BravePicks 2019 - The Scribes Speak!
Aaron Small

Top 20 of 2019
1) WEDNESDAY 13 – Necrophaze (Nuclear Blast)
2) BLACKTOP MOJO – Under The Sun (Cuhmon)
3) TEXAS HIPPIE COALITION – High In The Saddle (eOne)
4) AMON AMARTH – Berserker (Metal Blade)
5) CHILDREN OF BODOM – Hexed (Nuclear Blast)
6) ALTITUDES + ATTITUDE – Get It Out (Megaforce)
7) THE QUIREBOYS – Amazing Disgrace (Off Yer Rocka)
8) MIKE TRAMP – Stray From The Flock (Target)
9) DEATH ANGEL – Humanicide (Nuclear Blast)
10) MEMORIAM – Requiem For Mankind (Nuclear Blast)
11) HELLYEAH – Welcome Home (Eleven Seven)
12) KONKHRA – Alpha And The Omega (Hammerheart)
13) HEADSTONES – PeopleSkills (Cadence)
14) ALTER BRIDGE – Walk The Sky (Napalm)
15) L.A. GUNS – The Devil You Know (Frontiers)
16) VOLBEAT – Rewind, Replay, Rebound (Republic)
17) ENTOMBED A.D. – Bowels Of Earth (Century Media)
18) ENTRAILS – Rise Of The Reaper (Metal Blade)
19) WHITESNAKE – Flesh & Blood (Frontiers)
20) DUFF MCKAGAN – Tenderness (UME)

Top 3 Concerts
IRON MAIDEN – Budweiser Stage – Toronto, ON
SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY AND THE CONSPIRATORS / DIRTY HONEY – Rebel – Toronto, ON
BUCKCHERRY – Mavricks – Barrie, ON

Top 5 Brave Embarrassments
QUIET RIOT – Hollywood Cowboys (Frontiers)
“Don’t Call It Love” – more like Don’t Call It Quiet Riot, cause it sure as hell is not!

DAVID HASSELHOFF – Open Your Eyes (Cleopatra)
An unbelievable disaster-piece featuring the absolute worst rendition of Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again” ever recorded!

OKILLY DOKILLY – Howdilly Twodilly (Self-released)
Beyond boring, this Ned Flanders themed band must all have two left hands, cause they can’t do anything right.

BABYMETAL – Metal Galaxy (BMD Fox)
Make it stop! Can’t believe it’s the third album from such a worthless, disposable act.

ESKIMO CALLBOY – Rehab (Century Media)
Give me an Eskimo Pie over electrocore, dance metal any day.

What / Who Needs To Stop In 2020
The practice of revealing an album almost entirely prior to release date. In an effort to build up hype, fans are treated to the: teaser, promo clip, lyric video, official video, animated bit, visualizer, playthrough, studio session, track-by-track breakdown, audio preview, and advance stream. When street date finally rolls around, the vast majority of songs have already been heard umpteen times. There’s no mystique left, thereby eliminating any need to buy the album right away, if at all.

Thoughts On 2019
Mötley Crüe certainly had an explosive year! In March, their long-awaited and incredibly successful biopic debuted exclusively on Netflix. Then in November, Nikki Sixx, Vince Neil, Tommy Lee, and Mick Mars destroyed their cessation of touring agreement, thereby paving the way for Mötley Crüe to embark upon The Stadium Tour in 2020 with Def Leppard, Poison, and Joan Jett.

Dirty Honey became the first unsigned band to top Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Songs Chart with their smash hit, “When I’m Gone”. Currently, this incredible group has only released a self-titled, six-song EP; and it’s not available on CD, only vinyl and digital formats exist. However, their songs are so strong, they’ve landed the opening slot on several major tours including: Guns N’ Roses, Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators, and Alter Bridge.    

A couple of bands unexpectedly underwent major lineup changes, namely Children Of Bodom and The Dead Daisies. For COB, bassist Henkka T. Blacksmith, keyboardist Janne Wirman, and drummer Jaska Raatikainen all simultaneously quit, taking the name with them. It’s presently unclear what frontman Alexi Laiho will do going forward. In the case of The Dead Daises, vocalist John Corabi and bassist Marco Mendoza jumped ship, opting to focus on their solo careers. In a two-for-one move, Glenn Hughes will handle both lead vocals and bass; The Dead Daisies are currently working on a new album.    

Marking the end of an era, thrash titans Slayer played their final show ever on November 30th at The Forum in Los Angeles, California. To say they will be missed is the understatement of the decade!

Metal Predictions For 2020   
All eyes and ears will be on Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth as he resurrects his solo career with a residency in Vegas, and as support for KISS on the last legs of their End Of The Road Tour. Expect great new albums from: Armored Saint, Cradle Of Filth, Paradise Lost, Sons Of Apollo, Testament, Kirk Windstein, and Rob Zombie. And a massive thank you to everyone who visits BraveWords for their daily fix of news, reviews, and exclusive interviews; we sincerely appreciate it. 

Check out our BravePicks 2019 countdown where Entombed A.D. took the top spot here.

More scribes speak:
Mark Gromen
Greg Pratt
Carl Begai