Glen

You remember back in around 2003 when they had that MASSIVE hit 'Kryptonite,' don't you? That and a great ballad. Was it called 'Better life' or something? Anyway, you surely remember them back then, no? They just sound like I guess you could say pretty "typical" radio rock for that mid 2000's era. I'd be amazingly surprised if you actually liked the band at all, to be honest. I'd be amazingly surprised if Tim liked any band lol!! 3 Doors Down - yeah radio friendly middle of road modern rock.......nothing stunning but a pleasant listen all the same.

Robin Beck - The Great Escape [that duet at the end makes me wanna puke] Toby Hitchcock - Mercurys Down

'Tear Down The Barricades' is just crazy....like Tyketto debut with bordering on Iron Maiden style guitar solos.....mad! Also I LOVE 'I Should Have Said'........that is freakin excellent! The last 2 songs are a (bit) weaker, but still very good, just overshadowed by the excellence which comes before ;-))

No point in even trying to compile any sort of list as most of the best releases of 2011 are still to come, but suffice to say that even based on the rough MP3s I have, the new Toby Hitchcock pretty much destroys any disc so far this year and last year for that. Cant wait to get this in a couple of weeks, a good production and this will be a stunning disc. Glad this thread was started tho as I now know I need to check out Alyson Avenue (something I wouldnt have done) and maybe even Human Zoo (who'd have thought eh!!). Cheers

Every song is virtually of the same quality....a small dip here and there but excellent throughout.

To early to tell but it is MUCH heavier than POL. This isn't really AOR - more MHR especially on the second half. The POL debut is great and will wlways be a special album but this is great too.

Listen & die...............................in particular check out the freaking AWESOME guitar solos. Fuckin ace. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O308-OyA_Ps http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTkbLLO4faQ&feature=related

Edguy are back - sounds HUGE! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqfhC1eS2yc&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cl5ICW0EAfE&feature=related

wow Zero is definitely fast btw, so the whole album is a killing machine? how good is this compared to Lionville and is it good enough to be in your top 10 ? np. ONE WITHOUT - Sweet Relief (hm quite nice, Evanescence meets Nightwish kinda thing with a small growl vocal but 17 songs again, are just too many, squeezing it to 10 and give them a more better touch is nicer) Always difficult to tell before the final product but if 'the production is there it's no 1.

I wasn't expecting that solo. I know you said it was there, but I wasn't anticipating such ferocity. Damn. This has got me pumped. Yeah when I first heard the sample I didn't expect a solo like that either! Pretty rocking stuff

The Great Fall - FULL SONG!! Pretty special stuff.....love the solo......... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IVY-0AFU_U&feature=youtu.be

My main argument against the debut album was that it sounded really forced, so I have to agree with ya all the way here. Look forward to hearing the new one though, as there was no denying the quality of some of the songs on the debut. The new samples sound a little more classier to me......really looking forward to hearing this.

Toby Hitchcock - Tear Down The Barricades [killer song]

Toby Hitchcock - Mercurys Down [f sensational. For me this is about as good as MHR gets. Essential]

Really? My top 20 so far looks pretty good to me - and as you say many great albums to come :-)

Definitely agree about the First Signal/HEAT/Vega, but - as per usual - there seem to be about 3 or 4 monster discs per year then a whole stack of mediocre stuff. Compiling a Top 20 of Melodic Rock these days is a case of ranking the above-named classics then trying to remember what other rubbish you bought to fill the No.4 - 20 slots. And the only time I look for sleaze is during the w/end when I drive my car slowly around the dark streets of London... You crazy man....the Crashdiet and Crazy Lixx are 2 of the best sleaze / hard rock cds ive heard in the last few years - awesome both of em, and Hardcore Superstar never disappoint. Also in terms of the 'what other rubbish you bought to fill the No.4 - 20 slots' - yeah agreed it was the rubbish like Treat - Coup De Grace, Pretty Maids - Pandemonium, Unruly Child - Worlds Collide, All I Know - Vanity Kills, Eric Gornwall, Reckless Love, Allen/Lande etc etc - yeah backed, rubbish all of em ;-)) Seriously I reckon last year was the best year for music since 1992.

Band: White Widdow Album: Serenade Label: AOR Heaven Release date: 23.09.2011 Founded in Melbourne Australia, White Widdow was formed in 2008 by front man Jules Millis , Bassist Trent Wilson and Guitarist Enzo Almanzi. Soon after, Jules brought in his brother Xavier Millis on the keyboards, a two time ARIA (Australian Record Industry Award) nominee. With Xavier onboard, the writing team was in place and the line-up was then completed with Jim Naish on drums. Raised on a healthy diet of 80’s Arena Rock and influenced by artists such as White Sister, Giuffria, Aviator, Survivor , Danger Danger, Rick Springfield and Roxus, White Widdow started out playing live amongst the diverse Melbourne Rock scene, they quickly established themselves as a solid live unit throughout their native Australia. In mid 2009 White Widdow recorded and released their free digital only EP which was very well received in selected press. In 2010 White Widdow stormed onto the Melodic Rock scene across the globe with the release of their self titled debut album through AOR Heaven. With the release of the debut, the full vision of White Widdow has become a reality. An album full of Melodic Rock and AOR anthems filled with swirling keyboards, blistering guitar playing and big choruses full of hooks. Hot on the heels of their debut, White Widdow return with their follow up release “Serenade”. Proud of their 80’s influences, the new album “Serenade” retains the urgency and energy of the White Widdow debut , while also showcasing more diversity in song style and structure. Recorded at Solid State Studios in Melbourne Australia and Mixed and Mastered by Pelle Saether (Grand Design) at Studio Underground in Sweden. Track list: 1. Cry Wolf, 2. Strangers In The Night, 3. Do You Remember, 4. Reckless Nights, 5. How Far I Run, 6. Serenade, 7. Show Your Cards, 8. Mistake, 9. Patiently, 10. Love Won’t Wait Link to soundbites - http://www.metalheaven.net/html/home.html Samples sound pretty cool to me - looking forward to another great release in 2011 !!

Why does everyone keep quoting WW as an example of a killer recent album?? I think it ranked about 20th for me in its year of release?? What about from last year First Signal, HEAT, Terry Brock, Vega - all fantastic releases which stack up against 80s stuff...........or if you are looking for sleaze you really cant beat Crashdiet, Crazy Lixx or Hardcore Superstar from last year either. Killer albums all 3 of them.

don't you get to the point where you think that's it's better to buy 2 cds for $15 each that you know are keepers as opposed to 10 cds for $3 each and then end up not liking half of them...? comes down to quantity over quality. personally i'd rather had 2 good cds than 5 shit and 5 ok cds... i sometimes pick up these sorts of bargains if i stumble across them, but otherwise i try to only pick up those i know are keepers, rather than seeking out unknown bargains and end up taking way too many gambles. there's too many good discs out there to waste too much money and time on. Yeah backed....maybe its the problem of feeling you have to 'hear' everything ?? I got over that years ago.....now I go on recommendation of people whos musical taste I trust, plus pre-listening - either you tube / spotify etc. I reckon I end up buying around 25-30 albums a year and theyre all keepers. Let's not get wild, doods. There was a thread about the quality over quantity issue a while back and I was the main combatant for quality over quantity, and the last thing I want is a CD collection of 10,000 discs. I think a collection of truly essential CDs can easily be maintained around the 2-3,000 mark. I should make it clear, that yes, I buy a LOT of CDs for crazy low prices. But every single time I buy one of those CDs I always think, if it doesn't work out I'll get rid of it no worries. And I may be slow, but one day all these discs I don't like will be on my trade list, and then ebay. It will take a while, but it will happen. I don't, and never have purposely held onto CDs I don't like. It's just that I've got a backlog at the moment which is about 100 times bigger than I have ever had. I just had a quick look at that list. Of about 30 CDs I will get rid of 10. Now if that's the way I roll, that 2 in every 3 CDs I take a chance on is a keeper... well, I'm more than willing to keep taking chances. It may not always seem it, but every chance I take is an educated chance. Except maybe those freebies Mark throws away... they're just why not's. But if I didn't take a chance every now and then I'd miss bands like The Donnas, Ten Second Epic, The Graduate and The Status... all of which were blind purchases. Yeah, I get a dud along the way but it's all part of a plan... long term as it may be. And just to address this one too. Keep in mind this is the first spins thread, so I only talk about the CDs I am hearing for the first time. For every CD I mention here I have forked out a few more dollars for the CDs I know I like. It's not like I'm buying the chances instead of the known keepers. For some perspective, here's the other CDs I hadn't got around to listening to yet since I bought the hard copies - the known keepers I also purchased around the same time - that I spun in the same timeframe: Tango Down - Damage Control ; one of the best pure melodic hard rock CDs I've heard in years The Brave - Battle Cries ; brilliant disc, one of my most expensive buys ever around usd$25 The Darkness - One Way Ticket To Hell... And Back ; a $2 wonder and despite the vocals there is a decent song or 2 on this... kind of. The Poodles - Performacy ; excellence Transit - Dirty Pleasures ; sheer excellence - a classic to me Transit - Heartcore ; every bit as good as the above. Brilliant. Trixie - Shelter ; very good, solid hard rock disc The Almost - Monster Monster ; surprisingly good modern rock, with some outright winners The Audition - Great Danger ; not as good as the debut, but a damn fine disc The Audition - s/t ; not good at all, but I guess I'm a completist till it comes time to make a new trade list? Kill me, it was cheap. The Classic Crime - Silver cord ; excellent modern rock disc The Classic Crime - Vagabonds ; very solid modern rock disc, some great choruses The Latency - s/t ; one of the best CDs I have heard in the last few years, recommended by our very own Glen. Really one of my faves. The Receiving End of Sirens - Between the Heart and the Synapse ; solid modern rock which deserved a pick-up for cheap Times Of Grace - The Hymn of A Broken Man ; almost as good as the last Killswitch Engage disc... either way a keeper for sure. So yeah, just remember what the title of the thread is and the scale of what these releases actually mean to me and my collection. Peace out, nude campers Yeah backed - I love those Transit discs........ Not heard some of those other titles so some to check out for sure - cheers.

What about Edens Curse, Outloud, Dynazty etc - they all kill that Robin Beck disc. Lionville is an excellent album as well IMO - just gets better the more you listen to it. But as Tim says I doubt it will be in my top 10 come year end......just too much class stuff to come. i'm afraid Eden's Curse is still stuck around > #25 friend but Outloud and Dynazty are currently rotating in my top 20, and yesterday, i listen to Moratti's Victory for the 4th times, I'll say it's getting better, I guess Tim needs to give it more spins. I've played that Moratti disc about 3 or 4 times now, and it will never be played again for as long as I live. Albums like that are why I got into more modern music in the first place, because there was too much crap coming out of the melodic rock genre. Like I've always said, if you can't make an album that's at least as good - if not better - than the stuff from the 80's/90's then don't bother. But it is my friend - youre the only one who cant hear it lol !! Virtually everyone else I know whos heard it, loves it. Go figure. But that's because I have higher standards than you lot. The stuff that gets raved about round here sometimes is staggering (like White Widdow?), almost like mediocre has become the new classic in Melodic Rock. The genre is churning out a lot of crap these days, with the odd gem thrown in, but if you read some of the threads around here you'd think it was 1987 again... I think you should go back and take a long hard look at 1987 mate - outside of a few classics and an otherwise solid top 10, it wasnt that great???! Or was it...........you tell me. the last 3 years have been nothing short of awesome in terms of MHR - many of the titles ive had in my respective top 10s have stacked up well against quite a few of the releases of the 80s.

Yeah I'd heard they'd gone in a dancy pop/rock sort of direction. Shame as the last album was pretty damn good IMO... Yeah there's probably about 5 or 6 songs maybe that stack up against the last album and one of them is called 'Turn Up the (the fuckin) Radio' - and people have the gall to slate Steel Panther titles / lyrics...............lol.

Check at 7 mins 30........'Someday' sounds pretty awesome to these ears......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFrQedTqXzc

7th Heaven - Pop Media. [at 22 songs this ridiculously long and riddled with filler IMO. There are a few good light pop/rock songs along the way, definitely one for download as only about 10/22 tracks are worth having.....and that's pushing it]

Skillet - 'Comatose' and 'Awake' Shinedown - 'The sound of madness' Monty Are I - 'Wall of people' and ESPECIALLY 'Break through the silence' Nural - it's download only, but 'Entitlement' is a good one. See if you can find my top 10-20 lists from the last few years, mate. There will be countless great recommendations in those lists. Oh my god - u definitely need those 2 Skillet albums - 2 of the best 'modern' albums I've heard.