Bonus List: Top 2 Rock Albums of 2013

Mark 2013 as the year I became a fan of Clutch with Earth Rocker and the year Alice in Chains continued to keep radio rock tolerable with The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here (seriously, this disc gets a ton of play on the radio in these parts at least). While both albums could fall under the category of metal – and were reviewed on this very site – they are more rock than metal.

Alice In Chains – The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here

Alice in Chains is on a roll with its post-Layne Staley era releases. In fact, my biggest complaint for The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here was it felt like William Duvall wasn’t allowed to take charge as often as I would like to see (check out “Phantom Limb”/”Hung on a Hook” I want more of this!). Jerry Cantrell continues to deliver as always though in a proper balancing of trademark grooves and melancholic acoustic numbers.

The Heavy Metal Review’s Top 10 Metal Albums of 2013

Another year down and a pretty memorable one in terms of music released. While I haven’t been keeping up-to-date with the reviews, it still feels right to once again share the albums that stuck with me the most.

10. Chimaira – Crown of Phantoms

Chimaira is one of those bands metal elitists (and the review section of Decibel magazine) always seems to hate on year after year, passing them off as somewhat generic tough-guy music that spawns the macho crowd you don’t need at a metal show. However, I was a big fan of 2009’s The Infection and now 2013’s Crown of Phantoms. Mark Hunter delivers his usual brand of guttural vocals which you probably know whether or not you like at this point, but it’s guitarist Emil Werstler who gets weird on each track to keep things feeling fresh with fun riffs, fills and squeals. And hey, it’s also a great weight-lifting album!

9. Evile – Skull

Wild card! I have followed UK thrashers Evile’s music over the years and always thought they were the closest thing we have to the good ‘ol days of Metallica, but the band’s music just seemed to be missing that lasting power the Bay Area thrashers had in their heyday. So when I purchased Skull via Amazon MP3 I was expecting sometime highly listenable, but not all that memorable. This is not the case at all. If you are looking for an example, go on YouTube and listen to the song “Head of the Demon.” The entire album is like a mix of Slayer meets Testament meets Metallica thrash goodness. Give it a spin!

8. Skeletonwitch – Serpents Unleashed

Skeletonwitch puts on a mean live show, but the band has never fully managed to capture the full experience of the blackened thrash stage goodness in a studio recording – until now. Serpents Unleashed is a quick and fierce album that never outstays it’s welcome. It also has some of the best metal bass production of the year, with every galloping rhythm and slide played by Evan Linger coming in through the speakers.