Top 10 Heaviest Albums of the past decade

When anyone puts together a list of any sort (especially when it’s stamped ‘Top 10 of the Decade’) you can pretty much consider yourself fair game for the flurry of scrutiny, controversy and debate regarding the level of knowledge (or taste for that matter) that you bring to the table on the selected subject matter.  However, since we ARE considered professors of musical composition & education at the highest of levels you should take this ‘Top 10 Heaviest Albums of the Past Decade‘ list as superior word.  DO NOT rely on the antiquated robotic programing directors at Sirius/XM or the so-called ‘alternative underground’ sounds streaming from the local college radio stations.  They will only lead you astray. Put your trust in us as we provide to you nothing short of the truth. Read more

Albums of a Lifetime: Slayer “Reign in Blood”

It’s very rare that one finds “perfection” in anything; let alone “art.” And yet, there are those few beautiful moments when, for whatever cosmic reason, art and perfection meet and meld into one crystalline disaster of intent and execution. Slayer’s epic Reign in Blood is easily one of those moments. At the time of its release there was nothing as potent out there; nothing combined the elements of speed and heaviness the way Reign in Blood did. Now, in the greater scope of things, it’s difficult to imagine something with as garish a title as Reign in Blood could even be labeled as “perfection” (or “art” for that matter) but within the world of extreme music Reign in Blood stands alone. The best example I think I can give is the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. While that album revolutionized the genres of Rock, Pop and anything else you want to think of (as well as really setting the high mark for recording innovation) Reign in Blood did the same thing for Metal. Rick Rubin’s masterful hand was as knowing and sagacious as George Martin’s. And, yes; I am putting Slayer’s Reign in Blood in the same category as Sgt. Pepper…

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by: Steven DiLodovico   [Philadelphia Indie Music Examiner]