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Wailing solos, catchy hooks, sing-along choruses, ventures into heartfelt balladry: there's a lot to be said for the sonic style of hair metal. To look at the fashion -- between the sleazy cross-dressing, the leather-denim-spandex combinations and the studded spikes and shiny belts -- there are so many key elements. But hey, there's a reason it's called HAIR metal, am I right? So many creative coifs came and went with the rise and fall of '80s pop metal. From pretty procurements to crazy creations, let's take a look at the excessive hair that dominated a decade and thus named a movement.

Listen to our all-new hair metal radio station here while reading on.

Right before they departed for Wacken, we caught up with Italian goth metal outfit Lacuna Coil's leading lady Cristina Scabbia to find out what she listens to when she's not controlling crowds or giving advice in her Revolver magazine column. Says Scabbia, "It's definitely a question I'm sure every musician hates -- if you love music, just 10 songs are nothing!" But she happily obliged us nonetheless, and goes on to express her love of Faith No More, Muse, Alter Bridge and more. Check it out right here.

Moving from the center of the deathcore scene through the history of American death metal, Job for a Cowboy have embarked on an expansive journey in their so-far short career. With their top-100-charting 2007 debut, Genesis, and a celebrated, self-released 2005 EP in tow, they got the metal underground's attention. Now with their sophomore effort, Ruination, featuring new guitarist Al Glassman and new drummer Jon Rice, as well as the band's coveted slot in this year's Mayhem Festival, J.F.A.C. are expanding on their sturdy foundation and conquering new territory. We caught up with guitarist Bobby Thompson to find out more about their transition into death metal.

GWAR's infallible leader, Oderus Urungus, has an advantage to playlist making that no other band can boast: according to GWAR mythos, this alien-barbarian is billions of years old, and therefore has seen music emerge, unfold and flourish. And yet he picked William Shatner?! Explains Urungus, "I don't know much about music even though I sing in a band -- I use these terms very loosely. Nevertheless, there is a lot of human music out there (written in tribute to GWAR, no doubt) that actually titillates my warty protuberances. I listen to everything from death metal to cheesy pop, so don't get your knickers in a twist if this list is a little weird ... I am Oderus, after all!"

Even weirder is his new gig. As GWAR celebrate 25 years of thrashing shock rock by returning to Earth and gearing up to release their 11th album, Oderus Urungus has also joined the ranks of FOX News' late-night program Red Eye as an interplanetary correspondent. From on the job at the World Series of Poker, here's the playlist of charmingly witty, cuttlefish-carrying Oderus Urungus.

From left: Tim Sult, Dan Maines, Neil Fallon and Jean-Paul Gaster

Nearly 20 years since their inception, roots rockin' stoner metal outfit Clutch may have grown, but they have never wavered. Beginning in 1991 with groove-oriented funk 'n' roll, fast-forwarding to 2009's blues-based ninth album Strange Cousins from the West, Neil Fallon and co. have run the gamut between rock and metal, but have always done exactly what they wanted to do. Explains Fallon, "This is a band that ... made music for music's sake and wasn't interested in anything else other than improving itself and being sincere while doing it." As a further testament to that, Clutch have even formed their own label imprint as a vehicle for exercising their creativity, which -- in addition to Clutch's most recent releases -- has also spawned an instrumental project called the Bakerton Group. To learn about Fallon's philosophical take on his musical output and humble fascination with rock history, plus the inner workings of Clutch's latest record, stay tuned right here.

Founded in 1982, Metal Blade Records was young metal fan Brian Slagel's DIY solution to the absence of metal music in record stores across the nation. In a time of tape-trading and word of mouth propelled by a burgeoning underground scene, he saw an opportunity missed by major labels to get metal out to the masses, and nearly 30 years later Metal Blade is still thriving and bringing metal to your doorstep. Boasting an eclectic roster, from Florida death metal legends Cannibal Corpse to Polish black metal heroes Behemoth, as well as Christian metallers Whitechapel, thrash apprentices Lazarus A.D. and heralded deathcore outfit Job For a Cowboy, Metal Blade is a veritable heavy music institution. Here's a taste of some Metal Blade essentials, available for streaming exclusively on Rhapsody.

Dan Palmer (left), Efrem Schulz

For California skate punk outfit Death by Stereo, it's been a tough journey through the darkness, but they've found their way back. Formed in 1997, D.B.S. took hardcore mentality, punk ethics and metallic tones; injected their outspoken swagger; and made a name for themselves with incredible live shows all across the country. As they gained momentum and their sound turned more aggressive, the band found themselves stricken by tragedy and at the center of some unwanted controversy in 2003 when a fan was killed at one of their shows -- a memory that frontman Efrem Schulz recalls as "one of the most awful things I will probably ever see in my lifetime."

Bouncing back from the misfortune was not easy, but Death By Stereo persevered and continued writing and releasing music. Then, after parting ways with Epitaph Records, Schulz explains, "the planets were aligned to end our band." But in trying to do it on their own, D.B.S. found an ally in System of a Down's Serj Tankian, who took the band in under his Serjical Strike imprint to release their Jason Freese-produced fifth album, Death Is My Only Friend. To learn more about the new record and how far Death by Stereo have come since 2005's Death for Life, read what else Schulz had to say in our interview (click below).

From left to right: Jeremy DePoyster, Andy Trick, Mike Hrancia, James Baney, Chris Rubey, Daniel Williams

The Devil Wears Prada are not your average scene band. Sure they have their merch in Hot Topics all over the country, and yeah, their fans average around the age of 16, but  in their three-album, five-year-and-counting career, these young Ohio natives have accomplished a lot more than any band with "street cred" (though they have that in their own right, if you want to get technical). Debuting at No. 11 on the Billboard 200 with their latest effort, With Roots Above and Branches Below (see: the same debut Mastodon had with Crack the Skye not two months prior), it's like guitarist/backup vocalist Jeremy DePoyster puts it: "Obviously we're young guys and we're small guys and we wear tight pants, but we can make some really heavy music." So with that "don't judge a book by its cover'" admonishment out on the table, find out what else DePoyster had to say about these young guns' thoughts on their "scene," their success and their goals as a Christian metal band. Forget what you may have heard, and please meet the Devil Wears Prada.

Killswitch Engage have been growing in strength since their first self-titled album was released a decade ago. Now, as they unveil their fifth album, they find themselves at the top of their game. Co-produced by Adam D. and Brendan O'Brien, the second coming of Killswitch Engage displays the powerful combination of technical musicianship and catchy melodies that these frontrunners forged and cultivated. Listen to the new record here, plus take a look at our thoughts on the album, read our Q&A with members Mike D'Antonio and Justin Foley, dive into Mike D's top 10 essential albums, and listen to playlists featuring the best of Killswitch and their Massachusetts contemporaries.

BROWSE: Check out Rhapsody's review of Killswitch Engage (II).

INTERVIEW: Check out our exclusive chat with KsE's Mike D'Antonio and Justin Foley.

EXPLORE: Dig into Killswitch's "Top 10 Essential Albums"

HEAR: Listen to a playlist of essential Killswitch Engage jams.

PLAY: Blast this Massachusetts Metalcore playlist.

RADIO: Hear what's new and awesome in metal with "Fury".

On its fifth full-length and second self-titled record, the melodic metalcore quintet made a surprise move by tapping a new producer for the first time in its decade-long career, yet the overall results are quite subtle. That's no slight on prolific producer Brendan O'Brien, though, who primarily worked with Killswitch's strident vocalist and powerful skinsman; it's evidence of how effective, if understated, this matchup was (see "Starting Over" and "Never Again"). It also proves that Adam D., the band's goofball guitarist and polarizing co-producer, still lends plenty to Killswitch's overall sound. Along with duties as co-producer, Dutkiewicz solely handled the mixing and mastering of the album, and his fingerprints are all over the powerful guitar tracks. The combined result is a solid, clean, melody-driven record from start to finish. Lyrically, Howard Jones doesn't stray much from the passionate pleas he has always sung about, but the songwriting has certainly grown: Proof is in the monster riffs and calculated pacing of tracks like "Take Me Away" and "I Would Do Anything". As a whole, the second coming of Killswitch Engage helps uphold these favored New Englanders as leaders of their genre.

Left to right: Mike D'Antonio, Justin Foley, Adam Dutkiewicz, Howard Jones, Joel Stroetzel

Boasting over a decade of producing melodic metalcore, esteemed quintet Killswitch Engage set out to change things up on their fifth full-length by enlisting Brendan O'Brien to help out on production duties. Explains bassist/artistic director Mike D'Antonio, "It was time to try something different and get out of that comfort zone." With O'Brien holding down half the fort in Atlanta while guitarist (and prolific producer in his own right) Adam D. handled the rest of the work at his Massachusetts-based Zing Studios, the resulting team effort, Killswitch Engage, consists of 11 melody-driven powerhouse tracks further showcasing KsE's front-running talents. Adds drummer Justin Foley, "We just wanted to make something we were really stoked on." Find out what else this dynamic duo had to say about their new album as they share some laughs taking us from where they started to where they are now, talking about some of their best accomplishments as eternal road warriors, and revealing their humble hopes of what's next as they unleash their second self-titled record on the world.

You know there's a band out there that you'd put a stop to if you could, but for Black Tide guitarist Zakk Sandler, he'd rather exorcise his hatred of labelmates Tokio Hotel by making a playlist of cringe-worthy tracks that he deems better than anything by the pop-punk outfit. Explains Sandler, "I thought of half of them [ahead of time] and figured I can wing it on the rest, because I can pretty much say anything and it will be better than them." So what's with the hostility when it comes to these German pop stars? "I hate everything that they represent," Sandler says. "They don't care about the music that they're making; I think it's stupid. They're only in it for the fame, not for the art, and they f*cking suck." Those may be fighting words, but Zakk's list is sure to elicit a chuckle or two. Check out his picks after the jump.

They may have covered Katy Perry's ubiquitous "I Kissed a Girl," but the Ohio synth-core band is not just another pop culture-fueled blur in the metal/post-hardcore scene. Attack Attack mix heavy guitars and technical drums with electronics and Auto-Tune into an unorthodox clashing of styles that works so well it's being heralded as the next big thing in Warped Tour circles. Check out what drummer Andrew Wetzel cites as "stuff I've listened to that's changed the way I've played from middle school up until now." That "stuff" includes heavy bands Necrophagist and Job for a Cowboy, along with rock acts like Muse and Saosin.

Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson -- the grim, oft-hooded duo serving as the core of experimental metal outfit Sunn 0))) (simply pronounced "sun") -- are celebrating 10 years of ominous tones and fuzzy textures with their seventh album. Monoliths & Dimensions, a composition Anderson calls "the strongest stuff that we've done together," features longtime collaborators Attila Csihar (vocals, from Mayhem, Keep of Kalessin, etc.) and guitarist Oren Ambarchi, but the addition of brass, string and woodwind instrumentation under composer Eyvind Kang shows profound new Dimensions for the pair. On a fittingly rainy day in New York City, we sat down with Sunn 0)))'s permanent bassist and Southern Lord Records CEO Greg Anderson to talk about the new album and to learn about his journey as a musician, the statement he's making with his art, and the tricky balance of being your own label. See what he had to say after the jump.