Top 5 All Things Rock

December 21st, 2006

Top 5 Rock Records Of The Year

1. Killswitch Engage – “As Daylight Dies”
2. Tool – “10,000 Days”
3. Mastodon – “Blood Mountain”
4. Alexisonfire – “Crisis”
5. Converge – “No Heroes”

Most Anticipated Rock Records Of ’07

1. Glassjaw
2. Dillinger Escape Plan
3. Thrice
4. Megadeth
5. Machine Head

Can someone please tell me why so much garbage passes for “rock” these days?

When I say “rock” I mean the stuff that you crank to 11 and it feels like your head is on fire; all you can do is to bang your head until whatever’s inside burning comes out through your left nostril. I definitely don’t mean the whiny, jangly, weenie stuff that passes for “rock” in some publications and on certain websites. My criterion is simple: If it doesn’t make your blood boil, it ain’t any good – so the majority of so-called “rock” records fail this test. I’m looking at you, NME & Pitchfork-hype bands. At best, listening to these pretenders make you feel weak in the knees, as if you ate some bad shellfish; you just know in your heart it sucks and it was made by people who just don’t get it.

Now then – we’re here to talk about the BEST Rock Records of ’06 – and there were so many records released this year that did everything right, that it’s hard to narrow it to five. But that’s my job.

We’ll start with #1; Killswitch Engage. “As Daylight Dies” is a career-defining slab of face-melting metal – the best record of the year from end to end; fantastic production courtesy of Killswitch guitarist Adam D., thick riffage, amazing vocals…just a tour de force. Plus, their live show must be seen to be believed.

Tool and Mastodon released genre- and mind-bending epics – progressive and heavy, full of inspiring musicianship, and chock full of brilliant sonic experiments and daring songwriting. This is just the kind of progressive material that keeps rock fresh and vibrant and gives me hope for the future of humanity.

Rounding out the Top 5, St.Catharines’ most celebrated sons Alexisonfire and hardcore vets Converge. Alexis’ latest is beautifully produced, heavy yet melodic – their best yet. It’s truly the sound of a band coming into their own, with great lyrics, tight song structure and the best use of whoa-oh-oh gang vocals since Bad Religion. And Converge… Listening to a Converge record is like being in the middle of a nuclear explosion and surviving to tell the tale; they’re intense enough to vaporize entire nations and yet they keep it positive with lyrics full of hope and messages of personal empowerment. This is bravura art.

’07 promises to be a year of great rock too: Long Island heroes Glassjaw are back together and touring – and they aim to deliver a new record before the year is out. Other releases on the horizon include Dillinger Escape Plan’s sequel to 2004′s Miss Machine; Thrice’s multi-disc experiment related to the Four Elements, plus new records from Megadeth and Machine Head – both bands recently reborn and hungry.

So here’s to the year that was and the year that will be – it’s only rock ‘n’ roll but dammit, I love it.

Posted on Thursday, December 21st, 2006 at 12:57 pm by Justin and is filed under Blog.