Top 10 Most Outrageous Heavy Metal Performers of All Time

Of all the musical genres brought to us courtesy of the 20th century, death metal has hosted some of the most outrageous players ever to appear on a stage. It’s a genre in which outrageousness is a band’s most endearing characteristic. For heavy metal stars, biting into a bat will get you more than a Tetanus shot; such characters will forever live in infamy.

1. Glenn “The Bent One” Benton:

It’s not especially surprising that such a weirdo hails from Florida. Deicide’s bassist and frontman is a notorious Satanist who makes up his own rules. He’s been known to feel jealous of the toast toasting in his toaster.

2. OderusUrungus:

Known to family members as Dave Brockie, Gwar’s most outrageous member has been known to make public appearances wearing three horns – a pair on his head and one sprouting from his man parts.

3. Rob Halford:

You probably remember this outrageous guy from classic heavy metal band Judas Priest, but he also represented the genre in the bands Halford, Fight and Two.

4. Satyr:

As one of Satyricon’s core members, Satyr scared the crap out of his own fans with his onstage antics. The band’s musical style alone was enough to terrify a crowd, and the track “Black Crow” really drives this point home.

5. Ozzy Osbourne:

Black Sabbath’s bat-biting frontman would go down in infamy even among those who’d never heard a metal song in their entire lives. Osbourne was never forgotten as the Brit who bit a bat onstage, even if, later in life, he became even more famous as a drug-damaged reality TV dad.

6. Max Cavalera:

Known for his terrible smell, the Brazilian frontman of Sepultura and Cavalera Conspiracy wasn’t afraid of appearing insane.

7. Stiv Bators:

The punk metal outfit Dead Boys made a point of exuding bad manners, especially frontman Stiv Bators. There hasn’t been a more outrageous punk band member since the infamous Johnny Rotten. His onstage outrageousness involved a lot of spastic movement and could be painful to watch.

8. Lemmy Kilmister:

Motorhead’s ugliest member claimed to hold the record as the man who – shall we say – entertained the most women. This seems unlikely, thanks to a face full of warts, but he hasn’t exactly been proven wrong.

9. Pat Ranieri:

Hellwitch’s lead guitarist will forever go down in history as the leader of the world’s first death metal-playing band – other than Death, of course. He helped his band create what possibly is the heaviest death metal custom cd known to man: “Omnipotent Convocation.”

10. Great Kat:

She put down her violin and turned into Kat’s heavy metal-loving guitar player, but the Great Kat makes the list not for her instrumental interpretations of metal, but for her hoarse vocals, which will forever be remembered for their outrageous dreadfulness.

Author Bio
Hayley is an author and freelance entertainment blogger. Away from the office, she enjoys spending time with her two beautiful young daughters and husband.