ATTIC MUSIC'S TOP TEN ALBUMS OF 2009!

So I wasn't so sure if I was going to do this or not.

Every year all the magazines and blogs bombard you with their lists of the top releases, and it's usually bullshit. Some blogs will tell you that only indie bands released anything good this year, while magazines like Rolling Stone will probably say Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, U2 or Bruce Springsteen (or some other old guy/old guy band that you didn't even know put an album out this year) edged out the competition once again.

Well, in regards to my pathetic attempt at furthering this very same tradition that I just got done talking shit about, do the both of us a favor and just see the following as a list of recommendations. No need to become upset. These are my picks for the 10 Albums of 2009, the ones I find to be essential in summing up the year in music. It's not just about which albums were the most popular, and its certainly not about which albums took 25 listens to get into either(we're looking at you, Pitchfork).

Regardless of whether or not you agree, please check the albums you're unfamiliar with out! Take my word for it; over the course of 2009, these are the albums I was most impressed with. Be sure to click on the album covers to check out a review and explanation for each choice.

Read. Comment. Listen. ENJOY!

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Best Albums of 2009: 10. The Horrors' "Primary Colours"

10. The Horrors “Primary Colors”

So The Horrors really like Jesus and the Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine and The Shangri-Las. But get past their fairly obvious influences (and get off your high horse while you're at it) and you'll have a hell of an album in front of you. After their campy, garage punk debut album came off as a little too heavy on gimmicky madness, the band closed ranks, enlisted Portishead’s Geoff Barrow as the project’s producer, and came back with a brand new sound, and the most effortlessly creepy indie release of the year.

There’s some post-punk, a nice handful of shoegaze, and a whole lot of goth as well, and the results are quite stunning. “I Can’t Control Myself” has a subtle relentlessness that is positively hypnotic, and the epic “Sea Within A Sea,” clocking in at nearly eight minutes, is a murky, chorus-less, jaw-droppingly brave first single, complete with busy synths and vocalist Faris Badwan’s ghostlike incantations.

In 2009, all anyone could talk about was Grizzly Bear and Animal Collective, but if you ask me, but they should have been talking about The Horrors.

Best Albums of 2009: 9. Drake's "So Far Gone"

9. Drake “So Far Gone”

Hey, remember when I told you guys Kanye’s “808s and Heartbreak” would end up being crazy important and potentially set the course for hip hop’s future? Well judging by the success of Drake, as well as Kid Cudi, this past year, I’m thinking I was absolutely right.

Don’t kid yourselves, Drake isn’t going anywhere any time soon, and he can thank the brilliant “So Far Gone” for that. “Best I Ever Had” and “Successful” tore up the airwaves this summer, and rightfully so. The genius of Drake is the middle ground he’s found between pop and hip hop, which is exactly what Kanye attempted on 808s. You can hear that album’s influence all over So Far Gone; and by adding in elements of contemporary R&B, Lil Wayne’s slurred delivery, Jay-Z’s self-assured mic presence, and Kanye’s emphasis on introspection, Drake crafted a sound and style that is all his own, and it made him a superstar.

And get this; he never once had to mention shooting anyone.

Best Albums of 2009: 8. Lady Gaga's "The Fame Monster"

8. Lady Gaga “The Fame Monster”

The best things about The Fame Monster are its length and its rejection of an overreliance on variety. It doesn’t overstay its welcome and it doesn’t come off like your average cookie-cutter, “throw a bunch of singles at the public and see what sticks” pop release. This is an album; an album so good that even Gaga’s biggest detractors may have to back down from their blind, misinformed “she all style, no substance” claims. Unlike The Fame, which was exhilarating but messy, The Fame Monster is tight, tuneful and sharp as a tack conceptually.

“Alejandro” and “Bad Romance” make it clear that Gaga is the dance-pop gold standard of the moment, with “So Happy I Could Die” not too far behind, but it’s with the epic “Speechless” and the evil “Teeth” that Lady Gaga makes her definitive statement; this woman is capable of anything.

Best Albums of 2009: 7. Rihanna's "Rated R"

7. Rihanna “Rated R”

It’s hard not to let the heart wrenching story of the woman behind this year’s best pop album not seep into a review of her work, so I won’t. Rihanna shows incredible bravery and strength throughout “Rated R,” facing the hurricane that was her personal life head-on over the course of thirteen impeccably written and produced tracks.

Whether she declares that “I’ll never play the victim/I’d rather be a stalker” over a storm of synths and rock guitars on the shitkicking “Rockstar 101,” scolds herself for falling so hard for the wrong man on the gorgeous “Stupid In Love,” or confesses “I just want to set you on fire/So I won’t have to burn alone/ Then you’ll know where I’m coming from,” on the album’s definitive highlight “Fire Bomb,” there’s never any doubt that she’s telling the whole truth and nothing but. Chris Brown’s new album finds the disgraced performer stuck in self-pitying, victim mode, and thankfully Rihanna didn’t go that route; she was too busy surviving, and in the process releasing the best album of her career.

Don’t they call that poetic justice, or something?

Best Albums of 2009: 6. Gallows' "Grey Britain"

6. Gallows “Grey Britain”

Gallows’ sophomore release, entitled “Grey Britain,” opens with the stunning “Riverbank.” The track begins with quiet, deeply unsettling violins and slow-building feedback that erupts into a towering beast of punk-metal guitars and lead vocalist Frank Carter wailing “Great Britain is burning down/We’ll be buried alive before we die/The Queen is dead/So is the crown!” And from there, the band never lets up, spewing venom every bit as earnest and raw as the Sex Pistols when they swore there was no future, or The Clash when they said they wanted to riot. “Misery” is too bruising and honest to be cliché, and “The Vulture (Acts I & II)” sees the band make a successful foray into unabashedly melodic territory, but it's with “The Riverbed,” the sequel to the similarly named opening number, that Gallows achieve near perfection, with a dizzying, hard-as-nails riff and the heaviest, thickest groove any metal song had this side of Sepultura’s “Roots.”

Best Albums of 2009: 5. Florence + the Machine's "Lungs"

5. Florence + The Machine “Lungs”

When you talk about Florence Welch, vocalist and leader of the collaborative project Florence + the Machine, her soulful, indie-friendly voice always takes center stage in the discussion. Somewhere in between Annie Lennox and Lily Allen, Welsh is prodigiously talented. But what makes Florence + the Machine stand out amongst their post-Amy Winehouse, British female singer-songwriter peers, and what makes their debut album “Lungs” so special, is some of the richest, most nuanced and exciting songwriting anywhere in the current landscape of popular music.

“You hit me once/I hit you back/You gave a kick/I gave a slap/You smashed a plate over my head /Then I set fire to our bed” opens the masterful “Kiss With A Fist.” Propelled by a shady-but-fun, Stooges-like musical backdrop, Welsh recounts a mutually abusive relationship with a disturbing resignation. Powerful stuff, but not at all overshadowing the other fantastic compositions to be found here; particularly “Girl With One Eye,” a brilliant song that shuffles along, building momentum before exploding into a deeply emotional catharsis that enthralls and haunts in equal measure, and “Hurricane Drunk,” which boasts the best vocal performance on Lungs, with Welsh howling “I’m going out/Gonna drink myself to death” at the start of one of the albums most memorable choruses.

Best Albums of 2009: 4. The Dream's "Love vs. Hate"

4. The Dream “Love vs. Money”

The only thing more fascinating than The Dream’s many phenomenal pop hits is the lack of attention paid to his far better solo albums.

Last year’s “Love/Hate” showed great promise, but “Love vs. Money” is an entirely different beast; going places mainstream R&B never seems to these days. Things begin exciting but expectedly so; leadoff single “Rockin That Shit” opens with luxuriant, majestic synths, and Walking On The Moon,” featuring Kanye West, and the Mariah Carey-assisted “My Love,” come complete with airtight hooks and rich, layered production, but it’s nothing we haven’t seen before.

No, it’s when we hit the album’s middle section that The Dream really pulls out all the stops, unleashing a haunting song suite that is at the very heart of album’s power. In stark contrast with everything before it, the title track, “Love vs. Money,” boasts frantic, percussion-heavy production, over which The Dream rails bitterly against a girlfriend lost to another man. “Love vs. Money II,” immediately follows and it is stunning. The hard-hitting percussion and purposefully cluttered production on the previous track suddenly disappears, leaving whining, dissonant synths, thick bass, and lone finger snaps, over which The Dream airs out his former lover and her new man for their naivety, imploring “Kiss that nigga/Hug that nigga/Love that nigga to death/Go ahead and please that nigga/Feed that nigga/In time you’ll see the problems yourself/Cause when love is the problem/Nothing can solve it.”

Next comes the 6 and a half minute “Fancy,” the albums riskiest moment; lacking any discernable chorus or structure, it slowly winds along, constantly shape shifting over light piano, swirling strings, chopped-and-screwed vocals, and the occasional Polow Da Don-styled “EY!” It’s an incredibly bizarre arrangement; taking familiar elements and configuring them in a brilliantly unfamiliar way. In other words, you’ve failed big time if you haven’t heard this album yet.

“Love vs. Money” is the best R&B album of 2009. Period.

Best Albums of 2009: 3. Mastodon's "Crack The Skye"

3. Mastodon “Crack The Skye”

The key to Mastodon’s continued success has got to be their willingness to change. They have yet to repeat themselves once, moving from concept to concept, and taking great care to ensure that the concept is fully realized lyrically, visually and (most crucially) musically. Whereas 2002’s “Remission” saw the band evoke the general theme of fire, 2004’s classic “Leviathan” dealt with the theme of water (and specifically Moby Dick) and 2006’s “Blood Mountain” centered on earth as its general theme. Surprise, surprise…this time around they’ve chosen the sky. So what winds up being most impressive about 2009’s “Crack The Skye” is how they’ve tailored the sound of their most recent epic to reflect this idea; and it works astoundingly.

The band injects far more melody into this project than previous ones, allowing for standouts like “Quintessence” and “Oblivion” to anchor themselves with clean singing, unpredictable, jazz-influenced percussion and incredibly intricate, whirlwind guitar work, rather than the typical howling, pounding and pummeling, sledgehammer riffs. The songs also feel longer and more freewheeling than their previous work, taking multiple, unexpected twists and turns throughout, and at times actually are longer than their previous work, with the album’s epic, “The Czar,” clocking in at a filler-less 9 minutes and 47 seconds. It all lends itself to the infinite expanse of the sky above us, and it consistently feels as exhilarating as hurtling through space or floating amidst the clouds.

Mastodon can truly do no wrong.

Best Albums of 2009: 2. Raekwon's "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...II"

2. Raekwon “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II”

“Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II” is to Raekwon what “The Chronic 2001” was to Dr. Dre; though it would be virtually impossible to match the power and sheer freshness of the original, OB4CL2 is seriously as amazing as anyone could possibly want it to be, and gets as close as it ever could have gotten to besting the original. And that’s saying a lot.

Set up as a continuation of the first installment of the OB4CL series, we find Raekwon at the top of the drug game, left to survey its bittersweet smell of success and the damage it inflicts on everyone it touches. Nowhere is this motif more successful that the Ghostface Killah-assisted “Cold Outside,” undoubtedly the best rap song recorded in 2009. Over a rich bed of crying horns, and anchored by a haunting chorus from guest vocalist Suga Bang Bang, Rae and Ghost weave one of their most vivid and intricate webs of rhymes and imagery, with Ghostface vividly lamenting “They found a two year old strangled to death/With a “Love Daddy” shirt on in a bag on the top of the steps.” The attention to detail from Raekwon, Ghostface Killah (who, as with the original OB4CL, serves as Rae’s copilot throughout), and every guest emcee involved in the project easily places OB4CLII far above any other rap album of 2009, based solely on sheer lyricism alone.

Meanwhile, the production, supplied by the likes of RZA, Dr. Dre, J Dilla and The Alchemist to name a few, is impeccable, perfectly capturing the decadence, guilt and relentlessness conveyed in the subject matter. “Baggin Crack” literally sounds like someone taking a razor to a coke-covered mirror, the Dr. Dre-produced “Catalina” hits the jackpot with a fantastic chorus from Lyfe Jennings, and the grand finale, “Kiss The Ring,” features ridiculously fitting sampling of Elton John’s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” as Rae celebrates his ascent to the top once again.

Many tried, but nobody in the rap game did it better than Raekwon in 2009.

Best Albums of 2009: 1. The Dead Weather's "Horehound"

1. The Dead Weather “Horehound”

Clearly Jack White assembled his latest side project, the utterly brilliant Dead Weather, with one goal in mind; to make the bluesiest, sleaziest, sweatiest, dirtiest, sexiest, most villainous album of the year.

Well, he achieved this goal, and in the process made the best album of the year as well. The masterfully evil Alison Mosshart takes center stage on Horehound, howling away over one near-perfect-yet-perfectly-imperfect, blues-drenched, hard rock number after another, coming off like Patti Smith fronting Led Zeppelin in some backwoods bar joint in Louisiana somewhere. You can practically feel the sweat trickle down your cheek when White and Mosshart feign choking during the drunken, disorienting “I Cut Like A Buffalo,” and the tension only gets thicker when Mosshart croons “There’s a bullet in my pocket burning a hole/You’re so far from you’re weapon and the place you were born” on the slow burning “So Far From Your Weapon.” But its “Treat Me Like Your Mother” that finds the band hitting on something almost supernaturally good. The song strikes out like a caged animal from the second it opens; Mosshart rails against an ungrateful, no good man, wailing “Look me in the eye now/You wanna try to tell a lie?!/But you can’t, and you know why?/I’m just like your mother.” The tumultuous, stuttering verses give way to an eerily steady, droning chorus, with Mosshart repeating “You came home/Too late!” in the kind of tone you’d hear from a woman whose already made up her mind what she’s going to do about her man’s transgressions. No more talking, and no second chances.

“Rocking Horse” sounds like it should have been on the soundtrack to Wild Things (particularly the threesome scene), and the raucous Dylan cover, “New Pony,” which opens with the following lines: “Once I had a pony, Her name was Lucifer/I had a pony, her name was Lucifer/She broke her leg and she needed shooting/I swear it hurt me more than it could ever hurt her,” fits in just fine, don't ya think?

Inevitably, when we reach the end of our journey, at the haunting “Will There Be Enough Water,” in which White and Mosshart wonder “Just because you caught me/does that make it a sin?,” you may get this sinking feeling that perhaps you’ve just taken a sonic journey straight to hell. And you’ll be absolutely right.

This is the devil’s music, you know.

15 Essential HardRock/Metal Albums of the 2000s! (Part III)

No beating around the bush this time. This is the real deal. If you could only hear five Hard Rock albums from these tumultuous past ten years, these are the ones.

Many tried, but no one did it better.

These are the Top 5 Hard Rock/Metal Albums of the 2000s.

Show some respect!

5. Deftones “White Pony”
Easily the most underrated hard rock band since Faith No More, Deftones achieved near perfection with their third album, White Pony. After helping to establish the template for the infamous Nu-metal genre (along with Korn, of course), Deftones basically tore that template apart with White Pony, looking to bands like Radiohead and My Bloody Valentine for inspiration, while still retaining their heavy, alt-metal sound. The music on White Pony is ambient and sexy, yet razor fucking sharp when it needs to be. The transition between “Digital Bath” and “Elite,” for example, is so jarring that it’s almost comical. “Elite” is vicious, showcasing Chino Moreno’s terrifyingly serrated, high pitched shriek, while the band provides a truly evil backdrop, with angular riffs and relentlessly tight percussion. “Digital Bath,” meanwhile, is absolutely gorgeous. Atmospheric, sultry, and just a little bit sinister, “Digital Bath” may be the finest moment of Deftones’ career. There are so many great moments on White Pony, from the menacing “Street Carp” to the epic, moshpit-friendly “Korea.” They may not have achieved the kind of success that the countless bands they’ve influenced have, but very few of those bands have an album in their discography that even comes close to equaling White Pony.






4. At The Drive-In “Relationship of Command”
To be sure, The Mars Volta is a phenomenal band, “Frances The Mute” blew my mind when it came out, and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is an incredibly talented musician all by his lonesome. But nothing compares to At The Drive-In’s 3rd and final full-length album, “Relationship of Command.” Hailed as an instant classic by fans and critics alike upon its initial release, Relationship of Command was supposed to revolutionize and “save” hard rock with its jaw-dropping mixture of hardcore punk, dub, progressive rock and even salsa. “One Armed Scissor,” the band’s one and only hit single, is brilliant, but there are countless truly astounding moments on this album. The mammoth, hair-raising climax of “Invalid Litter Dept,” the righteous anger and scorching sonic onslaught of “Arcarsenal,” and even the ingenious cameo from Iggy Pop at the opening of “Rolodex Propaganda” are just a few examples. Of course, Relationship of Command stands as At The Drive-In’s final album before their “indefinite hiatus” was announced in 2001. What could have been? We’ll never know. But for what it is, Relationship of Command is a hell of a way to go out.






3. System of a Down “Toxicity”
Who could forget the release of the single “Chop Suey” during the summer of 2001. Arguably the best and most unique rock single released this decade, “Chop Suey” is heavy, disorienting and beautiful, battering the listener with its stuttering verses before it captivates with its sublime chorus. Debuting at number one on September 11th 2001, Toxicity can be described just like that unforgettable single; heavy, disorienting and beautiful. The percussion is frantic and bruising throughout, as is the chunky, relentlessly inventive guitar work. But the true genius of Toxicity lies in the band’s injection of big, infectious melodies into their previously abrasive and largely inaccessible sound. Songs like “Forest" and “Toxicity” come equipped with soaring, absolutely beautiful melodies and choruses that are undeniably catchy. The band’s secret weapon in achieving this is lead vocalist Serj Tankian. Like his likeminded predecessors (Mike Patton, Jello Biafra, and H.R., to name a few), Tankian has a truly unpredictable, distinctive vocal style; and he has unmatched control over his instrument, utilizing its many dazzling qualities at exactly the right moments for maximum impact. Certainly the best album released from the late 90’s alt/nu-metal scene, System of a Down’s Toxicity is must for anyone interested in combustible, genre-smashing rock.






2. Mastodon “Leviathan”
From the flaming relentlessness of 2002’s “Remission" and the claustrophobic odyssey that was 2006’s “Blood Mountain,” to the glorious expanse of their most recent masterwork “Crack the Skye,” Mastodon are the definitive metal band of the 2000s. Not one song, video or album released from this band has been anything less than perfect. And it is 2004’s “Leviathan” that remains their crowning achievement. Inspired by Herman Melville’s classic novel Moby Dick, Leviathan’s clever lyrical content and striking cover art are not the only way in which the band pays tribute to the legendary tale. The guitar work on this album is beyond impressive, with riffs that seem to glide and cascade across the frenetic, jazzy, impossibly precise percussion like massive waves; at times they seem to rise and crash all around the listener in truly epic fashion. Mastodon are incredibly successful in how they’ve constructed a perfect musical backdrop for their conceptual ambitions, injecting just the right amounts of melancholic, Kurt Cobain-inspired melody into their fiery metal assault to perfectly conjure the mysterious, ominous and lonely expanse of the ocean. In other words, Mastodon’s Leviathan is an endlessly entertaining and musically challenging listen, and it’s undoubtedly one the greatest metal albums ever made.

1. Queens of the Stone Age “Songs for the Deaf”

By taking the Stoner Rock-meets Classic Rock-meets Punk Rock maelstrom that made 1999’s “Rated R" so addictive, and adding more complicated, nuanced arrangements and an album concept that actually enhances the listening experience, QOTSA found their masterpiece with 2000’s “Songs for the Deaf.” Conceptualized as a search for some good tunes on the radio while taking a lonely trip through the desert (and finding only QOTSA songs), the album truly does feel like a lonesome, late night drive through the desert, with just cigarettes and music, memories and regrets for company. The sadly short-lived creative alliance between Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri reached its zenith here, with just the right amount of each man’s unique yet complimentary personality on display to keep things joyously chaotic and unpredictable, as if the songs were actually being found at random with a radio dial. Add in the haunting, gritty vocals of friend and frequent collaborator Mark Lanegan, and fantastic drumming from Dave Grohl (yes...that Dave Grohl) and you’ve got one rollercoaster of a listening experience.

The Oliveri-led tracks are the sonic equivalent of what must be going on in the mind of a desperate, frenzied junkie, high on meth, as he knocks off a convenience store. “Six Shooter,” for example, opens with a muffled guitar riff and blood-curdling screams before exploding into pure punk-metal chaos, with Oliveri snarling “Fuck this road/Well, fuck you too!/I’ll fucking kill your best friend/What the fuck you gonna do?!” It’s both hilarious and frightening all at once, and yet transitions perfectly into “Hangin’ Tree,” a frantic, sweeping hard rock number, sung gorgeously by Lanegan. At the center of the storm however is Josh Homme, whose sexy, whisky-smooth crooning acts as a stabilizing force throughout the record. And the standout on an album filled with them is “The Sky Is Fallin’,” with churning, stuttering guitar work that perfectly complements Homme’s plaintive, aloof vocals. And there are many more highlights, from the dirty, funk-inflected “Songs for the Dead” to the hushed lullaby-turned-horn-led death march that is “Mosquito Song,” the album’s grand finale.

Songs for the Deaf should have changed the landscape of popular music, setting the stage for a whole new chapter in Hard Rock; here was fresh, rebellious, earnest and (most importantly) fun music that both gives quite a few nods to the past, while still pointing ahead at an intriguing future. Their call to arms was never answered, however. And I guess that’s just the way it was meant to be. I mean, isn’t being ahead of your time sort of like making songs for the deaf?

Everybody seems to see what you’re doing…but they damn sure can’t hear it.

It's Official. Lil Wayne Is A Genius.

Goddamn Wayne!

I mean...he swears up and down that he's the best rapper alive, and most people just kinda grin and nod without truly agreeing with him. But listening to these three leaked tracks from Weezy's upcoming mixtape, No Ceilings, begs the question....

Is anybody better than Lil Wayne right now?

You tell me....



"Wasted"



"Run This Town Freestyle"



"Swag Surfin Freestyle"




Ummm yeah...I'm thinking the answer is no.

15 Essential Hard Rock/Metal Albums of the 2000's (Part II)

And we're back.

Last night I unveiled albums 15 through 11, and although those are some pretty great records, now we're getting into the good stuff. Albums 10 through 6 are amazing, encompassing everything from Post-Hardcore to Metalcore, Thrash Metal and even some Nu-Metal too.

So let's get right into it. And remember, this is still just an appetizer.

Stay tuned for albums 5 through numero uno tomorrow!




10. Gallows “Grey Britain”
Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. Too soon, right? Well you’re dead fucking wrong. There may have been better hard rock/metal albums released this decade, but nobody’s kicked ass like Gallows have with their sophomore effort, Grey Britain. Opening track “The Riverbank” is the best opening track of any album this year, with its haunting opening string arrangement exploding into a truly epic catharsis. In a decade dominated by Green Day, My Chemical Romance and Fallout Boy, Gallows is a breath of dank, oppressive heat (and I mean that in the best possible way), skewering the violence, drug abuse, and apathy that is rampant in the youth culture of their home country, while finding the perfect balance between Black Flag-inspired hardcore and Sabbath-drenched heavy metal brutality. This is essential!



9. Lamb of God “Ashes of the Wake”
No true metal fan, young or old, that was alive during the 2000s hasn’t heard Lamb of God’s fourth album, 2004’s Ashes of the Wake. It’s one of those albums, and Lamb of God is one of those bands, that simply cannot be denied by anyone that calls themselves a fan of heavy music. This is music that absolutely pulverizes you from start to finish. “Laid to Rest” is a stone cold classic, opening almost coyly with stuttering double bass and lead vocalist Randy Blythe’s iconic spoken word opening salvo, “If there was a single day I could live…” before the song completely flies off the handle, and never lets up. By the time the truly psychotic bridge explodes, it becomes quite clear that this is a band at the very top of their game. Ashes of the Wake has no weak moments and absolutely no filler. Machine gun double bass pummels, truly vicious guitar riffs terrorize, and Blythe’s vocals sound so unabashedly evil that he makes Tom Araya sound like a fucking Teletubby.



8. Metallica “Death Magnetic”
To this day Metallica’s 8th album, “St. Anger,” is still the most bizarre collection of songs I have ever heard in my entire life. Metal fans around the world are still dumbstruck by the sloppiness, absurdity, and downright silliness of that album (remember “Invisible Kid”?). Almost as surprising as the epic fail that was St. Anger is the epic triumph that is Death Magnetic. Who could have predicted that after over ten years of churning out disappointing album after disappointing album, the greatest metal band of all time would finally reclaim their throne? Death Magnetic sounds like the missing link between “…And Justice for All” and the Black Album, shedding all those annoying Southern Rock/Nu-metal pretensions that bogged them down throughout the 90s and early 2000s, and revealing a band that can still pound you into submission with pure, unadulterated METAL. “That Was Just Your Life” has a chorus (and an amazing solo by the great Kirk Hammett) that shreds with reckless abandon, and “Suicide and Redemption” sees Metallica finally bestowing upon us another one of their incredible instrumentals. But it’s the old-school Speed Metal rampage that is “My Apocalypse” that dispels any doubt as to whether or not these guys still got it. Um…they do. Bow Down!



7. Glassjaw “Worship and Tribute”
Glassjaw took the post-hardcore genre to another level with their first album, “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence.” But 2002’s “Worship and Tribute” is where they truly perfected their sound, combining everything from Jazz and Thrash Metal to Psychedelic Rock and Funk, shaking it all up, and letting it explode into something messy and precise, grotesque and beautiful. Choice cuts like “Cosmopolitan Bloodloss” and the incredible “Tip Your Bartender” feature verses with chaotic, jagged riffs and pummeling double bass that give way to soaring, gorgeous choruses, at times careening out of control and nearly imploding on themselves. “Ape Dos Mil,” “Must’ve Rained All Day,” and “Radio Cambodia” are stand outs for their melodic, pop sensibilities, showcasing lead singer Daryl Palumbo’s emotive vocal style. But the highlight is “Pink Roses,” a harrowing glimpse into the heart of alcoholism and depression, matched perfectly by the most freewheeling, cacophonous arrangement on the entire album.



6. Slipknot “Iowa”
Slipknot’s self-titled debut album catapulted them into the spotlight in 1999, attracting legions of followers (lovingly referred to as “maggots”), tons of controversy, and a whole heap of inner-band turmoil. In interviews members of the band have referred to this period as the absolute darkest in the 9-man crew’s history. Released in August of 2001, “Iowa” is the product of this period…and it shows. Iowa is quite possibly the darkest, most unrelenting metal album released this decade. Other albums may have been “heavier,” but nothing sounds quite like Iowa. The music is violent, surly, and about as forgiving as an 18 wheeler barreling head-on at your Honda Civic. Lead singer Corey Taylor spews pure venom throughout, declaring that “people equal shit,” railing against religious zealots, and describing psychosis and an utter loathing of life in general in brutal detail. It’s probably the most misanthropic album ever made, and it kicks fucking ass. Slipknot’s famous wall of sound was never this oppressive and cruel on their first album, and hasn’t been since. Iowa is the sonic equivalent of a Rob Zombie movie; malevolent, obscene, more than a little absurd, and absent of even the faintest glimmer of light. Great stuff.

We're almost there!

Check back tomorrow

for the Top 5

Hard Rock/Metal Albums of the 2000s!!!

15 Essential Hard Rock/Metal Albums of the 2000s! (Part I)

In case you didn't know, Hard Rock is not dead.

Of course with the rise of Hip Hop from a popular genre flirting with the mainstream (during the 90s) to basically becoming the mainstream, it would be very easy to see Hard Rock music as a dying genre, hanging on by the thinnest of threads (i.e. Emo-punk, Linkin Park, Foo Fighters, etc.). But I'm here to let you know that Hard Rock was most certainly alive over these past ten years, and anyone who was oblivious to this truly missed out.

So I guess this list can be viewed two ways then. If you've basically been ignoring my beloved genre of Hard Rock, view this list as a cheat sheet. Go out, or log on, and find these albums immediately. No one will be mad and no one will blame you. I'll act like you've been up on these future classics all along, and you can start fresh in 2010. On the other hand, if you've been as utterly obsessed with loud guitars, violent double bass, and guttural growling as I've been, then you probably have your own opinions as to which albums are the definitive Hard Rock albums of the 2000s. In that case, you can consider those opinions officially null and void, because this right here is the gospel! These are without a doubt the best albums that Hard Rock had to offer.

So dive in. Read. Explore. Download. Rock out. Get mad. Break shit. And throw up the horns! Do what comes naturally you godless heathens! This a celebration of all things loud, crass, obscene and satanic. Hard Rock, Punk, Metal...everything is fair game.

Let's start with 15 through 11...

15. Soulfly "Dark Ages"
I guess you could say that Soulfly’s “Dark Ages” was the closest we got to a proper Sepultura album this side of the new millennium; you know, a Sepultura album with the incredible Max Cavalera providing those raw-as-fuck, no bullshit vocals. Released in 2005, Dark Ages came as a bit of a surprise, since Soulfly’s previous releases had most definitely fallen short of the standard any true metal fan holds a guy like Cavalera to. Dark Ages is a beast of an album, encompassing everything that was great about Sepultura, and everything that is so refreshing about Soulfly. “Corrosion Creeps” slithers along like an anaconda on a war path, and “Bleak” sounds like the apocalypse, but the standout is definitely “Frontlines,” a brutal, rapid-fire call to arms that can only come from one man. Why the metal community takes this guy for granted, I’ll never understand.

14. Guns N’ Roses “Chinese Democracy”
Trust me; I’m obsessed with the original Guns N’ Roses lineup. And nothing on Chinese Democracy even comes close to “Paradise City” (or even “You’re Crazy” to be honest), but neither does anything else on this list. The fact of the matter is that Chinese Democracy was doomed to be critically-maligned by the time 2003 came and went without its release. But for what it is, it’s a crime that no one has properly given Axl the credit he deserves for making such a sonically-astonishing album. Give it at least 4-5 listens and you’ll understand. “If The World” sounds like the soundtrack to a James Bond film, “I.R.S.” rocks fucking HARD, and “Madagascar” is downright beautiful. Shame on all of you!

13. Shadows Fall “The War Within”
The War Within came out at the height of the metalcore, NWOAHM craze that swept the metal community around 2004-5, and at the time they were touted as the next Metallica. I guess people confused sounding like Metallica with being the next Metallica. Regardless, The War Within does everything right. Classical guitar intro? Check. Cryptic, yet totally badass song titles? Check (“Eternity is Within”, “Enlightened by the Cold”, etc.). Bone-crushing double bass and face-melting guitar solos? Check and check. Need proof? Listen to “The Power of I and I” and tell me that shit doesn’t get the adrenaline pumping. If you’re interested in even vaguely understanding 2000s heavy metal, The War Within is a must.

12. Green Day “American Idiot”
So “Warning” may be their best album, and “21st Century Breakdown” is where they perfected this whole rock opera thing they’ve been obsessed with lately, but only a moron would deny the importance of Green Day’s landmark album, American Idiot. Green Day seized a moment in time with American Idiot, striking a chord with everyone who came of age during the Bush Administration. The actual storyline of the album is complete bollocks, but the passion and intensity of the performances was more than enough to have every high school kid this side of 9/11 feeling like they’d woken up on some nightmarish holiday, speeding out of control down the boulevard of broken dreams that was the mid-2000s. And besides, “Give Me Novocain” is fucking epic.

11. Nine Inch Nails “Year Zero”
If we view Green Day’s “American Idiot” as an outraged and confused observation of the Bush years, Nine Inch Nails’ “Year Zero” is Trent Reznor’s frightening journey into the future. Public Enemy-styled dissonance runs rampant and ghastly, electronic rackets harass the listener throughout. Reznor injects into these songs the kinds of melodies that haunt as much as they seduce, as razor-sharp guitars sound like air raids over a funky, percussive backdrop that never lets up, even when it drops out of sight without the slightest warning (“God Given”). Could somebody let Marilyn Manson know that this is how you stay relevant once the hype dies down?

5 down, 10 to go!

Check back tomorrow for the next 5 most essential

Hard Rock albums of the 2000s!