For my first Band Of The Week, I submit
Avantasia.
Avantasia (The Metal Opera) is a symphonic/power metal concept project, created by Tobias Sammet (lead singer of the power metal group Edguy).
10 years ago (1999), while on tour with Edguy, Tobias Sammet began writing down ideas for a metal opera concept album. When this tour was finished, he began recruiting well known metal artists (singers, guitarists, etc.) These artists include Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske (Helloween), Sharon Den Adel (Within Temptation), Alice Cooper, Rudolf Schenker (Scorpions) and Eric Singer (KISS, Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper).
The story revolves around Gabriel Laymann, novice of the Dominican order in the abbey of Mainz. It's the year 1602 and, with the rest of the order, Gabriel joins in the witch hunts. But when he is unexpectedly reunited with stepsister Anna Held, who is awaiting trial as a witch, Gabriel begins to doubt. He sneaks into the library, where he reads a forbidden book. His mentor Bruder Jakob notices him, and Gabriel is thrown into the dungeon.
The project is described as a "Metal Opera" because it has an underlying plot and each role has its own singer, though it's not an opera by the classical definition. It's merely a collection of pieces, which refer to the individual points of the plot printed in the booklet. From a stylistic view, the majority of the songs are melodic power metal meshed with a voluminous sound, many orchestral passages and choral parts, gaining Avantasia recognition as symphonic power metal.
Songs on Youtube uploaded by me (Melirune)
Avantasia - The Metal Opera Part I - Breaking AwayAvantasia - The Metal Opera Part II - The Looking Glass 
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