Freebies: Bob Wayne, Lazarus A.D., Social Distortion

Since I'm constantly getting notices about free streams of new records and the occasional free download from bands, labels and publicists, I thought I'd start trying to share them when I can. Everybody likes hearing music for free, right? So here's the first installment.

Streaming the full album of self-made outlaw country artist Bob Wayne's "Outlaw Carnie," due out Tuesday. And come back here for a review of the record in the next few days.

Stream thrashers Lazarus A.D.'s upcoming record "Black Rivers Flow" in its entirety.

Listen to Social Distortion's "Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes" in its entirety.

Enjoy, and drop me a note in the comments to let me know if you'd like me to keep it up.

Review: Negligence, "Coordinates of Confusion"

Normally when I go into a review listen on a band that’s new to me, I’m looking for something that I haven’t heard before. Sometimes, though, something very familiar that’s done very well can make an impact. That’s the case with the Slovenian thrashers Negligence.

There’s not really a moment on this album that will make your jaw drop or wow you in any way. On the other hand, there’s also not really a moment on this record that’s disappointing or unenjoyable. Sure, it’s by-the-numbers thrash. But it’s very well done by-the-numbers thrash.

Blast Beats: Whitey Morgan, Hinder, Kid Rock

Before you read this, I know full well that two of the records in this edition of Blast Beats might be enough to have my metal card revoked, even after 30 or so years of service. But I’ve got a word or two to say about them, so bear with me, and I’ll make it quick. I’ll start with the good.

Whitey Morgan and the 78s, “Whitey Morgan and the 78s”
I heard good things about this record when it came out last year, but it’s taken me this long to finally get a hold of it and give it a good listen. Most of the praise that I heard is well-deserved.

Review: Holy Grail, "Crisis in Utopia"

With White Wizzard’s Over the Top being my favorite record of the year, I couldn’t help but look forward to the debut release from Holy Grail, Crisis in Utopia. What you have here is a band made up partially of former members of White Wizzard who moved on with a new name after an ugly split. While it likely wasn’t pleasant for those involved, the good news for music fans is that we got two damned solid traditional metal outfits out of it.

Best of 2010: Top 10

1. White Wizzard – Over the Top. I keep returning to this record over and over. It came out early in the year, but I’ve listened to it regularly. It’s great old-school traditional metal, with just a little cheese, and it brings back happy memories of better times.
2. Overkill – Ironbound. Is it possible for a band that’s been around this long to release their best record ever? I don’t know if Ironbound is their best, but it’s definitely on par with any of their classic material.

Best of 2010: Honorable mentions

These are the records that didn't quite make the cut for the top 10. Normally, I hold this to around five, but this year, I'm going with 10.

Best of 2010: Overview and disappointments

It's a rare year when my best-of list starts at 25 records and I have to whittle that down to 10. Typically, there aren't that many records that stick with me, and there have been years where I had to dig and include a few I wasn't really pumped about to get to 10. But metal fans have been pretty lucky in the last couple of years, and this year, at least for me, ended up being a banner year.

Heavy inspiration

Hopefully, you’ll forgive me for a little sappiness on Christmas. Since I’ve done the metal Christmas song bit a couple of times, I thought I’d try something a little different this year. Instead, I’m going for inspirational hard rock and metal tunes. I’m not talking about religious tunes (as some of the choices will clearly show) or, necessarily, songs that will inspire others. These are simply songs that have inspired or moved me for some particular reason over the years. Feel free to discuss your own in the comments section, if you wish.

“Believe,” Savatage. In my mind, this is one of the finest rock songs ever written – period. It’s amazing. It’s moving. And no matter my mood, it’s a song that always makes me feel better and more hopeful. It’s far from the only Savatage song that I find inspiring (at least half this list could have been from the band), but it’s far and away the most inspiring.

Review: Athorn, "Phobia"

Phobia, the debut album from Germany’s Athorn, seems to be right up my alley. In the vein of a band like Kiuas, one of my favorite discoveries of the last 10 years or so, Athorn blends power metal melodics with thrash and groove and maybe just a little hint of death here and there. I love the combination, and while it’s not a perfect melding, Phobia is a very promising debut.

In the band’s heavier moments, they sound a lot like Lamb of God, particularly on second track “Emperor of Ruins.” There’s the chunky down-tuned riffing, and vocalist Carsten Frank doing his best Randy Blythe impression. But in the more majestic moments, there’s much that will win over the power and melodic metal crowd.