It’s These Words and Music that Keeps Me Living, Keeps Me Breathing.

Posted by MaskedSanity on May 28, 2015

In some of my previous entries I’ve discussed my desire to get out and do more, but how there’s some thing or some force holding me back. I’ve discussed my financial situation and it’s not what I would like it to be. I’ve also had a few entries discussing how much certain bands and my experiences at their shows have given me and what that means to me. This particular entry has a nice mix of all of those topics.

The first three weeks of May, 2015 were some of the most memorable, worthwhile, and expensive weeks I’ve had in a very long time. In all seriousness, I spent almost every last cent I had, which to be honest, wasn’t much to begin with. But, I had been putting money aside for this specific cause. I attended multiple concerts in May and each one of them gave so much back to me as far my own personal health goes.

My month quite literally started out with back to back shows from Life of Agony on May 1st and 2nd in their hometown of Brooklyn, NY. As my depression has really taken hold of me over the last few years, Life of Agony’s 1993 masterpiece debut album, River Runs Red, has begun to mean so much more to me. Any time I see Life of Agony, I feel like I’m a part of something. I feel like everyone there is forgetting their problems and uniting to let all of their frustrations out in a positive way. In particular the song “Underground,” which is pretty much about that particular topic. I was privileged and lucky enough to be able to watch the 2nd show from the side of the stage and even got to sing a little bit of “Underground” on the stage with friends. I really don’t know if I can put into words how much a moment like that really meant to me.

There were bands I liked as a pre-teen and into my early teens, but none of them grabbed me quite like Faith No More did the first time I ever heard one of their songs. They were immediately my favorite group, and remain in that spot many years later. They just released their first album in 18 years and are currently on tour for it. I was lucky enough to get a ticket to each of their two (very quickly) sold out shows at Webster Hall in New York City. To say that these shows were flawless is accurate. I’ve spoken to enough people that attended one, or both, of the shows and we’re all in agreement that they were just amazing.

A few days after Faith No More, I ran another 5k race and I set a new personal best time for myself at 28:46.4. That’s almost 30 seconds better than my previous record. Later that night I treated myself to a Moonspell concert in New York City. I hadn’t seen Moonspell perform since 2006 and it was fun to see them again.

Next on my concert going agenda was the one and only Clutch. I’ve seen them over 30 times and I’ve seen them play some interesting and different venues. But on May 19th, I got to see them perform in New York City’s Central Park. Yes, it was as cool of an experience as it sounds like it was. The temperature was just right, it was a nice day, and they performed one of the better sets I’ve seen them do in a very long time. Just like everything else from this month, I could not have asked for more.

I ended my month of concerts by going to Baltimore, Maryland for the first night of the Maryland Deathfest. Death Metal supergroup, Bloodbath played their first ever (official) show in America and I couldn’t miss it. If you’re not familiar with Bloodbath, it’s made up of members of Katatonia, Opeth, and their new singer is the singer of Paradise Lost. And if you know what I listen to, you know why I couldn’t miss seeing this. I didn’t know what to expect as far as their set list went, since there was a new singer I didn’t know how deep into their catalog they would go. I did have hopes of three particular songs being played, and all three were. I’ll say that just like Faith No More, and other than dealing with crowd surfers on top of me too often during the set, this show was also flawless. And, as a bonus, I got to have an exclusive beer made just for the event. Of course, it was called Deathfest Ale.

The month of May for me wasn’t just about the music, although music was foundation of the month. It was also very much about friends. While some people did attend multiple shows with me, I had different people with me almost every time. I feel that some of those friendships became stronger. Also, at these shows I reconnected with someone I hadn’t seen in a few years and now we’re talking pretty regularly. And in Baltimore, I even had the pleasure of seeing a friend that I had not seen in about 19 years. I couldn’t possibly ask for more. If you were a part of these shows with me, I thank you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a part of these great events that meant something good to me.

However, as all good things must come to an end, my three weeks of “Epic Pure Rock Fury on the Other Side of the River, with a Bloodbath at the End” did come to an end. Thank you for indulging my cheesy line there. A few days after it ended, so did my emotional high from the shows and I started sinking back to my usual feelings. Another reality set in quickly. I am really close to being completely out of money until my next paycheck.

As usual, I don’t think this entry is nearly as good as it could be. But this time, I’m just accepting that and saying it’s because I’m honestly having such a difficult time putting into words how much I did enjoy myself for that three week span. So maybe since I’m having trouble with MY words, I’ll use a few lines from Clutch’s song “Earth Rocker” to sum it up nicely:

“So don’t look to me for answers, because I don’t got-a-one.
I just came to have a good time, and I’m gonna have one.

Yeah, I’ve lost many battles, and even more days.
But if I had to do it over, I would do it just the same!”

2014 Album of the Year

Posted by MaskedSanity on December 19, 2014

1- Mushroomhead – the Righteous and the Butterfly
2- The Black Keys – Turn Blue
3- Those Poor Bastards – Vicious Losers
4- Bloodbath – Grand Morbid Funeral
5- Fozzy – Do You Wanna Start a War?
6- Scott H. Biram – Nothin’ But Blood
7- Within Temptation – Hydra
8- Arch Enemy – War Eternal
9- Opeth – Pale Communion
10- Lacuna Coil – Broken Crown Halo

Mushroomhead’s the Righteous and the Butterfly was dedicated to two of their fallen friends and they did them proud. From beginning to end, the album did not disappoint me. In fact, there’s not a single track on the album that I dislike. And also considering the lineup changes and the fact that their old singer J. Mann returned while not replacing his replacement Waylon, just joining him and Jeffrey Nothing to make Mushroomhead have three vocalists made it a very interesting dynamic. Their album prior to this one, 2010’s Beautiful Stories for Ugly Children was a weaker effort for them. The Righteous and the Butterfly is a great return to form and then some. And besides, they covered Adele’s “Rumor Has It,” which is a must hear.

Tracks I highly recommend hearing on this album include “Our Apologies,” “How Many Times,” “Qwerty,” “Portraits of the Poor,” “Childlike,” “We Are the Truth,” and “Rumor Has It.”

In early June I went for a long ride in my car and the Black Keys’ Turn Blue was the soundtrack for that ride. It was the perfect soundtrack for the day and my mood. I’m somewhat new to the Black Keys, having only been listening to them for the last few years, but they’re good. I probably should look into their old albums. But, Turn Blue is one I think most people would like. It’s got a nice moden bluesy feel to it that I really appreciate.

I recommends songs such as “Weight of Love,” “In Time,” “Turn Blue,” “Waiting on Words,” and “Gotta Get Away.”

A few years ago Hank Williams III talked about his friends Those Poor Bastards on his Facebook page. I downloaded am album and occasionally listed to it. Maybe two months ago I decided to really give it a listen and it just clicked with me. I decided to see if they had any newer releases and to my pleasant surprise, they had a new album out. I ordered it and haven’t stopped listening to it and this group has shot up to the top of my list of bands I would like to see live. Their style is described as “miserable and primitive old-time gothic country music.” That sounds good to me, literally and figuratively. If any of this sounds interesting, check out Vicious Losers.

Some of the better tracks from Vicious Losers include “I am Lost,” “Give Me Drugs,” “Lonely Man,” “Trouble at Home,” and “Born to Preach.”

Bloodbath’s Grand Morbid Funeral is their third consecutive album with a new singer. On this album, they went deep into their Death Metal roots and got Nick Holmes from Paradise Lost to return to his own Death Metal roots and be the new singer. Once I heard that news I was IMMEDIATELY interested in this album. Seriously, how could an album featuring members of Katatonia, Opeth, and now Paradise Lost disappoint? Well, it didn’t. It’s just pure Death Metal at its best. If you’ve ever been a fan of the genre, and even if you’ve fallen out of it, this is an album you need to hear. Holmes was able to belt out some good growls that we haven’t heard from him in nearly 20 years.

I suggest “Let the Stillborn Come to Me,” “Anne,” “Church of Vastitas,” “Beyond Cremation,” and “Unite in Pain” as good sample tracks.

Some people still don’t take Fozzy seriously just because it’s a band featuring a professional wrestler as its singer. Well, I can honestly say that I may not have given them a chance if that connection didn’t exist. But, I’ve been listening to them almost since day one and they’re damn good. Chris Jericho’s vocal range is not as appreciated as it should be. He’s very influenced by hard rock bands of the 1980s, but he’s able to sing a bit more than just their style of music. There’s been some lineup changes since their formation, but Fozzy pretty much started off as Stuck Mojo with Chris Jericho singing, but even with those changes, the integrity of their style has remained intact. They appeared in my Top 10 Albums List in 2010 and they’re back now in 2014 with Do You Wanna Start a War.

“Do You Wanna Start a War,” “Lights Go Out,” and their cover of ABBA’s “SOS” are some of the better tracks on this album.

I’ve been listening to Scott H. Biram for almost a full decade now. His songs range from straight up Southern Blues to Hellbilly to Punk. And he’s yet to release an album that I didn’t like. Nothin’ But Blood is no exception to that rule. This album has a mix of everything I just described. Sometimes it’s very nice to listen to something that doesn’t have a lot of production and effects. I appreciate and respect it. If you like an old fashioned Blues album with a mix of a few different influences, check out Biram and Nothin’ But Blood.

Tracks such as “Gotta Get to Heaven,” “Alcohol Blues,” “Jack of Diamonds,” “Church Point Girls,” and especially “Slow & Easy” are the highlights of this really solid album.

Within Temptation has an almost majestic sound to them. Hydra is not any different from their previous releases, in that aspect. They are one of two former Album of the Year winners to appear on this list, as 2011’s the Unforgiving won the award. Hydra is not necessarily weaker than the Unforgiving, but it didn’t pull me in as much as the Unforgiving. However, that doesn’t mean Hyrda is bad at all, obviously not, if it’s the 7th best of 2014. It’s definitely a Within Temptation album, and that’s a good thing.

“Let Us Burn,” “Paradise (What About Us),” “And We Run,” and “Covered by Roses” are some of the standout tracks, as well as their cover of Lana Del Rey’s “Summertime Sadness” which appears on the bonus disc.

Over the last years, Arch Enemy has been a band that I pretty much gave up on. It’s not that they put out any particularly bad albums, but I just lost interest in them. When I saw the news earlier in 2014 that their singer, Angela Gossow was stepping away and their new album, War Eternal would have a new singer Alissa White-Gluz, I thought I would give them another shot. Maybe they would be rejuvenated. Well, I was not disappointed. I had not liked an Arch Enemy album this much in years. Their musical style remained intact and White-Gluz fit right in to the vocal style perfectly. It also made me want to hear more of her catalog, and I may check that out as well.

“War Eternal,” “You Will Know My Name,” and ” As the Pages Burn” are my favorite tracks on this album.

Opeth, Opeth, Opeth….. Well, Pale Communion did not disappoint me. This was their first release since they’ve stopped doing Death Metal style vocals that I knew what I was getting into and didn’t miss it. That says a lot. Actually, Pale Communion makes me want to makes want to listen to the last two Opeth albums a bit more. It makes me dislike them less, because now they have more in their library that doesn’t have the Death Metal vocals and the “new” style is more focused. They’re definitely more of a progressive band than a death band now, and I don’t necessarily miss the old style anymore. I do admit that Pale Communion DID have to grow on me, but it did. And I do like it more with each listen.

My favorite tracks on Pale Communion are “Eternal Rains Will Come,” “Cusp of Eternity,” and “Voice of Treason.”

Lacuna Coil’s 2012 Dark Adrenaline was the best release they had in a decade. They followed it up with Broken Crown Halo, which was not as strong. When I first heard the name of the album, I thought it sounded like a Katatonia album without the ironic humor. But that doesn’t matter, the quality of the music does. And while it’s not a bad album, it doesn’t come close to their best work. I think it starts off great with “Nothing Stands in Our Way.” In fact, I had such incredible hopes when I first heard that track. The fact that there were some growling vocals on it got me a lot more interested in the rest of the album, but not only did they not reappear, the rest of the album didn’t live up to the opening track. I saw Lacuna Coil perform live in September and some of the songs of Broken Crown Halo were done in the show and they grew on me a little bit. The album is good enough to be in my Top 10, but they’ve done better.

Besides “Nothing Stands in Our Way” I recommend “Die & Rise” and “In the End I Feel Alive” as good tracks to hear.

So with my top 10 out of the way, that brings me to some other releases in 2014.

After waiting almost 20 years to see Downset live, I finally had the chance in July. The show was what I hoped it to be and I was 100% satisfied. They had a new album called One Blood with all new tracks. I got the album and gave it shot. It sounds exactly like their 1994 release. And while that should be a good thing, it isn’t. It’s too formulaic and cliche for them. I’m glad they’re back together and doing stuff, but this wasn’t great.

Anathema’s Weather Systems came out in 2012 and if it wasn’t for so many great albums that year, it would likely have been ranked higher than 4th on my list. It was that good, and so was 2012, in general, for new music. So, the anticipation for their 2014 album, Distant Satellites, was high. Not only did it not live up to the anticipation, it just annoyed me. There is only one track on it that really stood out, and it was for the wrong reasons. When I first heard “You’re Not Alone” I contacted some friends and told them the song sounded like Steven Wilson at his most pretentious. Later on, I found out that he actually produced that song, and it all made sense. Bottom line, Distant Satellites is not the best effort from Anathema.

There was also another new CD from Hank Williams III, but like some previous years, it’s just a money grab from his former record label. They keep releasing compilations of songs that he did on other things and making some money off of his name, so that album is not eligible for Album of the Year.

I don’t rank live albums on my list, but there were some damn good ones this year, including:
– Timeless by John Hammond
– All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman
– Play All Night: Live at the Beacon Theater 1992 by the Allman Brothers Band
– Last Fair Day Gone Night from Katatonia

I am very much looking forward to 2015’s releases. I know that Clutch is working on new material and I look forward to that. Lacuna Coil has already discussed what direction they’re going in for their next album, and I hope it’s a good one. Nick Holmes has stated he’s been inspired by his work on Bloodbath and it’s possible that the next Paradise Lost record could have some more Death Metal elements in it. And that leads to the most anticipated release I’ve known of in a very long time. In early Spring, Faith No More will release their first new album since 1997. I am biased and I admit now that I hope it’s ranked #1 at this point next year. Although, I also hope it’s good enough to be there, but other albums make me question it.

A note about eligibility for my 2014 Album of the Year:
– the album must have had a United States street date in 2014
– the album must be new material (for the band or artist)
– live albums are only eligible if they’re new material

You’ve Come a Long Way to Find Emptiness

Posted by MaskedSanity on June 4, 2014

If anything has been proven to me when I receive feedback on my blogs, it’s that I’m not alone. Another thing besides my blogs that gives me a sense of community at times is the music I listen to. Last year I wrote a blog about my experience with Lacuna Coil and how listening to that band gave me so many friends and good experiences. This entry is about another band that has had a tremendous impact on my life, Katatonia. And while I could write a very similar entry today about my experiences at Katatonia shows, I want to focus on other aspects.

I consider the impact that Katatonia’s music has had on me to be a positive one. I can easily see why some people may consider it to be not so positive. The majority of Katatonia’s lyrics and themes are miserably depressing. But that’s the point. I relate to them. I relate to this band probably more than any other I’ve ever heard.

I first heard Katatonia in 1997. Unlike now, I didn’t pay close attention to lyrics at that time. I really only listened to music that I liked the sound of. However, there was something about Katatonia’s lyrics that stuck out. On their 1997 album, Discouraged Ones, I heard lines such as “Who’s painting my life in sorrow blue?” I always loved the visual that I was able to get from that line. It was something that connected to me.

1999’s Tonight’s Decision was a slightly heavier album than Discouraged Ones, and I really liked it from the first time I heard it, but again, it’s the lyrics that drew me in. There were so many things on this album that I really liked, but it wasn’t until their next release that I GOT IT.

Katatonia released Last Fair Deal Gone Down in 2001 and that album hit me like nothing else had ever done before. When I first heard the songs, I was going through a depression spell. It was one of the first times that I actually realized what was happening to me and wasn’t in denial of depression. Last Fair Deal is the perfect soundtrack for what I was going through. From start to finish I consider it to be an almost flawless album. You can hear and feel the misery, agony, and desperation throughout the record. However, there’s been some points that the lyrics on this album hit too close to home and it was difficult for me to listen to it. As I said, it’s either a good thing or a bad thing.

On June 4th, 2004 I was finally able to see Katatonia perform live. Unfortunately, they didn’t play in the United States very often then. And since this was only their second North American show ever and I felt I needed to experience it, I was willing to go some distance to see them. I drove from my house in New Jersey to Cleveland for that show. And two days later, I saw them again in Montreal, Quebec. That was the one and only time I had ever left the United States, and it was to see Katatonia.

At that show in Cleveland, I have no shame in admitting that I had tears in my eyes from the very first note they played. I knew I was seeing something special. Both of those shows had me experiencing a nice range of emotions, but it was all positive.

Katatonia started touring the United States somewhat regularly in 2006. I was lucky enough to see them four times on that first tour, as they had an abundance of shows that was not tremendously far away. All four of the shows I saw on that tour were very memorable to me for various reasons, some very personal and still hold incredible significance to me today.

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Last Fair Deal Gone Down in 2011, Katatonia performed some shows around the world in which they played that entire album from start to finish, and then played at least one song from every other album. I was lucky enough to attend their show in Rochester, NY. In the year or so before this show, I had a very rough time. I had a lot of things in my life go wrong and this show was beyond therapeutic for me. I got to see the album that has emotionally impacted me maybe more than any other album I’ve ever heard and it felt great. I had a few friends there and they had some of their friends there as well. We were all 100% into what we were seeing and hearing. It was a community of Katatonia fans. And no matter what we were dealing with at that time, or had dealt with prior, we knew we that we were NOT alone.

“and when I pause for a breath I see millions like me.”
– Katatonia, from the song “Clean Today.”

As a little addendum to this entry. I’ve had a very difficult time writing it and I’m not even sure why. Maybe it was a writer’s block thing or maybe my self-imposed deadline of June 4th, the 10th anniversary of my first Katatonia show. Or maybe it was just due to having so many deeply personal things tied into Katatonia music and shows that it was difficult for me to put it into words. Regardless, I’m still glad I was able to share this much, even if I’m not completely satisfied with what I wrote.

2013 Album of the Year

Posted by MaskedSanity on December 20, 2013

1- Wisdom of Crowds – Wisdom of Crowds
2- Clutch – Earth Rocker
3- Anneke Van Giersbergen – Drive
4- Gov’t Mule – Shout!
5- Hank Williams III – Brothers of the 4×4
6- Ministry – From Beer to Eternity
7- Tedeschi Trucks Band – Made Up Mind
8- Dark Tranquillity – Construct
9- Depeche Mode – Delta Machine
10- Black Sabbath – 13

This is the 10th time that I’ve done a blog and/or a countdown for my Albums of the Year. Last year, I wrote the difficulty I had choosing the top album, as Katatonia and Lacuna Coil both put out such strong albums. This year, I found myself with a similar dilema, as well as a new one. I’ll discuss the new dilemma after I do the run through of the top albums. And to give you a slight hint about the dilemma, let me just let you know that this year could have been the “Year of Jonas Renkse.”

Jonas Renkse is the lead singer of Katatonia, and it’s no secret that they’re one of my favorite groups. They’ve been awarded my Album of the Year honors twice (2009 and 2012) and have come close in other years. I heard that Jonas was going to be doing a project with Bruce Soord, whom I had never heard of. He has his own band, the Pineapple Thief. But, I’ve never heard of them either. Their project was called Wisdom of Crowds and I was curious to hear it. When I finally got the album, I could not believe what I was hearing. The music was a perfect fit for Jonas’s mellow tone. And on some tracks, I thought I was listening to early Nine Inch Nails stuff, especially with the emotion, and even with musical style. It’s a progressive album, and sometimes sounds a little poppy, but it’s still a solid album from beginning to end and I enjoy the ride it takes me on every time I listen to it, which is often. I look forward to more collaborations with Jonas Renkse and Bruce Soord, and I may even check out some of Soord’s other projects. But, as a result of this effort, I think Jonas Renkse has definitely solidified a spot as one of my favorite male vocalists working today.

I recommend every track on the album, but if I had to pick a few as a sample for people to check out, I would suggest “Wisdom of Crowds,” “Radio Star,” “Frozen North,” “Pleasure,” and “Pretend.”

One of the things I liked so much about Lacuna Coil’s album last year was that they “returned to form” after a few albums that disappointed me (to say the least). Clutch is a band that I’ve been listening to for over 20 years, and only once did they put out an album that I genuinely didn’t like, and that was 2009’s Strange Cousins From the West. I’m not alone in my dislike for it, and I’ve discussed it with friends a few times. The album never “grew on me” is a common statement about it. I think that’s the issue with it right there, it shouldn’t have had to.

However, Clutch’s 2013 album, Earth Rocker is definitely a return to form for them. It’s everything a Clutch album should be. If people ever ask me to classify Clutch, I can’t put them into a specific genre, but I do use the title of their 2001 album to describe them. They’re simply “Pure Rock Fury” and that’s exactly what Earth Rocker is. I couldn’t believe how much I liked the album when I was listening to it for the first time. And just as I was thinking “wow, this album rocks, there isn’t a mellow song yet,” I heard “Gone Cold” for the first time. That very well me the best blues song Clutch has created. That’s a bold statement, but I stand by it. It pulls at my heart’s strings, which is what a good blues song is supposed to do. It’s nice to see a band such as this return to what I want them to be.

Tracks from Earth Rocker that I believe you should check out include: “D.C. Sound Attack!,” “Crucial Velocity,” “Gone Cold,” “The Face,” and of course, the title track, “Earth Rocker.”

In last year’s blog, I mentioned that I felt Anneke Van Giersbergen had finally found HER sound as a solo artist. She expanded on that with this year’s realase, Drive. The album has some significant emotion in her voice, and sometimes it’s anger, but it works. And if Jonas Renkse is my favorite male vocalist at the moment, Anneke Van Giersbergen is definitely my favorite female vocalist.

Tracks to check out include “We Live On,” “The Best is Yet to Come,” and my favorite track on the album due to hearing the anger and emotion in it is “Treat Me Like a Lady.”

Gov’t Mule is the quintessential rock/jam band and their front man Warren Haynes is one of the best guitar players in the world. The first disc of Mule’s album Shout! would be a strong contender for anyone’s album of the year list by itself, but it’s the second disc of this double album that puts it over the top. The second disc has all of the songs from the first album redone with different singers. It’s interesting to hear the different interpretations of the songs, but in all honesty, the album would be in my top 10 even without the second disc.

I recommend tracks such as “Stoop So Low,” and I either version is excellent, but the second disc version with Dr. John is unreal. I also really liked “World Boss,” “Funny Little Tragedy,” and “Whisper in Your Soul.”

Hank Williams III put out two albums in 2013 and one of them was a double album. For some people that’s quite an accomplishment, but I consider it slacking for him. He put out 3 albums in 2011, and one of them was also a double album. Regardless of that, his double album, Brothers of the 4×4 is the 5th best album of 2013. Hank knows how to write a country song in the style that his legendary grandfather wrote, but still puts a modern take on it. The songs on the this album are slightly longer than I’m used to from him, and that just adds to the enjoyment. Brothers of the 4×4 is what I expect to hear from Hank, when he’s doing a country album, that is.

Track recommendations from Brothers of the 4×4 include “Nearly Gone,” “Hurtin’ for Certin,” “Toothpickin,” and “Loners 4 Life.”

I didn’t think I would be reviewing another Ministry album, especially since I saw their retirement tour in 2008, but they’re back with their second (and likely last) album since then. This album, From Beer to Eternity, like their previous, 2012’s Relapse is a fun album to listen to. You can seriously tell that they enjoyed making it. If this is indeed their final final album (and yes, I did mean to write “final” twice), it’s a good reminder of how good Ministry can be. Some of the songs on this album remind me of their peak from the late 1980s and early 1990s. If you like Ministry, or industrial music at all, you should check out From Beer to Eternity.

“Hail To His Majesty (Peasants),” “Permawar,” and “Side FX Include Mikey’s Middle Finger (TV 4)” stand out to me.

Made Up Mind from Tedeschi Trucks Band is a great mix of rock, blues, and funk. If you take those elements and through in the amazing guitar skills of Derek Trucks and the soulfull voice of Susan Tedeschi and you should have a great album. I can’t say enough things about Derek Trucks’ guitar skills. I truly believe he IS THE BEST guitar player alive today and watching/hearing a solo from him is just amazing at times. If you’re a fan of Trucks or Tedeschi, or the Gov’t Mule, or the Allman Brothers Band, this is an album you need to hear.

The title track, Made Up Mind is a great track, as are “Sweet and Low,” “All that I Need,” and “the Storm.”

It’s unfortunate for Dark Tranquillity that so many other bands that represent “The Gothenburg Sound” have fallen off and put out such incredible dreck over the last few years. It almost makes me afraid to hear a Dark Tranquillity release, but luckily for me, they have not disappoint me. Construct is another good release from them. I’m always so relieved when I hear that they haven’t lost the sound that makes them distinct. There’s a few times when listening to this album when I said “oh yeah, that’s Dark Tranquillity.” And that’s a good thing.

The opening track, “For Broken Words,” along with “Weight of the End,” and “State of Trust” are some of my favorite songs from the album.

Depeche Mode is on my list of Top Albums of the Year. Who saw that one coming? I know I didn’t, but here they are with Delta Machine. I don’t have a tremendous amount of Depeche Mode’s catalog, but I do have a few “best of” albums and a few of their other releases. I think there’s two or three songs on Delta Machine that could end up on a “best of” one day, and for a band that’s been around for over 30 years with as many hits as they’ve had, that’s saying something.

The songs I was referring to are “Welcome to My World,” “Heaven,” and “Soothe My Soul.”

If Depeche Mode on this list is surprising, so is Black Sabbath, especially since it’s the Ozzy Osbourne incarnation. If only for the fact that nobody ever thought that would happen again. And like Metallica and a few other acts before them, Black Sabbath went to Rick Rubin to produce the album and he made sure to capture the Black Sabbath sound that we expected and wanted to hear. Rubin has a way to get bands to sound like they should, which of course bothers me, because maybe they shouldn’t have strayed from that in the first place, but that’s a different rant for a different time. But, 13, the first album that Black Sabbath released with Ozzy Osbourne singing since 1978 is a solid Black Sabbath effort. As I’ve said, it has the sound we want and it is a good album to close out my 10th Annual Countdown.

Tracks from 13 that I suggest include “God is Dead?,” “Pariah,” and “Loner.”

Some notes on some other albums that came out in 2013:

For a few consecutive years I wrote in these blogs that Steven Wilson was a genius. His albums with Porcupine Tree and Blackfield usually ranked very high on my lists. However, over the last few years, Porcupine Tree has begun to disappoint me, Blackfield is fading, Wilson’s solo projects didn’t do much for me, and I don’t want to get into his Storm Corrosion collaboration. However, that didn’t stop me from getting his newest solo album, The Raven That Refused to Sing and Other Stories. Let me state that I don’t belive the album is nearly as bad as some of the other things I’ve heard from him over the last few years, but it didn’t do it for me. And seeing him perform some of the tracks live made me like them less than before, and that’s not supposed to happen. I would say that his music has become quite pretentious, but that wouldn’t insult him or the music, since he’s described it that way himself. If you like progressive albums, you may like this one. It just wasn’t for me.

Another progressive act that I enjoyed over the past decade was Arjen Lucassen’s Ayreon project. Lucassen will assemble a large cast of musicians to basically tell a story in a rock/prog opera style. 2004’s Human Equation was a masterpiece and 2008’s 01011001 brought Jonas Renkse and Anneke Van Giersbergen together for some songs, so how could I not like it? But Ayreon’s 2013 release, The Theory of Everything is really lacking where the others succeeded. It bothers me to say that, as one of my all-time favorite singers, Lacuna Coil’s Cristina Scabbia is on the album in a prominent role. It’s just that the story in this album isn’t that good and unlike other albums from Ayreon, there aren’t many (if any) songs on this album I would go out of my way to hear. Maybe Lucassen can rebound next time.

Nine Inch Nails came out of retirement and released Hesitation Marks. It’s okay, at best.

Carcass also resurfaced and put out Surgical Steel. It’s just not my thing.

Mike Patton’s Tomahawk released Oddfellows and like Nine Inch Nails, it’s okay.

The other release from Hank Williams III was a Hellbilly album called A Fiendish Threat. It’s not bad.

And that brings me to Katatonia. I struggled with this decision, but neither of Katatonia’s two released are eligible for consideration based on the rules I’ve previous set and followed for these lists. Katatonia won album of the year last year with Dead End Kings. They re-issued that album this year after changing up the musical style of it and called the album Dethroned & Uncrowned. While it is a new take on songs, it’s not new material and therefore, not eligible.

The other release from Katatonia was a 10th anniversary edition of Viva Emptiness. I always liked Viva Emptiness as it was, even though I always felt is sounded a little bit different from the rest of the Katatonia releases. Well, the band thought it did too, but they were never happy with it until now. They remastered, re-mixed, and re-released it this year. I now feel like the album I had been listening to since 2003 was nothing more than un unfinished demo-tape and I’ve finally been able to hear the final (and much better) product. However, it is still not new material, and can’t be considered for this list. Although, if either album from Katatonia were eligible, they would likely be very high on the list, and that would explain my previous comment that this could have been the “Year of Jonas Renkse.”

I don’t know many bands releasing albums in 2014, but I do know that 2011’s Album of the Year winner, Within Temptation will have a new album out early in the year. Scott H. Biram, Lacuna Coil, Anathema have also had some studio time soon, so I expect releases from them as well. All of those acts have had some stong albums recently, let’s hope that continues. I look forward to hearing what 2014 will bring me.

A note about eligibility for my 2013 Album of the Year:
– the album must have had a United States street date in 2013
– the album must be new material (for the band or artist)
– live albums are only eligible if they’re new material

Enjoy Every Sandwich

Posted by MaskedSanity on September 7, 2013

Last month I wrote a blog about Mickey Mantle and the wisdom expressed towards the end of his life. Another person that was able to express some words of wisdom when he knew he was dying was Warren Zevon, who died ten years ago today. While appearing on “the Late Show with David Letterman” for the last time Zevon was asked if he knew something more about life and death than he did before, he said what is now a famous line, “not unless I know how much I’m supposed to enjoy every sandwich.”

Take a moment and think about that. It’s pretty simple, isn’t it? “Enjoy every sandwich.” We are a society of people that do not enjoy simple things as much as we should. Don’t get me wrong, I try to, but I don’t find it easy. I battle depression regularly and often good moments are lost on me. It’s a shame.

And while I know “enjoy every sandwich” does not refer only to sandwiches, I can 100% relate to it and took it 100% literally recently. After needing to budget myself very strictly about one month ago, I had been eating ramen noodles for lunch every day for over a week. I want to make it clear that I enjoy ramen noodles, but it’s one thing to like them, and it’s one thing to eat them because it’s all you can afford. But anyway, my point is when I got my next paycheck after the week of ramen, I went out for a sandwich on my lunch break. It was nothing more than an Italian combo from Subway, but I can’t begin to describe how great that sandwich was to me.

It’s important to enjoy simple things and moments. That is the point of Zevon’s comment and that was what I did with my sandwich. Having that lunch was not a life changing event, and it truly was not a memorable one, but I felt I had earned that lunch. It was an accomplishment, and it meant something.

I can’t claim to be the biggest Warren Zevon fan out there. Actually, other than “Werewolves of London,” I don’t know if I knew any of his songs before his illness. But after reading about him, I became interested and started listening to more of his work. I really liked what I heard. He wrote songs that were wise, humorous, and just relatable. And trust me, while “Werewolves of London” is his biggest hit, it really does not showcase his songwriting as well as other songs do. And in reality, the last album he wrote, “the Wind, “which he started after knowing he was dying was some of his most touching work.

Over the last few years as I had much of my life fall apart in a fairly short period of time, I like to believe that I gained a lot of perspective on what is truly important and what is just trivial nonsense. But I can say that I don’t have nearly the perspective that Mickey Mantle or Warren Zevon did towards the end of their lives. We all know we’re going to die at some point. But it’s a bit different to know it’s coming soon. Both Mantle and Zevon were able to say some wise things that we all need to pay attention to. Not only do we need to take better care of ourselves as Mickey Mantle said we need to do, but we really do need to enjoy every sandwich. Both are incredibly simple concepts that we all need to pay attention to. I’m working on both of them. Hopefully, I’ll be able to succeed.

If you look up, there are no limits…

Posted by MaskedSanity on May 15, 2013

Sometimes a moment in life can seem insignificant when it happens. That moment may turn out to be very significant by the time it’s all said and done. Back in 2001 or so, a friend of mine that knew I was into female fronted metal bands had suggested that I listen to the band Lacuna Coil from Italy. I had never heard of them before then, but I followed his advice and downloaded their song “To Myself I Turned.” I was immediately hooked. Nice story so far, but not tremendously significant.

By early 2003, Lacuna Coil had released two more albums and were supposed to be on a tour with Opeth, Paradise Lost, and Tapping the Vein. At the time, Opeth and (especially) Paradise Lost were two of my favorite bands that I had not yet seen in concert. The chance to see all of them at once seemed too good to be true, and it was. Lacuna Coil had to back out of the tour. I was upset, but not terribly upset, since this meant Paradise Lost was now able to play a longer set. Again, this does not seem like a terribly significant event.

Opeth toured the United States again in the Spring of 2003 and Lacuna Coil was once again their support. I got myself a ticket to see one of their local shows on May 15th. Not long before the day of the concert I found out that the members of Lacuna Coil were going to be doing a meet and greet at a record store a few hours before the show. I went to that event and met the band. I immediately noticed how nice the members of the band were and how much they genuinely liked and appreciated their fans. Also, at the signing, I noticed a girl taking a lot of pictures. I didn’t yet know how significant all of this would be.

Who knew how significant this ticket would be?

A few weeks later I was in a Metal music chat room on Yahoo. Someone in the chat asked if anyone had been to any shows recently. I mentioned that I saw Opeth and Lacuna Coil at the Birch Hill in NJ. Someone else in the room said they were also at that show and we started talking. Her name was Candace, and as it turns out, she was the one talking all the pictures at the show. As random as that revelation was, it did not seem to be very significant.

Just over one month later, Lacuna Coil was back at the Birch Hill, this time they were the support for Type O Negative, whom I had liked for over a decade, but had never seen live. It was at this show that I first met Candace and her boyfriend (at the time), Anthony face to face. It was not a very significant meeting, it was more like a “Hi, nice to meet you” and that was it.

During that Summer, Anthony and Candace told me about EmptySpiral.net, a website created by a Lacuna Coil fan from England for Lacuna Coil fans to go to. I joined the site and often posted messages there. At the time, this seemed to be just another site that I belonged to and enjoyed being a part of, but it didn’t seem to have any real significance to my life.

Lacuna Coil played a few headline shows in late 2003. I went to those shows and would always meet up with Anthony, Candace, and now a few more people they knew from EmptySpiral. And through my association with them, I was now regularly hanging out with the band before and after shows. I knew this was not insignificant.

Me with the members of Lacuna Coil in 2003

When Ozzfest 2004 came around, Lacuna Coil was one of the acts on the “second stage” and had quite a buzz about them. Other than legendary acts such as Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and Slayer, Lacuna Coil’s sales at Ozzfest were at the top. I saw them at a local Ozzfest show and attained a very significant sunburn doing so. After Ozzfest, Lacuna Coil went back home to Italy for to rest and to make a new album. During that time I made a lot more friends on EmptySpiral.net, even if I had not met most of them in person.

Lacuna Coil returned to the United States in March, 2006 as support for Rob Zombie. I went to see them in NYC. They did a meet and greet after their set. I was thrilled when members of the bands got out of their chairs to hug me when they saw me. One of them even said “it’s been almost 2 years, how have you been?” It was nice to see that I was more than just another face in the crowd. It definitely made me feel at least moderately significant.

Cristina in 2006, opening for Rob Zombie

During the summer of 2006, Lacuna Coil was once again a part of the lineup for Ozzfest, but this time they were on the “main stage.” Anthony had arranged an “EmptySpiral Meet” that week and various people that we knew from EmptySpiral that were literally from all over the world came out to hang out for a week or so. I wasn’t able to attend all of those events, but I did make a few appearances. I bought a ticket to see the Ozzfest date in Camden, NJ. A few hours AFTER I got my ticket, I was told by Anthony that Lacuna Coil was giving us all tickets for the show. I was not yet aware of how significant of a ticket it was.

Lacuna Coil did not just give us general admission tickets, they gave us tickets with passes with access to various backstage areas. It was because of this I was able to watch acts like Black Label Society from the stage. It was a very interesting for me to watch a show from behind the band. When Lacuna Coil played, we were all allowed to be right in front of the stage to watch them. It was actually a pretty good experience, as the general admission ticket that I had wouldn’t have gotten me anywhere near those areas. Along with the EmptySpiral crew, we spent basically all day hanging out with the band. It was a very good experience and more significant than I realized it was at the time.

Black Label Society from behind the stage.

Lacuna Coil at Ozzfest 2006

I can go on and on about other stories and other times meeting the band including a time when I called the female singer of the band the “C word” and when I may have been responsible for making one member of the band ill and forcing him to miss an acoustic appearance. But, this story isn’t about that. This story is about significance. It’s that simple. Due to a simple suggestion from one friend, I didn’t just gain a new band to listen to, which would have been a good thing by itself, but I gained friends, experiences, and memories that cannot be matched. Something that seemed to very insignificant ended up being one of the most significant things that’s ever happened to me and I couldn’t be more grateful.

Someone is missing.

Lacuna Coil during the “Hottest Chicks in Metal” tour

So please allow me now to take the time to thank Jeremiah for the suggestion. Also I need to thank Anthony, Candace, Teague, Lisa, Erin, Melanie, Michelle, Danica, Cynthia, Luca, Amalia and any other friend I’ve met directly (or indirectly) due to Lacuna Coil. I also have to thank Matt for creating EmptySpiral.net and allowing us to meet on there and for recommending “Spaced” and “Firefly” to me. And of course, a big thanks goes out to Cristina, Andi, Maus, Maki, CriZ, and Pizza. This story would never have happened without them.

Taking a a bow after “Dark Legacy” tour in 2012

As a side note, last year I wrote about the 5K race I ran and the unbelievable pride I felt in completing that race. Lacuna Coil’s song “Daylight Dancer” was the song I was listening to when I crossed the finish line.

Don’t ask. You had to be there.

2012 Album of the Year

Posted by MaskedSanity on December 21, 2012

1- Katatonia – “Dead End Kings”
2- Lacuna Coil – “Dark Adrenaline”
3- Garbage – “Not Your Kind of People”
4- The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band – “Between the Ditches”
5- Anathema – “Weather Systems”
6- Anneke van Giersbergen – “Everything is Changing”
7- Moonspell – “Alpha Noir/Omega White”
8- Paradise Lost – “Tragic Idol”
9- Muse – “The 2nd Law”
10- Rush – “Clockwork Angels”
11- Neil Young & Crazy Horse – “Americana”
12 – Ministry – “Relapse”
13 – Dion – “Tank Full of Blues”
14 – Willie Nelson – “Heroes”
15 – Kid Rock – “Rebel Soul”

I’ve been doing these Album of the Year blogs since 2004 and I usually have a good idea of what THE album of the year is early on. I don’t have to choose the album, as much as I know it’s the best album of the year as soon as I hear it. This year wasn’t that easy for me. That’s part of the reason I’m listing 15 albums this year instead of 10. 2012 was a very good year for new music. I had a very hard time picking THE album of the year. Many of the albums on my list could have been an Album of the Year. But, I had to pick only one. And after much thought and internal debate, I realized that Katatonia’s “Dead End Kings” is my 2012 Album of the Year.

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Katatonia. I’ve logged more mileage on my car to see their shows than any other band I listen to. But, I’m also objective and if a band puts out an album that I don’t like, I’ll honestly critique it. With all of that said, Katatonia put out their best album in over 10 years. “Dead End Kings” is their best album since 2001’s “Last Fair Deal Gone Down.” And that album had a profound impact on me. There are so many tracks on this album that I love. Honestly, even the songs I like less than others I still like.

When this album came out, I actually waited a few days to listen to it. I had purchased a few albums and I wanted to make sure that I was able to give all of them a fair chance. Katatonia had released a few tracks and I liked them, so I knew it would likely be ranked high on my list, but I wasn’t sure it was THIS good until I heard the whole thing. And some versions of the album had two bonus tracks, which are also both AMAZING. One of those tracks, “the Act of Darkening” is easily one of my favorite Katatonia songs EVER, and I’ve been listening to this band since the late 1990s. If you’re a fan of Katatonia and you haven’t heard this album, you’re truly missing out. If you’re a fan of metal, doom, progressive, or whatever they’re categorized as this week, check out “Dead End Kings.” It’s THAT GOOD.

Tracks I truly recommend you checking out include “The Parting,” “the Racing Heart,” “Buildings,” “Undo You,” “Lethean,” “First Prayer,” and “Dead Letters.”

I really wanted to rank Lacuna Coil’s “Dark Adrenaline” as the #1 Album of the Year. I really did. And honestly, I thought it would be #1. If I could have, I would have ranked it as 1b. I was critical of their last two albums, 2006’s “Karmacode” and 2009’s “Shallow Life.” In fact, “Shallow Life” did not even make my Top 10 list in 2009. That’s how incredibly disappointed I was in that album. Lacuna Coil peaked in 2001 and 2002 with “Unleashed Memories” and “Comalies.” Those two albums were brilliant. But there was something about their releases since then that I just did not like. I was never truly able to place what it was, but something was just not right, as far as I was concerned. Upon first listening to “Dark Adrenaline” I was in love with the album and realized that this album had what was missing from their previous two. It was an incredible return to form for a band I’ve been such a fan of for so long. And it’s not just my opinion. I’ve discussed this with fans from (literally) all over the world and we’re in agreement. “Dark Adrenaline” is easily the best album the band has put out in 10 years and it manages to continue the direction they were going in while returning to the sound that we loved in the first place.

Tracks I recommend from the album include “Trip the Darkness,” “Give me Something More,” “I Don’t Believe in Tomorrow” and especially “Upsidedown.”

Again I’m speaking about a band putting out their best album in years. “Not Your Kind of People” is Garbage’s best album since their 1995 debut. Like Lacuna Coil, Garbage’s album has a return to the sound that attracted me to them in the first place. This is also a comeback album of sorts, since the band took a 7 year break since their last album and tour. I had no idea what to expect from it and I was more than happy with it. There’s many songs on the album that I like and would easily add to a “Best of” compilation of Garbage’s hits, and they have a lot of hits already. If you were a fan of their first album and didn’t get this one, you should. It’s worth a listen. And I’ve given it many listens.

Tracks worth listening to from “Not Your Kind of People” include the title track, “Control,” “Big Bright World,” “Blood for Poppies,” and especially “Automatic Systematic Habit.”

I had never heard of the Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band prior to seeing them open for Clutch in 2009. I had no idea what to expect. What I saw was a guitar player and frontman that reminded me for Bluto from the old Popeye movie, someone playing a washboard (which she set on first later), and a drummer playing a bucket. I was immediately a fan. I got a few albums from their catalog and enjoyed them. They were fun listens. Their 2010 almost made my Top 10 list, but from upon first listen, I knew 2012’s “Between the Ditches” would be ranked high. It’s that good. The first track I heard from it was “Devils Look Like Angels.” It really showed off how good of a guitar player the Reverend Peyton is. He REALLY IS GOOD. Peyton’s previous albums are good albums, but this one is a GREAT album. There’s something about the production on this album that makes everything that needs to be emphasized stand out and stand out well. If you’re a fan of blues, country, bluegrass, or just good guitar players, I highly recommend this one.

Tracks I think you should check out include “Devils Look Like Angels,” “Something for Nothing,” “Big Blue Chevy ’72,” and “Brown Country Bound.”

I had heard about Anathema from various people for years, but never really listened to them. I saw them last year as special guests of Blackfield. I was very impressed and decided to check out their new album “Weather Systems” when it came out. And, WOW. I was very impressed with the incredible beauty of their sound. It’s rich, energetic, majestic, and metal all at the same time. The first two tracks “Untouchable” parts 1 and 2 are simply two of the best tracks I’ve heard in years. This album, like every one I’ve reviewed so far could easily have been #1 on anyone’s list. And I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this one ranked high on many lists.

Tracks worth listening to include “Untouchable, Part 1,” “Untouchable, Part 2,” “the Gathering of the Clouds,” and “the Beginning and the End.”

After Anneke van Giersbergen left the Gathering in 2007 she’s put out a few solo releases. But it wasn’t until this year’s “Everything is Changing” do I think she finally found HER sound as solo artist. This album is what I’ve been waiting for her to put out. It’s a great mixture of a hard rock sound and an electronic sound blended perfectly with her amazing voice. And it’s her voice that has always blown me away. She is easily one of the best vocalists I’ve ever heard. Her voice is captivating. Like Lacuna Coil, I can also say van Giersbergen returned to form as well. But, she did it with a new band. And I’m glad she did.

Tracks I recommend include “Everything is Changing,” “I Feel Alive,” “Hope, Pray, Dance, Play,” “My Boy,” and “Circles.”

Moonspell’s album in 2012 is actually a double album. The first one, “Alpha Noir” is a death metal album while “Omega White” goes back to their gothic period. Both records are solid releases and deserve to be ranked high on any list of the top albums of 2012. The first track on “Alpha Noir” is “Axis Mundi.” When I first heard that song I said “this is a song I wish Opeth had written.” It’s that good of a metal song, while Opeth has apparently gone off into more progressive areas. I feel that if you’re a fan of either era of Moonspell’s career (metal or gothic) you’ll find something you like on this release.

“Axis Mundi,” “Lickanthrope,” “Opera Carne,” New Tears Eve,” and “Herodisiac” are the tracks that I highly recommend from the album.

If it wasn’t for Paradise Lost, many of the bands on this list would not exist. They have been around for over 20 years and are the reason I listen to many of the bands I listen to including Lacuna Coil, Moonspell, and Katatonia. They were all influenced by Paradise Lost. Their 2012 album, “Tragic Idol” is another solid release from them with many really good tracks on it. They’ve managed to again mix their various styles over the years while keeping it distinctly Paradise Lost. If you’re a fan of Paradise Lost of even the death/doom metal genre, you need to hear this album if you haven’t.

Tracks I recommend from “Tragic Idol” include “Fear of an Impending Hell,” “In This We Dwell,” Theories from Another World,” and “Honesty in Death.”

I’m relatively new to Muse. I hadn’t listened to them prior to seeing them open for U2 a few years ago. I was impresed. “The 2nd Law” is their first new album since I’ve been aware of them. It’s a good album, but at certain points it lacks the power that other Muse albums have. But, even with that said about it, it’s worthy of being the 9th best album of 2012. I’ve even joked that many of the songs on this album could be on a James Bond soundtrack and I believe that to be and honor. If you like Muse, you will probably like this album and I recommend you give it a listen if you haven’t already.

Tracks I like from “The 2nd Law” include “Supremacy,” “Madness,” “Panic Station,” “Survival,” and “Follow Me.”

Yes, I said Rush is on my list. I cannot claim to be a huge fan of Rush. I’ve seen them in concert and thoroughly enjoyed the show. I’m well aware of their legacy and their history. However, I’ve never really listened to them much. I had read some reviews of “Clockwork Angels” and was curious enough to give it a listen. I could not believe what I was hearing. It was INCREDIBLY HEAVY. Their song “BU2B” is incredible. And from what I’ve heard from longtime Rush fans, it’s one of the heaviest songs they’ve ever put out. And like I said about Moonspell and Opeth, I think “Clockwork Angels” is an album that I wish Porcupine Tree had put out instead of whatever it was their last album was.

Tracks worth checking out include “Caravan,” “Seven Cities of Gold,” and especially “Bu2B.”

I had started listening to Sirius/XM’s Outlaw Country channel a bit over the summer and one of the songs I heard played frequently there was “Clementine” by Neil Young & Crazy Horse. I know it’s an old American standard, but this version had me interested. I got the rest of the album and I like just about every song on the album. They’re all old American standard, hense the name of the album, “Americana.” I think many of these songs would be a welcome addition to any Summertime playlist.

Some of my favorite tracks from this album include, “Clementine,” “Get a Job,” “This Land is Your Land,” “Tom Dula,” and “Oh Susannah.”

When I reviwed Ministry’s “The Last Sucker” in 2007, I was pretty sure that I would not be reviewing or ranking another Ministry album. They had advertised that album as their last album and the tour for it was the C-U-La-Tour. They were retiring after a long career. Well, something changed, obviously. They got back together and put out “Relapse.” The first thing I noticed on this album is that you can hear that it’s fun. They seemed to have fun recording it and I had fun listening to it. I don’t know if it’s a one time thing or if they’re back full-time, but it’s a good album filled with their usual political messages and sound bites.

Tracks worth listening to include “Ghouldiggers,” “99 Percenters.” “Relapse” and especially their cover of SOD’s “United Forces.”

Only on my lists can we go from Ministry to Dion. It just seems weird, even to me, but regardless of that, Dion’s “Tank Full of Blues” is just a good blues album. I’ve documented various times the significance that Dion has for me. This album here is the best album he’s put out over the last few years, and he’s put out of a few. It’s a well thought out blues album with some very solid tracks that I would recommend to any fan of Dion or any fan of the blues, and there’s lots of both.

Some good tracks from this album include “Tank Full of Blues,” “Ride’s Blues (For Robert Johnson),” “Bronx Poem,” and “I Read It (in the Rolling Stone).”

Willie Nelson’s music can be very simple at times, but sometimes that’s what is needed. There isn’t a need to over-produce everything. Willie Nelson’s career has lasted almost 60 years. There isn’t much I can say about him that hasn’t been said. His album “Heroes” is mostly classic country songs done by Nelson and various guest artists. “Roll Me Up” is a track on this album that features a few guests including Snoop Dogg. It’s a really fun song to listen to. The album also has a great cover of Coldplay’s song “the Scientist.” Just do yourself a favor and give this album a listen.

Tracks I recommend include “That’s all There is to This Song,” “Roll Me Up,” “The Scientist,” and “Everytime he Drinks, he Thinks of Her.”

Kid Rock’s album “Rebel Soul” came out late in 2012 and I didn’t think it was going to make it to any lists I did this year. It really had to grow on me. After listening for a while I realized that it’s not a bad rock or country album. There are some good songs on it, no doubt, but it lacked something. It doesn’t really have the attitude that I was used to from Kid Rock albums. But then again, maybe that’s where he is now. He did produce this album on his own, so maybe this is it. Kid Rock’s music is definitely more country than it is anything else at this point. That isn’t a problem for me, and maybe if I expected that going in, I would have ranked this album higher.

Tracks that are good on this include “Let’s Ride,” “Redneck Paradise,” and “Mr Rock n’ Roll.”

Some other good realease in 2012 include Fozzy’s “Sin and Bones” and ZZ Top’s “La Futura.”

Hank Williams III had an album come out in 2012 as well. I can’t say he released an album in 2012, because it was his old record label that put it out in order to fullfil a contractual obligation and because Hank has gone on record asking people not to buy it. The album is mostly older songs that he had done on collaborations and some songs from his older albums that have been remixed. If it was new material, it would have made my list, likely at #12 spot. And I’m sure Hank would be happy to see that I would have had to knock Kid Rock out of the countdown as a result.

Mumford and Sons put out their album “Babel” and it did nothing for me. The same can be said for Fiona Apple’s “The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do.” And, I want the record to state that I did a cut and paste for the name of that album.

And now I get to Storm Corrosion. Storm Corrosion is a project that Mikael Akerfeldt from Opeth and Steven Wilson from Porcupine Tree colaborated on. Based on what they’ve done together before I was very curious to see if I would like this album. However, based on the previous releases from Opeth and Porcupine Tree, I was worried about how much I may not like it. And I have to admit that I had no idea how right I was about my fears. I don’t know if I can possibly state how much I do not like this album. In fact, if it was the only album that came out in 2012, I would find a way to disqualify it from contention or I would just refuse to announce an Album of the Year. This album is nothing but ambient noises disguised as a progressive album. Robert Fripp from King Crimson would love this thing, but I certainly do not. I really don’t like it. I think I’ve made that somewhat clear. I guess it’s ironic that in a year that gave me so many albums that I liked that I felt I needed to do a Top 15 list instead of just a Top 10, I also get an album that I dislike as much as this, and from two of my favorite musicians.

I’m not aware of many new releases in 2013 yet other than new albums from Clutch and Tomahawk. And based on the direction Clutch was going, this will either be a hit or miss. And as far as Tomahawk goes, it’s a Mike Patton project, so I have no idea what it will sound like or if it’ll be something to take seriously. But we’ll see. If I like 2013’s new releases half as much as I did 2012’s, it’ll be a good year.

A note about eligibility for my 2012 Album of the Year:
– the album must have had a United States street date in 2012
– the album must be new material (for the band or artist)
– live albums are only eligible if they’re new material

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