Earlier on in the
year I reviewed every Muse album. Now I am going to rank them from worst
to best.
8th -
"Simulation Theory" - This is their last album which came out in
2018. To be honest I couldn't even name a track off it now, unlike all
the other albums. Meaning it's fairly forgettable and I remember when I
reviewed it, I was generally disappointed with it.
7th -
"Absolution" - This may surprise people as this was Muse's third
album and was generally well received at the time. It has some great
tunes on it in the form of "Time is running out" and
"Hysteria" but there are also some bad tracks on here too which
really bring it down.
6th - "The 2nd
Law" - If you'd ask me what position this album would have been in prior
to having reviewed it this year I would have ranked "Absolution"
higher. But having gone back to this I enjoyed it a lot more. The
experimented more here and it is quite a diverse album.
5th -
"Showbiz" - Their debut album and despite the quality decreasing
slightly towards the back end of the album this is a great listen.
"Cave" is epic along with classics such as "Sunburn",
"Uno" and the tender acoustic track "Unintended".
4th - "The
Resistance" - This is another album I totally missed at the time but glad
I went back to it to appreciate its true magnificence. Although it is a
rock album it does also have a classical vibe throughout with all the piano and
is probably their most prog leaning album too.
3rd - "Black
Holes and Revelations" - I think if you asked Muse fans what their
favourite album was a lot would say this album. Personally, I think they
have done better but this album is still an absolute stormer.
"Starlight" in particular is a great track and how can I not mention
album closer "Knights of Cydonia" which is a total classic.
2nd -
"Drones" - For me, this is a very underrated Muse album, after
experimenting and pushing their sound with "The Resistance" and
"The 2nd Law". This was Muse rocking their absolute hearts
out. "Reapers" has a riff and a half, with the likes of "Psycho"
and "Dead Inside" not far behind. But it's the deep cuts which
makes this album even better with longer tracks such as
"Globalisation" and "Aftermath".
1st - "Origin of
Symmetry". But there is an album which slides "Drones into
second place and that’s "Origin of Symmetry". Track after track
it's quality of the highest order. No band was doing what Muse were doing
at this time and to their level. From the piano intro in "New
Born" to Bellamy swinging his guitar round and bursting into a full blown
riff. "Citizen Erased" remains my favourite Muse song
ever. The riff and the amazing spacy outro are amazing. The
"Feeling good" cover, "Plugin Baby" and "Space
Dementia". So many amazing moments on the album which seamlessly gel
together to make this one of my favourite albums of all time.
This a countdown of every Coldplay studio album starting from the worst,
progressing to the best.
9. At 9 "Everyday Life". Released in 2019 this was
Coldplay doing something a bit different, bringing in different musicians and
singers over the course of this double album. Don't get me wrong there
were some highlights like the magnificent "Arabesque" which is one of
my favourite Coldplay songs ever. But so many songs on this release fall
short of the mark, making for quite a forgettable album.
8. "Music of the Spheres". This was released just last year,
and I really liked it when it came out. Don't get me wrong there is a
load of good songs on here which will fit well into their live set.
"Coloratura" I believe is their longest song ever sitting around 10
minutes. But the thing is it's a 40-minute album so that’s 9 tracks
taking up the other 30 minutes. So overall it feels like you are getting short-changed
a bit and the album feels a bit of a mess and songs just thrown in without
giving thought to the overall listening experience. But as I say there
are good songs on here.
7. "Head full of Dreams" when I reviewed this album, I did call it
the poor mans "Mylo Xylto". This was a more commercial release
than the other 2 albums I mentioned and still a good album. It's just not a
great album. Album closer "Up & Up" I would say is the
highlight.
6. "Mylo Xylto" From now on in the list this is where Coldplay
were doing their best work. Great tunes, upbeat. "Paradise" and
"Every teardrop is a waterfall" absolutely fantastic tracks.
5. "Parachutes". Their debut album and although it has the
sparkle of "Yellow" it's one of their more downbeat releases.
Still very good songs though and you can see how they got their reputation so
quickly in their careers.
4. "X & Y" I really do feel this is an underrated
album. And apart from "Fix you" the rest of this album seems to
have been long forgotten about especially when you see them live. But
this is a great album which deserves more recognition. "The Message"
and "Low" are some deep cuts that are brilliant.
3. "Ghost Stories" Such a different vibe for Coldplay and it
totally worked. Only 9 tracks which means it didn't quite make the top 2.
Also, as good as "Sky full of Stars" is. It does not fit on this
album and was clearly put on to make the album more marketable. The irony
is "Magic" won Radio 1 song of the year when this came out which fits
onto the album perfectly.
2. This is where it gets difficult as I rank the top 2 albums
incredibly highly. But for number 2 I'll say, "Rush of Blood to the
head". It's hard because I would call this a perfect album. Absolutely
no bad tracks. Album closer "Amsterdam" was my favourite track
for ages, and I used to listen to this album every day doing the washing up.
1. So number 1 must be "Viva la Vida". Again, a
perfect album. The instrumental which starts this album "Life in
technicolour" is killer. The title track is one of their best upbeat
tracks. It felt more like a concept album and the tracks were all
purposely placed in a way I used to have it on repeat and never get bored.
It wasn't just this album though that came from this era. They also released
"Prospect March EP" just after this album which was just as good.
A couple of years ago
I reviewed every Alter Bridge album and I thought having gone in depth with
them so much; now I thought I'd rank them from "worst" to best.
6. At 6 is "Walk
the Sky". You will notice I put "worst" in quotation
marks. This is because there isn't a bad Alter Bridge album. They
are all very good and worth a listen. But some readers of my blog maybe
surprised to see this at the bottom of the pile given that it was my album of
the year in 2019. I do tend to get really into albums when they come out
and this was no exception. But when another band comes along with a new album I
tend to move on. Alter Bridge were very much in the right place at the
right time when making my list for 2019 albums. As I say this is a good
album but the reason it's listed below the others is that I felt that it was
the safe option in order to try and get more hit singles. Rather than some
longer tracks they've mastered and crafted so well in the past. It was
nice to see Mark Tremonti back on lead vocals for one track "Forever
Falling" and there are other tracks on here which are worth a listen,
namely, "Indoctrination", "The Bitter End" and "Clear
Horizon". As I say still a decent album.
5. At 5 is
"The Last Hero" which is Alter Bridge's 5th record. Some
circles believe this is a much underrated Alter Bridge album. And while
again it is another cracking album, which pips "Walk the Sky" for me
as the songs are slightly longer and the band showed a bit more ambition.
"Cradle to the Grave" was also my entry point into the band and
really got me into them so that song will always mean a lot. Other great
singles off this include "Show me a leader", "My Champion"
and "This side of Fate"
4. At 4 is "One
Day remains". This is Alter Bridge's debut album and often a
favourite of fans who have been with them from the start. Not as high a
ranking from me as I felt some of the album tracks are not as good as some on
other albums. But the singles really do soar on this one. Particularly
"Metalingus" which makes its way in to their setlists to this
day. "Open your eyes" and "Burn it down" are
other highlights.
3. At 3 is
"Blackbird". Now this maybe surprising not having this higher
but I think this shows just how highly I rank the other two albums. The
reason why it is surprising having this at 3 is because this contains the track
"Blackbird" itself which as I mentioned in my review, is one of my
favourite tracks by any band of all time. And I still stand by that.
While "Rise Today", "Before Tomorrow Comes" and "Come
to Life" are absolute monsters. Like "One Day remains" it
feels like there are some songs on here that don't pull their weight quite as
much as the 2 albums which I have ranked higher.
2. At 2 is
"ABIII" which appropriately is Alter Bridge's 3rd album. Alter
Bridge have always had a habit of starting and finishing their albums well with
a fitting introduction and exciting conclusion. But this album did it
brilliantly. "Slip to the void" fits the bill perfectly for the
opening track and often is the one the open their set with. While
"Words darker than their wings" finishes it off epically with Mark
and Myles sharing vocals. On this track Myles goes to places vocally
which he can't do that often the notes get so high. What makes this album
great though is that it's an all-round solid album. You've got all out
belters such as "Isolation" while slowing things right down with
"Wonderful Life" and "Life Must Go On".
1. At 1 and my
favourite Alter Bridge album, goes to their 4th album "Fortress".
I do feel with this album they were more ambitious, and they absolutely pulled
it out of the bag. "Cry for Achilles" opens proceedings with a
winding guitar intro. "Bleed it dry" has one of Mark's best
guitar solos. "Lover" is one of the best ballads they have
done. "Waters Rising" sees Mark on lead vocals for the first
time and it's awesome. Then you have the last 2 tracks "All ends
well" along with the longer "Fortress" finishes things
off. This album is truly awesome from start to finish and in my opinion a
must listen.
Tonight, saw Ghost return
to Glasgow in support of their new album "Impera". They brought
along with them two supports in the form of Twin Temple and Uncle Acid &
the Deadbeats. My gig buddy for tonight was Campbell and we had a good
catch up in the Clyde built restaurant where we had dinner prior to the
gig. As we were eating, we could see the queues build outside the Hydro
and we knew the first band weren't due on till 7 so we made our way over about
ten to seven.
It didn't take too long to get
in and as we walked in, we found Twin Temple in full flow already. Going
into the arena, apart from the stage area it was pitch black, so it was a case
of trying not to bump into anyone and at the same time trying not to lose
Campbell. Struggling to find out much on the internet about band members and
where they are from, but I think Tobias Forge of Ghost mentioned later on in
the evening that they were from America. What instantly struck me about
Twin Temple where they were quite different experience. They had a female
singer, guitarist, bassist, drummer, keyboardist and saxophone player. It
felt more of 50's, 60s rock and roll vibe. From the songs I heard it was
quite refreshing to have the saxophonist getting most of the limelight. While
the guitarist had his moments it was definitely the saxophone player who stole
the show.
Most of their songs were
focused on Satan and all that sort of ideology. Which kind of puts them
in a position where a lot of people would turn away because of their own
beliefs. But if you base it on the music rather than what the lyrics are it was
a good set to start the night. There was some sort of drinking blood
ritual at the end of the set then the lead singer and guitarist had a
snog. While this was happening the rest of the band hand an almighty free
form jamming session reminiscent of something The Mars Volta are well known
for.
The next band up were Uncle
Acid and the Deadbeats who hail from Cambridge, England. They very much
had a metal vibe while still having audible vocals. If the singer passed me in
the street I wouldn't know as he had his long hair covering his face the whole
set. There was no doubt these guys rocked hard musically but perhaps were
about stagnant onstage compared to the other 2 bands tonight. They were good
to see once but probably not a band I would go back to.
Next up were tonight's
headliners Ghost. I saw Ghost in 2019 on their "Prequelle" tour
so had been looking forward to this one. The stage set up I think was
pretty much the same as last time from memory. But the faceless ghouls
(the band members except Tobias Forge) had different costumes which I
understand were inspired by Star Wars. Once again tonight Tobias Forge
showed what a great frontman he is. He has great stage presence and good
interaction with the audience in between songs. The guitarists got in on
the act too and were having funny interactions like after one song trying to
out do each others guitar solos.
Obviously these things add to
the show and go away to make the show memorable. But the thing with Ghost
is they have the music to back it up. And now having 5 albums out along
with various other releases they seem to be snowballing more and more fans into
their world. Out of the 20-song set, nearly 75% of tracks were from the last
3 albums. 4 from new album "IMPERA", 5 from
"Prequelle" and 5 from "Meliora". Then they played
"Kiss the Goat" and "Mary on a cross" which was a double
A-side single brought out in 2019. They also played a cover of
Metallica's "Enter Sandman" which they did for the Metallica covers
album.
My personal highlights were
"Miasma", "Dance Macabre" and set closer "Square
Hammer". But overall, it was a blistering set from a band who keep getting
better and better.
"Seeking Answers in
Silence" is the 2nd EP by London alternative hard rockers Youth
Illusion. And is a follow up to the "Terms of Submission"
EP. They sight their influences as the likes of Rise Against, Biffy
Clyro, AC/DC, Guns & Roses, Offspring, Green day and Thrice. In other
words, right up my street.
I think the thing which strikes
me most about this EP is just how catchy and infectious the songs are.
Although the bands I have mentioned above you can definitely hear in their
music. In terms of the lead vocals, I would describe them as a lot cleaner
cut than bands mentioned but the guitars and bass give it them that
edginess. I see this as a good thing though as it differentiates
them. There are more moments where the vocals are more aggressively delivered
like towards the end of "Blood on my hands" and also some of the
backing vocals on some of the other songs. This will certainly give the
band some versatility in their music going forward. The Guns & Roses
element can be heard in the likes of the solo of one of the singles they
released prior to this EP coming out "Help me to believe".
This is a 6 track EP, and such
is the strength of it I imagine it was difficult to choose singles off
it. They all pull their weight well. My favourite song at the
moment is probably "Down" but it does change. I love the
soaring chorus and the excellent riff which runs ragged throughout the
track.
Overall, I think this a great
EP showing a band with masses amount of potential. I know I'm looking forward
to seeing what they come out with next.
"Unlimited Love"
is the 12th album by Calfornian funk rocksters the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
I first got into the Chilis by chance after noticing the album Californication
in a random record shop in America in 1999 and picking it up on a whim. I
didn't realise at the time what a significant album it would be in the Chili's
history and would be the start of a 23-year period and counting of classing
myself as a Chili's fan.
"Unlimited Love"
follows 2016 album "The Getaway". Personally, I thought that album
didn’t get enough praise. It didn't have the big funk rock epics of days
gone by and was more down tempo than other albums. But to me it is still a
really solid album. As we now know it would be the last album Josh
Klinghoffer would appear on as lead guitarist, making way for John Frusciante
to come back into the fold for the first time since he left the band in 2009,
following the Stadium Arcadium tour. That is really the big headline news
for this album and has been talked about so much. It seems the band were
finding it hard to find that creative spark when trying to record the new album
with Josh and it seems John was keen to get back in, so it seemed to make
sense.
Many have criticised the Josh
era and it’s not his fault but the Chilis only releasing 2 albums in the past
13 years isn't a great work rate. I didn't rate 2011's "I'm with
you" and thought it was an album which Josh was more finding his footing
in the band. I did go and see the Chili's on that tour too and you could
see that Josh skipped a few Frusciante's solos which did highlight just how
good a guitarist Fruciante is. But as I said on "The Getaway"
Josh I felt did find his feet and it was a great album. There has also
been a lot of talk about Frusciante saying he won't play any songs that he
hadn't contributed too writing. One camp says he should play all Chili songs,
but I disagree with this. He has been involved in at least 6 of the Chili
Peppers albums now which are arguably all the best they have done. And to
him playing the others would be like playing covers. Chili's albums aren't
short either so there’s enough tough decisions to make creating a tour setlist
than having to include songs from the other albums he didn't appear on too.
But anyway, John being back is
a very big deal which is why I have talked about it so much. But what
about "Unlimited Love"? How does that match up? Well, it's a
mammoth 17 tracks coming in at 73 minutes and I am in 2 minds about the
length. On one hand it's been so long since the last Chili's record you
are just pleased to get value for money and if it was just 30 minutes you would
feel a let-down having waited so long. But on the other hand, I feel have an
album this long it is harder to make it a cohesive album and can just turn into
a collection of songs rather and lose its structure and I feel it does do that
at times.
I wouldn't go as far as saying
this is a diverse or experimental album by any stretch. It still has that
funk rock Chili's style all over it. They have their sound and in terms
of big rock acts there is not really anyone doing what they are doing at least
to their level. This means if they did change their sound, they would end
up doing what other bands are doing and, in the process, losing what people
like about them in the first place.
I would say some of this album
is a continuation in a way of "The Getaway" in that a lot of the
album does have that more relaxed vibe, tracks like "It's Only
Natural", "Not the one" and "Veronica" epitomise
this. John obviously plays a big part in the writing again and his solos
are on point especially on the likes of their first single on the album
"Black Summer". Interestingly for the first time as far as I'm
aware John sings the chorus on "Heavy Wing". He has done
backing vocals loads in the past and at gigs usually gets his own segment and
does a cover. But I think this is the first time he has shared lead
vocals with Anthony. And it works too, to me it's never been debatable
that he is a great singer. This is shown through a lot of his solo stuff
where he used to sing a lot before he moved onto doing more electronic music.
Another great track is
"Aquatic mouth dance", this is where Flea really shines as the Chilis
go into funk rock overdrive with trumpets and all. Like something from Mother's
Milk. But I think my favourite track at the moment has to be "These
are the Ways". This track is so catchy, has a great chorus and riff.
But often the unsung hero of the Chilis, drummer Chad Smith, really gets to
shine here through is excellent drum fills.
Overall, this is a great
album. I think making it so long they have fallen into the trap that a
few songs that wouldn't have made it on to the album if its shorter and would
in turn make it a better album. But then again, some people may have liked
those tracks so maybe the best bet was to make a longer album. Coming
back from all his solo electronic escapades it's clear Frusciante is still one
of the best guitarists around and it seems his chemistry with the rest of the
band is as if he never left. This is great to see and hear and I hope the
Chilis now get in a rhythm of writing music again, so we don't have to wait 6
years for the next album.
"Between Hope & Disillusion"
is the 2nd album by Devon based (for the majority of the band) UK rockers The
Fallen State. I have been following this band ever since I saw them
support Tremonti 4 years ago. Back then they only had a couple of EPs out
where as now not only have they released their excellent debut album "A
Deadset Endeavour", but now in 2022 they have their second album
"Between Hope & Disillusion". And as album titles go it
sounds like it could not be more appropriate for what the band has gone through
the last couple of years.
The challenges of covid were there
for all bands and The Fallen State were no different. But on top of this
lead singer Ben Stenning decided to part ways from the band. From the
outside it didn't look like this was a rock and roll bust up of egos by any
stretch. But just someone looking to follow a different path and the rest
of the band respected that. It did leave a hole in the band and a choice
by the rest of the band of what to do with the band. They clearly still
wanted to make music so they had the option of getting a new singer in and
either go under a different name or continue the name and get a singer in who
could sing the old songs too.
The first option of changing
the name of the band was basically what happened to Creed when they split up
and three-quarters of the group went onto form Alter Bridge and got Myles into
to sing. Then the other option was to continue the name like Iron Maiden
have done multiple times in their history having many different frontmen.
The key is that changing the band name leaves the rest of the catalogue behind
whereas keeping the name doesn't. So clearly The Fallen State decided to
keep the name and brought in Adam Methven on lead vocals.
It's a difficult position to
fill, Afterall the lead singer has such a big job connecting with fans both
during shows and interviews. And Ben is someone who did that
amazingly. But I have to say the way Adam has filled Ben's shoes
has been amazing. His videos and posts on social media have shown someone
who really wants to be part of the band and be at one with the community The
Fallen State have created. But more importantly he has the vocals which
fit like a glove to The Fallen State's sound.
One noticeable thing about this
album is how good Adam's vocal performances are on here. And I don' just
mean his range. I'm talking about the way he delivers the vocals. Round
every corner on this album, he delivers the vocals in different patterns all
the way through, and it keeps the songs and the album as a whole
interesting. None more so than "Mirrors". This is the
longest track The Fallen State have ever done and it's so good, if you weren't
looking at the time, it doesn't feel like 6 minutes. But the journey you
are taken on here both the vocals and instrumentally is amazing. Normally
with rock songs this long you would find a winding guitar solo to fill some of
the time, but Adam's varying vocals dominate more than anything which makes it
different. My favourite bit is the Oceansize style vocal later in the
song. I think though it shows you don't need a guitar solo to make an epic rock track.
Obviously with this album Adam
was going to be the big news story, being the new frontman and whether he could
adapt. But the rest of the members deserve their due too. It takes a team effort to make an album this good. This
album starts with "Running from the Sun" which comes out the traps all
guns blazing, and the relentlessness continues for the first four tracks -
"Wolves", "Knives" and "River".
"River" is my favourite track at the moment. But they are all
just really good rock tracks with great riffs. "Mirror" comes
next and acts well as the centrepiece of the album. Then the back end of
the album you have "Standing Tall", "Take it from Me",
"Gallows", "Can't Get Through to You" and
"Ammunition".
"Take it from Me"
feels to me like the heaviest song they have done. "Ammunition"
is not quite epic closer as "Fragments" was to their debut
album. But still a good track. I think the thing about this album
is that there are so many songs on here they could release as singles as they sound massive. I
wouldn't say there are many you could call album tracks and definitely no
filler. This puts them in good stead for live shows having already
released that stunning debut and this effort is certainly on a par. It
would be good to see them hopefully land some big support slots to get them
some more recognition. They are too good not to be getting more notice.
