Top 10 Unintentionally Funny Heavy Metal Videos

Posted by Carlos Ramirez Comments

MetalYouTube | YouTube

(Most) heavy metal fans are in on the joke. We understand some of the imagery and lyrical matter the bands we love favor is downright silly, but we don't let that get in the way of our passion for the music and culture. Unlike a lot of other musical genres, heavy metal isn't afraid to poke fun at itself from time to time. With that spirit in mind, Noisecreep has compiled our list of the top 10 unintentionally funny heavy metal videos. Watch these clips at your own risk!
10. 'Lick it Up'
KISS
This is the first video off of the first album that KISS recorded after taking off their iconic make-up. Maybe they should have kept it on. In the hilarious clip, KISS walk around a post-apocalyptic city trying their hardest to look like a bunch of bad-asses. Sadly they come off like four drag queens on their way to a disco.
9. 'Hall of the Mountain King'
Savatage
Don't get us wrong, we love Savatage. But their video for the title track to their 'Hall of the Mountain King' album is an atrocity. The little person in the prosthetic mask is unforgivable. He looks like the grandfather of the Oompa Loompas. And clearly this video was shot in Howe Caverns – how else do you explain the clearly marked 'Exit' sign? We would kill to see footage of the meeting where Savatage's manager showed the video to the suits at Atlantic Records for the first time.
8. 'Queen of the Reich'
Queensrÿche
Don't let the 'Star Wars'-inspired introduction fool you, the 'Queen of the Reich' is one of the most offensive metal videos ever made. It's the perfect example of a frustrated music video director trying to fulfill his George Lucas celluloid ambitions, but ending up with something so bad that even the folks at 'Mystery Science Theater 3000' wouldn't touch it. Watching this calamity back then, no one would have guessed that Queensrÿche would one day go on to sell over 20 million albums.
7. 'Bewitched'
Candlemass
Just the sight of pleasantly plump Candlemass vocalist Messiah Marcolin jumping out of a coffin at the 1:30 mark alone is a comedic gift. In another priceless moment of this video, you can clearly see Lars Johansson shredding away on his guitar despite having a cast on his broken hand! After that we're treated to a scene where Marcolin and a pitifully small crew of heshers headbang around a tombstone (seriously, those are the only people you can bewitch?). For you trivia buffs, 'Bewitched' was helmed by none other than Jonas Åkerlund, the ultra-hip director behind videos for Lady Gaga, Madonna and U2. We wonder if he includes this clip in his reel.
6. 'Guardian Angel'
Thief
Noisecreep came across this cinematic crime on YouTube while doing research for this article. There's little to no information available on Thief, but what we do know is that the band features three brothers. The clip's funniest scene comes during the first verse, where we see Thief's lead singer getting chased by a car going 15 miles per hour. We're also treated to some mysterious figure in a Grim Reaper costume straight out of Wal-Mart, using one of Thief's 8x11 headshots as some sort of voodoo doll. Interesting marketing tactic, guys.
5. 'After the Rain'
Nelson
This is the artsy, message-driven video of the lot. At least until Nelson magically appear from a poster and pull our 29 – I mean 16-year-old hero into what at first glance may seem like some kind of hair metal three-way. Then we meet an American Indian (because Nelson are spiritual like that) and finally end up at their concert, which looks like it's being held on the back lot of the Universal Studios theme park. Finally, the wet dream comes to an end and our hero is left with a feather souvenir from his night with the Nelson brothers.
4. 'Call of the Wintermoon'
Immortal
Oops! It looks like somebody dropped some acid in the Kool-Aid at the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing convention. Don't let the corpsepaint fool you, these are some hardcore D&D players and they are tripping something FIERCE.
3. 'Gloves of Metal'
Manowar
This cult classic finds our favorite poser killers riding horses through a forest that they would want us to believe was somewhere in Europe, but in reality was just the Catskills. Then we have their wardrobe. It looks like vocalist Eric Adams is wearing a white cat on his shoulder. Check out the wall of amps in the performance sections. Manowar have enough wattage there to power a small village. If that imagery wasn't enough to make you do a spit take, there's a battle royal scene between the loin-clothed rockers and what looks like a bunch of dudes from a Renaissance-era reenactment group. This is pure comedy gold.
2. 'Ve Stinu Starvch Dubu'
Trollech
Imagine that you are a blue collar guy on a weekend hunting trip with your buddies, and you come across this video shoot.
1. 'Hot Rockin''
Judas Priest
This is what happens when you give Rob Halford a video budget and let his imagination run wild. Apparently he and Olivia Newton-John share the same artistic sensibility. It's incredible to think that the video itself wasn't recognized as Rob's personal coming out party. I mean by the end of the video the guy is flaming – literally.
Filed under: Exclusive, Top Ten Lists

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