Top 10 Best Glam Songs That Feature Keys

Ever think about the ten best Glam songs that feature either a keyboard or a piano? Here are my choices for the ten best...in no particular order.

The debate over keys in metal has raged for decades now. Generally, I'm not a huge fan -- but when the arrangement is right, well, the song just rocks. I think I picked some awesome examples of that today.

Whitesnake - Here I Go Again

Winger - Headed for a Heartbreak

Night Ranger - Sister Christian

Great White - Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Styx - Come Sail Away

Heart - Alone

Cinderella - Don't Know What You Got ('Til It's Gone)

Kix - Don't Close Your Eyes

Guns n' Roses - November Rain

Van Halen - Jump

Do you agree with my list?

The Pretty Reckless: I Dig 'Em

So the Lollapalooza lineup is out for this summer -- it was released just yesterday. While I didn't find any Glam bands on the massive list,  my eyes did stop on The Pretty Reckless. "They sound Glam," I thought. So I looked them up on YouTube and clicked their video for "Miss Nothing." I have to admit I was immediately impressed.

The Pretty Reckless are not Glam, but the influence is there to be sure. And the singer, Taylor Momsen (she was on Gossip Girl, by the way), sounds like a mix of Carrie Underwood, Niki Barr and Lady Gaga. I like the guitar riff and the video for "Miss Nothing." At one point, Momsen is prancing around on the long dinner table and I was instantly reminded of the table/guitar solo scene in RATT's "Round and Round" video. The good news is that now I've got a new band to get into and follow.

The Pretty Reckless are on Interscope and they've got other big shows coming up besides Lollapalooza including Germany's Rock Am Ring. Check them out if you don't know them and give me your opinion.

Falling Red...The Next Guns n' Roses?

Yet another awesome Glam band for you today: Falling Red from Europe. Falling Red released Shake the Faith in 2010 via Rocksector Records. Take a listen to the clip below and you'll hear that sleaze and crunch. Now, I don't think Shake the Faith is the next Appetite for Destruction -- but it's still darn good and has that dirty rock n' roll vibe we all love.

The band has a new EP now called Hasta La Victoria Siempre (released just two weeks ago).

I guess maybe the best part about a band like Falling Red is that they are not afraid of sleaze - they own it. Listen:

Was Ugly Kid Joe a Glam Band?

Ugly Kid Joe often get lumped into the Glam genre, but their most famous single "Everything About You" was anything but. Then, the band released the album Menace To Sobriety and that isn't exactly Glam either...it's pretty heavy, true to the band's roots as a Black Sabbath cover act (or something like that, I believe I have the history correct. I was young then, yo).

You're probably wondering where all this came from, right? Really, it's just that I received a tweet asking me about Trixter. This person mentioned wanting to see Trixter as a "bucket list" band and I of course also have such a list. Then my mind wanders to Ugly Kid Joe, that fact I've never seen them live, and BAM! here we are, trying to determine their Glamness.

I think maybe Ugly Kid Joe started out with the intention of being a band with awesome Glam swagger and lost their way. They didn't want to do the spandex or the make-up of course; they did, however, want the awesome guitar licks and fun lyrics. After grunge, fighting with their record label and all the rest...well, I think the band was just trying to survive. There are rumors that Ugly Kid Joe will release Return of Ugly this fall.

So, what do you think? Ugly Kid Joe: Glam or not?

Here's a couple Ugly Kid Joe tunes you might not remember:

Happy Easter...Don't Play These Songs for Grandma

Happy Easter, Glam fans! I know most of you will be with family and friends today and not checking the interwebs - and that is great. But in case you're here I felt obliged to list a few songs you shouldn't play for grandma later today.

Slayer: "Skeleton Christ"

Motley Crue: "Shout at the Devil"

Mayhem: "Freezing Moon"

Want to rock out safely? Play grandma Stryper. I bet she'd like that.

If I Had to Pick Just One Dokken Song...

If I was told "Allyson, you can have just one Dokken tune on your iPod. Choose wisely," I would quickly pick "Just Got Lucky" (from the album Tooth and Nail). 

Seriously. Is that an odd choice?

I love the video. It sums up everything I love about Glam: big hair, great guitarist, cheesy effects. Plus, there are mirrors, a live show, headbands and a volcano. The video is batshit crazy and therefore perfect. That's metal, people. Metal.

What is your one Dokken song and why?

For Metalboy! - Meet Sweden's Danger Avenue

We all love Sweden rock. After all, these days, Sweden = Glam. So when our own Metalboy! found Danger Avenue, he just had to share the Sweden rockers. He emailed me about the band and also left some comments on this site about them, so of course I had to investigate. 

Danger Avenue are pretty cool. The band formed in 2004 in Sweden and they consider their genre "melodic rock." I would agree they are not 100% Glam because there are some definite AOR components to their sound, but still, the guitar solos are there. Danger Avenue say they are influenced by KISS, the Scorpions and Queen.

When it was time for Danger Avenue to release a full-length album, the band members called on producer Roberth Olausson. He has worked with Hardcore Superstar. So, the album Long Overdue is out and it has big hooks and solos. Some of the song lyrics are a bit lacking, but the band has true room for growth and that is key: that means there is talent. They just need to be careful and not get sucked into the whole "modern radio-rock" vortex. Check it out and you be the judge: