Top 25 Favorite Singers countdown thread! (Top 2 Revealed!!!)

[HOF]

A little disappointed he’s this low, but just happy that Gabriel made the list. He came in at number 7 for me. Between Genesis and his solo work, he’s one of my favorite artists, and his voice is a big part of it. He has such a distinct style and warmth, even if he’s not a great technical singer. That mix of his gravely lower register and that sort of falsetto high end is really effective. Just a great range of sounds and so much personality in his voice.

Don’t have much to say for MA. I wouldn’t willingly listen to heavy Opeth, but Damnation is a nice album. He didn’t blow me away as a clean vocalist, but I find his voice to be pleasant enough. Not surprised he made the list though.

[twosuitsluke]

I'm only really familiar with Boston's hits and had no clue what the singers name was. No I know 

McCartney made #19 on my list. I love The Beatles, they are one of my earliest musical memories, and my Dad's favourite band 

25.
24.
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21.
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19. Paul McCartney
18.
17.
16.
15.
14.
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9.
8.
7.
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5. Mikael Åkerfeldt
4.
3.
2.
1.

[Lethean]

Neither made my list.  I never liked Mikael's harsh vocals and his cleans are fine, but nothing really special (for me).

But he did vocals for Katatonia, surely that counts for something 

Certainly does.  I gave him yet more listens after finding out about that - still didn't help but I tried. I certainly don't begrudge him making the list.

[Dave_Manchester]

Had Peter Gabriel at #7. Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

My top 3 Gabriel vocal performances:

1.Mercy Street
2.Here Comes The Flood (Robert Fripp version)
3.Secret World

[Samsara]

Neither Mikael Åkerfeldt or Peter Gabriel made my list. Their names didn't even surface in my thinking when thinking of favorite singers. Both are fine for what they do. I'm a Genesis and Peter Gabriel solo fan, but like I said, he didn't even come up in my process. Not really much of an Opeth fan.

[twosuitsluke]

Had Peter Gabriel at #7. Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

My top 3 Gabriel vocal performances:

1.Mercy Street
2.Here Comes The Flood (Robert Fripp version)
3.Secret World

Nice idea, I'll check those out 

[HOF]

Had Peter Gabriel at #7. Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

My top 3 Gabriel vocal performances:

1.Mercy Street
2.Here Comes The Flood (Robert Fripp version)
3.Secret World

Nice, same rank for both of us! Definitely agree with those 3 tracks being great performances (I might go with the Greatest Hits version of Here Comes The Flood just vocally, but I do think the Fripp version is the definitive arrangement of that song). I’ll nominate these 3:

1. Wallflower
2. Red Rain
3. Washing of the Water

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Peter Gabriel is a vocalist that slowly grows on me over time.  I was someone who favored pop Genesis over prog Genesis initially, so I preferred Collins.  They really sound kind of similar though, so as my appreciation for early Genesis and solo Gabriel keeps going up I could see him rising.  Neither is anywhere near my top 25 though.  Possibly a top 100. 

but I suspect he got much more support due to his growling from the past.

He probably would have made my list even just based on his cleans.  Part of the reason I was more ok than some with their decision to leave the extreme metal influences behind is because I think his singing voice is stellar.  He's also my favorite growler, so that just adds a cherry on the top.

There's one album I think that is mostly/all cleans??  If so, I did give that one a try, and was mostly underwhelmed.

Damnation was the trial run for an album of all cleans.  They'd had and continued to have other all-cleans songs as well, but starting with Heritage, the last four have all been cleans-only. 

Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

Yep, I've done writeups for each of mine, particularly since a bunch won't be that familiar to people here.  Here's mine for him.

2:  Mikael Akerfeldt

Bands - Opeth, Bloodbath, Storm Corrosion, others
Guest appearances - Katatonia, Ayreon, Edge of Sanity, others
From - Sweden
Other song highlights - Opeth "Hours of Wealth", Bloodbath "Blasting the Virginborn", Ayreon "Trauma"

Such a tremendous influence on the development of my musical taste.  More than any other, he's the one that wore me down and convinced me that harsh vocals were a viable form of musical expression.  It helps that his clean singing is just as good. 

Listening:

Opeth - "Demon of the Fall"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP2Lm1GcWAQ

In Action:

Opeth - "Harvest"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OyD9hacXBQ

[bosk1]

Neither made my list.

Peter Gabriel is a vocalist that slowly growls on me over time. 

Yeah, but his clean vox tho!

[cramx3]

Not surprised about Mikael.  He's a great singer.  I just am not a big Opeth fan so he didn't really come to mind for my personal favorites, but I really do enjoy his vocals.  I have no interest in Peter Gabriel.

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Peter Gabriel is a vocalist that slowly growls on me over time. 

Yeah, but his clean vox tho!

[hefdaddy42]

Neither made my list, but I love both artists.

Too much growling for Akerfeldt to be considered by me for this, and Gabriel's voice just isn't that good, the way that I think of good voices (although certainly effective).  I never even thought about him when assembling my list.

[pg1067]

25 Mikael Akerfeldt

...

24 Peter Gabriel

Akerfeldt is the Opeth guy, right? (checking Wikipedia...)  Yup.  My only exposure to him was when they opened for DT on Prog Nation 2008 (I think).  My friend and I had been at the lobby bar and walked in to see what this band was all about.  As soon as he opened his mouth, we laughed and walked out to have another drink.

I didn't rank Peter Gabriel, but I really like his voice.  I'm not the hugest fan of Gabriel-era Genesis (a LOT of it is a bit too out there for the most part) and have only liked a small handful of his solo stuff.  If he had sung on the material from Trick through Abacab, he might have made my list.

[Tomislav95]

Had Mikael at #2 and it's about 80% due to his cleans. Tbh I'm surprised others don't feel that way. Absolutely love his natural voice/timbre even though it's quite limited. But every line he ever sang is special for me. I guess it's also due to me liking his writing style.
When it comes to his harsh vocals I like it the most on Opeth's Still Life. Honorable mention to his work with Bloodbath, sounds so brutal there.

Didn't rank Peter Gabriel but I'm not disappointed at all, I love early Genesis.

[jingle.boy]

There's one album I think that is mostly/all cleans??  If so, I did give that one a try, and was mostly underwhelmed.

Damnation was the trial run for an album of all cleans.  They'd had and continued to have other all-cleans songs as well, but starting with Heritage, the last four have all been cleans-only. 

Ok, so which album would you recommend I try to give them a final kick at the can?

[LithoJazzoSphere]

That's really hard to say, since I don't know that much about your tastes.  Damnation is my favorite of them, but if you've already heard that I'm not sure hearing it again is going to work for you.  Heritage is my favorite of the newer ones, but it's the most idiosyncratic of them.  I'd say that the latest, In cauda venenum, is probably the safest bet for the widest range of tastes. 

[Tomislav95]

I'd start with the latest or Pale Communion, they are much more diverse than Damnation. Damnation is damn good, as well.

[SwedishGoose]

The Swedish version of In Cauda Veneum...

[LithoJazzoSphere]

On that one I don't have a preference for my own listening.  It's fun for a change, and I prefer native tongue vocals sometimes for other bands (Night Crowned and Noumena come right to mind), but I'm used to him singing in English, so I like both.  For someone who is on the fence about them though, unless jingle is a big fan of non-English vocals, that might present an additional unnecessary obstacle. 

[jingle.boy]

The Swedish version of In Cauda Veneum...

Might as well be growls. 

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Well, there we go... 

[SwedishGoose]

 
The Swedish version of In Cauda Veneum...

Might as well be growls. 

[DTwwbwMP]

Neither on my list. Wouldn't even consider either for "top 50" but congrats to them!

[LithoJazzoSphere]

I have to say, if Akerfeldt barely made the top 25, I'm starting to think he might be the only one of mine in the collective top 25. 

[Zoom E]

I really enjoy Opeth, but would have a hard time picking Mikael as a favourite vocalist. That’s not a style of singing I would rate highly, though I do enjoy the offsetting harsh and clean vocals.

I didn't rank Peter Gabriel either. His voice is okay.

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Another counting game, I think I have at least six vocalists who have mixing harsh and clean vocals as part of their signature style, some more than others. 

[twosuitsluke]

Had Mikael at #2 and it's about 80% due to his cleans. Tbh I'm surprised others don't feel that way. Absolutely love his natural voice/timbre even though it's quite limited. But every line he ever sang is special for me. I guess it's also due to me liking his writing style.
When it comes to his harsh vocals I like it the most on Opeth's Still Life. Honorable mention to his work with Bloodbath, sounds so brutal there.

I love Mikael, but I don't necessarily think his clean vocals are the best. I love the way he sings but the biggest reason he ranks so high for me is his range! I think he's incredible because he can go from those cleans to the intense harsh vocals. I think Opeth balance those two vocal styles (or they used to) better than any other band. It all fits so seamlessly with the music, it's just flawless, especially on Ghost Reveries.

There are definitely a few vocalists that made it into my ranking because of their versatility.

For that reason Kyo from Dir en Grey nearly made my top 25. He's not necessarily my favourite based on one style of vocal, but the sheer range he his is so impressive he was definitely in the running.

[Stadler]

The tiebreaker will be whoever has the most songs on their list that were also on my list.

Note: having Billy Joel, Taylor Swift and/or Thom Yorke on your list will help your cause.

Thom Yorke ought not be within forty miles of this list.  Please.   Horrible.


I'll have four. 

[ZirconBlue]

The Swedish version of In Cauda Veneum...

Might as well be growls. 

I'm assuming it sounds like the Swedish Chef.

[Stadler]

Had Peter Gabriel at #7. Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

My top 3 Gabriel vocal performances:

1.Mercy Street
2.Here Comes The Flood (Robert Fripp version)
3.Secret World

I was thinking about doing this as well.  Great idea!!   

[twosuitsluke]

Had Peter Gabriel at #7. Each time one of my picks appears I'll give my top 3 vocal performances by that singer (not necessarily the same as my favourite songs by them), so that maybe people who aren't familiar but want to explore can do so. Maybe other folk can do the same for their picks, since discovering new music is one of the things these threads are about and I'm sure there'll be singers on this list that I've never even heard of.

My top 3 Gabriel vocal performances:

1.Mercy Street
2.Here Comes The Flood (Robert Fripp version)
3.Secret World

I was thinking about doing this as well.  Great idea!!

I checked out these songs. Let's just say nothing made me second guess my list 

[SeRoX]

If I had made top 100 list Mikael wouldn't have make it. Just an ordinary, simple voice. A voice that suits Opeth sound for sure but nothing more. Peter Gabriel is just a name that didn't come to my mind at first but when I think about him I would rank it top 50 for his solo albums. I don't like his Genesis period.

[Stadler]

I considered Peter, but he didn't make the list.  I thought about him a lot but I just couldn't pick another singer to boot for him.

Akerfeldt wasn't even a blip on the radar.

[TAC]

I didn't rate either. I thought Akerfeldt would do a bit better, actually, with all of the Opeth love around here.
I've hesitated on them because I not only don't like his growls, but I think his cleans are pretty bad too.

And Peter Gabriel...I'll be polite and simply state that he didn't make my list.

[twosuitsluke]

If I had made top 100 list Mikael wouldn't have make it. Just an ordinary, simple voice. A voice that suits Opeth sound for sure but nothing more. Peter Gabriel is just a name that didn't come to my mind at first but when I think about him I would rank it top 50 for his solo albums. I don't like his Genesis period.

Ain't nothing ordinary about those growls. They are the pinnacle of growls for me