The 5 hottest women in rock

Where are all the hot women in rock 'n' roll? It's been a while since Sheryl Crow walked that walk in a form-fitting jumpsuit for the Steve McQueen video.

When it comes to female musicians who can turn on the heat, it's a tough call – if she's hot, her music's not the kind you want to be heard humming.

So if you go looking, you have to stray into pop-rock at one end of the spectrum or enter the realm of metal at the other. So our line-up for you has the luscious, radio-friendly Katy Perry but you'll also meet metal mouth Angela Gossow.

Katy Perry

In a sentence: Avril Lavigne without the faux angst.

Where she's from: USA

Why she's in: The daughter of born-again Christians, Katy Perry first burst onto the music scene as a fresh-faced gospel rock singer. But then she sang songs about kissing girls, and told all and sundry what a naughty girl she'd been in her teens. Now, she's being slated as a sunnier Avril Lavigne and has sold more than 1.8 million copies of her debut album One of the Boys. Her song I Kissed a Girl even grabbed a nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal performance at the 2009 Grammy Awards.

Good to know: Her mum dated Jimi Hendrix in Spain.

Lily Allen

In a sentence: The pre-cursor to Katy Perry.

Where she's from: England

Why she's in: Precocious Lily Allen's caustic ode to breaking up, Smile, did for women what Alanis Morrisette's You Oughta Know did 10 years ago. Her impish looks, forthright songwriting and brassy outlook – she was thrown out of 13 schools, was peddling drugs in Ibiza by 15 – made her tabloid fodder in the UK. Her espousal of the rock 'n' roll lifestyle (she turned up at the 2008 Glamour Awards in a dress depicting decapitated Bambis and told off Elton John on stage at a GQ awards function) even had her actor dad Keith Allen wishing she knew when to "shut up."

Good to know: A framed police citation for assaulting a paparazzo hangs on the wall of her living room.

Angela Gossow

In a sentence: The meanest woman in metal.

Where she's from: Germany

Why she's in: With a growl that's straight out of hell, Angela Gossow is the most recognised female voice in metal. The vocalist of Swedish death metal band Arch Enemy, Angela was a regular teenager learning to play the accordion in Cologne till she felt herself drawn to the dark side. And she's not in the band just because she looks hot – she contributes in the songwriting department as well. Just don't look for soppy love songs here, check her out on YouTube to see what we mean.

Good to know: Arch Enemy plays at Dubai Desert Rock Festival.

Cristina Scabbia

In a sentence: Hottest babe in metal.

Where she's from: Italy

Why she's in: Cristina helms the Italian gothic metal band Lacuna Coil and is consistently voted the hottest woman in metal by online and magazine polls.

The Milanese singer has posed for Maxim and doesn't mind all the attention that the band gets because of her looks.

One of the few metal bands from Italy that has attracted worldwide audiences, Lacuna Coil's Our Truth was featured on the Underworld: Evolution soundtrack. After the success of the single Heaven's a Lie, Billboard called the band "one of the larger success stories in metal."

Good to know: She is currently dating Slipknot guitarist, James Root. Tough luck.

KT Tunstall

In a sentence: The Scottish folk-rock siren's got attitude, but doesn't look like Alanis Morrisette.

Where she's from: Scotland

Why she's in: KT Tunstall stands out from the gaggle of dolled up women entertainers. She loves Talisker, is a great songwriter and her guitar-driven folksy ballads are as good as they come. She beats the stereotype, too: her first record deal for Eye to the Telescope with Relentless Records happened when she was 29 – an age when most female singer-songwriters are put out to pasture.

Good to know: Born to an Irish father and mother of Chinese and Scottish descent, she was adopted just 18 days after being born.