Interesting topic...
Metal the way it is supposed to be doesn't exist anymore. I was exposed to it growing up in the 80s and 90s. My faves in middle school to high school were Metallica, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, Whitesnake, and of course Guns and Roses. Yeah, I listened to all of it with my suburban neighborhood friends. For the record, these were the same kids into Wu-Tang and B.I.G., so it goes both ways.
These days if I wanted to listen to rock or "hard rock", it's more about bands I got into maybe 5 to 10 years back. Linkin Park is great. I had a feel for what Evanescence and Amy Lee were doing. Other great artists in no particular order: Jack White (Rancoteurs and White Stripes), Panic at the Disco, Jimmy Eat World (west coast punk legends), My Chemical Romance, Korn, definitely Smashing Pumpkins, Pat Benetar, The Killers, Pearl Jam, Black Keys, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (technically emo). Big fan of all of those acts. There are a lot others but I listen to everything, I'd go on and on.