Devanation vocalist Jacob Shaw stopped by to elaborate on 10 band that have had a huge impact on his life. Check his selections after the jump!

For great headphones to listen to these bands, make sure you pick ones from a great selection at DJ City.

Korn

This was the first really "dark" band that I can remember listening to. I was probably 6 or 7, and I immediately started wearing Korn t shirts (I was kicked out of private school, & quickly became an outcast in public school). When "Take A Look In The Mirror" came out, I used to throw on my Walkman CD player and ride my bike around my neighborhood jamming at full blast, and without this band, my life would have gone very differently.

Disturbed

Everyone jumps to "The Sickness" for this band, and while that song/album are top tier, the following record "Believe" is what really got me. Every vocal and guitar hook was incredibly thought out, the mix was perfect, and there isn't one song on that album that I didn't listen to thousands of times. If I ever had a gun to my head and was told to pick my top 20 favorite songs of all time, at least 3 songs from this album would be high contenders. 

Slipknot

My mother, my uncle and I were driving through my hometown of Fremont when my uncle reached over to the CD player and said "Jake, check this out". Wait and Bleed started playing, and it was over for me. I had never heard anything so intense in my life, and didn't know it was possible to do that in music.

Everything this band has ever done is perfect. It also helps that they're incredibly nice guys that treat everyone like family, which is equally as inspiring as the music is. I've said before that the bridge of "Before I Forget" is probably my favorite piece of music ever. From I Am Hated to Don't Get Close, from Snuff to Scissors, as far as "legacies" are considered, this is my favorite band. 

System of a Down

I remember seeing the "Aerials" music video on MTV (remember when that was a thing?) and thinking the end of this song was and still is one of the heaviest riffs ever. What you have to remember is that I was born in 1993 - I was a LITTLE ass kid when I was finding this shit. I started seeing and hearing this band everywhere, and their hooks would pierce my soul and never leave. "Tentative" on the Hypnotize album is arguably my favorite song of theirs, but I love it all so much that I couldn't truly pick. I cannot articulate how excited I am to hear new music from them soon. 

Stone Sour

In terms of how often I listen to the music, this is my favorite band. Ever since I first heard "Inhale" as a kid, I've been hooked. I still remember going to Target to get Come What(ever) May the first day it came out. Every album they've done sounds vastly different, but it always gets better - I feel like this band really has a song for every mood, every scenario - no matter how I'm feeling, I can always throw on a Stone Sour song. Their next album "Hydrograd" is my most anticipated release of 2017.

Mudvayne

My introduction to this band was Not Falling. I can't remember the website, but I used to listen to a 30 second preview of this song on repeat until I finally went out and bought the album (I didn't discover L.D. 50 until later). The End Of All Things To Come was and still is a masterpiece. They toured with Black Label Society, and the only time I ever had the opportunity to see them live, Zakk Wylde got sick and the show was cancelled. Then Mudvayne broke up. THANKS ZAKK. 

Papa Roach

I will back this band for as long as I live. We all know how great Infest was, but NOBODY talks about lovehatetragedy, and that album is why I ended up buying my first guitar. "Walking Thru Barbed Wire" and "Black Clouds" are still constantly in regular rotation. Jacoby is also a massive part of the reason I became a vocalist, so if you've ever liked a song of mine, you have him to thank for it as well. 

Emmure

I first heard "False Love In Real Life" on MySpace when The Respect Issue came out, and went to their show at the DNA Lounge shortly thereafter, and was hooked. The first tattoo I ever got was the Emmure "E" on my calf. My favorite incarnation of the lineup was from Slave To The Game - Eternal Enemies, as we toured with and made friends with them - maybe an unfair bias but whatever. I know they've all gone their separate ways, but I back Frank continuing and I also back what the rest of the dudes have coming up next - you're all gonna love it.

Hatebreed

I have the wonderful people involved with the XXX film to thank for this discovery. The music behind that snowboarding scene was SO hard, and I remember finding "To The Threshold" soon after. This band & everyone in their camp are all wonderful people, and in more ways than one, you probably wouldn't be reading this if it weren't for Jasta.

Eminem

I know we all like to tell ourselves that popularity/being mainstream somehow equates to less artistic integrity, which may be the case sometimes, but this is certainly not the case with Eminem - he's one of the biggest rappers in the world for a reason. I could've written about Rammstein, Linkin Park, a myriad of other rock/metal bands that truly influenced me, but I think it's important to recognize artists that can transcend listeners from different worlds of music. I was in LOVE with The Eminem Show when I was a kid, and I vividly remember riding my bike around town with "Lose Yourself" blasting through my headphones. "Cinderella Man", "No Love" and "Going Through Changes" did something to me when Recovery came out, and I was not the same person after hearing those songs. If you don't back Eminem, I don't back you

If you actually read this whole thing, then 🤘