Time for my annual best albums list. Not unusually for me I guess, there is a lot of material here from artists I grew up with. Some of them produced great comebacks, others sank in their own mediocrity.
It was a year of comebacks of a sort.
Fifteen years in the making, Axl Rose… sorry… ‘Guns ‘N Roses’ released Chinese Democracy. The questions were abundant – how could the songs be good if they took fifteen years to be recorded? Without a stable recording line-up, wouldn’t it be a complete mishmash? Not surprisingly, Chinese Democracy is uninspiring, boring, and just plain dull. Though most people had lost any hint excitement at the pending release about a decade ago, it would have been nice for it to have worked. Axl’s only hope is a reunion with his former partners who now make up Velvet Revolver.
Iced Earth forsook Tim Owens and recalled Matt Barlow to the fold for The Crucible Of Man – Something Wicked Part 2, and found that the change in vocalist still doesn’t help ordinary songwriting. Jon Schaeffer needs to go back to 1998 and remember what Iced Earth songs are supposed to sound like.
Brian May, Roger Taylor, Paul Rodgers and company finally released their awaited-for album of new material under the banner Queen + Paul Rodgers. Unfortunately, The Cosmos Rocks is a sad mix of 1970’s pop-rock and slower ballads that lack the inspiration and power of either Queen or Rodgers’ former bands. Perhaps it is not surprising given the nostalgia trip the band has been on for the past five years, but there was hope of something special. No such luck.
Def Leppard forced a new selection of sugar coated crap down our throats with Songs From The Sparkle Lounge. They were great live in November, but their new material is still just awful. Whitesnake also returned with Good To Be Bad and proved that the title was inaccurate. This should have been something special but fell down in almost every department.
All was not completely lost. Alice Cooper brought out another solid release with Along Came A Spider proving he is almost incapable of putting out bad albums. Michael Schenker brought vocalist Gary Barden back into the fold to release In The Midst Of Beauty, and though not able to recapture the magic of their initial partnership 20-odd years ago, it still makes for good listening.
Almost the release of the year, but not actually included on my list, is Exodus’ re-recording of their debut classic Bonded By Blood. Renamed here as Let There Be Blood, it was recorded to allow today’s modern recording techniques give it the power it deserves. Controversial in parts, I think it is a triumph, and shows Exodus are as relevant today as they ever were. However, I didn’t include it in my list, as it is just a re-release. It would have ranked very high had I used it!
So that’s the preliminaries. Here’s this year’s Top Ten.
10. Motorizer / MOTORHEADAnother year, another Motorhead album. And like every other release they have made, you know exactly what it is going to sound like. OK, a couple of the songs are really cheesy, even for Lemmy. But overall, the good thing about this album is that it feels familiar even though it is new. Easy to put on and listen to.
9. Lonely Are The Brave / JORN
Jorn Lande left Masterplan two years ago, and this is his first solo album since that split. With vocal chords like his, it was only a matter of what direction his song writing was going to go in. Fortunately for me, his inistincts kept him in the metal genre, and this is a great effort. Easy to spot the Whitesnake and Dio influences too. The cover of Deep Purple’s “Stormbringer” is stunning.
8. Shogun / TRIVIUMAnother solid release from one of the leaders in the current metal crop. Very interesting to me is the fact that there is a lot less growling on this album and a lot more clear vocals from Matt Heafy. Is that a response, perhaps to lengthen the band’s longevity. I don’t know. A good album that to me still lacks the killer punch to make it a bellringer.
7. The Man Who Would Not Die / BLAZE BAYLEYBlaze is back, and while this mightn’t quite reach the heights of his previous three albums, there is still enough here to make it a great release. With a whole new band it must have been difficult to pull together in the writing process, but overall it works like a dream. This guy deserves a higher profile in the metal world that he currently holds.
6. Death Magnetic / METALLICA
The fact that I am able to put this in my Top Ten albums of the year is a win in itself – the first time since the black album I have been able to do so. A much better feel to this album, and with about half the songs I can put on and listen to at any time. Still has some rubbish – “The Unforgiven III” is the standout – but at least they have gone in the right direction for the first time in almost two decades.
5. Perpetual Flame / YNGWIE MALMSTEEN’S RISING FORCEAs good as Unleash The Fury was, this is a brilliant return to form for Yngwie. Having recruited Tim Owens on vocals, this reminds me so much of Trilogy it’s not funny. Great singing from Ripper, who succeeds by not over-extending himself. Yngwie’s licks and riffs are still killer. This was a surprise in the good way.
4. Killing Season / DEATH ANGELAnother great release from the reformed San Francisco thrash merchants. Not quite the same fury that they produced on their previous album, but this still shows off their best qualities – good vocals, awesome guitaring, blinding drumming. Now tour Australia you bastards!
3. The Formation of Damnation / TESTAMENTThis led the way for most of the year as the best album of the year. The return grouping of Alex Skolnick, Eric Petersen, Greg Christian and Chuck Billy, with Nick Barker on drums, brings the full force of Testament to the fore, and they don’t let anyone down. Heavy metal has returned, and the five members all make sure that Testament is here for the long haul.
2. Saints of Los Angeles / MOTLEY CRUEI personally would never have believed they could have done it, but Motley Crue have righted the ship, and produced an album that ranks with their best from the 1980’s. Based on their autobiography “The Dirt”, they have told their story in the songs and also resurrected their sound from that era to produce an absolutely brilliant album. Vintage Crue.
1. Hell Yeah! The Awesome Foursome Live in Montreal / GAMMA RAYBack at their rightful place at Number 1 after finishing second last year. This live album (which is also on DVD) contains the absolute best that this band can produce, covering all era’s, and especially the recent era with lots of their newer stuff live. This proves once again why they are one of, if not, the premier metal band in the universe.
So there you go. My annual contribution. Feel free to discuss.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
535. Michael Schenker Group / In The Midst of Beauty. 2008. 3/5.
With the return of Gary Barden to lead vocals and the good vibes of Michael Schenker’s recent releases, I was looking forward to hearing this album, and seeing what they could do together again. Would the result be a brilliant and revealing current sound? Or a trip down memory lane with a 70’s rock feel? As it turns out, it is the second option.
While I guess I was hoping for Michael Schenker album for the new(ish) century, these two have reverted to their comfort zones and put together an album that wouldn’t look out of place in the late 1970’s. While it is enjoyable enough to listen to, there is nothing new here. In fact, it does lack the blistering Schenker solos that highlighted the pair’s work together in the early 1980’s. Rather than extending themselves, they have put out a safe, almost AOR album, a far cry from the metal attack of earlier releases.
Despite this, it has its moments. While it may not be a peak, nor an album you would give someone for their first taste of MSG (no pun intended), if you are a fan you will get enough out of it to make the purchase worthwhile.
Rating: Nothing new here, but occasionally that's what you are looking for. 3 / 5.
While I guess I was hoping for Michael Schenker album for the new(ish) century, these two have reverted to their comfort zones and put together an album that wouldn’t look out of place in the late 1970’s. While it is enjoyable enough to listen to, there is nothing new here. In fact, it does lack the blistering Schenker solos that highlighted the pair’s work together in the early 1980’s. Rather than extending themselves, they have put out a safe, almost AOR album, a far cry from the metal attack of earlier releases.
Despite this, it has its moments. While it may not be a peak, nor an album you would give someone for their first taste of MSG (no pun intended), if you are a fan you will get enough out of it to make the purchase worthwhile.
Rating: Nothing new here, but occasionally that's what you are looking for. 3 / 5.
534. Jorn / Lonely Are The Brave. 2008. 4/5.
After the age-old cliché response that he and former band Masterplan were parting ways through musical differences, this is Jorn’s first solo album following that decision. Given that he left Masterplan when he wanted to go in a more melodic direction away from their heavier direction there was a fair indication of what to expect here.
Surprisingly then, this is probably heavier than I expected. Jorn’s wonderful vocals are the centerpiece of every song, and while the songs here are structured differently from those of his Masterplan and Ark past, they somehow still suit him well. There is a nice mixture of faster material and slower material, but none of it lacks the metal element. You can easily pick up the Whitesnake influences in his songs (most obviously in the opening title track), but there is a whole lot more to it as well.
Having taken the step to go out on his own again, he has done a great job here, given that you not only have enjoyed his earlier material but like your music with a twist of Whitesnake and Dio, because that’s what this most reminds me of.
Favourites for me here include “Lonely Are The Brave”, “Night City”, “Promises”, “The Inner Road” and brilliant version of Deep Purple’s “Stormbringer”.
Rating: Surprisingly good, and though not at his Masterplan peak, still a worthy release. 4 /5.
Surprisingly then, this is probably heavier than I expected. Jorn’s wonderful vocals are the centerpiece of every song, and while the songs here are structured differently from those of his Masterplan and Ark past, they somehow still suit him well. There is a nice mixture of faster material and slower material, but none of it lacks the metal element. You can easily pick up the Whitesnake influences in his songs (most obviously in the opening title track), but there is a whole lot more to it as well.
Having taken the step to go out on his own again, he has done a great job here, given that you not only have enjoyed his earlier material but like your music with a twist of Whitesnake and Dio, because that’s what this most reminds me of.
Favourites for me here include “Lonely Are The Brave”, “Night City”, “Promises”, “The Inner Road” and brilliant version of Deep Purple’s “Stormbringer”.
Rating: Surprisingly good, and though not at his Masterplan peak, still a worthy release. 4 /5.
533. Iced Earth / The Crucible of Man (Something Wicked Part 2). 2008. 1.5/5
Having been a fan of ‘Ripper’ Owens while he was in the band, I admit to being one of the faithful who thought that the return of Matt Barlow to the fold would be the right thing for Iced Earth. I also believed it would make The Crucible Of Man a stronger album than their previous effort. I guess all of this could have been true, except that one thing got forgotten – write some bloody decent songs!
Barlow is back, and his vocals cram themselves out of the speakers at you, but is there any real feeling or power there? Has he lost his touch? It’s difficult to say, but it really isn’t the same man who sang on Iced Earth albums ten years ago. However, he can only sing the material he has in front of him, and here it seems the band has slipped dramatically. Where have the heavy songs gone? Where is the intense riffing that once was so prevalent in their music? Have they left speed for good? This is where all the conflict is. You can’t have a good album without good material, and in trying to tell a story it appears that the music has been dealt a savage blow.
It is possible that this is such a massive disappointment because all of the talk leading up to it was the return of Barlow? Actually, no. The elements of Iced Earth are there, but they just feel watered down. Or are they just outdated? Surely the time has come to just go out and get back to the basics, and bring back what made Iced Earth such a formidable band. Big fans will probably still get enough out of this album. I did not.
Rating: If going back to the past is their ideal, then they need to go further back. 1.5 / 5
Barlow is back, and his vocals cram themselves out of the speakers at you, but is there any real feeling or power there? Has he lost his touch? It’s difficult to say, but it really isn’t the same man who sang on Iced Earth albums ten years ago. However, he can only sing the material he has in front of him, and here it seems the band has slipped dramatically. Where have the heavy songs gone? Where is the intense riffing that once was so prevalent in their music? Have they left speed for good? This is where all the conflict is. You can’t have a good album without good material, and in trying to tell a story it appears that the music has been dealt a savage blow.
It is possible that this is such a massive disappointment because all of the talk leading up to it was the return of Barlow? Actually, no. The elements of Iced Earth are there, but they just feel watered down. Or are they just outdated? Surely the time has come to just go out and get back to the basics, and bring back what made Iced Earth such a formidable band. Big fans will probably still get enough out of this album. I did not.
Rating: If going back to the past is their ideal, then they need to go further back. 1.5 / 5
532. Queen + Paul Rodgers / The Cosmos Rocks. 2008. 2/5
No one who has heard anything of Queen + Paul Rodgers recently will have any thoughts that either party will reach the heights that they once did. While their coming together has been a good thing for them, allowing them to tour and play a whole variety of songs, they are a new band. In fact I would preferred to have seen them take a new name for the band, so as not sully what have been great careers to this point.
Anyway, the first release from this trio and their band partners is here, and it is a departure from what one would have liked to have heard, but is unsurprising that it is not. Gone is the innovation that is one of the hallmarks of Queen’s background, and gone are the strong vocals that Paul Rodgers has in his earlier incantations. What we have instead is a selection of songs that are disappointingly average. What ‘rock’ songs there are on the album tend very much toward the pop side of rock.
The presence of Brian May’s scintillating guitar is toned down into the wash, where it rarely comes into its own. Ditto Roger Taylor's drumming. The beauty of Queen’s album’s was that they were always interesting, and they always tried new ideas. It is the lack of anything outstanding or new here that drags it into the mire. It feels almost like a 70’s pop album.
So no. It doesn’t work, and that’s a shame. No doubt there are people out there who will enjoy this, but it just doesn’t feel right from the first time you put it on. There is no spark, there is no fire. As an easy listening album you might get marks, but for guys that have set the bar so high in years gone by, it ranks as a fizzer.
Rating: Disappointingly average. 2 / 5.
Anyway, the first release from this trio and their band partners is here, and it is a departure from what one would have liked to have heard, but is unsurprising that it is not. Gone is the innovation that is one of the hallmarks of Queen’s background, and gone are the strong vocals that Paul Rodgers has in his earlier incantations. What we have instead is a selection of songs that are disappointingly average. What ‘rock’ songs there are on the album tend very much toward the pop side of rock.
The presence of Brian May’s scintillating guitar is toned down into the wash, where it rarely comes into its own. Ditto Roger Taylor's drumming. The beauty of Queen’s album’s was that they were always interesting, and they always tried new ideas. It is the lack of anything outstanding or new here that drags it into the mire. It feels almost like a 70’s pop album.
So no. It doesn’t work, and that’s a shame. No doubt there are people out there who will enjoy this, but it just doesn’t feel right from the first time you put it on. There is no spark, there is no fire. As an easy listening album you might get marks, but for guys that have set the bar so high in years gone by, it ranks as a fizzer.
Rating: Disappointingly average. 2 / 5.
531. Guns N' Roses / Chinese Democracy. 2008. 1.5/5
It came as absolutely no surprise to me that this album was such a disappointment. Let’s face it – we were all waiting for it for so long, at least ten years. In fact, since the release of both of the Use You Illusion albums, we’ve been waiting for the follow up. Almost two decades later, and years of promises, and the day finally arrived. And after such a build-up, what could you possibly expect.
It doesn’t help that it also isn’t Guns N’ Roses – it’s Axl Rose and some other musicians. No disrespect to them, but Slash’s guitaring was as much G N’ R as the vocals ever were, and it does seem to be missing a bit in that respect.More than anything else, the songs are lame. Having been written and recorded over such a long period of time, the album is disconnected and for the most part tremendously boring. There is little hard or heavy, or even rock, about most of the songs on this album. Axl still wails where he finds it necessary, but has little in common with what the original band released back in its day.
For the record company’s sake, at least it has been released. The world can now stop worrying about whether it was ever going to happen, and move onto other matters.
Rating: Only what is to be expected, but not what was hoped for. 1.5 / 5
It doesn’t help that it also isn’t Guns N’ Roses – it’s Axl Rose and some other musicians. No disrespect to them, but Slash’s guitaring was as much G N’ R as the vocals ever were, and it does seem to be missing a bit in that respect.More than anything else, the songs are lame. Having been written and recorded over such a long period of time, the album is disconnected and for the most part tremendously boring. There is little hard or heavy, or even rock, about most of the songs on this album. Axl still wails where he finds it necessary, but has little in common with what the original band released back in its day.
For the record company’s sake, at least it has been released. The world can now stop worrying about whether it was ever going to happen, and move onto other matters.
Rating: Only what is to be expected, but not what was hoped for. 1.5 / 5
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