Heimdall

Taking their name from a secondary Norse deity, Italian brothers Fabio (rhythm guitar) and Nicolas Calluori (drums) founded heavy metal band Heimdall in 1994; but it was only three years later, after adding singer Claudio Gallo, bass player Giovanni Canu, and lead guitarist Carmelo Claps, that they recorded their first, eponymous demo. This was enough to draw the interest of Elevate Records, which promptly issued the band's 1998 full-length debut album, Lord of the Sky, and the following year's Temple of Theil — both of them forging a powerful brand of epic power metal. Vocalist Gallo broke rank at this point, but, after taking a short break, the remaining members simply replaced him with new singer Giacomo Mercaldo prior to recording 2002's The Almighty: their first effort for Italian label Scarlet Records. Heimdall's fourth album, the aptly titled Hard as Iron, followed two years later and, as well as introducing new members Enrico Canu (drums) and Sergio Duccilli (keyboards and orchestration), arguably represented a career high, with its expert songwriting and top-notch performances.