Rock On

Surprise was the main theme of the year 2007. Last year was marked by the resurgence of old rock groups and the appearance of promising new acts. Jimmy Eat World, Radiohead and Foo Fighters surprised everyone by releasing new albums that lived up to the expectations of most of their listeners. Newer groups like Arcade Fire, Kings of Leon and The New Pornographers showed maturity and good musical directions as they released exceptional albums. Nobody saw it coming; Radiohead released an album that seemed like the first good step to beating online piracy. Led Zeppelin and Smashing Pumpkins both made triumphant returns to rock. Perhaps, the biggest surprise goes to Linkin Park for actually releasing a good album after years of annoying most music lovers with horrible albums. As a tribute to all of those acts that defined 2007, here are the ten best rock albums of last year:

10. Modest Mouse – We Were Dead…

In a year when a lot of bands stepped out of their element in favor of slow and simple music, Modest Mouse broke into the scene with a louder and angrier album. “We were Dead Even Before the Ship Sank” features tracks that speak of dark and sarcastic humor mixed with periodic screeches from Isaac Brock. Upbeat tunes, heavy guitars and catchy vocals; “We Were Dead…” is a frustrated statement from Brock as well as a noteworthy release for this year. Modest Mouse fans will not be disappointed by this one.

We Were Dead before the Ship even Sunk

Standout Tracks: We’ve Got Everything, Dashboard, Steam Engenius

9. Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist

Seeing Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain back together is already enough to make “Zeitgeist” a good album for the avid Pumpkins fan. Zeitgeist sounds like an album misplaced from the Smashing Pumpkins musical transition. It could very well fit in between the guitar-oriented Siamese Dream and the very dramatic Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness. “Zeitgeist” treats its listeners with several good tracks characterized by heavy riffs, the frequent use of distortions, and powerful drumming. The only complaint from Pumpkins fans is that Zeitgeist lacks the emotional depth of their previous albums. The album replaces the drama with a distortion-filled wall of sound.

Zeitgeist Album

Standout Tracks: Bleed The Orchid, Doomsday Clock, Starz, That’s The Way (My Love is)

8. Nine Inch Nails – Year Zero

Packaged like a dirty little secret, “Year Zero” appears with even more loathing than most of Nine Inch Nails’ recent work. Once again, Trent Reznor treats his worldwide audience with an emotional tour de force with his latest album. He enhances his sentiments against the government and worldly norms with upbeat electronic music and heavy guitars. According to some critics, “Year Zero” is Reznor’s greatest work since “The Downward Spiral”.

Year Zero Cover

Standout Tracks: Capital G, Meet your Master, Me, I’m Not

7. Foo Fighters – Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

The Foo Fighters are back with a new sound and a bunch of new songs to tickle the fancy of old fans. Tracks like The Pretender, Long Road to Ruin and Erase/Replace still contain the rough hard rock tunes that made the band a post grunge icon during the late 90s. As far as the rest of the album is concerned, it is practically new territory for the band. Most of the other tracks have toned down and there are even tracks where frontman Dave Grohl sings with purring vocals to acoustic melodies. Old Foo Fighter fans may take some time before appreciating this album’s flavor, but they can always turn to “The Pretender” whenever they are having problems appreciating the band’s musical transition.

Echoes, Silence Patience and Grace

Standout Tracks: The Pretender, Long Road to Ruin, Erase/Rewind, Summer’s End

6. Linkin Park – Minutes to Midnight

Linkin Park released what has got to be one of the biggest musical surprises in recent history. After releasing two of the worst rock albums in recent memory, they finally heeded all the criticisms and created one of the best albums released last year. Once you play the album, you will easily mistake them for a different band. Gone are the whiny irritating screams of Chester Bennington and the childish rap act of Mike Shinoda.

“Minutes to Midnight” borrows elements from great bands like Bloc Party and U2 then infuses them with a pinch of hard rock and pop. You should definitely check this album out, if you have the guts to take the shame of actually buying a Linkin Park album.

Minutes to Midnight Album

Standout Tracks: No Roads Left, Leave Out All The Rest, What I’ve Done, In Pieces

5. Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

Arcade Fire’s signature wit and cynicism is found all throughout the band’s sophomore album, “Neon Bible”. After scoring with their critically-acclaimed debut album, “Funeral” Arcade Fire follows up with this massive instrumental treat. Neon Bible features even more unusual sounds, such as bamboo organs and choirs. It is an inventive gothic record at best. If you’re looking for smart dark music, then “Neon Bible” is a good buy.

The Neon Bible

Standout Tracks: No Cars Go, Keep The Car Running, Black Mirror

4. Jimmy Eat World – Chase This Light

With elements reminiscent of their previous albums, American Emo band Jimmy Eat World released an album that tells upstarts what Emo should sound like. “Chase This Light” sounds like an amped-up “Clarity” and a subtle “Bleed American”. As always, the album is covered with the lush songwriting of frontman Jim Adkins. Big Casino headlines “Chase This Light” with its light and energetic melody accompanied by infectious soft vocals. This album presents itself as a reminder to music fans that Emo isn’t always as bad as it seems to be.

Chase the Light

Standout Tracks: Big Casino, Gotta Be Somebody’s Blues, Always Be

3. Spoon – Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

After releasing a group of moderately successful albums, American indie group Spoon is looking for commercial success. With their latest release “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga”, they may just do that. Tracks like The Underdog and Finer Feelings are highlighted with soulful vocals, groovy tunes and the interjections of horns from time to time. “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga” is a solid album that is nice to hear and easy to listen to.

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Standout Tracks: Finer Feelings, The Underdog, You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb

2. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky

Critics have dubbed them as “the American Radiohead.” Fans have called them the modern throwback to contemporary artists such as Brian Wilson and Neil Young. This writer considers them a creative mishmash of country, alternative and indie. For whatever its worth, Wilco treats everyone with what a lot of people consider as their greatest work. “Sky Blue Sky” immediately captures its listeners with its infectious vocals and jazzy guitars. The distortion and the heavier guitar work found in previous albums are tossed in for clear and simple music perfect for slow Sunday mornings.

The Sky Blue Sky of Wilco

Standout Tracks: Impossible Germany, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, You are My Face

1. Radiohead – In Rainbows

Album after album, Radiohead has proven to listeners worldwide that they are creative musical geniuses. “In Rainbows” is the fitting continuation to Radiohead’s series of psychedelic albums. Effectively combining upbeat guitars with electronic beats and a multitude of miscellaneous sounds, every track in the album has its own flavor and is packed with the emotional punch of Radiohead’s frontman Thom Yorke. “In Rainbows” is undoubtedly one of Radiohead’s best creations. With such an album, every listener knows that rock isn’t dying anytime soon.

The Official Cover

Standout Tracks: Download every single one of them in Radiohead’s pay-download site.

The year 2007 has been good to rock music. Exceptional albums were released left and right from various rock genres. Some artists got their much needed breakthroughs and others were reunited out of their sheer love for spreading their musical messages. Given the trend left by 2007 to both the artists and listeners, 2008 looks even more promising.