We are half way through another killer year for hard rock and heavy metal music. Here are my top ten albums for 2012 so far. These are 10 discs that I keep spinning over and over again. The albums below are ranked, more or less, according to the time I have spent listening to them.
1. Van Halen – A Different Kind of Truth — A massive comeback album that I thought would have never happened in a million years. Completely blindsided by this one.
2. Accept – Stalingrad — Fantastic followup to Blood of Nations. These guys are experiencing one hell of a renaissance.
3. Overkill – The Electric Age — Best thrash record of the year. They never change, and never cease to amaze.
4. Gojira – L’Enfant Sauvage — Heaviest of the heavy, a sick and brutal album.
5. Slash – Apocalyptic Love — Most people are totally sick of Slash and I can’t blame them. But Slash with Myles Kennedy in front is a completely different ball game. This is a great hard rock record.
6. Halestorm – The Strange Case of… — You can call it candy rock, pop metal, or whatever stupid ass name you can think of, but Lzzy Hale is a tremendous vocal talent. Solid band too. I could not get these songs out of my head for weeks.
7. Fear Factory – The Industrialist — The best at what they do for sure. If they still had Gene Hoglan’s authentic drumming, this could have been higher up on the list. I still enjoy the tracks though.
8. Corrosion of Conformity – Corrosion of Conformity — Look at the COC guys go man. Hard working band that does not get enough respect is blowing it up as far as I am concerned. And, they are doing it without Pepper Keenan.
9. Orange Goblin – A Eulogy for the Damned — Catchy, groovy, and heavy as hell. Had a blast hearing this album for the first time. Solid set of tunes overall.
10. Kill Devil Hill – Kill Devil Hill — Rex Brown with Vinny Appice is an unexpected recipe for a beastly album. I think Rex found a cooler band to join than Vinnie Paul.
Please, spew your bloody vomit below.