Saves the Day - In Reverie
Not a fan of this band, but this album blew me away and made me take them seriously. One of my favorites of this decade. Unfortunatly most of their fanbase hated it and they went back to their earlier sound.
The Ataris - Welcome the Night
Pop punk singer Kris Roe gets a whole new lineup for his band, listens to alot of Slowdive, Swervedriver, and My Bloody Valentine and creates a wonderful shoegaze influenced, moody rock record - most fans hate it and now he's writing mediocre pop punk again. Another favorite of mine by a band I dont really care for otherwise.
Alice in Chains - Dirt
Let me first say I don't hate or dislike Alice in Chains by any means. This album is just so far above their other material that it warrants mentioning. Aside from the overplayed "Rooster" this might be the best non-Nirvana "Grunge" record - I prefer it to Ten, Superfuzz Bigmuff, and Superunknown
Hopesfall - The Satellite Years
An otherwise lame screamy metalcore band, but on this record they had production help from Matt Talbott of Hum - who was also an obvious influence on the sound. What results is beautiful layered technical guitar work amidst a sea of fuzzy heavy guitars, with low-mixed screaming that blends into the music. Aside from Dillinger Escape Plan's Calculating Infinity this is the only other record I love with mostly screaming vocals.
__________________
|