Carlos Ramirez is a former editor at AOL Music. His writing has appeared on IGN, Bullz-Eye, Ultimate-Guitar, MetalSucks, PopDose, TheGauntlet and many other music destinations. Born and raised in Queens, N.Y., Ramirez resides in Los Angeles with his wife and baby daughter.
Carlos Ramirez
10 Greatest Iron Maiden Videos
Iron Maiden possess some of the most recognizable branding in all of music. Over the past few decades, the British band's creepy Eddie mascot is a ubiquitous presence at any heavy metal and hard rock show through the countless t-shirts he adorns. Meanwhile, the many iconic album and single sleeves artist Derek Riggs created for Maiden have inspired countless musicians throughout the years. Quite simply, besides their groundbreaking musical output, Maiden have also left their mark on the graphic design side of the music spectrum.
10 Greatest Rock + Metal Supergroups
The term "supergroup" first surfaced during the late '60s when already successful musicians started to link up with other well-known musicians to form new groups. The first wave of these bands include legendary acts such as Crosby, Stills & Nash, Blind Faith and Humble Pie. Since then, pretty much every musical genre you can think of boasts their very own version of a supergroup.
10 Greatest Metal Baseball Walk-Up Songs
In baseball, the walk-up song is everything. Heavy metal and hard rock-loving baseball players understand this. Unlike their fellow teammates who choose to walk to home plate or the pitcher's mound to the dance floor-ready sounds of hip-hop or R&B, metalhead players know that going with a heavy track is much more effective.
10 Greatest Grunge Albums
In the early ‘90s, a wave of bands from Seattle captured the public’s imagination, spreading the sound of the Northwest underground to the world. Dubbed “grunge” or the “Seattle sound” by the press, its sonic characteristics were rooted in ‘60s garage rock and proto-heavy metal. When grunge first started creeping into the mainstream circa 1991, hair metal still ruled MTV, but bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden changed all that. A few key players in the grunge scene might have had hair metal pasts, but the Aqua Net and eyeliner had to go to make room in the closet for all the flannels and Chuck Taylors. Noisecreep is paying tribute to the hard-rocking sounds that dominated the '90s with our 10 Greatest Grunge Albums list.
10 Greatest Metal Songs of 2003
The year 2003 might not come up during the conversation when discussing heavy metal's landmark periods, but that doesn't mean it didn't leave behind some stellar releases. Whether it was veteran acts taking stylistic chances, or younger bands looking at the past for inspiration, 2003 gave metalheads a lot to be happy about...
10 Greatest Punk Rock Mascots
Iron Maiden have Eddie. Megadeth have been in business with a guy named Vic Rattlehead since the '80s. Anthrax? They roll with the Not Man. But heavy metal isn't the only genre packed with its own cast of comic book-worthy mascots. Ever since the first wave of punk shook up the music world in the mid-'70s, the scene has given us some of the most iconic mascots this side of Tony the Tiger...
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10 Greatest Metal Songs of 1983
The year 1983 was a landmark one for heavy metal. Not only did the year usher in the debut album releases of Metallica, Dio and Mercyful Fate, it also marked the first time a metal act hit the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 when Quiet Riot’s ‘Metal Health’ topped the chart in November. That feat helped prove that metal could hold its own commercially against all of the pop and new wave acts of the period.
Children of Bodom, ‘Transference': Finnish Metal Gods Release New Track
With Halo of Blood, their eighth studio album, hitting stores on June 11, Children of Bodom have issued a new track called "Transference" to whet our appetites. Check out the track here.
The Finnish metal beasts recorded Halo of Blood with longtime engineer Mikko Karmila and Hypocrisy mainman Peter Tägtgren who also worked with Children of Bodom on their Follow the Reaper and Hate Crew D
A Pale Horse Named Death Tell the Story of a ‘Killer By Night’ (PREMIERE)
After flooring hard rock fans with And Hell Will Follow Me, their 2011 debut album, A Pale Horse Named Death proved that they were more than a mere side project type of affair. Featuring Sal Abruscato (drummer of Life of Agony, Type O Negative fame) on vocals/guitars, guitarist Matt Brown (Seventh Void), drummer Johnny Kelly (Type O Negative, Danzig), and guitarist Eddie Heedles, A Pale Horse Name
I Is Another: Members of Far, Rival Schools Announce New Project
Far mastermind Jonah Matranga and Rival Schools guitarist Ian Love have combined their talents in a new project they've dubbed I Is Another. You might also recognize the musicians' names from their time in other groups like New End Original, Burn, Cardia, among other projects...