The first half of this year has been busy, but has it been good? We have had plenty of big name artists putting out records that were either supposed to come out anyway, or were held off from last year. As things continue to get closer and closer to 'normal', the second half of the year could very well be the craziest time for new albums since I've been a critic. With that many more potentially in store, let's take a few minutes to sum up what the first six months of the year have given us (all in alphabetical order, so as not to be potential spoilers for the end of the year).
The Best:
Inglorious - We Will Ride
Coming off what was their best album yet, Inglorious gets a new lineup and makes an even better record. Their bluesy hard rock has never been a better blend of classic and melodic. Bands like Rival Sons have grown into impressive stature, but I prefer "We Will Ride" to anything that wave of similar bands has done. They take a more modern approach than the more timeless Graveyard, but like that band, Inglrious is writing songs that hit hard and stick.
Light The Torch - You Will Be The Death Of Me
The band's first album was something I always wanted; a spiritual successor to Killswitch Engage's 2009 self-titled album. This new record follows suit, delivering crushing guitars and anthemic songs, all topped off by Howard Jones' emotional singing. It's hard to get the blood pumping while also making the heart hurt, but that's what this music does; it makes you feel.
Rise Against - Nowhere Generation
Initially a disappointment in the wake of "Wolves", this record has grown with every listen, and stands on its own as a highly enjoyable album. I'm still surprised by the tempered anger on it, but perhaps that is for the best, given the world right now. Either way, while it does not surpass its predecessor, "Nowhere Generation" is the sort of record that keeps getting better, and will continue to get played.
Smith/Kotzen - Smith/Kotzen
This unexpected collaboration proved more than fruitful. While the last Iron Maiden and Winery Dogs albums were both disappointments in their own ways, these two came together for an album that blew away any expectations I might have had. Filled with tons of guitar solos, laid-back swagger, and beautifully melodic songs, this is exactly the album I didn't know I needed. You can hear each of their influences and ideas, but they come together into something that is more than either of them have ever been on their own. It's stunning.
Soen - Imperial
After two consecutive 'Album Of The Year' winners, Soen had the highest of expectations, and still might have exceeded them. With their tightest, most concise, and hookiest album yet, Soen prove to be the masters of modern metal. Their blend of melody, atmosphere, and crushing rhythms is unmatched by anyone, and is a wonder to behold when they are in full flight. For their fifth album, they might have released their best, which I have been able to say with every one of them. That's impressive.
W.E.T. - Retransmission
There's nothing better than a sweet melodic rock album to lift your spirits. W.E.T. is one of those groups who are as good at doing that as anyone, and this new record delivers once again on that promise. Their music is uplifting, beautiful, and the right kind of infectious. "Retransmission" is a rock delight for old time pop fans like myself, and really the only thing I can say is that as good as this album is, "Earthrage" might have been just a hair better. Still, W.E.T. gives me everything I want.
The Worst:
Helloween - Helloween
This record is terrible for a simple reason; it's regressive. By inviting back their old singers, the band also took their writing style back to the late 80s, and it's almost as if the last twenty years of their history never happened. I find that demeaning, but I also think it leads them to write an album of cliches and pastiches, which isn't interesting, since half of power metal already does that.
MSG - Immortal
Michael Schenker has been recycling the same sounds forever, but what makes it hard to take is that the songs he has been writing aren't great. They lack riffs and hooks that stick in your mind, and now that he's intent on trotting out a handful of singers all well past their prime doesn't help. This record sounds old and tired, and there's good reason why it does. That being said, it doesn't excite me at all.
The Offspring - Let The Bad Times Roll
What a self-own the title is. After nine years, The Offspring pull a Green Day and piss on the audience who still pay for music. Barely 30 minutes long and featuring a song released years ago, a classical reinterpretation, a reprise, and a cover of their own song done just because Five Finger Death Punch did it, there is barely an EP of real, new music here. And even those songs are barely ok, and poorly produced to boot. It's an embarrassment.
Steven Wilson - The Future Bites
I don't mind that Steven Wilson isn't making prog anymore, I really don't. Making more pop-leaning music is fine with me, but this isn't even pop music. It sounds like it, but pop music is about having catchy hooks and memorable melodies. This record is dour, downbeat, and devoid of anything sounding like a good song. It is the personification of boredom, wearing a tweed jacket and black glasses in a feeble attempt to convince you it's actually interesting, you just aren't smart enough to hear it. Nope. It just sucks.
Wheel - Resident Human
I make no bones about not being much of a Tool fan, and being bored by most of their music, but I can at least see the appeal of it. I can't see the appeal of this second-rate Tool worship, with even less musical dexterity or songwriting acumen. Like trying to sail in a vaccuum, this never gets going, and you're just waiting to sink far enough the water covers your ears and you can no longer hear it.
The Disappointing:
Foo Fighters - Medicine At Midnight
The Foo's days of writing hits have been over for a few albums now, but now that it sounds like they're trying to recapture them, it sounds more painful than ever. I keep hoping they will just be themselves and write an album that does what they do well, but they are a singles band, and they don't even have a decent single on this one.
Heart Healer - The Metal Opera
Magnus Karlsson can write great songs. This is his most ambitious album. It doesn't work. He gets so lost in trying to make things as epic as possible, his usually melodic songs don't have the necessary hooks. Combine that with a cast of singers that can be hard to tell apart at times, and this is far below either of the two albums he wrote and released last year. I wanted it to be great, but it wasn't.
Transatlantic - The Absolute Universe
This album is good, very good even, but it's hugely disappointing for a very specific reason. Transatlantic put out two versions of this record, each with different track listings and different versions of many of them, which is like breaking your own nose on school picture day. Neither version of the album is satisfying, because both are missing elements from the other I think are necessary to the experience. This is one where they want you to buy the album twice, when the best version will be one you have to put together yourself on a CD-R, which defeats the entire purpose. It's disappointing they made it impossible for me to feel good about giving them money for this album.
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