Metal Awards

Mike's Top 15 albums of 2007

  1. Helloween - Gambling With The Devil
    Ever since the disappointing Better Than Raw, Helloween has been on cruise crontrol with excellent album one after another.
  2. Grave Digger - Liberty Or Death
    What an amazing and unexpected comeback from the subar Last Supper.
  3. Cage - Hell Destroyer
    This band just keeps getting better.
  4. Bloodbound - Book Of The Dead
    Losing Urban Breed had me worried about this band, but they came back with an exclamation point.
  5. Iced Earth - Framing Armageddon - Something Wicked Part 1
    I'm sad to Ripper leave the band after this album, but I can't wait to see how Barlow delivers Part 2.
  6. Magnum - Alice And The Broken Arrow
    I never thought Magnum would top Wings of Heaven or On A Storyteller's Night, but this album gives those 2 a serious run.
  7. Saxon - The Inner Sanctum
    Rocking harder than they did when the NWOBHM was just hitting the scene.
  8. Wizard - Goochan
    This is more like it. A fine comeback after their last album, more in line with the quality of Odin.
  9. Megadeth - United Abominations
    There may never be a true return to Rust in Peace, but I really like where the band is now.
  10. Masterplan - MK II
    I know a lot of fans didn't warm up to this album, but as a huge Riot junky, I love it.
  11. W.A.S.P. - Dominator
    One of a handful of 80's mainstream US bands to still release worthwhile material.
  12. Rob Rock - Garden of Chaos
    After Impeelitteri, Rob's solo career is really taking off.
  13. Allen - Lande - The Revenge
    Not quite as good as the debut in my opinion, but still excellent!
  14. Astral Doors - New Revelation
    A must for DIO and Rainbow fans. This band is off to a very good and consistent start, with some very good albums under their belt.
  15. Gamma Ray - Land of the Free II
    This appears to have been a true hit or miss album. I really enjoyed it, although it doesn't match the first LOTF.
Mike's Top 5 surprises of 2007

  1. Steve Cone - In My Bones
    Steve is a hard working musician who plays excellent traditional heavy metal without label support.
  2. Iron Fire - Blade Of Triumph
    Revenge was good, but Iron Fire have taken up a level with this release!
  3. Ride The Sky - New Protection
    I'll take a new band that plays quality any day of the week, even if it's not original. This has been done before, but Ride the Sky give the Masterplan / Allen - Lande fan base another solid band to enjoy.
Mike's Disappointment(s) of 2007

  1. Iron Savior - Megatropolis
    Going through the motions on their latest album, it's hard not to be concerned for the future of this once superpower of a band.
  2. Night Ranger - Hole In The Sun
    A classic example of how to try to hard to sound new and relevant. There's updating your sound the right way, and then there's this.
  3. Primal Fear - New Religion
    A few great songs, and way too many fillers.
  4. TNT - The New Territory
    Tony Harnell or not, these are just bad songs.
  5. Scorpions - Humanity - Hour 1
    After Unbreakable, I'm very disappointed that the guys chose this path.
Mike's Joke(s) 2007
  1. Being that I'm originally from Maryland, USA, I have to say that the Baltimore sports scene is the biggest joke of 2007. It's sad to be an Orioles and Ravens fan right now.
  2. US Politics. For the people, by the people. Sure.
  3. Another year passes, and Chinese Democracy is still a "pending release." Yawn.
Mike's words about 2007

  1. After a very turbulent year for me on a personal level, it was great to have some great music to get me though. Some old favorites came back from lineup changes and/or subpar albums to release a gem in 2007. Looking over my list for this year, I've included some bands that I never thought would appear on one my "best of" lists 2 years ago, or even last year. I didn't hear anything bad enough to warrant a "joke" label. So, hopefully that will become a 2 year streak in 2008.

    I'd be remiss not to mention the sad passings of a couple musicians who have provided me with hours of listening enjoyment, and even a live show here and there.

    R.I.P. Brad Delp 3/9/2007
    R.I.P. Kevin Dubrow 11/19/2007

    Cheers to all our readers for a prosperous and safe 2008. Rock on!