1. Megadeth-United
Abominations
More
than 20 years in the metal world has not slowed down good ol’ Dave Mustaine a
bit. Backed up by an entirely new crew
of band mates, Mustaine’s Megadeth unleashed an album which recaptured the
glory of the thrash scene in the 80s-early 90s and is probably the band’s
finest opus since 1992’s Countdown to Extinction. The album boasts Mustaine’s trademark snarls,
killer riffs and guitar solos that seem to pierce your brain and
politically-charged lyrics with references to the Afghan wars, 9/11 and
NATO. It contains 11 tracks including a
remake of A Tout Le Monde (Set Me Free), which features Lacuna Coil’s Cristina
Scabbia on guest vocals. As
appropriately written on cduniverse.com–this is the sound of metal royalty refusing
to give up its throne. Eat your hearts
out Metallica!
2.
Ozzy Osbourne-Black Rain
Listening
to the dove-biting rock icon’s latest album, one would find it hard to believe
that the man who once proclaimed himself as the Prince of Darkness is already
58 years old. Defying age and
crisscrossing generations of rock listeners, Ozzy delivers another hard-hitting
heavy album accompanied by longtime guitarist Zakk Wylde who provides the
brutal riffs that made him a legend on his own. The first two tracks Not Going
Away and I Don’t Wanna Stop set the tone for the whole album with its heavy
foot-stomping grooves. Lyric wise, the
songs are somewhat political, environmental and anti-war commentaries. Ozzy slowed down on the dark and moody ballads
Here For You (which I believe is written for his fans) and Lay Your World
On Me. With this album, Ozzy proved that
he’s here to stay. As he wrote in Not
Going Away, “I won’t give up, after all I’m still crazy!” Time to throw the devil’s horns and yell!
