Greta Van Fleet — “Highway Tune”
rock and roll
Let’s Talk Covers (Pt. 30)
1. Rage Against the Machine: “Renegades of Funk” (Afrika Bambaataa cover)
2. Sevendust: “Inner City Blues” (Marvin Gaye cover)
3. Nickelback: “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” (Elton John cover)
Playlist Challenge, Day 251
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers — “Here Comes My Girl”
Playlist Challenge, Day 249
Theory of a Deadman — “Hello Lonely (Walk Away From This)”
Ranked: Alter Bridge
Alter Bridge’s “birthday” was January 4th. It has been an amazing fourteen years, filled with truly epic music. Here, I will rank their albums from my most loved to my least loved. (My list includes only their studio albums.)
1. Blackbird (2007)
The title track alone is enough to earn Blackbird the number one spot. It blows my mind that anyone can hear that song and not acknowledge Alter Bridge as one of the best rock bands in existence. By the time “Ties That Bind,” “Come to Life,” and “Watch Over You” are added, there is no disputing the strength of this record.
2. Fortress (2013)
This was a tough one, because for me, Fortress and One Day Remains are neck and neck. However, Fortress took number two based on “Lover” and “Waters Rising” (which is in my top 5 favorite AB tracks; I adore Mark’s voice).
3. One Day Remains (2004)
And so we come to Alter Bridge’s debut record, and man, is it a winner. At the time of its release, I was focused on other bands, mainly Avenged Sevenfold, and I missed it almost entirely (though I did see them at a festival on this tour). Once I became obsessed with Alter Bridge, however, I quickly realized there isn’t a single song from One Day Remains that I can’t listen to. My favorites are the title track, “Find the Real,” “In Loving Memory,” and “Shed My Skin.”
4. AB III (2010)
Confession: I don’t love every song from AB III. I don’t hate any of them, but it’s not an album I typically listen to from start to finish. With that said, the songs I do love on it are standouts in Alter Bridge’s career: “Slip to the Void,” “Isolation,” “Ghost of Days Gone By,” “Wonderful Life,” “I Know It Hurts,” and “Words Darker Than Their Wings.” (Again, anything Mark lends his vocals to is alright with me.)
5. The Last Hero (2016)
I like this album. Really, I do. I saw them three times touring for it. But it didn’t have as many songs that jumped out and grabbed me as their previous records. “Show Me a Leader” is great, and “Crows on a Wire” is a punch to the face (in a good way). I also enjoy “Twilight,” “My Champion,” and “This Side of Fate.”
Playlist Challenge, Day 234
Alter Bridge — “Ghost of Days Gone By”
Album of the Week: Alter Bridge’s One Day Remains
I have to admit: I wasn’t impressed when I first heard “Open Your Eyes.” However, upon giving the entirety of One Day Remains a chance, I discovered that it is a very strong record from start to finish. My favorite tracks are “One Day Remains,” “Find the Real,” “In Loving Memory,” and “Shed My Skin.” Oh… and I adore “Watch Your Words.” 💜💜💜
Let’s Talk Covers (Pt. 27)
1. Lord of the Lost: “Bad Romance” (Lady Gaga cover)
2. Tantric: “The Chain” (Fleetwood Mac cover)
3. Mindless Self Indulgence: “Bring the Pain” (Method Man cover)
Alter Bridge Returns to the Iron City
On their final leg of The Last Hero tour, Alter Bridge made a stop in Birmingham, Alabama, for the first time in ten years. They played at Iron City with opening acts Sons of Texas and All That Remains. As an added bonus, I convinced my parents to go. It was their first Alter Bridge show.
Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond my control, I missed all of Sons of Texas and most of All That Remains, though I did catch the latter performing their version of “The Thunder Rolls.”
My parents and I found a spot in the balcony and anxiously awaited the start of Alter Bridge’s set. The venue was packed from wall to wall, and everywhere I looked I saw shirts from past tours, most prominent among them Blackbird and The Last Hero.
Just as the excitement boiled over and fans began chanting the band’s name, the lights dimmed. Drummer Scott Phillips settled behind his kit to a soundtrack of cheers. Vocalist/guitarist Myles Kennedy, guitarist Mark Tremonti, and bassist Brian Marshall took the stage without further ado, and we were off.
Alter Bridge opened with “Writing on the Wall” and tore through three more songs before Myles addressed the audience. Every word he spoke was met with ecstatic screams. At one point, the front man acknowledged how long it had been since they’d been to Alabama, and he promised they would never overlook us again.
Alter Bridge’s set spanned their entire career, hitting the high points from each album: “Open Your Eyes” from One Day Remains, “Ties That Bind” and the title track of Blackbird, “Isolation” (AB III), “Cry of Achilles” (Fortress), and “Crows on a Wire” off The Last Hero. Much to our joy, they did “Fortress,” which doesn’t often find its way into their shows. The acoustic portion consisted of Myles playing “Watch Over You” alone, then being joined by Mark for the highlight of my night, “In Loving Memory.” The evening came to a close with “Show Me a Leader” and “Rise Today.”
This was my fifth Alter Bridge show, and the quartet again not only met but surpassed my expectations. Musically brilliant and high on crowd participation, they delivered the kind of performance concert-goers dream about. I was on cloud 9. My mom, who has been listening to Alter Bridge since 2004, was over the moon. And my dad… Well, he doesn’t like a lot of recent artists/bands, but he seemed suitably impressed, especially when Mark and Myles had their guitar duel and showcased that they are, in fact, the two most talented men in the business.
For the fourth consecutive review, I am ending with a personal anecdote. My parents and I went to where the buses were parked and were soon graced by the presence of Mark, Myles, and Scott. Perhaps my favorite part of the night was Dad introducing himself to Mark. I added “That’s my dad,” and Mark smiled and said “Hi, Dad!” It was so endearing. The guitarist also found it humorous that my mom made him squat for a picture, attempting to get him closer to my height (I’m barely under 5′ and Mark is 6’1″). He did so without protest, and he is grinning in the photo.
I love this band. They are my happy place.
Playlist Challenge, Day 208
Bleeker — “Free”
Mostly Music 