These albums are not aggressive enough to be metal. They do have more balls to them than the ones on the rock list. Ok now that that is out of the way, much like in years past I sort through the genre lists before making the overall top ten of the year list. The fact these artists made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Sure, you can bitch and complain about your favorite band not being on the list. However, I listen to five new albums a day so yes, I heard your favorite album and was not impressed. No, I do not care what you think about it. I do hope you can find your next favorite on this list and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out audio on these guys. Anyways here are the top 10 hard rock albums of 2022
10 -Infected Rain - "Ecdysis"
Some of this bands heavier elements are negated by the poppier hooks, this band from Moldova blends the elements well. This is their 5th album, so they have perfected both their melodic side and their denser more aggressive one. Bands like Jinger and Spirit Box have made impressive names for themselves by creating similar sounds. These kids have a more symphonic thing going that owes more to Within Temptation when she soars into clean vocals.
9-Dorothy- "Gifts from the Holy Ghost"
I was at first reluctant to cover this album as the buzz around it was this was some kind of Christian metal. I did some research and found that she is just in recovery, so all the religious trappings are not based in formal Christianity and lyrically it is just based in metaphor. While she does lay it on thick with the gospel influence and blues swagger. This is poppy hard rock, not far removed from say the Pretty Reckless sonically.
8-Blacklist-"Afterworld"
This band features singer song writer Joshua Strachan of Vaura. They infuse post-punk and goth atmosphere with the anthemic kick of hard rock. Working of a tension that is a subdued calm before the storm piece that feels more like an intro than what unfolds on the palm muted clouds gathering. To be a band from Brooklyn it is impressive that they are not so concerned with trying to be cool that they forget to rock out and even throw some guitar solos in.
7-Slipknot- 'the End So Far"
Every metal band likes to go into the press gauntlet before releasing an album and tell them how this is going to be as heavy as one of their really heavy albums or it's their heaviest album yet is also another classic. None of these are close to true when it comes to the new Slipknot. They try to resurrect their classic sound at time completer with dj scratches. But Vended does Slipknot heavier, however these guys are better songwriters. It is clear they are doing what they set out to do even if there is some misdirection regarding what that is. They are still nu-metal but happen to be a band that proves nu-metal is not limited to ADIDAS flavored rap metal.
6-Disturbed - "Divisive"
One of the few big commercial radio rock bands I have listened to. This is due to the fact their sound owes as much to Judas Priest as the nu-metal they came from. Everything is a huge anthem for these guys. They are great at this return to form that puts them head and shoulders above most of their peers
5-Hoaxed- "Two Shadows"
This Portland duo creates dark and driving rock that works of mesmerizing melodies. The drumming is influenced by metal, though the overall sound while ominous not broods more than it gets in your face. At times they conjure a retro-metal witchy feel that makes me think of the Devils Blood. The drummer really loves her double bass, which keeps trying to pull the songs in a more metal direction where the atmosphere of the vocals and guitar want to pull it back in a more 90s goth path.
4-Puppy-"Pure Evil"
Was not expecting this album to carry this kind of dark dense metallic crunch they pack here. The high thin reedy treble of the vocals feels like a mix of Billy Corgan and Tom Petty. This album rocks if you are into melodic grunge tinted hard rock with metal moments
3-Bloody Hammers - "Washed in Blood"
Their last album was great, I am not sure how they are going to meet such a high bar. They choose to do it by getting a great deal heavier in the riffs department. They still have catchy choruses thanks to the croon of the strong baritone vocals. These arena rock anthems knock it out of the park, with bigger production value.
These guys made the Skid Row album that Skid Row should have made. Brandon Yeagley is not paying tribute to Sebastian Bach, but he captures his spirit much better than Skid Row's most recent singer. They play a style of high energy hard rock, that gives ample balls to the guitars. This album rocks to its own beat while bringing familiar sound of the era it pays homage to.
Abysmal Hymns: Crobot : " Feel This"
1-Bush- ' the Art of Survival"
Here is an album that grew on me with each listen. In some ways this is a Bush album in name only, as Gavin Rossdale is the only original member. It does still retain the gritty grunge feel of their 90s work. This band came across as a less of a band wagon jumper in their prime and had an emotional grit that told me Rossdale had deep personal wounds he was processing through his music. At the same time, he had record companies breathing down his neck and pressure on his to get radio hits. He has delivered more solidly than most of his peers from this era have yet to
No comments:
Post a Comment