My Top 10 Rock Album Recommendations of 2002!Jan 20 '03 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line 2002 was a very good year for mainstream Rock! So here you have it...my Ultimate Rock Album Recommendations of "2002"! :) Trying to make up a list of my FAV rock albums for 2002 was a very difficult task. I had to obtain the assistance of my better half to complete the list. Then my teenaged kids got involved and what started out as my ultimate Rock album list of 2002 quickly turned into everybody’s ultimate Rock list of 2002. Eliminating albums on the list in order to narrow it down to 10 was more of a negotiation than a mere discussion. And if you don’t know what negotiating with teenagers is like, well...as it was MY list to begin with, I told them to submit their own list if they wanted to and I ended up making all the final decisions myself, thank you all very much! So my list includes my FAV mainstream rock albums that at present, I regularly listen to when driving, spending quality time with my wife and/or when we are entertaining friends...but for a complete list of all the albums currently spinning in our home you’ll have to check out my profile page...Vanwarp 10. Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head - Songs like the driving "Clocks" and the outstanding piano and guitar ballad "The Scientist" show Coldplay as a matured band with a matured sound. This album is really good. Chock-full of compassionate lyrics; arguing that everyone on earth has intrinsic value, a man reaches out for help, looking for ways to improve relationships and fostering personal space, peace of mind, trust, confidence and strength. This album is worth a listen! 9. 30 Seconds to Mars - 30 Seconds to Mars debut album is full of progressive rock experimentations. Mesmerizing vocals accompanied by some of the most awe-inspiring feats of musical expression captured on record...the album offers an intriguing portrait of a futuristic existence. Song highlights include “Capricorn”, “Oblivion” and “The Mission”... 8. Creed - Weathered - Creed do not expand their musical horizons on this album, they don’t add humor to their lyrics, they never lighten up at all. For fans of hard-rock music, this album is a very good mainstream alternative to the likes of Korn, Staind and the Drowning Pool. Song highlights include “One Last Breath”, “Bullet”, “Weathered” and “Hide”... 7. Tonic - Head on Straight - This heavy-handed album takes aim at arena rock circa 2002 via strong melodies, big choruses, thick domineering guitars, and a solid backbeat. Tonic exudes confidence and conviction on a splendid collection of easy listening Rock songs. Much better than the mainstream Pop Rock/Metal album “X” by Def Leppard! Song highlights include “Head on Straight” and “Do You Know”... 6. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf - there indeed is plenty to enjoy here since the band is very, very good. The album contains interesting music and is easily one of the most accomplished, powerful and entertaining hard rock albums of the year. The album contains songs that are splendid, mysterious, even includes eccentric song structures, what more do you want? Song highlights: “No One Knows”, “First it Giveth”,““Go With the Flow”... 5. Our Lady Peace - Gravity - This is OLP’s most mainstream Rock album to date and the lyrics are less contemplative and abstract than on previous releases. I’ve been a fan from the beginning...Song highlights include “Made of Steel”, “Innocent”, “Not Enough” and “A Story About a Girl”... 4. Three Doors Down - Away From the Sun - Heavy Rock beats with Southern Rock influences are highlighted here. The songs are about loneliness and about fame and its price on family and friends. Song highlights are the Creed sounding “Running Out of Days”, the power ballad “Here Without You”, “I Feel You” with its Black Crows feel and vibe and, the Heavy Rock sounds of “Sarah Yellin’’... 3. Chantal Kreviazuk - What if it Means Something - Chantal Kreviazuk is another Canadian artist along the lines of Sarah Mclachlan. Her new album is going to catapult her to the stratosphere...already released here in Canada and scheduled to be released to the masses around the world next spring. Kreviazuk also revealed a new look (at least to me) which is along the lines of Sheryl Crow and her new album is very solid, great work! Song highlights “In This Life” and “Time” are going to remain in your head long after you pressed stop on your CD player. The remaining songs are all very, very good! 2. Matchbox Twenty - More Than You Think You Are - The album contains many influences from a little Rockabilly Revival to some Alternative Pop Rock with hints of Heartland Rock sprinkled throughout the album. Everything about this album is very simple and to the point, all the while remaining fresh and creative at the same time. Song highlights include “Cold”, “Bright Lights”, “Downfall” and the hidden track “So Sad So Lonely”... 1. Red Hot Chili Peppers - By The Way - Featuring a rather large collection of songs crafted in a similar style to Californication. It may very well be Califormication, Part II but By The Way finds the band once again exploring everything that's happened to them before and how it got them to where they are right now. Basically, it's outstanding stuff! Song highlights are “By the Way”, “The Zephyr Song” and “Can’t Stop”... HONORABLE MENTIONS: The Flaming Lips Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Wilco Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Pearl Jam Riot Act Audioslave Audioslve Weezer Maladroit Many albums that might have made my list such as The Flaming Lips Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots and Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot but they did NOT simply because I consider those albums more as “projects.” And many if not all of those “projects” would get perfect marks for their originality, complexity and genre hurdling experimentations. As you have noticed, my list only contains one “eccentric” album that perhaps deviates a little from “mainstream” rock. When I want to listen to something different I tend to wander into metal territory, “indie” rock or “art” rock not being my thing and all. In any event, I do enjoy when bands experiment with genre bending complexity, but as you would all agree, personal taste in music is subjective and...very personal! In any event, I hope you enjoyed my personal list of Ultimate Rock Albums - 2002! (This review was originally posted in the general music reviews. This new category has since been created and I have appropriately re-posted my review here. Please re-rate as I have deleted the original post.)  |
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