Armored Saint

One of the select few true metal bands to emerge from the glitzy Sunset Strip scene, Armored Saint specializes in a style of no-frills metal that has more in common with New Wave of British Heavy Metal acts like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Saxon. The band issued a trio of influential albums in the 1980s (March of the Saint, Delirious Nomad, and Raising Fear) before ceasing operations in the early '90s after the passing of original guitarist David Prichard. Re-forming in 1999, the group has continued to stand at the nexus of thrash and hard rock, releasing their hard-hitting eighth full-length effort, Punching the Sky, in 2020.