Top 25 Albums of 2011: 25 - 11

Top 25 Albums of 2011
25 - 11

Well, 2011 is finally over and good riddance!  It was a crappy year.  Death took one of men I admire most in Christopher Hitchens, and things here in Puerto Rico couldn't be much worse.  Thankfully, these 25 albums have helped to soothe the fact that it was one lame year.  Hope you enjoy this list.  Even if only one of the albums of the list reach someone who had never heard it before then my job is done.  Remember, this is just my list.  I love music and there will be different kinds of genres represented here, leaning more towards rock than anything else.

25)

Hot Sauce Committee Part Two

by Beastie Boys

The Beastie Boys are one of those hip hop groups reviled by a lot of the scene.  I don't claim to know a lot about hip hop.  The truth is that I'm not much into the scene but the Beastie Boys have always been a group that I pay attention to.  After more than 30 years of playing and rapping together, the B-Boys have released an album that is relevant and frankly, just loads of fun.  Tracks like "Say It" show that these 40 somethings still have an ear on what works.  The scratching on this song and on the other songs by regular Mix Master Mike is catchy and you will find it hard not to let the tracks here seduce you into enjoying them completely.  Other than that, it must be said that even after a couple of years of working on this record (Part 1 was supposed to be released a few years back but MCA got diagnosed with cancer) and it doesn't sound stale at all.  It's still Beastie Boys at their best.  Also, still some of the best music videos in the business!

24)

Welcome 2 My Nightmare

by Alice Cooper

The King of Shock Rock is back with the sequel to one of his seminal albums, Welcome to My Nightmare.  Alice Cooper has been going strong for the better part of 45 years and he still has the ear for music that made him big in the first place.  This album really does a good job in not emulating the original but basically churning out songs that while keeping on the same concept speak to the audience from today rather than just fans of the original.  The songs are all pretty catchy and fun.  Stuff like "Caffeine" is what I mean.  Can't help but sing it to myself whenever I'm tired at work.  The southern style of "A Runaway Train" is also aimed to please.  The thing about this album is that it seems primed to be acted on stage like only Alice Cooper can.  The songs, while differing in their styles, feel like they belong together and that makes this a strong album.

23)

War of the Roses

by Ulver

If you have never heard of Ulver, you are probably not alone.  This band from Norway is a difficult one to peg in a single genre as their discography is incredibly varied and they make sure that no two albums are the same.  From their folk infused black metal beginnings to what is probably one of their most mature efforts to date, Ulver can't be accused of being in a rut.  I first got into them through vocalist Kristoffer Rygg, better known as Garm.  I was lucky enough to run into a track of the new Arcturus album (back in 2002) and loved the hell out of it.  Through him I also got into Borknagar and Ulver.  This is not an album that is easy to get into.  It will take a couple of listens through it whole in order to appreciate its complexity.  There is no easily digestible mainstream rock/metal here.  After you get it, you will understand why this album is so fantastic.  My favorite track after a few listens is "Providence".  There is something about the way the Garm's vocals are complimented by the female vocals in this track.  Give this a shot.

22)

3rd Round Knockout

by Chrome Division

Once upon a time (2004), in Norway, Dimmu Borgir's vocalist Shagrath was interested in playing something more than just symphonic black metal.  He began to jam and soon enough a band was formed.  Chrome Division takes everything that is good from bands like Black Label Society and especially Motorhead and make it even dirtier.  The music was completely traditional metal more akin to the aforementioned Motorhead than any other band.  I have to admit that this kind of metal has always attracted me.  There is something about the leather and the girls with big boobs and the biker culture that I enjoy and this band embodies all of that.  For this album, the band switched vocalist Eddie Guz for Susperia's Shady Blue and while he can also do the vocals nicely, Guz's more growling vocals seemed to fit the almost grimy and sweaty feeling you get when listening to this band.  Like you have been on the desert roads for days on end riding on your Harley.  While this particular album seems a lot more polished, it is still a lot of fun to listen to.  These guys don't take themselves too seriously and that makes me enjoy them even more.  While the first single is ok, it is the next two songs of the album ("7 G-Strings" and "Join the Ride") that really make you want to continue listening.

21)

Oceana

by Derek Sherinian

Derek Sherinian has played with a lot of people.  He has played with Planet X, Yngwie Malmsteem, Billy Idol, KISS, Alice Cooper and Dream Theater aside from his solo projects.  This particular one is his seventh solo album and I finally got what I wanted to hear.  He always invites guest musicians on his albums and he always has top notch guitarists, but this is probably the first time he bursts out of his shell and actually puts the keyboards front and center.  For this album, he moved away from the metal stylings of the previous albums and instead decided to go more blues rock and fusion.  With guest guitarists like Steve Lukather, Doug Aldrich, Tony Macalpine, Steve Stevens and the pretty awesome Joe Bonamassa (whose 2011 album Dust Bowl is also worth a listen), it was obvious where this one was leaning.  This is instrumental stuff though, so if you don't really like that kind of stuff, you should probably stay away.

20)

The Beginning of Times 

by Amorphis

Amorphis is one of those bands that I have been quietly following for a long time now.  I remember buying their album Tales from the Thousand Lakes and really enjoying their brand of melodic death metal.  Their use of the cleaner vocals and the acoustic guitars made me more interested in it than most of the bands of similar genres.  After that, they changed vocalists released an album that I really praise as one of their most mature to date.  Am Universum is very different from their past work, it was incredibly experimental and they toyed with the saxophone and other progressive elements.  Those two styles converged to make what is the Amorphis of today.  The songs are not as heavy as they once were and the vocals aren't always clean.  They do a good job of switching between the two without making it sound forced.  Tracks like "Song of the Sage" show this clearly.  They also implement the folk elements that separated them from the pack back in the days.  Keyboardist Santelli Kallio really shines in this album.  If there is one gripe I might have is that vocalist Tommy Joutsen really doesn't have the range with the clean vocals that Pasi Koskinen, but I don't think that Koskinen's vocal style would be good for this style of Amorphis (also, Joutsen is more versatile).  Either way, the sound is epic, and of course, it couldn't have been an Amorphis album if the lyrics weren't about Finnish mythology.

19)

Dualism

by Textures

There are two great things about doing a list like this.  One is that you listen to a lot of albums.  A lot of them.  Most of them are just good to mediocre, but a couple of them are fantastic.  The second one is that you discover some bands that you had never heard before.  With the amount of bands getting albums released, it is almost impossible to keep up with it all.  Textures is one such band.  I was reading a list of prog metal albums released in 2011 and happened to stumble upon the cover of this album.  Something about it drew me in.  I listened to their single "Singularity" and was immediately hooked.  This Dutch band touches all the right buttons and manages to do something that rarely happens.  They made me think their -core-ish vocals didn't ruin the whole thing.  The music here is just top notch progressive metal with a harder edge.  Their use of progressive elements to contrast with their (most of the time) harsh vocals works perfectly here.  The truth is that the band shines the most when forgoing their -core vocals and focusing on their clean ones as the track "Reaching Home" shows.  I will definitely be looking out for more of the stuff in the future.

18)

Stand Up and Fight

by Turisas

Another group of Finns make my list.  This time, the group is of the symphonic folk metal type, but there is much more to this group than what meets the eye.  While other bands that mix death and folk metal are a constant barrage of heaviness (not that it is a bad thing... Surtur Rising from Amon Amarth is another album to check out), Turisas mixes that up with epic anthemic passages that make you want to... stand up and fight (or at the very least put up a sword like object and slash at random inanimate objects).  This is a very interesting band.  There are moments that make you feel like you are watching a Broadway play about killing.  Some people might be put off by that, but I think it helps to give this album a whole new dimension.  It's also a lot like listening to a role playing game's soundtrack or even a movies.  Listen to the fourth track "Venetoi! - Prasenoi!" and revel on the pomposity of the movie score-like music.   Give this album a chance and let it grow on you.  Besides, what is better than Vikings raping and pillaging!?  

17)

Road Salt Two

by Pain of Salvation

Daniel Gildenlöw really took his 70s prog rock influences to heart here.  We have to face it.  Pain of Salvation is not the same band that it was when they recorded the awesome Remedy Lane.  They have been there and done that.  If there is something that Daniel has shown us is that he is constantly evolving as a musician and he doesn't want to do the same things for too long.  I was afraid this album would be so similar to the first one that it would be lost in the shuffle, but I'm glad that it is not.  What has always driven Pain of Salvation's albums to me has always been the passion with which Gildenlöw sings.  The faster tracks and the mellow ones are sung with the same intensity.  I like that.  Mostly acoustic tracks like "Healing Now" are a pleasure to listen to not only because of Daniel's vocals, but because the music is haunting and beautiful.  Also, musical interludes like the one at the 4 minute mark on the track "Eleven" are just so clever and entertaining that its hard to dislike. Listen to this album, but don't listen to it expecting another Remedy Lane or you will be sorely disappointed.  Instead listen to it for what it is... a fantastic progressive rock album.

16)

Bilateral

by Leprous

I only wish I could have found this band a couple of months back, because then it would have made my list for the Misnamed bands.  Leprous (or something relating to leprosy) is a progressive metal band from Norway that is light on the metal and heavy on the progressive.  I thought that with that name this would surely be one of those extreme metal bands that do tried and true stuff that hasn't changed or evolved in 20 years.  I have never been so glad that I was so mistaken.  I don't really know what you would call this type of music these days.  Sure, the elements of 70s prog rock are there, but there is an obvious feeling of 'newness' about it.  Like if King Crimson and Opeth met one night and fucked and out came Leprous.  There are some moments where the vocals turn pretty growling and extreme but it never detracts from the music, and they instead make those harder passages work for them.  I guess Progressive Metal seems to be the best way to describe them.  Every song is like an acid trip on its own.  Don't be surprised if a trumpet also sneaks in on a couple of tracks completely out of nowhere and just as welcome.

 

15)

Iconoclast

by Symphony X

Symphony X have been making music for almost 20 years now and they still seem to be going strong basically the same formula that made them get big back in 1997 when they released The Divine Wings of Tragedy.  Their style is a mixture of the staples of the Power Metal genre and those of Progressive Metal joining into one glorious band with some great albums, of which this one is one.  One of my favorite things about Symphony X has always been the skills of the musicians and their ability to showcase them without it detracting form the songs.  They don't just play fast, they play with purpose.  From the get-go, the first track of the album (also it's title track) is a 10 minute attack to all your senses.  Russell Allen, like always, is in top notch form, delivering with aggressiveness when needed and otherwise when the time calls for it.  The musicians all do a fantastic job.  Michael Romero especially on the guitar, with some blistering riffs and solos that just about make this album a must listen.  But the one that probably should be considered the breakthrough star of this album is keyboardist Michael Pinnella.  This is classic Symphony X with a little bit of an edge.  Enjoy.

14)

Glasnost

by Illuminatus

Post-metal is something you probably started hearing not too long ago.  As a genre, it has never really taken off or had some major band that really took them to some other echelon.  Isis is probably the closest thing to that.  To me it sounds an awful lot like doom metal with a mixture of atmospheric metal sounds and metalcore (although not always) vocals.  This album is probably one of the best examples of the genre in recent years.  The downtuned guitars and slow tempo might be boring for some people, but it doesn't take away from the heaviness.  All the songs seem to be moving towards a huge climax... or a couple.  This was the first time I had ever heard the band Illuminatus, but I'm glad I did find the cover interesting.  This is an intense album through and through and even though there are moments or relative un-heaviness, it doesn't take long for the guitars to kick in and the vocals to roar through your speakers.  This is really a complete album and one metal music fans shouldn't miss.

13)

2
by Black Country Communion

Back in 2009 a supergroup released an album to great sales.  Chickenfoot was born.  Everyone was paying attention.  In 2010, another supergroup was formed.  I never heard about it.  Black Country Communion is a collaboration between Glenn Hughes (vocals/bass; ex-Deep Purple and solo work), Joe Bonamassa (guitar; mostly solo work), Jason Bonham (drums; Foreigner and UFO and also the son of Led Zeppelin's late drummer John Bonham) and Derek Sherinian (keyboards; solo work, Dream Theater among others).  This is an interesting group of people getting together and sharing their individual talents in order to make a band work.  You can obviously hear some Zeppelin in here, but never in a way to make you feel like this is just a Zep worship group.  Bonamassa gives the group the blues chops with his guitar playing and Sherinian does his best to give the band a nice harder edge but never overpowers.  This is definitely a group effort as they all seemingly seamlessly weave their different styles and backgrounds into one well balanced band with some fantastic music.

12)

Mammoth

by Beardfish

This is another of those bands that I was able to discover through this search for my favorite albums of 2011.  Besides the incredibly weird name for a band, the album art immediately drew me in.  After all the aesthetics of the name and album cover, the band is joy to listen to.  This Swedish band plays a style of progressive metal that is a lot more progressive than metal.  While you can definitely easily find the influence of early 70s prog rock acts like YES and ELP, there is also a little bit of the more modern prog sound from bands like The Flower Kings.  The music here is full of emotion as you can easily tell from the intro to the 15 minute track "And the Stone Said 'If I Could Speak'".  There are some moments where they go for some harsh vocals and it works fine.  There is nothing self serving or masturbatory about this album or as far as I could tell from this band.  This is not about showing how the members are all the best at whichever instrument they play, but it is about making beautiful music.  It takes a couple of listens to actually get everything that is to be appreciated from their music, but once you do, you will be hooked.   

11)

Mortal Man

by Zed Head

Who would have thought that one of my favorite albums of 2011 would come in the form of old school blues rock... from Toronto.  These guys play a southern style that is hard to come by in this day and age.  An obvious throwback to those bands that liked to play fun, infectious music.  It almost feels like ZZ Top and Stevie Ray Vaughan playing together.  Every sound Neil Chapman's guitar makes and every time Bob Adams blows on his harp, the music you hear is soulful and deep.  Of course, these guys have a nice sense of humor and the lyrics portray it.  There are no really deep lyrics to find here, but you might instead find something that is instead playful.  Songs about drinking and women are a staple.  I also like the The Fogman's vocals.  They are clean and with a lot of feeling but at the same time have a raspy finish that gives the band a more grimy exterior.  No band that plays this style of music should ever feel to polished.  Too much perfection really goes against what this bands seems to stand for.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that the members are not talented musicians, because they are and they show it.  Who would have thunk it.  Canadian southern blues rock... still feels weird to say.

This is it for the picks 25 through 11.  All that are left are the Top 10 and you'll want to keep checking us out for those.  Some really fantastic albums make that list pretty special.  Hope you enjoy some of these albums and hopefully you can find something that interests you here.

25) Hot Sauce Committee Part Two by Beastie Boys
24) Welcome 2 My Nightmare by Alice Cooper
23) War of the Roses by Ulver
22) 3rd Round Knockout by Chrome Division
21) Oceana by Derek Sherinian
20) The Beginning of Times by Amorphis
19) Dualism by Textures
18) Stand Up and Fight by Turisas
17) Road Salt Two by Pain of Salvation
16) Bilateral by Leprous
15) Iconoclast by Symphony X
14) Glasnost by Illuminatus
13) 2 by Black Country Communion
12) Mammoth by Beardfish
11) Mortal Man by Zed Head

Top Ten Albums That Changed My Life

Eddie Trunk has worked in the music business for a while now in different roles. He basically specializes on Hard Rock and Metal but mostly the former. Not too long ago, he released his list of Ten Albums That Changed His Life. While his list was a good one, there were not many surprises. While its definitely a very personal list, I decided to do my own. Let me make this clear, this is NOT my favorite albums list. This is just the albums I believe changed my life in some way. This was Alexis' and Yhann's idea and I thought it was cool and hope to see their lists very soon and maybe implement them here so you can all see them. So, without further ado, here's my list...

Honorable Mentions

Pantera had released a couple of sub par albums in the eighties that were okay but nothing extraordinary. In 1990, they changed the metal world by releasing this fantastic album, Cowboys From Hell. While they were not the thrash style that had been made mainstream by the Big 4, this was sort of post-thrash heavy metal. The energy of the band onstage (I was never able to see them live but through DVD's and such) was unrivaled by most of the metal world and the music was powerful. Sadly, 'Dimebag' Darrell is gone from this world, but this album will be remembered by me as an integral part of my metal growth.


I am not a huge fan of the extreme metal genres. Sure, there are a band here and a band there, but traditional Death Metal and Black Metal have never been my cup of tea. About 6 years ago, I stumbled upon this band completely by chance. Arcturus was a sort of supergroup in the Black Metal genre with guys like Garm, Samoth and Hellhammer coming together to form this interesting group. Their first album was the normal black metal fair, but with 1997's Le Masquerade Infernale thet became something else entirely. With 2002's The Sham Mirrors, they were able to come together and really become an interesting band that shunned traditional black elements and implemented an avant garde style that made the group stand out from most. This is a fantastic album to discover and it really made me dig deeper into the subgenres of black metal and discover other nice gems.

The List

I first heard vocalist Devon Graves (Buddy Lackey) when he created the band Deadsoul Tribe. While his voice was interesting and incredibly haunting, I would never know his real potential until I heard this album. In 1990 progressive metal was still in its infancy. Psychotic Waltz's first album A Social Grace is an underrated gem of an album that will blow fans of the genre away. Listen to the energy of this album and the weird time signatures and especially the unique vocals of Graves and you will see why this album is so great. This album showed me that you don't need to do things the same way as everyone else does them. You can make your stuff unique.


I don't think this is Pain of Salvation's best album, but it's certainly their most creative one. This prog metal band has definitely evolved with each new album, but it wasn't until their concept album BE that Daniel Gildenlow and his band truly showed how creative and innovative they could be. Sure, it may be flawed in its way as it probably tries to do too much, but that is not what attracted me to it in the first place. What some more arrogant reviewers might view as pretentiousness, I see as Gildenlow's way to show everyone his vision. The mixture of music, spoken word pieces, and such make this a listening experience that should never be taken out of its own context and even less, viewed individually as different "songs". This is much more than that, which is why I am a big fan of this album and will continue to be for a long time.


I have to give a lot of thanks to my father for showing me the classic rock legends way back when I was little. Without having listened to classic bands like the Stones, The Who, etc., I would have probably been listening to reggueton or some shit like that. What better album is there to discover when you are at a young age? Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker's landmark album, Disraeli Gears, is a gem of classic psychedelic blues rock. There is nothing better than to rediscover this album when you are a older *wink* *wink*. This album helped to turn me into a fan of the 60s which I am still one now. Slowhand is also one of my favorite guitarists.


I remember when I first got this album like a thousand years ago. I was interested by the album cover. I had heard a friend of mine talk about Joe Satriani before, but I really didn't know what to expect when I bought it. While most people consider Surfing With the Alien to be their favorite Satch album, The Extremist was my first album of instrumental guitar, and it still holds a place in my heart. Besides all that, this is just a fantastic album. Satch has always been one of my favorites because he is not just one of those really fast guitarists and nothing much more. He is a talented song writer and his music is full of soul (for lack of a better word).


I have always been one of those music fans that just likes to demand more from his music. I don't like to settle for just a collection of songs put together under the same name. When I heard that this album had one of the most talented vocalists out there, some kickass prog metal music, and an interesting story to boot, I was in from the get go. This album was the one that made me realize that there exists music that doesn't just want to be music alone but can also come together in an album (and through different albums) and tell a coherent story. Queensryche's Operation: Mindcrime is probably the best concept album in the metal genre (including all its subgenres). Geoff Tate's vocals are just amazing and I still like to listen to this album after about 13 years of discovering it.


Okay, okay... I admit it. I'm sort of cheating in a way. But not truly. The Essential Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble should be in anyone's blues rock collection... hell, in anyone's music collection period. When I got this album, I had never heard any of Stevie's songs. I was getting it purely on a friend's recommendation. I'm incredibly glad I did. This collection of Stevie songs is incredibly deep with some fantastic songs that really showcase Vaughan's guitar work and deep voice. This album and Stevie Ray Vaughan's guitar made the transition from blues rock to delta blues for me seem seamless. If you don't like this man, you don't have a soul.


If there is one album that I would love to take with me to a deserted island, it would probably be Pink Floyd's seminal work The Dark Side of the Moon. Pink Floyd always released incredible albums, but there is something about this album that just propels it over everything they ever wrote with Syd Barrett or after. I remember when I first heard this album it was like nothing I was used to hearing. I had heard the classic rock of the 60's but this was more than just that. It was my first foray into prog rock. From there, the other classics of the genre where obvious in my journey (gotta give props to King Crimson as well!). Listen to this masterpiece and be awed by it.


I never thought death metal could be beautiful. I never even knew it was possible. That is until I heard Mikael Akerfeldt's growls and then suddenly an acoustic interlude with incredible clean vocals coming from the same mouth. Not only are his growls amazing, but Akerfeldt's versatility quickly made him one of my favorites and Opeth one of my favorite bands. The music is complex and interesting, its ugly and beautiful, its raw and at the same time crisp. This band has everything I want in an band. Blackwater Park, for me, is the perfect album from a band like Opeth. This album made me believe that death metal could be beautiful and I also found one of my favorite bands in the process.


Can anyone go wrong with a Led Zeppelin album? I don't think so. I never got into Zep early in my life. My dad liked them but he was more into the Stones and The Beatles. When I first heard them in a movie's soundtrack, I knew I needed more. I went out and got Led Zeppelin IV or The Fourth Album or ZoSo... however you may want to call it since it has no name. When you look at the track list, its filled with unquestionably fantastic songs. This album really did open a lot of doors for me in the classic rock world and it was when I knew that this was the style that I liked the most. This was the genre that spoke to me the most. It was the day I knew that I loved this kind of music and there was nothing that could ever change it.


Now, I know what you are about to say. "You chose Fear Factory over Led Zeppelin!? Are you mad!?!?". It's a fair question. Yes, I did pick Fear Factory's Demanufacture over my favorite band ever. Why? When I started listening to Zep earnestly, I was already a heavy metal fan. One day, I had been paid by my mother for cleaning something I don't remember. I had 20 bucks in my hand and was in a music store. I saw the cover of this album and bought it because it looked incredibly cool (still does). I knew it was harder and harsher than anything I had heard before (it was on the metal section) but I never expected it to be what it is. It was a visceral experience. From the moment I put on the CD, I was blown away. This was some heavy shit, especially for someone not used to this kind of music. It took me a bit to really get into it, but when I did, I was hooked. The Slayers, Metallicas, Iron Maidens, Judas Priests of this world came after Fear Factory for me. In my musical life there are many different experiences, but I divide it simply as the Years of Silence (when music wasn't a big part of my life) and After Fear Factory.

Well, there is my list. I hope you enjoyed it and maybe discovered an album you hadn't given the time of day before. I am sure yours is also an interesting read. Comment below what you think and if you want, gimme your list as well.