BravePicks 2024 - The Scribes Speak!
Aaron Small

Top 20 Of 2024
1) BLACKTOP MOJO - Pollen (Cuhmon Music Group)
2) KERRY KING - From Hell I Rise (Reigning Phoenix Music)
3) SEBASTIAN BACH - Child Within The Man (Reigning Phoenix Music)
4) MYLES KENNEDY - The Art Of Letting Go (Napalm Records)
5) RICHIE KOTZEN - Nomad (BMG)
6) SLASH - Orgy Of The Damned (Gibson Records)
7) CATEGORY 7 - Category 7 (Metal Blade Records)
8) BLACK SMOKE TRIGGER - Horizons (Self-Released)
9) THE CROWN - Crown Of Thorns (Metal Blade Records)
10) THE COMMONERS - Restless (Gypsy Soul Records)
11) THE DEAD DAISIES - Light 'Em Up (Self-Released)
12) THE NATIVE HOWL - Sons Of Destruction (Sumerian Records)
13) QUIREBOYS - Wardour Street (Cadiz Music)
14) TEXAS HIPPIE COALITION - Gunsmoke (MNRK Heavy)
15) TROY REDFERN - Invocation (RED7 Records)
16) MICK MARS - The Other Side Of Mars (1313 LLC)
17) THY WILL BE DONE - Pillar Of Fire (Eye.On Lion Recordings)
18) PHILIP SAYCE - The Wolves Are Coming (Atomic Gemini / Forty Below Records)
19) TUK SMITH & THE RESTLESS HEARTS - Rogue To Redemption (Gypsy Rose Records)
20) THE GEORGIA THUNDERBOLTS - Rise Above It All (Mascot Records)

Top 5 Concerts 
DIRTY HONEY / THE BAND FEEL - Madrid Theatre - Kansas City, MO
TOQUE - The Rivoli - Toronto, ON
SEBASTIAN BACH / KURT DEIMER - The Venue - Peterborough, ON
W.A.S.P. / ARMORED SAINT - History - Toronto, ON
BILLY IDOL - Scotiabank Arena - Toronto, ON

Top 5 Brave Embarrassments
WARLOCK A.D. - Book II: The Valley Of Vâgené (Rockshots Records)
“The Golden Showers Of Prestønia” equates to a giant pint of piss!

DURBIN - Screaming Steel (Frontiers Music SRL)
A failed attempt at emulating the greatness of Dio and Judas Priest.

DRAGONCORPSE - The Fall Of House Abbarath (Shattered Earth Records)
Unlistenable mash-up of deathcore and power metal from costumed characters infatuated with Game Of Thrones.

SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET - Seven Hours After Violet (Sumerian Records)
System Of A Down bassist Shavo Odadjian's unfocused, annoying side project.

MUSHROOMHEAD - Call The Devil (Napalm Records)
The Devil doesn't care about worthless, obsolete nu-metal; neither does anyone else.

Thoughts On 2024
In addition to the titles listed in my Top 20, there are two albums that deserve honorable mention: Science, Not Fiction by Orange Goblin, and Scream For Rock from Stone Whiskey. If you haven't already, I urge you to listen to both.

2024 had no shortage of unexpected events, beginning with Aerosmith announcing their retirement from touring, cancelling their rescheduled Peace Out Farewell Tour. The band released a statement, announcing that 76-year-old singer Steven Tyler is unable to fully recover from a vocal injury, specifically a fractured larynx.

Jane's Addiction imploded after vocalist Perry Farrell attacked guitarist Dave Navarro on stage during the song "Ocean Size" in Boston, Massachusetts, thereby forcing the cancellation of the rest of their North American Tour. Farrell would later apologize for his "inexcusable behaviour," but the damage was done.

After suffering a stroke in 2023, Iron Maiden drummer Nicko McBrain completed The Future Past Tour, and subsequently stunned fans when he announced that he is stepping away from touring. With many of the shows on Maiden's upcoming Run For Your Lives Tour already sold out, the band quickly introduced Nicko's replacement - Simon Dawson from Steve Harris' British Lion. 

Skid Row amicably parted ways with singer Erik Grönwall, citing "the travel and rigors of the road as not conducive to his overall health and recovery" from leukemia. "It proved challenging touring the world with an impaired immune system, which is a result of my bone marrow transplant," said Grönwall. Longtime friend Lzzy Hale of Halestorm temporarily took over vocal duties for a handful of concerts; while she did a tremendous job and the fans loved her, Hale cannot commit to Skid Row full-time as that would interfere with her main band. The question beckons, what happens next? Grönwall was the fifth singer for Skid Row. Original vocalist Sebastian Bach would love to return, but guitarists Snake Sabo and Scotti Hill, along with bassist Rachel Bolan, have been crystal clear on multiple occasions that they have no interest in working with Baz again.

A day after Dimmu Borgir headlined the main stage at Dynamo Metal Fest in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, guitarist Galder announced his departure from the band by issuing the following statement on social media: "Yesterday I played my last show with Dimmu Borgir. After almost 25 years of making music and playing with Dimmu Borgir, I have decided to leave the band. I have been thinking about this for years, and as many of you have been pointing out - it's time for Old Man's Child to get on stage again and finalizing the new album. I wish the best for the other members of the band moving forward."

After disbanding in 2019 following a lengthy farewell tour, Slayer shocked fans by announcing a trio of reunion shows: Chicago's Riot Fest, Louisville's Louder Than Life, and Sacramento's Aftershock. The Louder Than Life festival date in Kentucky was cancelled due to inclement weather caused by Hurricane Helene. As a result, Slayer will headline Louder Than Life in 2025.

No one could have predicted that guitarist Jake E. Lee (Ozzy Osbourne, Badlands, Red Dragon Cartel) would get shot three times while walking his dog outside his home in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lee was hit by bullets in the forearm, in the foot, and in the back - which broke a rib and damaged a lung. According to Lee, the two masked gunmen were attempting to steal his neighbor's motorcycle. No arrests have been made yet. Thankfully, Jake is on the road to a full recovery.  

The Pretty Reckless had an unforgettable year! It began with opening for The Rolling Stones in Las Vegas, Nevada at Allegiant Stadium. That was followed by a support slot for AC/DC on the European leg of their Power Up Tour. During the concert in Seville, Spain, frontwoman Taylor Momsen was bitten by a bat which flew on stage and clung to her leg during the song, "Witches Burn". This resulted in a series of rabies shots. But as Ozzy so famously sung, "You can't kill rock and roll, it's here to stay."

KISS sold their music catalog, name, and likeness to Pophouse - the Swedish entertainment and music investment firm, "for about $300 million," according to Gene Simmons. If you think that's a lot of money, Queen sold their recording, publishing, and other rights to Sony Music for a record-breaking $1.27 billion. How these companies will ever recoup their cash is beyond me!

As is the case every year, in 2024 we lost a number of beloved musicians. A partial list of those who passed away includes: James Kottak (Scorpions, Kingdom Come, Warrant), Martin Lacroix (Cryptopsy), Greg "Fritz" Hinz (Helix), C.J. Snare (FireHouse), Ciriaco "Pinche Peach" Quezada (Brujeria), Jack Russell (Great White), Sean Blosl (Sanctuary), John "Juan Brujo" Lepe (Brujeria), Dave Allison (Anvil), Karl Näslund (In Flames), Paul Di'Anno (Iron Maiden), and Casey Chaos (Amen). R.I.P.

Most importantly, massive thanks to each and every one of you who visit BraveWords.com to read our news, reviews, and exclusive interviews. We sincerely appreciate it!

What / Who Needs To Stop In 2025
Speculative ticket listing! This is when unofficial, unauthorized sellers list tickets for sale even though they do not actually have those tickets. They're speculating that they will be able to get tickets and then resell them, at a much higher price. Essentially, this is fraud! Sadly, there are endless stories of people getting scammed via this practice.

Metal Predictions For 2025
As part of their massive European and Middle East Tour, Guns N' Roses will play the prestigious Wacken Open Air Festival in Germany for the first time, headlining on July 31st; of course it's already sold out. What a way to celebrate their 40th anniversary!

Poison drummer Rikki Rockett will publish his autobiography, Ghost Notes, on July 15th via Rare Bird Lit. This should be a very interesting read!

It’s shaping up to be another great year for hard rock and heavy metal, with new albums expected from: Alter Bridge, Anthrax, Arch Enemy, Armored Saint, Black Label Society, Corrosion Of Conformity, Cradle Of Filth, Down, Halestorm, The Halo Effect, The Haunted, The Hellacopters, Billy Idol, L.A. Guns, Machine Head, Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, Smith/Kotzen, Testament, Tremonti, Volbeat, Ricky Warwick, W.A.S.P., and Wednesday 13.

Read our BravePicks 2024 countdown where Judas Priest's Invincible Shield conquered the throne at #1 here.

More Scribe Speaks:
Mark Gromen