Foxy Shazam – The Church of Rock and Roll Producer – Justin Hawkins If there were ever a church of rock and roll this album would be it’s hymn notes. Take some Led Zepplin, Queen, Rolling Stones, Elton John and Meatloaf put them in a blender and you get a Foxy Shazam. I discovered this…
Category: 2012
#2 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
10 Years – Minus The Machine Producer – 10 Years Every so often an album comes from out of nowhere and instantly impresses the hell out of me. First listen to Minus The Machine reminded me of how much I crave to hear new music from Tool. Yes they sound a lot like Tool and…
#3 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Fun. – Some Nights Producer – Jeff Bhasker, Emile Haynie, Jake One Some Nights has to be the most amazing modern rock record ever recorded. I fully expect Fun. to clean up on grammy night. Everything about this album smells of perfection. The production and engineering is top notch, layers upon layers of instruments and…
#4 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
John Mayer – Born and Raised Producer – John Mayer, Don Was John Mayer has recorded five very different studio albums and all of them have been masterpieces. Born and Raised unveils a more folk rock sound in the likes of James Taylor. It’s unfortunate that Mayer’s personal unbecoming has affected how truly gifted he…
#5 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Deftones – Koi No Yokan Producer – Nick Raskulinecz One of the major factors when rating my favorite albums is the quality of the engineering and production quality. Koi No Yokan wins the award this year. Stephen Carpenter’s signature curtain of layered guitars come through with unbelievable definition. Abe Cunningham’s drums are so finely tuned and…
#6 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Keane – Strangeland Producer – Dan Grech-MargueratProbably one of the most underrated british bands in the US. Keane have yet to release an album that is anything less than brilliant. Strangeland continues where they left of 4 years ago with Perfect Symmetry. Piano and synth heavy pop rock songs with intelligent lyrics and catchy hooks. The…
#7 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Van Halen – A Different Kind of Truth Producer – Van Halen, John Shanks I was always more of a Sammy era fan of Van Halen but after listening to the new album I am more satisfied with a David Lee Roth reunion. All of the elements of a great Van Halen album are contained…
#8 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Charm City Devils – Sins Producer – Skidd Mills I have always been a sucker for a good mainstream hard rock album and that is exactly what Sins is. Driving hard rock anthems combined with powerful hard rock ballads supported by the unbelievable voice of John Allen. The biggest surprise is the metalized cover of…
#9 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
The Avett Brothers – The Carpenter Producer – Rick Rubin Part Bluegrass and part Soft Modern Rock, The Avett Brothers can best be compared to Mumford & Sons. Dare I say the unthinkable but The Carpenter is better than anything Mumford & Sons has ever done. Part of this reasoning is that The Avett Brothers…
#10 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Imagine Dragons – Night Visions Producer – Imagine Dragons, Alex Da Kid Retro indie rock band Imagine Dragon are some seriously brilliant song writers. Blending 80’s style pop with diverse modern alt rock sound Night Visions promises an amazing listening experience from the start. “Tiptoe” has to be one of the best retro 80’s throwbacks…
#11 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
The Offspring – Days Go By Producer – Bob Rock Equal parts Punk Rock and Pop Rock make for another surprisingly good album from The Offspring. Huge guitar riffs and thrashing rhythms open the album with their signature punk sound. The most surprising song on the album is the heart felt ballad “All I Have…
#12 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Train – California 37 Producer -Espionage, David Hodges, Diji Parq, Butch Walker, Gregg Wattenberg This album is made up of Train doing what they do best, writing hit songs. The formula is simple, good melodies, great hooks and rhythms that make you move. Train has done all of this with California 37 but also included…
#13 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Dead Sara – Dead Sara Producer – Noah Shain Fueled by Emily Armstrong’s angry raspy voice Dead Sara have put together an amazing debut album. Unbelievably catchy melodies combine spastic alt-rock in the most pleasing way possible. Armstrong’s voice puts Courtney Love to shame. If you a fan of female fronted rock acts then this…
#14 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Aerosmith – Music From Another Dimension! Producer – Jack Douglas, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Marti Frederiksen Reading the professional reviews of this album are about as frustrating as hearing somebody knock Jar Jar Binks while wearing a C3P0 costume. The reviews complain about Aerosmith being Aerosmith, they talk about synth horns and silly song titles….
#15 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Linkin Park – Living Things Producer – Rick Rubin, Mike Shinoda After their last two dismal albums Linkin Park have returned with a vengeance. This is the album I have been waiting to hear since their groundbreaking Meteora. Shinoda’s rhymes interlaced with Chester Bennington’s fierce hooks create explosive hits like Lost in the Echo and…
#16 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Kill Devil Hill – Kill Devil Hill Producer – Kill Devil Hill, Warren Riker Featuring Pantera bassist Rex Brown and one time Black Sabbath drummer Vinnie Appice, Kill Devil Hill sounds like a mashup of those two bands. The only thing different is the gifted vocals by Dewey Bragg who seems to be channeling the…
#17 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Brendan Benson – What Kind of World Producer – Brendan Benson On the opening title track “What Kind of World” Benson sings the line “So looked over, so underrated.” You have to stand back and say he is so right. I am pretty sure almost nobody reading this knows who he is or have…
#18 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Muse – The 2nd Law Producer – Muse, Nero (Follow Me) An enchanting sonic journey over 13 tracks. Full of experimental sounds and haunting melodies The 2nd Law is an amazing listing experience from beginning to end. Favorite Tracks – Panic Station, Follow Me Listen to The…
#19 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Black Country Communion – Afterglow Producer – Kevin Shirley Frankly I don’t know how they do it. BCC has released three amazing albums in three consecutive years. By todays standards that just doesn’t happen. Afterglow continues on the path of their previous albums creating brand new classic rock songs. The vocal production and…
#20 – My Favorite Albums of 2012
Kiss – Monster Producer – Paul Stanley, Greg Collins If you like previous KISS albums like Love Gun, Lick It Up and Revenge then you will love Monster. A true follow up to 2009’s Sonic Boom in the vain of recreating the classic vibe of KISS’ best records into a collection of new songs. …
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