Outside the Top 25 of 2017
Here are a few albums I listened to this year that didn’t make the Top 25 of 2017 with a few comments for each.
Steelheart — Through Worlds of Stardust
I wasn’t a huge fan of them in the late 80s/early 90s and the new record is much heavier than I remember them. While many of the albums in my Top 25 are from a similar era, the ones that made the list all have grown in some way, whether musically or lyrically. This album just doesn’t have much to offer lyrically. The music is ok, just not enough substance to merit more listens.
John Mellencamp — Sad Clowns & Hillbillies
Sadly, Mellencamp’s voice is shot. He just can’t sing like he used to and it shows in the kind of music he is currently writing. The new album is much more Dylan than Mellencamp, which for some may be a good thing, but for me it certainly is not.
Great White — Full Circle
In their prime, Great White released some very good records. But the band split ways with their lead singer, Jack Russell, who carries on with his own version of the band. The band that carried on without Russell recruited former XYZ singer Terry Ilous who has been with them for a while. The new record is OK, but without Russell’s Plant-ish vocals it just isn’t the same. This is a band that sorely needs to reunite the parts are not as good as the whole.
Appice — Sinister
Drum playing brothers Vinny and Carmine Appice new record features a bevy of rock stars and has some good moments. But there are some very bad moments, including Carmine singing which is not good at all. If you took the best five songs on this record you would have the makings of a good album. But there are too many not good moments for the album to work as a whole.
Stephen Pearcy — Smash
Pearcy has released a few solo records and this one isn’t bad. It’s a little more modern sounding than Ratt, although there are some definite Ratt-sounding songs here (Ten Miles Wide, Rain). Pearcy still sounds pretty good vocally but the song quality is a little lacking. There’s enough here to get me hoping for a new Ratt record in the coming year.