Numbers 9 through 7

After years of having a very eclectic taste for music, I have amassed a rather large hodgepodge of tunes ranging from The Beach Boys & Mudvayne to Katy Perry & Johnny Cash. Rock music seems to be the driving leader in my library though, towering in numbers of artists as well as play count. I partially attribute this to the advent of Sirius sat radio with their hard rock channel Octane as well as listening to the past works of Alan Cross' Ongoing History of New Music. Being a delivery driver who is in the vehicle quite a bit, Sirius has saved me from searching for a station worth listening to when I am halfway across the country.  However, it has also shaped my musical taste driving it towards "Pure Hard Rock."

Within this genre, I seem to be finding myself drawn towards female rockers lately and I started thinking, "What is it that makes me like these bands more than others?" Is it that I'm attracted to them just based on their sexual prowess? Is there a mental trigger when hearing a sensual female voice sing a gentle verse then belt out an explosion of emotion and screaming guitar in the chorus? Beats me, it may just be that I like rock music and I like women, plain and simple.

No matter the question why, I have begun to rank these women based solely on my opinion of their rock presence in my life. The following is the first installment of 3 that I will be presenting over Labor Day weekend, of the top 9 female artists I believe to be the best in rock today. No matter if you agree or disagree with this list overall, I think that there is something that you'll find you like.

So here we go!

9.) Tarja Turunen - Nightwish/Solo

Finland native and classically trained soprano singer Tarja, formally fronted the Finnish metal band Nightwish but now is out to take on the world as a solo artist. I first heard her coupled with All That Remains frontman Phil Labonte on her song titled Dark Star. After hearing it I was very intrigued by her high soprano tone and clean, trained vocals, no auto tune, no gimmicks, no scream lyrcis.(well at least not by her, Phil takes care of that) This voice led me to search for her music and learn more about her. 

Her album What Lies Beneath blew me away with the combination of a beautiful vocals and that huge rock opera sound. Aside from Phil Labonte joining her on Dark Star, another very well known musician, Joe Satriani, came on board to perform with Tarja. She must be doing something right if talent of that caliber is wanting to join. Check out Satriani on Falling Awake and hear the lyrical talent of Tarja:

8.) Sharon den Adel - Within Temptaion

Next on my list is the Dutch beauty Sharon den Adel of the band Within Temptation. Thanks to Octane for introducing me to this great band and hot rocker because after hearing the single 'Faster,' I was hooked. Her powerful yet sometimes fragile vocals, coupled with a heavily mastered symphonic metal backing, make for quite an earth moving sound. The song 'Shot in the Dark' from their latest album The Unforgiving, is a great example of this. While her voice is enough to keep me satisfied, she's pretty damn easy on the eyes as well. 

7.) Lacey Strum(Mosley) - Flyleaf

How does someone as innocent looking as this be included as one of the hottest women on this list? It's all in that voice. Lacey can sing some of the most soothing, somewhat raspy melodies and then turn it up and hit you with a thrash metal scream that will make you look twice at who you're listening to. Hailing from Arlington, Texas, Lacey is this little, cutie but super powerful front woman of the band Flyleaf. Their music has some of the most wide covering post-grunge comparisons of any on this list being categorized as christian rock, heavy metal, hard rock and so on. This goes to show just how wide ranging Lacey's lyrics and singing style are. She is also one of two women on my list that have done work with Apocalyptica, a Finnish rock band comprised of classically trained cellists. She lends voice perfectly to the matched composition on the track 'Broken Pieces'. However, with a new Flyleaf album I'm pumped to hear what she can do next. 

Well, that's all I've got for today. Tomorrow I'll let you in on the ladies that ranked 4-6 and Labor Day will wrap up the top 3. Thanks for your interest if you made it this far!