I would like to suggest 3 of my top favorites. Some of their songs can be VERY heavy metal-ish, while others are more relaxed, one ven sounds a bit Celtic. The bands are(and I will post why I like them below and will do my best to post 1 or 2vids each) Sonata Arctica, Blind Guardian and Rhapsody. Now to the reasonings.
Sonata Arctica - They arent your typical Metal band. Their songs, if listened to in the order they are on a CD usually come out as a story of sorts, some of their songs change pace 2-3 times during the course of the song. And mostly, because I picked up their CD on a whim, and ended up going out the next day to buy ALL their CDs I could find. The two songs I will post by them are
The End of This Chapter, which is basically a story of love, and the lighter of the two songs(on the Metal spectrum at least). And the second, is
8th Commandment. I havent quite deciphered the "story" in this one, but its the heavier of the two, and still a nice song.
YouTube - Sonata Arctica - The End Of This Chapter
YouTube - Sonata Arctica - 8th Commandment
Blind Guardian - Basically Fantasy Metal(or if you wish, Epic Power Metal). They have many, many variations of song. Some, from the
Nightfall in Middle-Earth, are basically just things you would expect to see/hear in Lord of the Rings. While others, basically take you to a realm not our own, where mystical creatures could reside. And like Sonata Arctica, it was on a whim that I decided to try these guys. The first song,
Theater of Pain, it just has that epic feel to it, and I think is kind of like a Light Metal style song. The second song,
The Eldar, even though its from the
Nightfall in Middle-Earth album, it shows their lighter side.
YouTube - BLIND GUARDIAN - THEATRE OF PAIN
YouTube - Blind Guardian - The Elder
Rhapsody - All their songs, every single one, is an addition onto their VERY first song, sort of. The first one set the stage, and the others are a continuation of the story of the "5 Valiant Warriors, who battle against the powers of Darkness". This, by far, is the best band Ive found that can continuously create songs that fit together so perfectly, that it seems like you are listening to a story, rather than music. The first song,
Dargor Shadowlord Of The Black Mountain, is about, well, Dargor. Its a fairly upbeat song, and semi-heavy on the metal. The second song,
Guardiani del Destino, is a nice song, with one of the "Celtic" feels to it. And not a SINGLE word of english in it.
YouTube - Rhapsody of Fire - Dargor, Shadowlord Of The Black Mountain (Full Version)
YouTube - Rhapsody - Guardiani del Destino