Classic Rock Magazine's Best Albums of 2018

One of the best damn rock bands this side of Hades is back, led as always by inimitable vocalist Neil Fallon, whose burly howl only gets better with age. *Book of Bad Decisions*, their 12th album, picks right back up where their 2015’s *Psychic Warfare* left off, peddling a similar strain of weaponized funk that’s been winning over rock-hardened hearts since 1991. Decades in, Clutch’s jammy, wide-open blend of jubilant blues, ’90s alt grooves, and Southern rock swagger is still its own kind of monster. “Are you cool? Well I’m cool. Is everybody cool? Well let’s get hot!” Fallon warbles on the barn-burning “How to Shake Hands” before segueing into the second-line stomp of “In Walks Barbarella,” playing with psychedelic shimmers on “Emily Dickinson,” and taking it down home on “Hot Bottom Feeder,” a crab-cake recipe—and homage to their Maryland roots—spun into song.

While their 2014 debut album garnered them comparisons to The Darkness, there’s little that’s tongue-in-cheek about English hard-rock throwbacks The Struts. Instead, they’re out to sincerely revive the genre’s most headbanging and hip-thrusting moments. On their second album, the band taps into the supercharged swagger of The Rolling Stones circa “Brown Sugar” (\"Primadonna Like Me”), revels in the raunchy excesses of ’70s glam (“I Do It So Well”), and teams up with pop singer Kesha for a fierce duet (“Body Talks”). Pumping even its Britpop-like power ballads with adrenaline (“Somebody New”), *YOUNG & DANGEROUS* is aimed at anyone who thinks modern rock has gotten a little too genteel.

Living the Dream is the third studio album to feature Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators. It was released on September 21, 2018 by own record label entitled Snakepit Records. The album was produced by Michael Baskette, who also produced the band's previous record World on Fire and also produced many of Kennedy's albums such as Year of the Tiger. The record features 12 songs.

Alice In Chains, the 10-time GRAMMY®-nominated grunge icons, return with a sixth album of bluesy psychedelia and crunchy hard rock. Group founder Jerry Cantrell and co-lead singer William DuVall’s vocal melodies set the band apart, whether yearning over the throbbing metal of “Red Giant” or exploring their insecurities on the grunge throwback opener “The One You Know”. Decades after their ‘90s peak, Alice In Chains continue to mine a sound they pioneered without sacrificing the freshness and originality that makes their work distinct.

Stone Temple Pilots initially angered the grunge elite for finding ways to turn the angst into surefire radio hits. The group’s pop appeal while maintaining its harder edges made them that rarest of groups in the ‘90s: one that embraced the rock stardom that other bands professed to hate. Reunited after years of estrangement, STP sound like the perfect hard rock unit. Singer Scott Weiland can punch forth like the rock frontman he so naturally is and the DeLeo brothers provide him with his strongest backing in years. Whether it’s the brash attack of “Between the Lines” or the retro-boogie of “Huckleberry Crumble” and “Hazy Daze,” STP are practically a course in classic-rock history. “Dare If You Dare” has power-ballad scripted onto its pounding sorrow. “Bagman” sounds like a power-pop band turning the amps way up. “Fast As I Can” rocks out like Bad Company and Aerosmith finding their way down the L.A. Freeway. The deluxe edition includes several bonus cuts, including live versions of tracks from the new album and their classic hit “Vasoline.”

If you missed Led Zeppelin the first time around and wondered what all the fuss was about, well, you’re in luck: A band of (mostly) brothers from Frankenmuth, Michigan, is here to carry the torch for blues-based howling, loud guitars, and tight pants as mass entertainment. “Rock ’n’ roll is a lost ideology,” bassist Sam Kiszka tells Apple Music in the group\'s *Up Next* interview. “It turned into a niche thing. You’ve got to hit the roots again.” That’s exactly what the band does on their debut album, which feels of another time. Swirling together the techniques and textures of rock and blues greats—The Allman Brothers Band, Cream, B.B. King, Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix, and most recognizably Zep, among others—*Anthem of the Peaceful Army* delivers monstrous riffs (“When the Curtain Falls”), jangly strummers (“The New Day”), and earnest acoustic ballads (“Anthem”). The end result is a nostalgia rush for those who know the references and a thrilling point of entry for those who may not. It helps that frontman Josh Kiszka, born with an engine of a tenor, has perfectly mastered Robert Plant’s shrill yelps and yowls (\"Watching Over”) and rock ’n’ roll attitude—which covers everything from wardrobe and stage presence to the album as a stand-alone experience in the streaming era. “We’d like people to listen to this all the way through,” Kiszka says. “And f\*\*king loud.”

As one of the most reliably awesome outfits in heavy-metal history, English sword masters Saxon mark 40 years of riffing and rolling with *Thunderbolt*. On their 22nd album (!), they pay tribute to their fallen touring partners Motörhead with the rip-roaring \"They Played Rock and Roll,\" add some surprising guest death-metal growls courtesy of Amon Amarth\'s Johan Hegg on \"Predator,\" and continue their proud tradition of supercharged songs about transport with the anthemic \"The Secret of Flight\" and the slamming \"Speed Merchants.\"

MONSTER MAGNET put the pedal to the metal with “MINDFUCKER", their tenth record. In terms of power driven Stoner Rock these gentlemen from New Jersey belong to the measure of all things. But “MINDFUCKER" is different, a step forward and a step back at the same time to the almighty roots of beat music. Dave manipulates his guitar with rich virility and the drive of his shifty soul. Wyndorf seeks and finds: Timeless songs, kindled by the unpretentious Proto-punk era. “MINDFUCKER” pumps and scratches at every turn! Dave fires off piercing calls over neckbreaking guitar work and whirlwinds of psychedelic solos. All things are in constant motion with a sound of groovy straightforwardness, always heading for the essence of "the" song. "Why you gonna fuck with my head?", screams Wyndorf their credo in the title track. Up tempo, savage in both sound and spirit, MINDFUCKER is the real deal! © NAPALM RECORDS

Whenever Myles Kennedy raises that unique and bluesy voice of his, he gives us a glimpse at his soul. Whenever he plays guitar, his signature sound, showcasing influences such as Jimmy Page and John Sykes, melt into a timeless and nuanced amalgamut. Next to the landmark releases Myles created with Slash and Alter Bridge, the exceptional singer has quietly busied himself with working on his solo debut. A piece his gigantic fan base has demanded loudly for years and years is now made flesh in form of Year Of The Tiger - an album that also gives Myles Kennedy the opportunity to process his father`s death and is therefore his most personal and emotionally challenging record yet. Tracks like ‘Love Can Only Heal‘ will suck the breath out of your lungs with their raw intensity, wrapping you in soaring guitar cascades. ‘Blind Faith‘ thrives on melancholic Americana, and frenzied uptempo blues marks ‘Devil On The Wall‘. Anthemic spirit, fragile melodies and gritty acoustic guitars don`t turn Year Of The Tiger into a sad goodbye, but into a celebration of survival and life in all its facets. © NAPALM RECORDS

*Bad Witch* was first envisioned as the final installment in an EP trilogy, following 2016’s *Not the Actual Events* and 2017’s *Add Violence*. But, wary of falling into patterns of musical predictability, Trent Reznor scrapped the concept, and instead released the project as NIN’s ninth, and shortest, full album. It feels like pure experimentation—a direct rebuttal to that sameness he was worried about. It alternates between anxious beats, jarring vocals (“Ahead of Ourselves”), and intriguing ambience (“I’m Not from This World”), clearly influenced by Reznor’s masterful score compositions for films including *The Social Network* and *Gone Girl*.

Maynard James Keenan’s rock supergroup has seriously grown up in the 14 years since their last album. The Tool frontman’s band is still angry—they’ve just found new, different ways to express it. The gargantuan riffs of APC’s past now make room for strings, piano, and post-rock builds. *Eat the Elephant* is thoughtful and brooding, but still heavy as ever (tracks like “TalkTalk” would fit right in on *Thirteenth Step*). Harps and horns make slow-burning “The Contrarian” frighteningly ominous, and “So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish” sounds so uplifting it’s unsettling—but its lyrics reveal a sardonic ode to modern life, while lamenting the loss of David Bowie and other legends.

The new digital version of Full Nelson now includes two previously unheard tracks, "Death or Glory" and "Scorpion"! Physical versions are still the original product with "Tokyo" and "Ratio" while stock remains.

Even after the ups and downs of a decades-long solo career, plus his often tumultuous run as cofounding guitarist of Kiss, Ace Frehley still sounds like he’s having a blast. Whether he’s paying tribute to his childhood idols (“Pursuit of Rock and Roll”) or bragging about still tearing it up on tour (“Rockin’ With the Boys”), *Spaceman* has the same gleeful strut as his hard-grooving ’70s hits, mixing up heavy metal flash and power pop hooks. And even on the handful of wistful tunes (“I Wanna Go Back”), he refuses to let the party stop, flinging out bluesy riffs and wicked solos. Sure to leave fans grinning, *Spaceman* proves that rocking all night is a good way to stay young.

Listing their priorities on breezy road-trip jam “Weed, Whiskey and Willie,” the Nashville-based brothers make it clear they have few troubles. “Don’t take my smoke, my jug of brown liquor or my country music,” they plead, casually. It’s a vibe that surrounds each hazy track on a positively horizontal second album. You’ll hum in time to the billowing choruses of “Shoot Me Straight,” toe-tap to twin guitars on “Tequila Again,” and sway gently to “A Little Bit Trouble.”

In the wake of Lemmy Kilmister\'s passing, longtime Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell has found musical solace with his three sons and vocalist Neil Starr in Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons. Their full-length debut is a cornucopia of melodic hard-rock jams (\"Ringleader,\" \"Freak Show,\" \"Get On Your Knees\"), while Campbell\'s slash-and-burn Motörhead style cuts through on \"Gypsy Kiss\" and \"Dropping the Needle.\" Before it\'s over, he lends some deep country twang to the harmonica-driven \"Dark Days\" and bluesy ballad \"Into the Dark.\"