Best of 2024: Hard rock and metal

Though there were some fantastic releases by a few classic bands in 2024, I didn’t feel that it was, overall, nearly as strong as some other years in recent memory for hard rock and heavy metal. The year also brought a few notably disappointing highly-anticipated albums from bands who have been very dependable in recent years, like Zeal & Ardor or Ad Infinitum.

While a few surprises are scattered among my 15 favorite releases of the year, I’m struck by the lack of newer and younger bands in my picks. A few debut albums show up on the list, but most are at least partially made up of veterans that I’ve been listening to for years. I’m willing to admit that maybe with everything going on in my life that 2024 was perhaps a year of musical comfort food for me.

Here are my thoughts on the year in hard rock and metal:

METAL MOMENT OF THE YEAR: Metal got perhaps its biggest global stage ever in 2024, being featured in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. And we’re not talking a glorified pop act with a few heavy guitar riffs. No, it was progressive death metal band Gojira offering up an epic performance of “Mea Culpa (Ah Ca Ira),” a take on the song “Ca Ira” from the French Revolution. Complete with shooting towers of flame and a finale with streamers that resembled spraying blood, it was not what most of us expected to see at the Olympics, but it was awesome. I’ll admit that I mostly ignored everything else about the ceremony and the games, wasn’t even watching live when it happened, but I jumped online just as soon as I heard to find the clip. It was a bit of vindication for an old metalhead who has, for the most part, seen the heavier end pushed into the dark corners.

Saturday Shuffle: Alice in Chains, Warrel Dane, Grand Magus, Sebastian Bach, Sepultura

A pretty heavy lineup this week, though we do at least hit five different subgenres ...


Alice in Chains, “Frogs.” From the album Alice in Chains (1995). For some reason, Alice in Chains’ 1995 self-titled album never seems to really get its due. It produced its hits, but wasn’t quite as straightforward, perhaps, as Dirt or Facelift. This dark, moody number is a perfect example of that with a quirky melody and Layne Staley delivering the end of each verse line in a lilting, high tone. Not my favorite song from the record, but good stuff nonetheless.

Best of 2014: Mid-year hard rock and metal

Just so we’re clear, this list gets completely blown up in a couple of weeks when I can officially add Judas Priest’s Redeemer of Souls, which I’ve been jamming at high volumes for about a week now. But, at the official midpoint of the year, these are my picks in hard rock and metal.

Overall, it’s been a good year thus far in the genres. There are a few old favorites, at least one newcomer and a couple of surprises …


No. 10 — BODY COUNT – MANSLAUGHTER: Eight years after a disappointing return with 2006′s Murder 4 Hire, Ice-T’s metal outfit brings back its early glory, delivering a violent gutpunch of an album that’s a little heavier on gratuitous sex and violence than social commentary, but still entertaining.

Review: Sebastian Bach, "Give 'Em Hell"

Last time out, Sebastian Bach brought an unknown teenage guitar whiz to the party. On Give ‘Em Hell, he calls on some slightly better known players — including bassist Duff McKagan (Guns n’ Roses, Velvet Revolver) and guitarists Steve Stevens (Billy Idol) and John 5 (Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, David Lee Roth).

The results are much the same, though — a lot of tough, gut punch guitar riffs that aren’t always borne out by Bach’s vocal melodies.

While I’ve quite enjoyed most of Bach’s solo records, and Give ‘Em Hell is no exception, I voice the same annoyance with each one. In his desire to show off his range, he has a tendency to take a gnarly metal tune with great promise and soften it with a lilting, soaring chorus.

Review: Skid Row, "United World Rebellion, Chapter One"

After a very uneven first album with new singer Johnny Solinger and a second album that was full of jokey novelty tunes, I didn’t hold out much hope for the future of Skid Row.

Until now.

United World Rebellion Chapter One, the first in a series of EPs that will make up their new album, is easily the best thing released under the Skid Row name since 1995′s Subhuman Race.

The band gets right down to business on the first track, “Kings of Demolition,” which sounds like it was ripped straight from the Slave to the Grind recording sessions.

Review: T&N, "Slave to the Empire"

What do you get when you mix the three original members of Dokken who were not named Don Dokken with drummer Brian Tichy and guest shots from a few of the best singers in the hard rock realm? A surprisingly solid and vibrant record.

Guitarist George Lynch and bassist/vocalist Jeff Pilson originally began writing the songs on Slave to the Empire as a new project for Lynch’s band Lynch Mob, but realized they weren’t quite right for it. They eventually recorded the seven original tracks on this record with Tichy, who was the one that suggested a reunion with Dokken drummer Mick Brown and a project in the vein of the Black Sabbath offshoot Heaven and Hell. The three former bandmates seized on the idea, calling themselves Tooth and Nail, a name that for legal reasons had to be shortened to T&N.

Best of 2011: Top 10

As I look back over 2011′s releases, I realize that maybe it wasn’t quite as good a year in the metal world as I thought. For the past few years, I’ve had as many as a couple dozen candidates for this list, and it’s been difficult to winnow them down to 10. This year, the records that were good were really good, but after that things start to drop off pretty quickly.

10. Three Thirteen, Full Tilt: I love surprises from independent artists, and Three Thirteen delivered a great little retro hard rock package this year. I was drawn in by the physical product, which had a little more thought put into it than the average CD these days, and the fun, hell-raising rock songs on the record held me. The record is a tip of the hat to the classic acts the band grew up on, with a heavy late-1970s, early-1980s rock feel. There are no sappy ballads or thinking-man’s songs here. It’s a party from start to finish. It’s the perfect record for popping the t-tops out of your Trans-Am and heading out on the highway.

Review: Sebastian Bach, "Kicking and Screaming"

If there’s one act from that morass of hairy hard-rock bands from the late 1980s that I’d love to hear some new music from, it’s Skid Row.

Often you hear people try to separate bands from the “hair band” stigma by saying they got a bad rap. With Skid Row, that might be at least partially true. After being discovered by Jon Bon Jovi, the band released its self-titled debut in 1989. Though it was a great commercial success, producing their two biggest hits in the ballads “I Remember You” and “18 and Life,” it wasn’t entirely what the band was about. We found that out in 1991, when they released the follow-up Slave to the Grind, a much heavier and nastier record than their debut. The songs ranged from the down-and-dirty hard rock of the lead single “Monkey Business” to the near-thrash of the title track to darker and much more interesting ballads “Quicksand Jesus” and “In a Darkened Room.”

Review: Sebastian Bach, "Angel Down"

Despite their regrettably hairy hits, “I Remember You” and “18 and Life,” I do think Skid Row was one of the best hard rock bands to emerge from the late 1980s scene. The latest release by former singer Sebastian Bach, though, serves to underline the fact that they need to put egos aside and get back together. Skid Row needs Bas’ voice and attitude, and Bach needs someone who can write a decent hook.

"Angel Down" is far and away the best work produced by either camp since the split, but that’s hardly high praise. It is surprising, though, considering that Bach’s previous solo effort was a complete throw-away, consisting of a few truly horrible original songs and live versions of Skid Row songs. This record is much closer to what I had hoped for from that one. "Angel Down" sounds a bit like what Skid Row’s third record, "Subhuman Race," might have sounded like if Bach had written all the songs. That is to say that it’s got a great, snarling production and a nice heavier vibe, but the songs are unfocused and a little sloppy.

The best performance here, not surprisingly, comes from a beefed-up cover of Aerosmith’s “Back in the Saddle,” where Bach swaps verses with Axl Rose. Circa 1990, that might have been a dream pairing of vocalists for a lot of people. Now, Rose’s voice is pretty much shot, and putting it next to Bach belting out the chorus with zeal only serves to reinforce how much Rose has lost. Another pairing with Rose, “(Love is) a Bitchslap” provides the most memorable original hook on the record, and I suspect that Rose probably had something to do with crafting it.

Those two songs aside, "Angel Down" does have its moments. In fact, most of the songs here are right on the edge of being really good songs, but in typical Sebastian Bach fashion, chaos and his diva-like tendencies rule, rendering promising melodies into muddled screamfests. It’s painfully obvious that, though he often has good ideas, he needs someone to reign him in and provide a little control in the songwriting department. To his credit, Bach has lined up a solid band to back him up that provides some heavy grooves and some of the best moments on the record. But he’s still the boss, and the band can’t rescue a song when Bach is screaming silly lyrics like the ones in “American Metalhead” over them.

Bottom line, "Angel Down" is not a bad record. In fact, it’s surprisingly good. Still, it doesn’t even come close to "Slave to the Grind" or "Subhuman Race." Skid Row fans will likely enjoy the album, but with Bach out of control and Skid Row reduced to a novelty act on their last record, it will probably leave fans pining for the days when songwriting and the attitude of "Angel Down" went hand-in-hand.

Get "Angel Down."

Interview: Johnny Solinger of Skid Row

Even though he joined the band more than 3 years ago, vocalist Johnny Solinger is still "the new guy" to many Skid Row fans. These days, he doesn't mind it so much, though.

The group is currently crossing the country with Poison and Vince Neil of Motley Crue, and they've got a new album and DVD on the way in August. For a band that hasn't released an album of new material since 1995's "Subhuman Race," it's a whirlwind of activity, and Solinger can't wait for it to reach a fever pitch.

"I've been waiting for this for a long time," he said. "With all the touring we did to keep food on the plate, we had to work on it in between, so it was a long time coming. We finally got it right, and we finally got the record we want to put out. I just can't wait."

After more than three years of singing someone else's songs, Solinger said it will be nice to have a Skid Row record that he's played a part in making. But the worldwide release of "Thickskin" means even more to him.

"I'm an old hat at making independent records and trying to sell them to make a living, but to be able to go to the four corners of the Earth, wherever you buy records, and have me on a record, it means the world," he said. "It's like finally I've arrived. That's awesome."

Solinger was fronting his eponymous band in Dallas, which had attained moderate regional success, when he got an e-mail from Skid Row founders Rachel Bolan and Dave "Snake" Sabo in late 1999. They were looking to put the band back together and needed a replacement for departed singer Sebastian Bach (real name Sebastian Bierk). Solinger auditioned in January 2000 and about six weeks later he found himself opening for Kiss on a worldwide tour.

Though most fans of Skid Row consider Solinger's predecessor to be one of the best singers in rock, he said the challenge of filling those shoes never bothered him. He said the fans saw his confidence and warmed to him quickly.

"Everybody was kind of nervous about that, thinking there were going to be picket lines and sit-ins," Solinger joked. "But you know what? That just didn't happen. I'd say 99 percent of the fans are really cool with it, and if they're not, they don't come. It was actually a pretty easy transition."

He also looks forward to returning to the Smirnoff Music Theater in his hometown of Dallas on every tour. He said the homecomings are always fun.

"The audiences are always great in Texas, and I love that venue," he said. "I saw concerts there when I was in junior high and high school, so playing there means a lot to me."

Skid Row will play two songs from the new album, "Thick is the Skin" and "New Generation." Solinger said they've been playing them for the entire tour, and fan reaction so far has been good. People are even singing along with "Thick is the Skin," which is available in MP3 format on the band's Web site.

"I think it's cool, and the crowds are responding well to songs they haven't really heard before," he said. "We're the only ones out here playing new material, so it's really working in our favor."

Not every song is pleasing every fan, though. The new album also includes a punked-up version of the band's hit "I Remember You." Solinger said the song does signal a changing of the guard in a way, but it really comes down to doing something fun. They began playing the version in rehearsals, then tried it out live before putting it on the new album.

"It was never meant to be a part of the record, it just kind of worked out that way," he said. "I think it takes a lot of cojones on the original members' part to do something like this. I know Rachel has gotten some flack, someone e-mailing him and saying `how dare you mess with my high school song.'"

Solinger said on days when they play headlining shows with a longer set, the band plays both versions.

These days, it's common for bands from the same era as Skid Row to throw together a subpar album quickly and go out on tour, but Solinger said a lot of love and crafting went into their upcoming album. In the end, he's proud Skid Row didn't take the easier route.

"We kind of did everything backwards," he said. "We toured and started really getting the chemistry together before we made the record. There's a lot of pride involved in this record. I just can't wait for everybody to get a chance to hear the whole thing, because it's really, really good."