Best (and worst) of the Music in the Year 2010

My Picks for the Best Metal Albums of 2010

1. Ironbound by Overkill

2. Snakes for the Divine by High on Fire

3. Ritual Abuse by Cough

4. Relentless Retribution by Death Angel

5. Periphery by Periphery

6. Path of Fire by Aeon

7. Nightmare by Avenged Sevenfold

8. Option Paralysis by Dillinger Escape Plan

9. Hell Chose Me by Carnifex

10. Encounter The Monolith by Martriden

11. Blood of The Nations by Accept

12. Diamond Eyes by Deftones

13. Dark Ages by Bison B.C.

14. Final Frontier by Iron Maiden

15. On Divine Winds by Hail Of Bullets

Honorable Mentions

Mutiny Within by Mutiny Within
Contagion by Oceano
Omen by Soulfly
Daath by Daath
Slaughtered by Severe Torture
Order of the Black by Black Label Society
Warp Riders by The Sword

Top 10 Rock Albums of 2010

1. Korn III: Remember Who You Are by Korn

2. Cold Day Memory by Sevendust

3. The Oracle by Godsmack

4. AB III by Alter Bridge

5. AM Conspiracy by AM Conspiracy

6. Black Water Rising by Black Water Rising

7. Feeding The Wolves by 10 Years

8. Drowning Pool by Drowning Pool

9. Asylum by Disturbed

10. Audio Secery by Stone Sour

Honorable Mentions:

Shine by Shaman's Harvest
Set The World On Fire by Dangerous New Machine
Red Right Return by Janus
Moment of Impact by Eye Empire
Alive in The Fire by Under The Flood
Dystopia by Hourcast
Distorted American Dream by Depswa
Love is the Bullet by Atom Smash
iMerica by Anew Revolution

Worst Album of 2010:

A Thousand Suns by Linkin Park



They might as well of called this '101 Ways to Alienate Your Fanbase' because this album sounds nothing at all like Linkin Park's early albums. Yes, I know it's a good thing for a band to expand their sound and not always release the same record, but Linkin Park completely abandoned what made them famous to begin with. There are barely any guitars and synths and faux industrial hip hop anthems run rampant. Hopefully the band's core fans will start to turn on them and truly realize what sellouts they are.

Worst "Supergroup" of 2010:

The Damned Things



Oh Scott Ian, what were you thinking? Hey Rob Caggiano, I'm looking at you too. You guys are nuts, and not in a good way. Instead of working on the long overdue new Anthrax album, why did you think that joining forces with Fall Out Boy members, who are now seemingly out of work due to the band's apparent split up, and members of the mediocre southern metalcore group Every Time I Die is a good idea in any way shape or form? The result was a boring and generic rock album, that you could've chose to release any time. You really tarnished your legacy Scott. Why not make music like Stormtroopers of Death instead of this phlegm band? Let's hope this band disappears fast so Ian and Caggiano can work on new Anthrax and try to redeem themselves for this travesty of a group.

Albums to look for in 2011:

Liar in Wait by Amon:

This band features the Hoffman brothers who gained fame (or possibly infamy) by playing in the notorious and legendary Floridian death metal band Deicide. The brothers have been absent from the metal scene since leaving Deicide in 2004. Eric Hoffman suffered a heart attack in 2006 and recovered while his brother Brian worked at the Dean guitar shop in Florida. They have recently reformed their first pre Deicide band Amon. When asked how the musical direction of AMON will be different to that of Deicide, Eric Hoffmann told BLABBERMOUTH.NET simply, "The music will speak for itself."

Grim, Scary Tales by Macabre:

This Chicago, IL based trio are considered to be something of underground death metal icons. They've been kicking around since the 80s, releasing some really great albums like 2000's concept album about serial killer Jefferey Dahmer simply titled Dahmer. The band's morbid lyrics and odd blend of death metal, grindcore and even nursery rhymes and folk melodies has gained the band a cult following. See what all the buzz is and check out this album for yourself when it's released sometime next year.

Omnivium by Obscura:

The band's first major label release Cosmogenesis was a tech-death classic to me and the band says that this next release will be a continuation of that album's sound. In my humble opinion, this band is our generation's answer to Death since they are continuing in the same direction of Chuck Schuldiner and Co, writing progressive tinged tunes that never cease to push the boundaries of death metal music. The only major difference between Death and Obscura is that Obscura is far more technical than Death, but not to the point of boring the listener. Obscura features ex-members of Necrophagist who appear to be inactive for the time being.

Juggernaut of Justice by Anvil:

Another band that has somehow stood the test of time is Anvil. The band was featured in a 2009 documentary titled ANVIL! The Story of Anvil which was very Spinal Tap-esque, but the only difference was that Spinal Tap was fictional whereas Anvil is indeed a real band. Some of their exploits just seemed too silly to be true. The documentary helped bring the band out of metal obscurity and helped bring up sales of their albums like their most recent CD This Is Thirteen and their magnum opus to many, Metal on Metal. Vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow expects Juggernaut of Justice to be another solid album in Anvil's catalog.

TBA by Fair To Midland:

Fair to Midland's 2007 major label release Fables from a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times Is True (which was released on System of a Down singer Serj Tankian's Serjical Strike label) turned a lot of heads in the metal and rock community. The band had a completely unique sound, combining folk metal, alternative metal , art rock and some nu metal to create an amazingly catchy sound. Combined with frontman Darroh Sudderth's completely odd yet riveting delivery of the songs, this album was considered a gem by many listeners. After many years of touring, it seems that Fair To Midland is finally recording a follow up to Fables from a Mayfly. Tracks considered for the record include "Musical Chairs", "Pour the Coal to 'er" (both recorded in demo form during the sessions for Fables from a Mayfly), "Rikki Tikki Tavi" (which Darroh described as a "death metal band doing their best version of Yellow Submarine), "A Loophole in Limbo", "Bright Bulbs and Sharp Tools", "Uh-Oh", "Coppertank Island", "Amarillo Sleeps on My Pillow", "Bravo Sierra", "Golden Parachutes" and "The Greener Grass".

TBA EP/album by Between The Buried and Me:

After releasing their 2009 album The Great Misdirect, Between The Buried and Me have split with their long time label home Victory Records and are rumored to have signed a new contract with Metal Blade Records. Let's hope this is true, because Metal Blade is a great home for a band like BTBAM. The band is currently working on an EP, which is assumed to be a prelude to the album that will follow. The band is also rumored to be working with legendary producer David Bottril, famous for his work on albums like Ænima and Lateralus by Tool, and he has also worked with bands like Godsmack, Flaw, V Shape Mind, Staind, Ultraspank, Dream Theater and many others. If Bottrill is at the helm with a progressive metal band, you know you can expect greatness to come.

TBA by Lamb of God:

The band is once again working with producer Josh Wilbur who also produced their 2009 classic Wrath. If this album proves to be a continuation of the aggression seen on Wrath, then we can hope this album is a progression of that album in every way.

TBA by Dirge Within:

I highly recommend this band to fans of Avenged Sevenfold, Slipknot, Bullet for my Valentine, Trivium Shadows Fall and other popular metal bands. Dirge Within features Shaun Glass on guitars, formerly of SOiL. If you like modern metal with lots of guitar solo's definitely check them out, starting with their first album, 2009's Force Fed Lies. You can expect their sophomore album to be a progression of what was heard on Force Fed Lies.

TBA(?) by System of A Down

Ok, this may just be wishful thinking on my part since I'm a diehard fan of SOAD. This may come out in 2011 by a slight chance or it may come out in 2012 or even, God forbid, 2013 and beyond. Hell, I think I may have jumped for joy (as gay as that sounds) when the band announced they'd be reforming for a European tour in summer of 2011. Does this mean a US Tour and possibly new music? Let's hope so. I'm hoping that the band is re-energized by all their performances together after 5 years of not playing together. If a new album does emerge, I pray that the sounds similar to Toxicity era material while not sounding exactly like that particular album while not being as pretentious as Mezmerize and Hypnotize. I really, REALLY will seriously also hope that guitarist Daron Malakian has realized that his voice did not sound good on songs and saves his side project band Scars on Broadway as his band to sing in. We'll have to just wait and see what happens when System of A Down reunites this summer!

Born This Way by Lady Gaga

Now I'm sure all the metalheads reading this and seeing a Lady Gaga album are crying in rage but hear me out. I think Lady Gaga is one of the most talented pop stars to emerge in the last ten years. She's not fake and too commercialized like say, Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera. It also makes a big difference that Gaga can actually sing and play instruments and continues to break grounds with not only her music but with all the crazy shit she does in public. I also find her music to be fun pop music that's done well and is immensely original. To me, Lady Gaga is this generation's answer to Michael Jackson. This upcoming album of hers, titled Born This Way is expected in early 2011. She promises that it will be one of the best albums of the new decade. On December 20, 2010, in an interview with Newsbeat, Lady Gaga confirmed that the first single from Born This Way will be released in February 2011, and that the album will arrive "shortly after." She also said the album is "a marriage of electronic music with major, epic, dare I even say, metal or rock 'n' roll, pop, anthemic style melodies with really sledge-hammering dance beats. Now let's be fair, when she says metal I think I can expect her idea of metal to be more close to Guns N Roses than say, Iron Maiden, but still, that's good enough for me. I anticipate this album's release.

Unloco- Becoming i (2003)

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I really hate to see this band typecast as a nu metal band. I've always thought of them as fitting in the active rock realm more than anything. While I can see why it would be easy to classify Unloco as a nu metal band after listening to their first album, Healing, which was much more raw, simplistic and heavy. However, Becoming i has a completely different sound. Songs like Crashing, Drowning In It, and especially Empty draw a lot from post grunge bands but also manage to sound original. There are a lot of standout songs on this CD. Aside from the aforementioned songs, also check out the hard rocker Bruises, Texas (in which you can get a real grasp of the emotion that lead singer Joey Duenas pours into the song), as well as Hands and Knees. This is another fun rock CD with no bad or skippable tracks.

Unloco broke up sometime in 2003 after touring with Disturbed, but Joey Duenas formed a new band shortly after with ex-Slaves On Dope members called Anew Revolution. This band has released one major label CD called Rise they recently released a new CD called iMerica. If you enjoyed Unloco, be sure to give Anew Revolution a listen as well!

10 Second Drop- Review of the Self Titled Album (2006)

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Some have called this album by the Florida based rock quartet boring and uninspired, but honestly I enjoyed it. Yes, if you're looking for a band with a groundbreaking new sound then this isn't the CD for you. If you want some fun, solid rock music to kick back to or music to play while you're doing work outside, then definitely pick this up. Some of the songs I thought stood out are Push, Learn, Always The Victim, Overdrive and Fall Apart. Personally, I didn't think the other songs were bad either. Through and through, this is a solid album. This is definitely a CD to give a chance if you're tired of all the post-grunge/radio rock clones or if you like good old fashioned rock with a modern edge.

Sadly, it would seem that this band disappeared for the time being, there is no Myspace or even a band website for them. However, this fate seems to befall most bands signed to Rock Ridge Music, the band's former record label. With the exception of Psychostick, Reel Big Fish and 9mm Solution, very few bands on that label make it far. Most copies of this album sell for $10 used which is reasonable, but don't go for the $20 new copies of the CD on Amazon. While this is a solid, fun CD, it's definitely not worth shelling out $20+ for.

Short Review-Flybanger Outlived EP (2000)

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I've always appreciated Flybanger's brand of groove based heavy rock. I purchased this EP after checking out their 2001 album, Headtrip To Nowhere. I can't really pick a standout track from this EP, all five of them are good slabs of full throttle hard rock. A nice little bonus is the 2nd disc that comes with this EP. This CD is a CD single for the songs Calvalry and Blind World(both of which appear on Headtrip to Nowhere).

The only real problem with this EP is that it's rather short. But it's an EP, so this is expected. If you like heavy rock like Godsmack then give Flybanger a listen as well.

Overkill- Ironbound Review (2010)

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As far as thrash metal goes, Overkill is easily one of the best of that genre. They are arguably the first American thrash metal band. Hell they might be the oldest thrash metal band in general! They band celebrates 30 years of existence this year. The band has always had a strong record with albums. I can't think of a bad album they've released to date. The only really mediocre album the band released was their 1993 album I Hear Black, which tried to bring the bands' sound into a more groove metal based direction, but even that album had its' high points. Overkill has certainly stood the test of time better than their thrash metal brethen, like Metallica, Slayer and a couple others, who are just embarassing to hear these days. So when the band announced they were releasing a new album by the name of Ironbound, many metal fans were expecting another solid but not spectacular offering, much like in the vein of their previous album Immortalis. To the surprise of many, we didn't just get a solid offering or a spectacular one. We got ourselves a geniuine modern thrash masterpiece. This release from Overkill tops every new release from the older thrash acts.

Ironbound is a true monster metal album. Once you hear the opening basslines from founding member and bassist DD Verni in the first song, The Green And Black, you know you're in for an epic ride. This song (as with pretty much every song on the album) just crushes. The production sounds simply excellent. Vocalist and founding member Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth shows that he doesn't have James Hetfield syndrome yet (meaning his voice withered away over time). He still sounds strong as ever with his unique vocal style. The Green And Black is 8 minutes of pure thrash. Despite its length, it still holds the listener's attention and a dull moment ever arises.

The Ironbound title track comes up next. If you're not wrecking your neck in a headbanging motion to this song, something is clearly wrong with you. This song is a perfect blend of classic thrash and newer modern metal sounds. Lead guitarist Dave Linsk delivers a memorable and long solo towards the end of the song. Bring Me The Night follows Ironbound and this song is more of a traditional thrash song. It could easily fit on Horrorscope or any other classic Overkill album.

The Goal Is Your Soul and Give A Little continue in the pattern of the previous songs, dishing out memorable riffs and solo's. Endless War is a personal favorite track of mine. It's another neck wrecker but also shows a bit of an Iron Maiden influence at times. DD Verni does a couple Steve Harris-esque basslines towards the end of the song as the guitarists join in, definitely evoking the sound of Maiden.

The Head and The Heart is an interesting attempt by Blitz at trying death metal style vocals. When I first heard the song I thought it was a guest vocalist, seeing as Overkill featured Lamb of God vocalist Randy Blythe on their previous album, Immortalis. Blitz manages to pull off death metal vocals surprisingly well, proving that he is thrash metal's most versatile vocalist.

In Vain sadly doesn't really stand out from the rest of the tracks. It's not exactly weak, but it's just sort of filler-ish. A good song though, nonetheless.

Killing for A Living is probably the closest thing to a weak track on Ironbound. It's a more rock based song compared to the heavy thrash on the rest of the CD but it's not a bad song by any means. The album concludes with The SRC, yet another pulverizing but epic sounding track. More excellent solo's decorate this song, as does a breakdown to satisfy all the newer metal fans.

This is a thrash masterpiece (thrashterpiece??) in every sense of the word. It's definitely the best metal album released so far this year and I'd say it's a front runner for album of the year. It's going to take a lot to top Ironbound. It manages to blend traditional thrash elements with modern metal influences to create an absolutely crushing sound from the masters of thrash. This is one of those CD's that you have to go out and buy. Anyone who appreciates metal or good music in general can find something to like in Ironbound. I really can't say enough good things about this album nor find any glaring flaws. Go support this talented band and buy (not download) this CD.

-Joe

Brokencyde- I'm Not a Fan But The Kids Like It! (2009)

Shit sandwich.

For those who have seen the movie Spinal Tap, you know this scene. The band is talking about their album reviews and for their release "Shark Sandwich" the reviewer just simply wrote "Shit sandwich."

Well, calling Brokencyde's 2009 CD "I'm Not A Fan But The Kids Like It!" simply a shit sandwich would be too much of a compliment. In fact, that would pretty much be praise for this screamo/hip hop/ electro group who dub their sound as "crunkcore". I have done many unpleasant things in my life. I've gotten into car accidents, had various illnesses, been kicked in the groin repeatedly by my brother, sat through the god-awful Dragon Ball Evolution movie, and done many other nasty things but they all pale in comparison to just how vomit inducing this album is.

In fact, I would rather do all of those things every day for a month than listen to this album ever again. Yes, it's THAT bad.

I "tried" to listen to this album with an open mind. I didn't buy it (I have better CD's to spend my money on) but I did give it a download and here is what I thought.

The song opens with a lame intro of an air raid siren going off and what sounds like laser guns firing off in the background. Ok, cool I guess. Then an explosion and the song "Freaxx" starts. Instantly once the faux hip hop club beat started, I felt nauseous and it was only a few seconds into the song. Not looking good already for this album. Then the vocals kick in. My god, what the fuck did I just get myself into? Auto tuned clean vocals with some douchebag doing horrid screamo backing vocals? But wait, it gets worse! This guy is singing about the "shorties" , getting "fucking freaky" and getting girls' panties off while that guy keeps doing that annoying screaming in the background. The screaming vocals and the lame, recycled dance club beat are about as appealing as getting circumsized by a lightsaber, with Jar Jar Binks commencing the circumcision. To my dismay, it looks like the rest of this album is only going to get worse....

The next song, "Skeet Skeet" comes up next. The same shit again, annoying screams mixed with the auto tune vocalist. But wait, they added something new! Shallow minded rapping! Yes, the guys rap about what they know best, getting drunk and having sex. I guess life is only about two things to Brokencyde: fucking and getting drunk.
That's also what this whole album is about. Seriously. I like sex and I like drinking as much as the next guy, but I don't like hearing about how great they are for the 62 minutes and 48 seconds of the album. Is that all you guys can sing/scream/rap about? Nothing else?

Next we get a skit. Ok this might be funny. I used to listen to some hip hop and occasionally they'd have little skits or interludes between songs. Hell, if Ludacris can do it, maybe Brokencyde can put a funny skit in here. Well, should I be surprised that they fucked that up too? What we get is a badly acted "phone call" of what I assume to be one of the band members calling some random Mexican guy and asking him if he wants to suck his "daddy dick". I'm totally serious right now. Then the guy calling realizes his error and calls a girl and asks her the same question to which she merrily accepts. Well...that was pointless and unfunny. I mean, it was a nice break from the music, I'll give it that, but still, it failed to provide laughs which is the point of skits! It was just stupid and not needed. Plain and simple.

The song "Booty Call" comes up next. Ugh, more lyrics about fucking set to the usual scream-sing about sex/drinking/dumb shit-formula. Fortunately, rapper E-40 is on this track, but he fails to save the song from being just....shit. Then again, I don't think Jesus Christ, God and Chuck Norris being guests on this song could save this album from having bad songs. The singer also tells the listener to get "nasty". Hm...

"Get Crunk" follows next. I don't know how one gets "crunk" but I assume Brokencyde will explain to me how to achieve this task. Well, all they tell the listener to do is "Get Crunk! Get Crunk! Act a fool up in the club gonna you goin get fucked up! Throw your fist up!" and to "Get loose get laid fuckin bitches' everyday bc13 and you know where here to stay." We are also told to not only get "crunk" but to get drunk and to get "buck", whatever that means. Did I mention the combination of the screaming and the lame, recycled Lil Jon beat is basically the audio equivilant of AIDS? Seriously, how can people enjoy this? A little interlude follows in this song that states "All you motha fuckin brizzles to get off the flizzle and to start fuckin dizzles fishizzle my nizzle got these fuckin brizzles all up in my mizzle like a fuckin grizzle". I have no clue what he said either. At this point, I began to seriously consider getting tested for AIDS the next time I visited the doctor.

After this song, we get the song "Yellow Bus". They should have called it "Short Bus" instead, a tribute to the vehicle that provides transport to Brokencyde fans, and probably also serves as the band's tour bus. One of the rappers claims to have fucked "Alisha, Theresa, Alyssa, Marissa, your teacher, your grandma, your auntie, your girlfriend, and probably your sister." Ok, an "I fucked your mom joke". I thought we outgrew those in junior high. Really guys?

The next few songs are when the tired formula of dumb sex songs really starts to take its course. It's no longer so bad it's almost humorous, it's actually boring at this point. "Get Up", "Poppin" and "40 Oz " just follow the same "sex/drinking/partying" song formula. "Jealously" seems to be directed towards "haters" of the band. So in other words, the general populace who has an IQ over 75. The beats are so bad for all of these songs, they're starting to give me the beginning stages of cancer I think. I'll have to get tested for that too when I visit the doctor. One song stands out due to its sheer stupidity and that song is "Sex Toyz" which proclaims,

"Damn right ho your so sleezy
You give me the heebie jeebies!
You make my pee-pee hard!"

That is the real chorus. Not even kidding. Now I know I read somewhere that the band claims to make songs just for fun, but this is outright retarded. No wait, calling it retarded would be too kind. This is the same kind of music you would get if you gave a lobotomized retard pen and paper and told him to write a song after playing a mainstream rap song for him.

"Schitzo" tries to make an attempt at what I think is differing from the sex/party atmosphere of the previous songs but fails just as miserably as the rest of the songs.

We then are treated to "Scene Girls", an ode to a large chunk of Brokencyde's fanbase. Basically, another dumb sex song. Things were just getting unbearable, and I was close to digging out the shotgun from the local gun store to become an hero like Kurt Cobain until...

I finally made it to the last song! If I ever met John McCain, he could tell me of his expieriences as a POW and I could tell him I listened to a whole Brokencyde album. I think the poor man would start to weep for me, for I went through a much more horrible torture than he did in the Hanoi Hilton.

The album closes with the song "I'm Sorry". To my misfortune, this is the longest track on the album, tracking in at almost 8 minutes long. I think this was supposed to be the "sad" song to close the album but it aroused no emotion from me. Well, other than hatred for the band. It's just boring. More screaming and weak rapping, all for almost eight minutes. Eight minutes of my life that I'll never get back. At the end we get audio clips of people saying how bad Brokencyde is. How appropriate. The last audio clip states the truth, saying, "Crunk and screamo? What the fuck are people thinking?!" At least the band acknowledges how terrible they are.

This was literally 17 tracks of pure Hell. In fact, it would not surprise me if Satan himself plays this CD to torture the poor souls in Hell. This album shows everything that is wrong with popular music; auto-tune, shallow/stupid/repetitive lyrics, and worst of all, the "scene kid" sub-culture. You know what's worse? Brokencyde isn't the only "crunkcore" group out there. Yes, there are more bands that have a similar style of music such as Breath Carolina, I Set My Friends On Fire, Dot Dot Curve and sadly more. Perhaps Brokencyde are only making this horrible excuse of music to see just how far they can push the boundaries of bad music, like the infamous grindcore group Anal Cunt. However, where Anal Cunt is actually humorous in their songs, Brokencyde is just...retarded for lack of a better word. Brokencyde are so terrible, that their level of pure shitty-ness is in a class of its own. In fact, I think their name should be used as an adjective to describe how bad something can be. It can be either bad, terrible, atrocious or Brokencyde. That sounds good to me, because this was the worst piece of "music" I've ever heard in my life. The fact that people actually like it sickens me too.

Brokencyde's lack of talent has been noticed by the music community too. The band has been being slammed by basically every prominent music magazine. The band Senses Fail slammed Brokencyde too, when both bands were on the same tour! Senses Fail frontman Buddy Neilsen would go out of his way to tell the crowd how bad Brokencyde is after the group would finish playing.

He said of the band:

"Yeah, I slam [Brokencyde] every night because in no way, shape or form do I back anything they do or say and I am embarrassed that kids these days are into it and am sad that kids these days are exposed to it. There is absolutely no substance whatsoever in their songs and no passion in anything they do. It is the musical equivalent of a snow cone, bland tasting frozen tap water loaded with sugar, yet colorful, that will give you a brain freeze, melt all over your hands leaving yourself dissatisfied and sticky."

Truer words were never spoken. The rest of Buddy's comments can be found here

In short, this was one of the worst albums I've ever heard (if not THE worst album ever). It's stupid, shallow, immature, repetitive, and I could just think of a million more negative adjectives to describe this. I think it gave me AIDS, cancer, diabeetus and probably other diseases I'm not aware of. Listening to this album was a most horrible experience. Don't download this, don't buy it or please DO NOT listen to it. Avoid it like it's the plague.

-Joe

Dry Kill Logic - The Dead And Dreaming (2004)

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The year was 2001. Nu-metal was the dominant form of rock music. Bands like Papa Roach, Slipknot, Linkin Park, Mudvayne, Limp Bizkit, Drowning Pool and many other bands reigned supreme. Their videos gained a substantial amount of airplay on MTV/MTV2 and many of these bands sold albums that went either gold or platinum.

From 2001 to 2003, major record labels attempted to cash in on this nu-metal craze by signing huge new crops of nu-metal bands and proceeded to not promote them at all. Some of these bands were good, some were decent and others brought nothing new to the nu-metal fandom. Albums from bands like Switched, No One, and others proved to bore most listeners to tears. However, some of these new bands showed some promise with strong albums and by bringing new elements to the table.

Dry Kill Logic was one of these commercially under-used bands that showed more creativity and way more aggression than its nu-metal brethren. The band signed to Roadrunner Records in 2001 and began recording their debut. Like many bands in this era, they were under promoted and ignored by the mainstream, perhaps due to their aggressive sound, which blended hardcore influences into the traditional nu-metal sound. The result was brilliant, it was ultra-aggressive music with a frontman who sounded like he was on the edge. If they had gotten the right promotion, the band would have easily been generating underground buzz like its Roadrunner label mates, Slipknot and gone on to do great things.

Their 2nd album, "The Dead and Dreaming" was released in fall 2004 and proved to be a HUGE step up from their first album, "The Darker Side of Nonsense" (which was definitely a great album by its own). This album shows much more growth from the band, advancing on their hardcore nu-metal style and experimenting with some lighter, acoustic songs. While many previous nu-metal bands went in a traditional rock direction after nu-metal fell out of the mainstream (like Papa Roach, Drowning Pool, Mudvayne and others), Dry Kill Logic went in the opposite direction; playing blistering heavy metal.

The album kicks off with the pummeling song "Lost". This is just the kind of song that will make you want to start a mosh pit in your living room. After hearing the first opening riff, you know Dry Kill Logic is back and more pissed off then ever. Hearing the vocalist Cliff Rigano scream "LOOOOOOOSSSTTTTT!!!!" in the first opening seconds could easily bring out the sub-conscious, evil aggression in a newborn kitten.

The next track Paper Tiger, shows Cliff trying his hand at clean vocals during the chorus, which he handles masterfully. In fact, during this song (and many others on the album), he pulls off what I like to call the "Jekyll and Hyde" vocals. Meaning he goes from screaming his lungs out like a lunatic during some points in the song and then goes back to clean singing at other parts. He demonstrates this way of singing in other songs like "Neither Here nor Missed" and "With Deepest Regrets..."

Songs like "200 Years", "Perfect Enemy", and "One Handed Knife Fight" display some rather thrashy riffs as well as breakdowns. These are awesome signs of growth from the band. "200 Years" even has a guitar solo in it.

The album closes with an acoustic song by the name of "No Reason", a strange juxtaposition to the heaviness of the rest of the album, but it's not a bad song at all. We get to hear more of Cliff's clean vocals at their best in this song.

In short, this is one of the more exciting and unique metal CD's to be released but unfortunately, it was just as ignored as their first album. Like Memento, this band has a little bit of something anyone can enjoy, in a metal sense for this review. Cliff's insane hardcore vocals (which sometimes border death grunts), energetic guitar work that always keeps the listener interested, and fantastic drum work from Phil Arcuri all make this an extremely enjoyable release. It's not perfect, but it gets the job done and then some. Go out and pick it up (as well as "The Darker Side of Nonsense") if you want a band that's filled to the brim with aggression.

-Joe