Thursday, December 17, 2009

Hard Rock: The Best Songs of 2009


OK here we go.. I've been preparing this post for a while now. Everyone who knows me knows I am a lover of unique, complex, hard-rocking music.. in that order. This year I will say right off the bat was somewhat of an "average" year. There were no studio releases for two of my favorites, Staind & Godsmack, and the new stuff on the radio just wasn't there. There were however a couple bands who were new to me in the last year and a half or so, and I'll be looking forward to hearing much more from them. And a band that most of us thought were dead has experienced a serious resurrection.

When trying to get this list together, of course I did a little research, just to be sure there wasn't a song or two out there that I had heard but forgotten to include. In doing so I came across all types of different music lists. Most people don't understand how to classify music, if to do so at all. A few mainstream places I visited had the same songs on both their list of top rock songs, and top alternative songs. Others don't understand that you can't classify one of a band's songs as metal, but yet another as rock.. unless of course you have to, but I wouldn't. If that's the case, then they, like most great bands, DON'T NEED classification. This is the same argument I have always provided in defense of one of my all-time favorite bands, Rush. They are their own classification of music, or their own sub-genre of rock music.

Of course, I'll never include a country song or a rap song in with my list. Since we're talking sub-genres of ROCK, you just don't do that - the three worlds are too far apart. But at the same time, if you don't think that some of this is "rock", then that's ok. Most of this would be just fine on any hard-rock or progressive rock list.

Here's my top-15 for 2009:

15. Sound of Madness – Shinedown


14. I Will Not Bow – Breaking Benjamin


13. Whiskey Hangover – Godsmack


12. The Night – Disturbed


11. Scream With Me – Mudvayne


10. Wither – Dream Theater


9. Jars – Chevelle


8. Check My Brain – Alice in Chains



7. Two Weeks – All That Remains


6. Overcome – Creed


5. Crawl – Breaking Benjamin


4. A Looking in View – Alice in Chains


3. Hard to See – Five Finger Death Punch


2. The Best of Times – Dream Theater


1. The Count of Tuscany – Dream Theater


Honorable mention:
The Shattered Fortress – Dream Theater
Acid Bubble – Alice in Chains
Walk Away – Five Finger Death Punch
Careless Whisper - Seether
Believe In Nothing – All That Remains

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