Top 5 of 2011

By John Jeffrey

1.  Anthrax - "Worship Music" - While their previous releases with John Bush were strong, they never matched the chemistry of the material they recorded in the 80's with their classic era vocalist, Joey Belladonna.  Hard driving riffs, thunderous drums, offset by Belladonna's melodic vocal delivery is what sets them apart from every other thrash metal band.  Great songs with a non-dated sound is what gives Anthrax the #1 CD of the year.
 
2.  Megadeth - "Th1rt3en" - Coming in at a very close #2, Dave Mustaine delivers yet another incredible release, as this is the third CD in a row of just incredible tunes by Mega Dave.  With Dave Ellefson back in the fold and a more brutal production than the last 2 discs, they've slowed the speed metal down just a bit, making "Th1rt3en" more reminiscent of some of their releases from the 90's.  The fact that they included some re-written tunes from that era didn't hurt either.
 
3.  George Lynch - "Kill All Control" - Following up 2008's hidden gem "Let the Truth Be Known" (recorded under the moniker Souls of We), George came in under the radar again with a killer CD in 2011.  Utilizing several different singers (most notably Marq Torien of Bulletboy's fame and London Legrand from Brides of Destruction), "Kill All Control" displays a diverse, yet completely cohesive collection of songs.  Ranging from Lynch Mob type compositions, to songs that sound like a cross between Tool/the Offspring/Alice In Chains (courtesy of several co-writes by AIC guitarist Jerry Cantrell), to tunes with big arena rock choruses in the vein of the Scorpions and Queen, George Lynch really hit the mark.  George's guitar work on "Son of Scary" is worth the price of admission alone.
 
4.  Sebastian Bach - "Kicking and Screaming" - Finding a comfortable medium between Sebastian's love of 'metal' and his Skid Row past, "Kicking and Screaming" delivers a nice package of hard rock tunes, which features guitar prodigy Nick Sterling on guitar.  Producer Bob Marlette did a nice job of dialing in a current sounding guitar tone, which nicely compliments Bach's unmistakable pipes.
 
5.  Butch Walker - "The Spade" - While the latest from Butch Walker isn't metal or hard rock, it would be remiss to not include "The Spade" as one of the best from 2011.  With every release, Butch struggles with reinventing himself and satisfying his fan base, but "The Spade" has a little bit of everything to please his diehard followers and new listeners alike.  Just overall, a fun record from beginning to end.

Butch Walker "Drinking With Strangers" (book review‏)

Review by John Jeffrey
 
Although Butch Walker explains how he came up with the main title of his book, "Drinking With Strangers," the subtitle of his work ("Music Lessons From a Teenage Bullet Belt") sums it up much better, as the autobiography (co-authored by Matt Diehl) reads like an episode of VH-1's "Behind the Music."  When reading the hard-cover release, you're taken on a fantastic journey, from Butch's youth in Cartersville, GA, to the pursuit of his musical dreams in Hollywood, CA, to settling down in Malibu, and enjoying being the self-described "Mid-level Artist" he has become.
 
This PG-13 easy read shows the maturation of Butch Walker, as a person and a musician.  He tells his story with the same, tongue-in-cheek, slightly sarcastic attitude, which he exudes in his songwriting.  Following his learning curve, and his self taught education within the 'music biz,' you find yourself rooting for Butch the whole way, as he describes all of the adversity he has faced, in the various facets of the business.  As a singer/songwriter or a performer/producer (for himself or other artists), Butch has run the gamut.  From being in one of the last "hair bands" to be signed in the 90's (Southgang), to getting signed in a pre-"Emo," alternative 'number band' (Marvelous 3), to being signed as a solo artist, Butch has run the same rat race several times, reinventing himself each time, all the while, trying to figure out who 'Butch Walker' REALLY is, and where does 'he' fit in.
 
After reading "Drinking With Strangers," it's made very clear that Butch is his own biggest fan and his worst
critic, at the same time.  Instead of accepting his life's work of music as a whole, every time Butch sheds his musical skin, he seems to hold a certain amount of disdain towards his previous incarnation (especially regarding the entire Southgang era).  So much that there are several fan favorite songs that he refuses to play from his solo career and Marvelous 3 days.  Butch refers to these songs (like "Freak of the Week," "My Way" and "Mixtape") as 'bananas' that he can never stomach eating again.
 
Being a huge fan of Butch Walker made this book a great read for myself, as I learned so many things that I never knew about Butch.  And the candid insight he provides on so many topics within the book is just mind blowing.  Even if you're not a fan, or not familiar with Butch's music at all, you get a great look at what goes on behind the scenes, and how the whole process of recording has changed throughout the years.  While Butch's career may be described as a 'journey of failing upwards,' "Drinking With Strangers" does not fail in captivating your interest, and will keep us all waiting to see how the next chapter of Butch Walker's career unfolds.  

Special Thanks to Chelsey Emmelhainz 

Judas Priest - "The Chosen Few"

By Thomas S. Orwat,Jr.

What can be said about Judas Priest that hasn't already been said thousands of times.  They are without a doubt, one of the most important, and influential Metal bands of all time. And while their label, Sony Records wanted to release something to sell during the band's current tour, the members of Judas Priest wanted something more than just another "greatest hits" collection. What resulted was, "The Chosen Few."  A collection which consists of some of the most popular hard rock and metal 'A-list' musicians, picking their favorite Priest songs.  Although many of the classic Priest hits are included, it's refreshing to see some lesser known gems included, such as "Dissident Aggressor" (picked by Steve Vai) and "Grinder" (picked by Zakk Wylde).
 
If you are just discovering Judas Priest and starting your collection, I highly recommend this CD as an excellent starting point.  And while you're at it, make sure you catch Judas Priest currently on tour.  It may be your last opportunity to witness these groundbreaking and historic pioneers of Metal.

www.judaspriest.com  

Anthrax - "Worship Music"

By Thomas S. Orwat Jr.

Thrash-metal veterans, Anthrax, has resurfaced with classic line-up vocalist, Joey Belladonna, and has released the most intense, well structured and musically satisfying CD of their career.  "Worship Music" is an epic collection of 11 blistering, heavy riff oriented, and musically slaying tracks, which will undisputedly reinforce Anthrax's legendary "Big 4" thrash-metal status.
 
Anthrax core band members, Scott Ian - rhythm guitar, Charlie Benante - drums, along with long time bassist Frank Bello and guitarist Rob Caggiano, finally got it, by making it right for fan favorite vocalist, Joey Belladonna, to return back to the line-up.  "Worship Music" is the first release with Belladonna since the 1990 release, "Persistence of Time."  And although the music is just crushing, it's Belladonna's vocals that make this CD the best Anthrax release in decades.  Ironically, Belladonna was not the first or even second choice for this CD.  Originally, "Worship Music" was to be released in 2009, but just before it was to hit the shelves, the band had a falling out with, then vocalist, Dan Nelson.  Anthrax then asked former vocalist John Bush to return.  Bush did return briefly, and there was even some talk about re-recording the vocals with Bush for the CD.  However, Bush had a change of heart, and shockingly decided to leave the band.  Soon after, Belladonna was finally brought back.

The magic of this CD is in the undeniable chemistry that this line-up possesses.  Tracks such as, "Earth on Hell," "Fight 'Em Til You Can't" and "I'm Alive," shows that Belladonna's melodic vocals are the perfect match for Ian's crunchy riffs, and the infectious groove of Benante and Bello.  Simply put, "Worship Music" is so well written, there is not a weak track or any filler, at all on this release.

Anthrax has finally delivered the CD that their fans have been waiting for, for a long time.  Even though it originally wasn't planned this way, Anthrax now has all the right pieces in place, and can now accomplish what they should have, twenty years ago.

www.anthrax.com

Alice Cooper - "Welcome 2 My Nightmare"

By John Jeffrey

This week, the Grand father of shock rock, Alice Cooper, releases "Welcome 2 My Nightmare," which is the "official" sequel to Alice's 1975 release, "Welcome To My Nightmare."  Although many diehard Cooper fans will argue that Alice has already done sequels to the '75 release (with "Go To Hell" in 1976 and "The Last Temptation" in 1994), but this album is supposed to be the definitive sequel, as this CD features the same team of Alice, with original "Nightmare" producer, Bob Ezrin.

From a lyrical standpoint, the album is pure genius, perhaps one of the most cohesively written concept albums of all time.  However, musically, the record leaves much to be desired.  In an attempt to mirror the original "Nightmare," Alice and Ezrin made a deliberate attempt in making a very musically diverse album of songs.  The 14 songs on the CD can be broken down to - 5 traditional 'rock' songs, 4 slow songs (2 of which are ballads), a ragtime song, a rock-a-billy song (ala Johnny Cash), a surfer song (Beach Boys style), a (very lame) disco/rap song, and an instrumental (which BTW, segues songs from the first "Nightmare" CD to songs from this sequel).  While it's usually refreshing to see when an artist stretches out their musical wings, in this case, it seems that while there was so much focus on being 'diverse,' that it negated the potential of "Welcome 2" from being a great record.
 
While some 'experiments' came away with great results, like the ragtime ditty, "Last Man On Earth," others seemed like day late/dollar short attempts at trend hopping.  From Alice using the infamous auto-tune effect(made famous by Cher and used by others like Kid Rock) on the R&B-ish, "I Am Made of You" (a poor choice to start the CD off with a ballad IMO) to doing a full on rap track for "Disco Bloodbath Boogie Fever," songs like these will have most listeners looking for the "next" (track) button.
 
For the 'rock' selections, Alice goes between 'full on' Rolling Stones mode with songs like, "I'll Bite Your Face Off" to '80's Alice' with "Caffeine" and "What Baby Wants."  The latter song features vocals by the pop tart Ke$ha, which sounds like Taylor Dane with cheezy 'metal' guitars.  The main riff of the song is very reminiscent of the guitar solo/breakdown section of Michael Jackson's "Beat It," making the 80's blasphemy complete.

The saving grace of "Welcome 2" is the inclusion of one of the tracks performed by the remaining original members of the ACG (Alice Cooper Group), entitled, "When Hell Comes Home."  While it's not the best song ever written, it's perhaps the best of the 'rock' material on "Welcome 2," and is the most 'vintage' sounding Alice song on the CD.  Hearing the heart and soul of what made Alice who he is, come alive once again, in the studio, is nothing short of awesome.  But the fact that Alice had these guys at his disposal, and hearing what the results could attain, it is truly a shame that the ACG weren't utilized more on this record.
 
Alice diehards will thoroughly enjoy this 'variety pack' bestowed upon them, but the more casual fans (who listens to Alice Cooper for pure rock and roll enjoyment) may feel a bit disappointed by the song selection.  Once the new-ness of "Welcome 2" wears off, many listeners will be seeking out the true gems in the back catalog, perhaps forgetting this "Nightmare" was ever dreamt of.

www.alicecooper.com