THE FIRST ANNUAL ANARCHY MUSIC AWARDS:
THE BEST OF 2006 PART 2!!!
Plus, our Forum members can win a REALLY badass prize package!!
Also, everyone can still enter to win a signed cd from our pick for Best New Band!
Welcome to the 2006 Anarchy Music awards! Everyone involved with this website in 2006 put our heads together and came up with a rough list of winners, then let our loyal readers cast their ballots. We mixed it all together and came up with the undisputed choices for all the best in rock music! I would like to remind you that these are all just the opinions of the staff at Anarchy Music and our readers. If you disagree with the results, then we welcome you to vote next year and make your voice heard.
BIGGEST MUSICAL MOMENT
Black Sabbath reunites with Dio
Despite what some will have you to believe, Sabbath did not break up when Ozzy was kicked out of the band. In fact, they recruited Ronnie James Dio and went on to record some of their best material ever. Hell, even after Ronnie left to form Dio they continued on. Over all these years the bands least productive time peiod was after they reunited with Ozzy. Part of that deal was that they signed over the rights to the Black Sabbath name. So, while Ozzy records another solo album, the band is sitting around doing nothing. Finally, they got sick of waiting and have reunited with Dio! Calling themselves Heaven And Hell they are touring throughout 2007, bringing you the Sabbath classics that you otherwise might never hear again.
RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR
DRT Entertainment
DRT does something that few labels do, they believe in their artists and the fans who love them. While most labels will watch every step their bands make, telling them what to create and how to create it, DRT knows that what makes each band special is their own creativity. Their roster reads like a who’s who of bands that had been stifled on other labels: Clutch, Powerman 5000, Soil, 36 Crazyfists…the list goes on. Add to that bands like Lynam, the Rasmus and Artemis Pyledriver; bands that other labels would have no idea how to promote. Then there’s Gwar, who recorded their heaviest album ever, and then simply tacked on a throw-away cover of Alice Cooper’s classic “School’s Out”. The next thing you know that song is all over MTV and radio and Gwar is having their most successful year ever. GWAR! DRT knows the marketplace and trusts the fans to support their favorite bands. So, do yourself a favor and check out their roster. When you find a band you really like, SUPPORT THAT BAND!
GUITARIST OF THE YEAR
Sam Totman and Herman Li (Dragonforce)
This one really doesn’t need any explanation. If you’ve heard Dragonforce then you already know that these two trade off on some of the most blazing solos ever recorded. In an era of music where talent is in short supply and the public doesn’t seem to care, Dragonforce actually had a hit album with Inhuman Rampage! I’ll be the first to admit, that without the success of Avenged Sevenfold, they probably would have been ignored by the media. A7X proved that the public will buy a power metal album if promoted correctly, the problem being that A7X just isn’t a very good power metal band. Sure Synyster Gates is a shredder, but vocalist M Shadows is better suited to more of a hard rock style. Dragonforce is pure power metal, and they actually managed to chart in the US! If you don’t agree with this choice, just watch the video for the song “Through The Fire And The Flames”...
BASSIST OF THE YEAR
Juan Alderete De La Pena (The Mars Volta)
Lets forget for a second that Juan (then called John Alderete) was in the ‘80’s metal bands Racer X and The Scream. In fact, lets NOT forget that! He was awesome with those bands! He then won the gig to be The Mars Volta’s bassist after the band borrowed Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers for their debut. That’s right, he followed Flea. Many of you may be thinking that I should just give this award to Flea, who had yet another great year in 2006, but every magazine and media outlet on earth names Flea bassist of the year. Of course, the biggest reason why they do that is because he’s the only bassist they know the name of. The mars Volta is not an easy band to play for. On their cds the band members aren’t allowed to even hear what the other members are recording and are instead forced to create and carry a song on their own to a metronome, with the individual parts later mixed together. In a live setting the band goes off on frequent experimental jam sessions that would leave most musicians completely baffled. Due to the brilliance of bandleaders Omar A Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the other members are generally left as side-notes, but not here! Alderete is a badass! For the record, so is Flea…but you already knew that.
DRUMMER OF THE YEAR
Chris Pennie (Dillinger Escape Plan, Coheed And Cambria)
In order to be in Dillinger Escape Plan you have got to be absolutely SICK at your instrument. Those guys play rings around just about any band you’ve ever heard. As a member of DEP Chris was constantly lauded for being the incredible drummer that he is. However, that band has never connected with the mainstream of America. In 2006, in the middle of a tour, Coheed And Cambria split in two. In my opinion there is not a better band on earth than Coheed. They had the skills of a great prog rock band, while still writing catchy songs that mainstream rock fans could sing along to. As a huge Coheed fan I was very apprehensive about the fact that the band needed a new drummer and bassist. The jury is still out for me as far as bass goes, but I am beyond confident that Chris can fill this void in the band and help the band to become even better than they already were. You want a reason why he’s drummer of the year? He’s in two of the best bands on earth, there’s your answer.
VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Jeff Scott Soto (Journey)
Who? Yeah, that’s right. Jeff Scott Soto started his career decades ago as the original singer of Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force (who?) and later with his own hard rock band, Eyes (who?). In the years since he has recorded a few solo albums and sung for several different bands and on a bunch of tribute cds. He is known in the industry as one of the finest singers in the business, but has remained a virtual unknown to the average music fan. Then, a few days into Journey’s major co-headlining tour with Def Leppard their singer Steve Augeri developed vocal problems that prevented him from singing on the tour. Problems severe enough to require surgery. With a concert the next night Journey was in a tough situation…but they called Jeff and he immediately flew to the US and without any rehearsals with the band, with LITERALLY no time at all for practice, he joined them onstage and OWNED the Journey set list. Critics and fans raved. No matter what you may think of journey, their songs are very tough to sing, but Jeff did a spectacular job. What could have been a huge disaster and a massive financial loss for both bands ended up being an incredible success. By the end of 2006 he was named the permanent lead vocalist for Journey and will continue with the band on their next tour, and hopefully on some new music. Who’s Jeff Scott Soto? He’s the best singer of 2006!
KEYBOARDIST OF THE YEAR
Bradley Bell (Chiodos)
Hey, didn’t we interview this guy last year? Yes, we did…and I can admit that we are playing favorites with this choice. But this award is for Keyboardist of the year, not necessarily the most talented keyboardist. Even if it was though, Brad's got skills. His keyboard work is haunting and dramatic, and is absolutely essential to his band. Whether he is adding layers of texture underneath the main riffs, or featured as the lead instrument in one of the bands instrumentals, he is very clearly the reason why Chiodos stands above the other bands in their genre. Chiodos is a talented band emo/hardcore band, but with him in the mix they can explore prog and classical territory, which makes for a far more interesting experience than yet another bland emo cd. His vocals are also vital to the band. His harmonies, coupled with lead vocalist Craig owens more emo suited stye, give them an edge over similar bands that lack his talent and diversity. Yeah, we’re playing favorites, but we’re happy with the choice.
SONG OF THE YEAR
Lips Of An Angel (Hinder)
I really couldn’t decide what song to give this award to. The votes from readers were too spread out to declare a winner, and we couldn’t decide either. Then I had a conversation with my friend Brent, who’s band Shinedown toured with Hinder last year. He explained to me that this song connected with the audience in a way that few bands get to experience. It struck a chord in people and they fell in love with it. It’s a simple concept really but not many bands do it. Write a song that will appeal to your target audience (and judging from the title that audience was young women) and give them an emotion that everyone can identify with (in this case, missing an ex). Also, it’s worth pointing out that this is essentially an ‘80’s style arena rock power ballad, and there hasn't exactly been a lot of those on the charts lately. This song was the biggest reason why Hinder’s cd Extreme Behavior was on top of the charts before most of the popular rock bands released their cds, and is still riding high long after those albums ran their course. Even now it’s one of the highest ranked rock albums on the charts. You can’t beat that.
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Fifteen (Buckcherry)
Buckcherry are a washed-up bunch of has-beens. When they reunited the entire industry either laughed or ignored them. They couldn’t even get a major label deal in the US so the album was released in Japan months before it came out on an independent label here. By then everyone who did want it had already bought the import. The press ignored them and there was no real money to promote the cd. That’s it, the album tanked…except that it didn’t. their single “Crazy Bitch” became a hit, and radio stations were forced to play it. Don’t get me wrong, the press still acted like they didn’t exist, even as the band finally signed a major label deal. While the band couldn’t even get a brief mention in magazines they were outselling the so-called trendy bands that made the cover every month! The album went Gold and is well on its way to Platinum, based solely on the fact that people didn’t care about what they were being told to buy and instead bought what they wanted. The success of this album is not just a victory for Buckcherry, it’s a victory for the people who bought it.
MOST DISAPPOINTING ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Rebel Meets Rebel
Okay, it’s Pantera, one of the greatest metal bands of all time, along with legendary country music bad boy David Allen Coe. There was NO WAY that this wasn’t going to be completely awesome. Unfortunately, this isn’t even close to awesome. In fact, it kind of sucks. You know what though, I’d rather not focus on this last chapter of Dimebag Darrell’s career and instead focus on what made him so great to begin with.
DIMEBAG DARRELL PRIZE PACKAGE
This contest is open ONLY to those of you in our Forum so if you haven’t registered, now is a great time. You’ll see the contest thread in the music section
Here’s the prize
1. Pantera’s debut album Cowboys From Hell
2. A backstage laminate from the Vulgar Display Of Power tour
3. A signed promo card from Damageplan
Someone will be randomly selected to win that awesome prize!
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BEST NEW BAND
Bullets And Octane
ATTENTION RCA RECORDS: YOU ARE SITTING ON A GOLDMINE. It isn't very often that a band will come around that sounds different and new, yet reminds you of the great music from years past. Lets see if we can make a list...Guns N Roses, Nirvana, Bullets And Octane. What's wrong with that list? GNR and Nirvana went on to sell tens of millions of cds, while Bullets And Octane are still an opening act. It just isn't right. Their album, In The Mouth Of The Young, though sounding nothing like either band I mentioned, has captured that punky (without being punk) swagger and confidence that GNR and Nirvana did so well. Again, like the other two, their music kind of fits in with todays current crop of popular bands, but at the same time is a harbinger of a changing tide in the industry. For fans of My Chemical Romance, they are similiar enough to appeal to you (and they toured with Avenged Sevenfold), and those who are tired of current trends will love the bands slight throwback to 80's glam metal. So, will they be able to sneak attack the industry and completely revolutionize the music landscape like GNR and Nirvana did?. That will depend on RCA getting the word out about the album. So far they simply aren't, and there's no excuse for it. This album should have gone platinum by now, and 2007 should be the year of Bullets And Octane. People, get in on the ground floor. Don't FOLLOW trends, CREATE ONE! Support Bullets And Octane!
Win a signed copy of In The Mouth Of The Young by Bullets And Octane
I'm putting my money on the line here. I bought this cd and the band signed it for me at a concert in 2006. Now I'm giving it away because I want to buy the cd again! Just go to their Myspace page and listen to their songs, then email me at anarchy@anarchymusic.net or at my Myspace page and tell me which song is your favorite. I'll randomly choose one of you who enter to recieve this cd!
WORST NEW BAND
Panic! At The Disco
Think the band looks silly in that picture? Their music is even more ridiculous. They sound exactly like Fall Out Boy, but nowhere near as good...and I hate Fall Out Boy! They are probably no worse than a million other bands that came out this year, but they are hugely successful, which is simply mind-boggling. I personally haven't heard enough from these guys to make a solid judgement call, but the votes from our readers was so one-sided that we opted to side with their judgement.
BEST TOUR PACKAGE
Gigantour: Megadeth, Lamb Of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Overkill, Into Eternity, Sanctity, The Smash-up
Megadeth leader Dave Mustaine is a genius, but what he did should have been obvious to anyone in the music business. Take TALENTED bands and put them on tour to rip peoples faces off! Most tour packages simply throw together dozens of bands that they think will make them cool, and have them all play 15 minute sets so that people who aren't really fans can throw up in the bathroom and still claim that they saw a band they've never heard a note from. His Gigantour brought us a scaled back line-up that, frankly, destroyed the competition. Lamb Of God is the biggest and one of the best of the current crop of New Wave Of American Heavy Metal bands, and they hold the distinction of also being a part of the second best tour of the year, Unholy Alliance (with Slayer, In Flames, Children Of Bodom, and Thine Eyes Bleed). What really sets this tour apart though, aside from the fact that all of the bands were picked by Mustaine due to their talent, not their sales potential, is Overkill. Ozzfest takes a yearly shit all over the history of heavy metal, ignoring the bands that laid the foundation for todays bands. Gigantour gave us the best of the oldschool, with the best of today, and stands tall as the best tour of 2006.
THE "OZZFEST" WORST TOUR OF THE YEAR AWARD
Ozzfest
I think that after this year I am going to disqualify Ozzfest from winning this "award" ever again. Otherwise it would win every single year. The main reason why its the worst tour of the year is because Sharon Osbourne is a cunt who doesn't give a damn about music. She is only driven by money. The screw-job given to Iron Maiden in 2005, who are better than Ozzy ever was, was just the icing on the cake. No wait...the icing was the fact that Black Sabbath is touring with former vocalist Ronnie James Dio this year but Sharon isn't allowing them to call themselves Black Sabbath. Instead they are called Heaven And Hell (one of the Dio-era Sabbath cds). What does any of that have to do with the music? Nothing, but as I said, Ozzfest isn't about music. It's about filling an arena with jocks who don't even like metal but want to spend a day pushing people around. System Of A Down was your headliner??? If they are a thrash metal headlining band then I'm Johnny Cash (hint: I am not Johnny Cash). The second stage has some cool new bands, but is a clusterfuck of 20 minute sets. Again, because the actual music is not as important as being able to tell your friends that you were in the parking lot while The Red Chord played. Don''t get me wrong, there were some highlights this year. If you blinked you may have missed the incredible display put on by Dragonforce. I'm also a fan of Lacuna Coil, Avenged Sevenfold and a few other bands that played this years festival. But AGAIN, the love of music plays no part in Ozzfest. Sharon Osbourne wants your money, and the money of the bands that are paying to play the festival. And again, she made out like a bandit.
BEST LIVE BAND
Early Man
This one was tough, because a lot of great bands toured in 2006. The Bellrays, Clutch, Gwar, Shinedown and many others kicked ass in every building they played. However, none were able to stir up the emotions that Early Man did. Maybe I'm just a sucker for old-school style metal, but GOD DID THEY RULE MY EXISTENCE! Early Man is a young band, with only one album to their name, and in fact were the opening act at the show that I saw them perform. I wasn't even very familiar with their music when I went to the show. But when they hit the stage I knew exactly what it must have been like to have been in a garage listening to the first Metallica performances. It was just pure Metal, played the way it should be played, by guys who live and breathe this stuff. I think I said this in my review at the time, but I was transported back to when I was 13 years old, and it was if I was discovering metal for the first time all over again. It was awe-inspiring, no lie. If Early Man plays your town...GO...and thank me later.
WORST LIVE BAND
Revelation Theory
This. Band. Is. Pure. Shit. Their half-assed cover of the Temple Of The Dog classic "Hunger Strike" was outright insulting, causing me to turn my back to the stage for the rest of their set. That's the only time I have ever done that (from the front row, no less).
BAND MOST DESERVING OF FAN SUPPORT
Hawthorne Heights
A Platinum debut album, sold out tours, magazine covers, millions of screaming fans...Hawthorne Heights had it all. Then they decided that their label was marketing their follow-up release in a manner that was hurtful to the industry as a whole so they quit. That's it...in order to stand up for what they felt was right they sacrificed hundreds of thousands of record sales. Instead they went on tour as the biggest unsigned band in the country and started work on a new album, confident that their fans would be there for them when the dust settled. Whether you like Hawthorne Heights or not, you have to admit that putting your own career on the line because your label was telling fans to sabotage the sales of Ne-Yo's cd and using strong-arm tactics so that radio stations wouldn't play the latest song by From First To Last was a stand-up move. Hawthorne Heights are not in this business to take your money. They are people, and they care about their fans,other bands and the industry as a whole. For that reason they deserve the support of every single one of us.
Honorable Mention: Aiden, King's X
BAND LEAST DESERVING OF FAN SUPPORT
AFI
I like AFI, I really do. I know many of the people reading this like them as well. Unfortunately, when I saw AFI in concert in 2006, they did not appear to return that affection. In the middle of the day during the bands down time, there were four fans waiting for autographs. When a member of AFI walked to the tour bus a fan raised a camera and Mr. AFI his arms up over his face and stated "NO PICTURES". Dont' get me wrong...he did sign one autograph out of four...choosing the stripper-type girl with the short skirt and an even shorter morality code. The rest were left hanging. Even during the bands concert that night they seemed to lack faith in their fans. The short set was all but devoid of any songs from their latest release, which at the time was riding high on the Billboard charts. As a fan, the only way to take this is that the band didn't trust their fans to know their new material. hey, if the band itself doesn't believe in the material then who am I to believe in it? If our opinions stood alone then I would reconsider, but I have heard countless stories from fans about similiar treatment from the band, and when it was all weighed out, AFI came up the big losers.
Dishonorable mention: Breaking Benjamin, Fuck you. Go rip off the Deftones some more, you hacks.
BEST FAN CLUB/STREET TEAM
Queensryche
Are there any more die-hard, loyal fans than Queensryche's? I think not. The band was declared completely irrelevant by the media years ago when intelligent, well played music went out of style. The band did not stop though, and in 2006 released their most successful album in a decade, Operation: Mindcrime 2. Thier debut on the charts was several spots higher than Lacuna Coil, who debuted the same week and had the strength of Ozzfest and every magazine cover on earth behind them. That isn't a slap against Lacuna Coil at all. They are a kickass band and wonderful people. Instead, it is a testament to the loyalty of Queensryches fans. The Operation: Mindcrime 2 tour was sold out all over the country and their fanbase mobilized to promote the album. Cheers to all of you who support this band, Your hard work and dedication have given them a career that most bands could only dream of.
WORST FAN CLUB/STREET TEAM
HIM
I love HIM, not only as a band, but as people. I consider them to be friends of mine, and they are a HUGE reason why I am involved in the music industry at all. They are my favorite band and I can't express how grateful I am for their friendship and assistance. That said, their street team is a mess. It is in no way the fault of the band, but someone should step in and completely restructure how their street team is run. First of all, the leadership: Meet and greet passes are meant to be distributed to those who do the best job with promotion. However, often those who do an amazing job are passed over while the friends of those in charge are given the passes time after time. In fact, many people who do a great job with promotion are then never sent the materials to enter future contests. I have heard stories like that more times than I can remember. Now, regarding the fans themselves: You would not believe how many members of the HIM street team, who's job is the promote the band, actually DO NOT want the band to be more successful. They prefer the days when HIM was their little secret, and despise the new fans that have come on board since the release of Dark Light. I cant tell you how many street team members, or even the people in the egotistical 9th Circle Street Team have told me that they keep the promo materials themselves or give them only to current HIM fans because they don't want the band to attract more fans. And these are the fans who "win" the most meet and greet passes! What a disgrace! HIM is a great band, and they love their fans immensely, but they deserve better than you. Get over yourselves.To the fans who have been a part of the street team and become dissillusioned I say this: Keep supporting the band! HIM loves you and appreciates the hard work you do to help them become more successful. Come up with new and unique ways to promote the band in your town and on the internet until the mess with the street team is sorted out.
BEST CAREER MOVE
Bon Jovi Goes Country
Not only am I not a Bon Jovi fan, I'm not a country fan either. However, when the band teamed with Sugarland vocalist Jennifer Nettles for the song "Who Says You can't Go Home" they did what no rock band has ever done...they hit number 1 on the Billboard Country charts. Have A Nice Day, the cd this song is from, was released in 2005, but the song itself was released to radio in 2006, and it reinvented the band for the future. Hair Metal fans have grown up, and many of them are now listening to pop country. I am one of the few who do not. By realizing that their customers have changed, Bon jovi revived a sagging career and scored the biggest hit of their entire career. It's a shame that the song is god-awful.
Honorable mention: Guns N Roses embarks on their Chinese Democracy world tour, Axl proves he's still alive
THE "ANTHRAX REUNION" WORST CAREER MOVE AWARD
Gerard Way Cuts His Hair
Wait a minute...what does a haircut have to do with music? Certainly fans wouldn't turn against a band based solely on the cut and color of the singers hair? Could fans be that shallow? The answer is YES, they can. When My Chemical Romance was preparing for the release of their latest (and best) album The Black Parade, pictures began to surface of the usually long, dark haired singer with a very short, bleached blonde look. Idiots the world over were outraged. MCR is Emo, right? He can't have hair like that! To Hell with the point he was trying to make about his role as a cancer patient in the albums storyline. Forget about the fact that IT'S ONLY HAIR, People just couldn't grasp that he would change his style, and decided right then that they were no longer fans of the band. The band countered by releasing one hell of a great cd that will win over many new fans who enjoy the music and care less about the image. So, in the long run this will end up being a good career move. MCR has left behind the dying emo trend (that they were never really a part of anyway) and forges ahead as a killer rock band that will stand the test of time.
Dishonorable mention: Guns N Roses tours, Chinese Democracy album STILL not released.
WHAT WE ARE MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2007
The Death Of Emo
What started out as a valid form of artistic expression with bands like Embrace, Rites Of Spring, Sunny Day Real Estate and Lifetime (which, admit it, 95% of emo fans have never heard) has degraded into a cartoonish parody of itself. It happens to all trends at some point. The bands who start the genre influence bands that get famous, followed by another wave that makes it a trend, followed by yet another wave that so over-saturates the market and is so distanced from the original purveyors that it kills the trend. That's how the music industry works. My friends, Emo has now reached that point. The entirety of the fanbase who made Emo a national craze has tired of the never-ending train of bands that sound exactly like the previous years bands, with no originality and far less ability to craft a memorable song. The genre has been turned over to the trend-loving, Hollister and American Eagle-shopping preppy crowd. By definition, those fans are NEVER loyal and will listen to whatever they are told is cool. Meanwhile, second tier bands that weren't lucky enough to catch the attention of those people are suffering with dwindling album sales. Right about now true music fans are discovering new bands, and new potential trends, and soon one of those trends will explode and become the dominant force in rock music. The casual music fans will drop Emo like a bad habit and glom onto whatever new trend they are told to like. Then it will only be a matter of time before the next trend is bastardized and destroyed. The music industry sucks sometimes.
Honorable Mention: The release of Chinese Dem...oh who are we kidding? Coheed And Cambria have a new cd coming out though, and it should be the best album of the year.