4theloveofmetal

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This is a list of 14 often overlooked songs that are an essential part of AC/DC’s storied career. Did your song make the cut?

14. Anything Goes

From their 2008 album “Black Ice”, Anything Goes is a reminder that AC/DC still has a lot left in their tank. I can see myself driving down the highway, getting lost in this song

13. Playing With Girls

From their “Fly on the Wall” album, this catchy as hell song will make you nod your head in approval

12. Soul Stripper

The guitar riffs on Soul Stripper sound like a beautiful conversation

11. Put The Finger On You

This is a sinfully overlooked song from the “For Those About To Rock” album

10. Flick of the Switch

From the album with the same title, Flick of the Switch is a defining song from their early 80’s signature sound

9. Money Talks

From one of the greatest rock albums of the early 90’s, not only does Money Talks have a catchy guitar riff; it’s also a good story-telling song. Did you get your Angus Buck?

8. Who Made Who

I don’t know why, but every time I hear Who Made Who, it reminds me of an angry semi truck. Go figure.

7. Shoot to Thrill

From the “Back In Black” album, Shoot to Thrill not only has me banging my head, it also gives me a chance to practice my air-drumming skills

6. Whole Lotta Rosie

AC/DC summed up in one song. This song reminds me of the inflatable Rosie doll being filled up during the song, and bouncing around when the guitar solo kicks in.

5. If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)

Oddly enough, this isn’t on their live album with the same name (I learned that the hard way). I love this song, but I can’t get the scene from Empire Records out of my mind every time I hear this

4. Riff Raff

I’ve been listening to the “Powerage” album, pretty much nonstop for the last few months. Riff Raff encompasses AC/DC’s signature sound of dirty, bluesy, in-your-face guitar mastery along with legendary, raspy vocals

3. The Razors Edge

This song is so underrated; I don’t even recall hearing it on the radio when it first came out. The Razors Edge has a dark sound with a killer breakdown. This song rocks! \m/

2. Ride On

Talk about a story. I like to close my eyes and reminisce whenever I hear this. “Gonna change my evil ways; one of these days.” RIP Bon Scott, a true poet

1. Touch Too Much

My favorite AC/DC song from arguably their best album. “This damn woman’s gonna drive me insane.” A true masterpiece

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The results are in. We crowned our first 4theloveofmetal, Hall of Albums, tournament champion; And the winner is…..

Here’s the breakdown

We started with 32 albums, and whittled them down to 1. This is how the brackets looked like:

The first round had some pretty interesting match-ups. Slayer’s Undisputed Attitude destroyed any hopes for Metallica’s Garage Days Re-Revisited to advance to the second round. We also saw Cannibal Corpse’s Evisceration Plague fall to Six Feet Under’s Maximum Violence and Anthrax’s Among The Living inch out SOD’s Speak English Or Die.

Round 2 was just as exciting as the first round. Suicidal Tendencies’ debut, self titled album left Ozzy Osborne’s Ultimate Sin in the dark, while the Battle of the Sunset Strip saw Motley Crue’s Too Fast For Love beat Motorhead’s Orgasmatron, even though Lemmy had an ace in the hole.

The Quarterfinals saw the Led Zeppelin 4 album continue dominance, with a win over The Misfits’ Earth AD album, while Pantera’s Cowboys From Hell showed how unstoppable of a force they are when they beat Suicidal Tendencies, to advance to the finals.

The Championship Round is now set. We have a battle of the ages. On one side, we have one of the most iconic hard rock albums of all time with Led Zeppelin 4, and on the other side, Cowboys from Hell; A career-defining album from the monsters of metal themselves, Pantera. It’s hard to pick one album over the other, but in the end, Cowboys From Hell prevail and become the first ever inductees into the 4theloveofmetal Hall of Albums. Thank you to everyone who participated. We’ll see you next year. In the words of Max Cavalera, Stay Metal! \m/

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This is a list of 8 killer covers of metal and punk songs. Is there something I missed? Be sure to leave a comment below. \m/

Hell Awaits – Cradle Of Filth

The list starts with the greatest band of all time, Fuckin Slayer! As you probably already know, there is no shortage of songs to choose from when it comes to bands covering a Slayer song. Through their interpretation of the song “Hell Awaits”, Cradle Of Filth manages to deliver a truly evil song, with orchestral and black metal aspects. Dani Filth was born to cover this song! This track can be found on the Cradle Of Filth album titled “Dusk…and Her Embrace.”

Wasted Years – DevilDriver

Originally released in 1986 on their “Somewhere In Time” album, Wasted Years is a staple and fan favorite during any Iron Maiden concert. The last time I saw Maiden live, Bruce opens up this song by saying it was released so many years ago, but the meaning rings truer now than ever before. 23 years later, DevilDriver does a cover of Wasted Years on their album titled “Pray for Villains.” This is a classic metal song that gives me a feeling of reminiscence every time I hear it.

Inherit The Earth – Burn the Priest

Inherit The Earth is a song by crossover/thrash/hardcore/punk legends, The Accused; Pioneers of the Splatterrock movement. In 2018, Burn The Priest released a cover album to commemorate 20 years of Lamb of God, titled “Legion:XX” This is an album that pays homage to their earlier influences. Inherit The Earth was originally released on the “Martha Splatterhead’s Maddest Stories Ever Told” album

The Messengers – Skinlab

Originally on the “Quickness” album, Slinlab’s take on this song is on the “Never Give In: A Tribute to Bad Brains” album. An essential listen for both the Bad Brains and Skinlab fans alike. This is what it sounds like when punk rock turns hardcore.

Institutionalized – Body Count

Institutionalized is a song originally recorded by Suicidal Tendencies, on their debut, self titled album. Body Count does a cover of it called Institutionalized 2014 on their “Manslaughter” album. Ill say it. I don’t think Body Count get the metal recognition they deserve. There is definitely an aspect of humor in this song, but it’s so pissed off and aggressive at the same time. “Do you realize how much blood is in the human body? Do you wanna to see it, mutherfucker!?”

Ddamm – Slayer

Ddamm (Drunk Drivers Against Mad Mothers) is a song performed by Slayer on their Undisputed Attitude album. It also happens to be a song that Jeff Hanneman wrote for his side project punk influenced band Pap Smear. It was on the “Fear and Loathing” demo in 1986. Slayer are the true metal gods, but this proves that they can be punk heavyweights too.

Orgasmatron – Sepultura

This is one of my favorite Motorhead songs and it also has to be one of my favorite Supultura songs, period. I always think this would be the perfect song to play when marching troops into battle during Armageddon.

Frayed Ends of Sanity – Six Feet Under

This is one I just happened to stumble across while searching for ideas. This is on the Graveyard Classics III album. It’s a killer song and it’s metal as fuck! \m/ A perfect mix of barking and singing; There’s even a signature Chris Barnes pig squeal at the end. They do Metallica justice on this one.

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Chaos & Carnage 2019, featuring Whitechapel, Dying Fetus and Revocation, at the Oriental Theater in Denver. I would like to thank the Whitechapel camp for conducting the meet and greet as well as issuing me a photo pass. This is the first time I’ve been given one, and it was an amazing experience. Thanks also to the security and personnel from the Oriental Theater for being so helpful. You guys are awesome!

Whitechapel

Dying Fetus

Revocation

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The older I get, the more I want to stay at home and not deal with outside influences (driving, parking, people, etc.) To see a good club show, that means I have to drive a solid hour plus, each way. There are select bands that I plan to see weeks, or even months in advance. But what about the bands I know only by name and genre, but aren’t familiar with any of their music? Are these shows even worth the time, money and hassle? The answer is “most of the time.”

Ever since I started the brand 4theloveofmetal, (webpage, Instagram and Facebook public group), I’ve forced myself to go to more shows than previous. The only way to come up with content is to get out of the house and experience different shows that I probably wouldn’t have gone to otherwise. These are a few of the gems that I’ve seen over the last year or so, even though I don’t know much, or any of their music:

Devastation on the Nation Tour, featuring Dark Funeral & Belphegor:

I like black metal and extreme metal in limited amounts. This was the perfect dose for me that evening. Whether I like a band or not has a lot to do with their vocal style. Belphegor has a slow growl with the right amount of scream. Their music is death and chunky, really easy to get into during a live set. Dark Funeral was faster with more extreme vocals. They’ve been around since the 90’s, and they’ve got their shit together. They’re legends of their craft and it shows. From their first song, you can tell they’re worthy of headlining. The entire show was a brutal assault on the senses. Devastation on the Nation 2020 is coming up shortly. I may have to check that one out.

  • Belphegor
  • Belphegor
  • Dark Funeral
  • Dark Funeral

Goatwhore, Ringworm and Locistellar

Goatwhore was a pleasant surprise, especially for a Tuesday night (For some reason, a lot of good shows happen in Seattle on a Tuesday. The main reason I went to this show is because they played the iconic Crocodile Cafe. It’s a pretty small place, but they packed it pretty well. Goatwhore is a band I haven’t seen before because they usually play earlier on the bill. It was nice to see them headline this one. It was well worth the wait. I would call their style death metal with death/black metal vocals. If you ever get the chance to see these guys, you won’t be disappointed. In direct support was Ringworm and opening the show was Locistellar. They are a supergroup of sorts and it was cool that this was their first live show they played together.

  • Goatwhore
  • Goatwhore
  • Ringworm
  • Locistellar

Narcotic Wasteland:

I didn’t know anything about Narcotic Wasteland at the time. It was my birthday and it was the only thing going on that night. I watched a couple of their videos ahead of time, so I pretty much knew what to expect. Narcotic Wasteland was founded by Dallas Toler-Wade, who until recently, was a longtime guitarist/vocalist of the band Nile. I thought they played a solid set. The show was located at the Funhouse, which is the bar attached to El Corazón. There wasn’t more than a dozen people in the crowd that night, but I had a blast. I brought my Nikon camera inside with me and got some good practice taking pictures with a mostly unobstructed stage. I don’t usually drink at shows, but my wife was nice enough to go there with me and drive my drunk ass home afterwards.

Kataklysm, Exhorder & Krisiun

I heard a song or 2 on the radio from Kataklysm. I know they have their own brands of hot sauce, but I couldn’t tell you much about their music. I mostly went there to see Exhorder, but all of the bands playing that night were killer. I saw Exhorder play a year earlier at California Death Fest IV, and I liked what I saw. They played a high energy set of thrash and groove. It was really easy for the crowd to get into them. Coming up around the same time as Pantera, these are one of the bands that should have been a lot bigger than they are. I had a chance to speak with the singer Kyle Thomas after their set. He seemed like a really cool guy. They have a fairly new release called Mourn the Southern Sky. I need to start listening to them more before they come back to my neck of the woods.

  • Kataklysm
  • Krisiun
  • Exhorder

I know it’s easy to stay at home and be comfortable, (which I usually do), but it’s nice to go out every once in awhile and treat yourself. It always puts a smile on my face whenever I bring home a poster, patch, or even a t-shirt. I might even get lucky and get a guitar pick or a set list. It doesn’t matter if you’re familiar with the songs as long as you’re supporting live music and enjoying yourself in the process.

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Are you sure you know the correct title to all your favorite songs? You may have convinced yourself, only to find out later that you were wrong. If that’s you, you’re not alone. This is a list of songs people get the title wrong, some more often than others. If you have others you would like to add, please feel free to leave a comment below. \m/

7. Evanescence – Bring Me To Life: When this song was first released, people would often get the title confused with “Wake Me Up Inside”

6. Nine Inch Nails – Closer: To this day, people still call it “I Wanna Fuck You Like An Animal”

5. Quiet Riot – Metal Health: I remember when this song first came out; Everybody called this song “Bang Your Head.” If you’re getting technical though, (which I am), the full title of the song is Metal Health (Bang Your Head)

4. The Offspring – Come Out And Play: People get the title of this song confused with “Keep ‘Em Separated”. On some versions, the full title of the song is Come Out And Play (Keep ‘Em Separated)

3. Metallica – Welcome Home (Sanitarium): Any Metallica fan worth his or her salt knows the correct title of this song. There still are people though, who think it’s just called “Sanitarium.” I’m guessing it’s from the Enter Sandman and later crowd.

2. Slayer – Disciple: No, it’s not called “God Hates Us All”

1. The Who – Baba O’ Riley: The winner hands down. If you don’t know what song I’m talking about, it’s the one often referred to as “Teenage Wasteland”

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I felt this would be a fitting first blog for me to post. I know that it’s easy to become complacent and set in your ways the older you get. I’m 45 years old, so I’m starting to figure that out in a hurry.

I can always remember music associated with my life. Some of my earliest memories was playing records I had. Disco Mickey Mouse, the soundtrack to Grease and Scooby Doo are the titles that come to mind now. When my family first got cable, I remember staying up all night in the tv room with my sister, watching MTV when it was the big new thing. I also liked making mixed tapes. I would sit next to the radio and wait for that perfect moment to push record.

I was probably in my early teens when I first recall hearing a particular rock song on the radio. For whatever reason, it clicked with me. It was Tom Sawyer by Rush. I would search for it on the radio, and that’s probably when I switched from pop to rock radio. That’s about the time I started listening to the hair metal bands of the time like Whitesnake, Motley Crue and GnR. My musical tastes would eventually grow heavier over the years. I probably first got into metal with Metallica and Anthrax. It took a little longer with Slayer, but when I first saw them on the South of Heaven tour back in ’88, it was on from there.

I was around 19 or 20 when I experienced a life changing event. My friend Peach introduced me to Pantera – Vulgar Display of Power. It was the finger of god pointing down from the heavens. That album was definitely a game changer. The first song Mouth of War played. My eyes got really big. I looked at my friend in amazement. She looked back at me and said “I know”. The next song came on and I’m like, alright, this is good. The next song played and my eyes got even bigger. Now we’re at Fucking Hostile. That’s when it blew my mind. I was hooked.

Around the same time, grunge started to become the next big thing, even though us locals hated that word. Having grown up in the Seattle area (Tacoma), it was a huge influence on my early 20’s. This is the time my wings started to sprout, and I moved away from the parental nest. I was working at Tower Records at the time. I was surrounded by music, and I had friends that shared the same passion for music that I have. My musical tastes were becoming much more diverse during that time.

I like the crossover music, with bands like The Accused and D.R.I., where thrash and punk unite beautifully. I’ve always appreciated classic rock legends such as Jimi, Beatles, Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. These musicians form the foundation for rock and metal we listen to today. Bands such as the Misfits and Bad Brains provide that punk edge and a different attitude that I find appealing. I’m also a big fan of 90’s rap and hip-hop. Ice Cube, Ice T, Cypress Hill, Tupac. These artists provide the stories and beats that I find fascinating. It was always fun discovering new music. Whether it’s hearing Iggy Pop on the Trainspotting soundtrack or driving around listening to the Stones. I would hear something I like and seek out similar artists to listen to in that genre.

Fast forward a bunch of years. I still go to concerts and I still love music, but I find myself becoming more set in my ways. I still venture out on a new artist once in a while, but it’s easier for me to listen to the wealth of music I’ve accumulated through the years. It seems like everything new is recycled garbage of the past. Most of the music today I find to be boring and unoriginal. I keep getting older, but I’m not getting that kick in the ass from music that I have in the past.

So much for all the build-up. I now go back to the original question, “Why should I give a shit about listening to new music?” It’s a simple answer; The joy I get for listening to something good for the first time. When I connect with that certain beat, riff, or vocal, my eyes widen and my ears perk up. It’s like a Dorito, I need more. Granted, I’ll probably never have another Pantera moment. Youth may be the perfect storm for my positive music connections until now, but it’s still possible to have that one moment that keeps the flame alive. Whether it’s hearing an old band for the first time like Terrorizer, a classic like AC/DC – Powerage, that I just bought on vinyl, or a newer, torch carrier like Power Trip, it’s still possible to experience joy from listening to something new.