in music). The album was remastered in 2001, with two bonus tracks added. It is one of their most popular recordings and is widely regarded as one of the band's best efforts, along with Sad Wings of Destiny, Stained Class, Screaming for Vengeance and Painkiller. "Breaking the Law", "United", and "Living After Midnight" were released as singles. The album was recorded at Tittenhurst Park, which was the home of the Beatle Ringo Starr. Sampling did not yet exist at the time of recording, so the band recorded the sounds of smashing milk bottles to be included in "Breaking the Law", as well as various sounds in "Metal Gods" produced by "trays of cutlery" and "billiard cues." The bonus track "Red, White, and Blue" was written sometime during the earlier years of Priest's career. It was recorded at Compass Point Studios in Nassau in July of 1985. Judas Priest explains this track in the remaster booklet as follows: "This is a great song which was written as an anthem for audience participation AKA "United" or "Take On the World" and although a little tongue-in-cheek, it is also very patriotic and may bring a tear to your eye! We felt that the end tag of Rule Britannia was very fitting for a British band especially on an album entitled British Steel." The second bonus track, a live performance of "Grinder", was recorded during the U.S. British Steel tour in 1980

Smells Like Children is a 1995 album by shock rock band Marilyn Manson. Although initially intended to be a remix EP, various contributions by engineer and Skinny Puppy producer Dave Ogilvie, Nine Inch Nails keyboardist Charlie Clouser and new material by the band resulted in an eclectic combination of material. The album was produced by Trent Reznor and Marilyn Manson. A number of covers are included on the album, most famous of which is the band's cover of Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)", which helped to skyrocket the band into the mainstream. The other covers on the album are the Patti Smith song "Rock 'n Roll Nigger" and Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell on You". Manson's recording of "I Put a Spell on You" was also featured on the soundtrack for the David Lynch film Lost Highway. Early promotional copies of Smells Like Children featured unauthorized samples from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, as well as other sound bites considered too extreme; the album was re-edited into the proper release. The removed songs were the original opening track, "Abuse part 1", featuring Manson and Danzig tour driver Tony Wiggins speaking to a masochistic girl, attempting to calm her down when things get really out of hand, and "Abuse part 2", featuring an interview with a teenage girl who confesses to molesting her 6-year-old cousin.

"Come as You Are" is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana. It is the third song on, and second single from, their 1991 album Nevermind. It was the album's second most successful single, surpassed only by "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Both songs are often credited with breaking Nirvana and grunge music into the mainstream. Like "Smells Like Teen Spirit", a music video was also made for the song, which features the band in a dark, goth-like room. The appearance of falling water in front of the band distorts and blurs their image, making it somewhat difficult to see their faces (although one can immediately pick up which one is who). Throughout the video, clips of unrelated material (lyric wise) such as cells multiplying at an incredible rate, to a living organism in its embryotic stages are shown, though the main focus is placed on the band. The video clip also features Kurt Cobain swinging away on a chandelier throughout the room, and water begins to flow into the room. The main (and most identifying) feature in the video related to the song is the image of a gun sinking underwater - and constant references to the gun are shown, mainly in the chorus where Cobain sings "And I swear that I don't have a gun". The image of the gun is also the first image shown in the videoclip. Another reference to the band is the image of a baby (Spencer Elden) swimming underwater (which is shown almost immediately when a fish hook captures a $1 dollar bill) - another reference to Nirvana's album Nevermind (which features the exact same image on its cover). The clip was directed by Kevin Kerslake, who also directed the video for "Lithium," "In Bloom," and "Sliver."

"The Joker" is a song by the Steve Miller Band from their 1973 album The Joker. The song is one of two Steve Miller Band songs that feature the neologism "pompatus". The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1974. More than 16 years later, in September 1990, it reached number one in the UK Singles Chart after being used in a Levi's television advertisement, thus holding the record for the longest gap between transatlantic chart-toppers. "The Joker" is covered by k.d. lang on her album Drag on which all the songs have the theme of smoking or cigarettes. It has also been covered by the rap duo Twiztid on the album Cryptic Collection 3. A version was also recorded by Jason Mraz for the movie, Happy Feet. It is sampled in Shaggy's song "Angel", and artist Fatboy Slim reworked the song on his 2004 album Palookaville. The song is sometimes misidentified by the title "Space Cowboy" because of the first line of the lyrics, which are actually referring to an earlier song by that title from Miller's Brave New World album. The following lines refer to two other earlier songs, "Gangster of Love" from Sailor, and "Enter Maurice" from Recall the Beginning...A Journey from Eden.

"Bulls on Parade" is a song released by Rage Against the Machine in 1996, and can be found on their second album Evil Empire. One of Rage's signature songs, it deals with what is commonly referred to as the "military-industrial complex", which is the tendency of industry (the arms industry in particular) to encourage military action in order to gain military contracts, and therefore increase its profits. Lines such as "Weapons; not food, not homes, not shoes, not need, just feed the war cannibal-animal," and "what we don't know keeps the contracts alive and moving / they don't gotta burn the books they just remove 'em" are just a couple of examples of the several allusions to the military-industrial complex throughout the song. With the words, "Terror rains, drenching, quenching the thirst of the power dons," the song suggests that the fear of terrorism is used to manipulate the American populace into supporting dubious military action. The phrase "terror rains" also serves as a double entendre, which suggests that "terror reigns" by way of the government terror as a tool. The song was performed on Saturday Night Live in April of 1996. Their two-song performance was cut to one song when the band attempted to hang inverted American flags from their amplifiers, a protest to having presidential candidate Steve Forbes as guest host on the program that night. The song features one of Tom Morello's most famous guitar riffs and a highly unusual solo that sounds more like a turntable than a guitar by making use of the toggle switch and rubbing his hand along the strings parallel to the neck of the guitar. It is usually cited as the most famous example of Tom Morello's extremely innovative guitar playing antics, along with Calm Like a Bomb from their next album The Battle Of Los Angeles.

"Nothing Else Matters" is a song by heavy metal band Metallica. It was first released in 1991 on the self-titled Black Album. Many long-standing Metallica fans, who were used to the harsh lyrical nature of the first three Metallica ballads, did not appreciate the inclusion of a love song. It was one of the principal songs fans pointed to when accusing the band of "selling out." Regardless, the song is now very popular among Metallica fans and hit #11 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks Charts in 1992. It is still played frequently on the radio. Singer and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield initially wrote it to a former girlfriend, but now he cannot remember why; some say it meant that "no matter how far" he was (since Metallica spent most of their time on tours), he was still "so close" with the heart. He considered it a very personal song and was not going to publish it, but once lead guitarist Kirk Hammett heard it he wanted it on the Black Album. Now Metallica consider it a song dedicated to all their fans. It has become a staple of their live performances. Its intro is an E minor arpeggio beginning with the open E, G, B and high E strings. It was first rumoured, and then confirmed[citation needed] by Hetfield on Classic Albums: The Black Album DVD, that he started composing it while he was on the phone with his girlfriend and only had one free hand. Also on the Classic Albums DVD, Hetfield admits that at that time in his career, girlfriends came and went and were a regular happening on the road. This arpeggio is considered very simple to play, and as such many Metallica fans learn this song when they are first beginning to play guitar. However, the beginning of the song does sound like two guitars playing, so the easiest 'one' is easy, but in reality Hetfield plays one guitar and makes it sound like two (rhythm and lead), so played properly it is not that easy.