Justified In Light: The 2020 Platinum Vinyl Awards 1st quarter- Hard Rock

We crank up the volume all the way past limits now. Heavy Metal and Hard Rock had a very nice showing with 10 entries this quarter. It's gonna be headbanger heaven this year.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Bloodgood - Trenches of Rock: The Metal Mission of Bloodgood
• The Devil Wears Prada - The Act
• Norma Jean - All Hail
• Nothing Left - Disconnected
• RED - The Evening Hate EP
• Saint - The Calf
• Michael Sweet - 10
• What We Do In Secret - Repose
• Wicked's End - Flood
• The World Will Burn - Nothing as Real as it seems.

This quarter has a bit of an 80's feel to it. Michael Sweet is lead for Stryper, Saint and Bloodgood were also 80's bands and The World Will Burn is a side project of Dale Thompson, lead vocalist for the 80's Metal Band (still active) Bride. Our third and final tie is Rap. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The 2019 Top 10 Albums: The Hard List

Continuing with our revelation of the Best Albums of 2019, I am turning up the volume. In our previous post I revealed the top 10 Soft Albums, and by that I mean Pop, Worship, Gospel and Adult Contemporary. We now go to the Hard List. Rock, Metal, Industrial, Rap. Let's get to it.

1. Wolves At The Gate - Eclipse: The Hardest on so many levels - Volume, Thrash Vocals, Subject Matter. WATG impressed me from the first time I heard them, which
   
   was VxV in 2014 and each album which has followed has showed amazing growth in both music and lyrics. Eclipse is a masterpiece telling of sin and redemption and the power of the Grace of God. These guys would be called Hyper Grace by certain Pharisees (you know who you are). "Forgiveness despite my defiance". A sermon has not been crafted that tells it better.
2. Within Temptation -  Resist: Like the soft list before it, this list seems to have gotten a 1 and 1B, one "Christian" and one "Mainstream". I came across Within Temptation due to a Best women in Metal video on Youtube and I am so glad I did. Sharon den Adel blends her Operatic Vocals with Symphonic Metal which here has the addition of Industrial and Keyboards. I love the majestic sound on songs like Endless War and In Vain. This is one temptation that you wont want to Resist. Better yet, on the Deluxe Version of this album you get the bonus of instrumental tracks, which lets you enjoy the orchestration in all its glory. Not to take away anything from the vocals.
3. Michael Sweet - Ten. Never has an album had a better title. Though the title cut actually is a reference to the Ten Commandments, it could also be the rating for the album (A Perfect 10). The tireless Stryper frontman hits you hard right from the start with his trademark high scream and screaming guitars on Better Part of Me. The intensity barely lets up, though there is time for a ballad to catch your breath.
4. Diviner - Realms of Time. Greek Metal. You wouldn't think the two would be linked, but they are. Diviner is a Metal Band in the vein of Theocracy. Very well crafted.
5. White Collar Sideshow - I Didn't Come Here To Die: The Night Beat has always had a love for industrial music back from the days of Deitiphobia and Aleixa. White Collar Sideshow blends the industrial with country into what they call Arkansas Shock and Roll. TD and Veronica Benton have crafted an album which surpasses a "Fringe" masterpiece (the style of music is on the fringes of CCM) which in my mind surpasses The WitchHunt, which was a formidable task indeed. The Bottom 5 without comments.
6. Scott Stapp - The Space Between The Shadows
7. Seventh Day Slumber - Closer To Chaos
8. Skillet - Victorious
9. Adelaide - Strong + Brave
10. NF - The Search

You know it's a packed list when you have to leave Thi'sl, Andy Hunter, and Scandroid in the Honorable Mentions list, but that is where we are this year. We are done with the top 10 Albums. I will include an EP list later on, but I have a First Quarter Wrap to complete. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Wolves Unleashed: The 2019 Platinum Vinyl Awards 4th Qtr - Hard Rock/Metal

Time to Crank it Up. Heavy Metal and Hard Rock had five entries this quarter. That's a good showing for a quarter.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• As I Lay Dying - Shaped by Fire
• Narnia - From Darkness to Light
• Oh Sleeper - Bloodied/Unbowed
• War of Ages - Void
• Wolves at the Gate - Eclipse

It's good to have As I Lay Dying back in the fold. Forgiveness is at the root of Christianity. I am not making any predictions, but I wouldn't be surprised if the eventual winner comes from this quarter. It is that loaded. Rap is the final of the tie trio (that sounds like a bad Southern Gospel Group). Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Chaotic Symphonies: The 2019 Platinum Vinyl Awards 3rd Quarter - Hard Rock and Metal

Time to turn up the volume to 11. Hard Rock and Heavy Metal is the second part of our two genre tie for 5. Let's get to it.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• August Burns Red - Constellations Remixed
• Comrades - For We Are Not Yet, We Are Only Becoming
• Death Therapy - Voices
• Diviner - Realms of Time
• My Epic - Violence EP

A nice veteran lineup. Alternative is next. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The Reckoning: The 2019 Platinum Vinyl Awards 2nd Qtr - Metal Rap

Rap/Hip-Hop and Hard Rock/Heavy Metal finish off our three megaposts. From here on in it is all one genre per post.

Rap/Hip-Hop

• Heesun Lee - Flying Cars EP
• Steven Malcolm - The Second City
• Tedashii - Never Fold

Hard Rock/Metal

• August Burns Red - Phantom Sessions EP
• Demon Hunter - War
• The Persuaded - Dawn of Destruction
• Within Temptation - Resist

Those who are solely familiar with the CCM Market may be unfamiliar with Within Temptation. They are a mainstream symphonic metal band from The Netherlands. They belong to the fringe. Their lyrics are full of Spiritual meaning, like LEAH, U2, Evanescence and others. And if you are wondering what happened to Demon Hunter's other album Peace, wait for the Rock section. Our first single genre post is Folk Music. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Phoenix Rising: The 2019 Platinum Vinyl Awards 1st Qtr - Hard Rock

We are in the home stretch with only three genre's remaining. Since Alternative we have met the final bar of 7 entries, and by the end of the wrap we will almost triple that amount. Hard Rock has 10 entries this quarter. The Loud Stuff represents.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Amongst The Giants - Obscene
• Evanescence - Synthesis Live
• Fight The Fury - Still Breathing EP
• Innerwish - Inner Strength
• Innerwish - Silent Faces
• Leah - The Quest 
• Memphis May Fire - Broken
• P.O.D. - Circles
• Righteous Vendetta - Reignite: The Fire Inside
• Silent Planet - When The End Began

The Innerwish albums are re-releases from 2004 and 2006. The Ladies are well represented with Celtic Metalist Leah and Amy Lee represented. And we even have a return from P.O.D., a legend of sorts. Pop is next. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Falling Rocks: The 2018 Platinum Vinyl Awards 1st Qtr - Metal

We turn up the volume on the 1st Quarter of 2018 for the Platinum Vinyl Awards. Hard Rock and Heavy Metal had a very good. Nine entries in this quarter is a good start.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• August Burns Red - Phantom Anthem
• My Children, My Bride - Vicious World
• For All Eternity - The Will To Rebuild
• Your Memorial - Your Memorial
• Phinehas - Dark Flag
• Project 86 - Sheep Among Wolves
• Red - Gone 
• Sweet and Lynch - Unified
• War of Ages - Alpha

Only two more to go. Rap is next (so you already know the winner of the quarter). Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Diamond Rain: The 2017 Platinum Vinyl Awards 4th Qtr - Metal Folk Dance

The Second Multi-genre post comprises Hard Rock/Metal, Folk/Folk Rock, and Dance/Synthpop. We won't waste time with more talk. Let's get to it.

Folk/Folk Rock

• Sandra McCracken - Steadfast Live
• Tyson Motsenbocker - Almira EP

Hard Rock/Metal

• Fleshkiller - Awaken
• Spoken - IX

Dance/Synthpop

• C3 Live - Love So Wild
• Lights - Skin and Earth
• Urban Rescue - City Sessions (Live In Los Angeles)

Only one more multi-genre post to go. Electronic Alternative Is Next. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Venus and Mars are Alright: The 2017 Platinum Vinyl Awards 3rd Qtr - Alternative Metal

The final of our multi genre posts is here From now on it is all single genre. This post combines Alternative Rock and Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. Let's get on with it.

Alternative Rock

• The Classic Crime - How To Be Human
• Foldinglights - Exiles
• Least of These - Wolves

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Dream Collage - Ripple Effect
• Gideon - Cold

That does it for the multi-genre postings. We start next in ascending order with single genre posts. And the first up is Live Recorded Album. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Copernicus Rocks: The 2017 Platinum Vinyl Awards 2nd Qtr - Children's Electronic Metal Remix

We come to the last of our Multi-genre posts for the 2nd Quarter Releases of 2017. We are behind schedule but making progress. From now on we will be handling one musical genre per post. But for now we have Children's Music, Remix, Hard Rock/Heavy Metal, and Electronic-Industrial.

Children's Music

• Go Fish - Victory VBS

Electronic-Industrial

• Aaron Sprinkle - Real Life
• Death Therapy - The Storm Before The Calm

 Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Demon Hunter - Outlive
• Righteous Vendetta - Cursed 

Remix Album

• Edge Kingsland - Ekrmx
• Fireflight - Re-Imag-Innova

That is the end of the multi-genre posts. It is all single genre from now on. First up is Hip Hop, which just cleared the bar. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Siberian Siren: The 2017 Platinum Vinyl Awards 1st Qtr - Heavy Metal

We are here with our penultimate post (that's next to the last for those in Rio Linda). Tied for first place this quarter, the first for 2017 (aka #PlatVnyl8) is Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. I cannot be sure off the top of my head, but I believe it is the first time for the genre at the top of the list. Sometimes it is in the megapost. Let's get to it. Crank it up.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Comrades - Lone/Grey
• Death Requisite - Revisitation
• The Devil Wears Prada - Transit Blues 
• Fit For A King - Death Grip
• Memphis May Fire - This Light I Hold
• Theocracy - Ghost Ship
• Those Who Fear - State of Mind
• Wolves at the Gate - Types and Shadows
• Zao - The Well Intentioned Virus

Nine entrants this quarter. #PlatVnyl8 may be the year of Metal. Well, if you've done your tabulations correctly, you know our other co-winner is Adult Contemporary. Time to turn down the volume. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

A Perfect Scale: The 2016 Platinum Vinyl Awards 4th Quarter - Hard Rock/Metal

The final of the first three way tie. Hard Rock and Heavy Metal put together five entrants into the pool. Let us get to it. 

Hard Rock/Metal

• Forevermore - Integral
• Norma Jean - Polar Similar
• Silent Planet - Everything Was Sound
• To Speak of Wolves - New Bones
• Michael Sweet - One Sided War

A Sweet album and A Stryper album in the same eligibility year. Are they trying to make the judges heads explode. Next up the first of a beastly trilogy. (My number is 666). Dance-Synthpop is next. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The Seven Soundtrack: The 2016 Platinum Vinyl Awards 3rd Quarter -Inspirational Electronic Metal

The Final of our multi-genre posts is here. After this point there will be six more posts in the wrap, all of them single genres with 5 or more entrants, in ascending order. Of course all the pool entrants are linked with Amazon Purchase Links where they exist. Be a dear and buy through the links, you will support The Night Beat at the same time. On to the releases.

Adult Contemporary/Inspirational

• Jason Fowler - I Fall In
• Meredith Kinleigh - Beautiful Mess
• Jeremy Vanderloop - No Death
• Phil Wickham - Children of God

Electronic-Industrial

• Hammock - Everything and Nothing
• The Quiet Science - The Rekindling of The Stars
• Rivers and Robots - The Eternal Son
• Urban Rescue - Wild Heart

 Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Darkness Divided - Darkness Divided
• My Epic - Viscera
• Everything In Slow Motion - Laid Low
• Forfeit Thee Untrue - Cremationem Jesus Lacrimam

We begin our single genre posting next time with Alternative. Until then, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

The 2016 2nd Quarter - Live Metal Children

We are beginning the announcements for the pool entries for the 2nd Quarter of 2016, aka #PlatVnyl7. We are half-way through and we are still announcing #PlatVnyl6. We are backed up, to say the least.

We begin our journey with multiple genre posts for those genres which haven't had enough entries to justify their own blog post. There will be two such posts. Also Remix and Folk had no entries. The first of these posts will combine Children's Music, Hard Rock and Metal, and Live recorded Album.

Children's Music

• Vineyard UK - Great Big God

Hard Rock /Heavy Metal

• Hope For The Dying - Legacy 
• Rival Choir - I Believe, Help My Unbelief

Live Recorded Album

• Life Church - Fully Devoted: Live
• Planetshakers - Momentum: Live In Manila 
• Vineyard Worship - All The Earth Shall Worship: Live From the Vineyard Global Family.

That does it for this post. Next up is our final multiple genre post. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Mistletunes: The 2016 1st Quarter - Industrial Metal Remix

We are back. Sometimes it is harder to get back into a routine than you expected. I know you have been waiting with baited breath, and here it is. The second and last multiple genre post. We cover three more genres: Electronic-Industrial, Remix, and Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. Let's get to it. 

Remix Album

• Family Force Five - Time Still Stands
• Hillsong Young and Free - We Are Young & Free - EP (The Remixes)

Electronic - Industrial

• Mutemath - Vitals
• Salt of The Sound - Echoes Of Wonder
• Seeker and Servant - You Alone Forever

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Demon Hunter - Extremist (Deluxe Edition)
• For Today - Wake
• Stryper - Fallen
• Withered Bones - For the Ones I Love

That's it for this quarter for these genres. One big note here. Between these three genres we had Three Perfect Albums this quarter. Two of them came from Heavy Metal. Demon Hunter upped the ante with the release of their deluxe edition of Extremist. And Stryper continues to show the young ones how to do Metal. The third perfect album also comes from a group which is making excellence look easy, and that is Sweden's Salt of The Sound. Until next time, when we begin the Single genre posts with a four way tie, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Shemita Songs: The 2015 Platinum Vinyl Awards 4th Qtr - Metal Dance

Well I guess that's better than Safety Dance. No nasty email and letters, I kind of like the song, especially the version done by The Echoing Green. But that's for another time. We are finally returning to our announcing of the 2015 4th Quarter, and we have come to the final multiple genre post. We are combining Hard Rock/Metal and Dance/Synthpop.

Dance/Synthpop

• Abigail Duhon - More Than Gold - EP
• Owl City - Mobile Orchestra
• Toby Mac - This Is Not A Test

Toby Mac is Back! And that is a good thing. Personally I thought he was mailing it in for the last album. In fact it was the Remix albums that were the best. I think he figured that out as well, and he knocked this one out of the park.

Hard Rock/Metal

• Conveyer - When Given Time to Grow
• P.O.D. - The Awakening

While I liked the previous release by P.O.D., it was a little different. This one is too, but its going back to Satellite, and that is a very good thing. It's all single genre posts from here on in, so until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply

Spring Tunes Up: The 2015 3rd Quarter - Industrial Folk

The 3rd Quarter of 2015 is in the bag. The Temperatures are heating up and so is the competition for the honor that is #PlatVnyl6. There were no eligible entries (that I know of, others could be discovered) for Children's Music, Dance/Synthpop, and Remix this quarter. We also combine genres that had too few entrants to merit a seperate post. This quarter we are combining Folk/Folk Rock, Instrumental, Electronic/Industrial, and Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. The combined genres amount to 10 potential nominees. So from least to greatest here we go.

Instrumental Music

• Kings Kaleidoscope - Becoming Who We Are (Instrumental)

Electronic/Industrial

• NYVES - Anxiety
• Rapture Ruckus - Invader Deluxe

Folk/Folk Rock

• Sandra McCracken - Psalms 
• Shane and Shane - The Worship Initiative
• Joy Williams - Venus

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• August Burns Red - Found In Far Away Places
• Haste The Day - Coward
• The Ongoing Concept - Handmade
• Wolves at the Gate - Reprise EP

While all these made the initial pool, their fate is uncertain. Especially ones like Joy Williams and The Ongoing Concept. They are on the bubble with a 4.50 rating. We are on our way. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply

The Best of 2014: Metal

This is where we crank it up. The Best Hard Rock and Heavy Metal releases for 2014. Two album had to be left off this portion of the list, and they were left speechless. Actually, one of them would have been speechless regardless, since it was an instrumental album. That was Behold (Instrumental) by My Epic, which in my opinion was better than the vocal edition. You really can't beat uninterrupted Metal Jams. The other album left off the list, simply cause I couldn't put them all on, was Vxv by Wolves at the Gate.

You kind of know if they put out an album, Stryper will find its way onto the best albums of the year list. They are just that good. Last year they struck platinum with No More Hell to Pay , the long awaited sequel to No More Hell to Pay . This year they went platinum again with, of all things, a live album. Now I don't want you to think there's any favoritism regarding Live at the Whisky . There isn't. It's just that there aren't too many Live Albums that make you go WOW. Usually the "Live Experience" that you feel if in the arena is somehow lost, or at least diminished during the recording. But here, as one person said, a band in it's fourth decade shouldn't sound this good. But they do, and finish it off with a megasong, a seven minute rendition, with audience participation, of Soldiers Under Command, probably the song that made the band.

The genre is officially Hard Rock/Metal, and we were privileged to have one entry from each half. The Hard Rock side was represented by Orange County monsters of Rock Project 86. They are slightly less prolific than their fellow county residents Stryper, having put out Wait for the Siren in 2012. It takes a while longer to make an album unlike the one before it. Stryper is proud of their sound. Of course the voice is what makes the band, and Andrew Schwab is easily recognizable, however the sound. This time they point their Knives to the Future (Special Edition) , and while this might be their hardest rocking outing yet, they have no trouble slowing things down to near Alternative levels, as in Son of Flame.

Our widows and orphans post is next, where only one entry per genre remained. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Bad Moon Rising: The 2014 Platinum Vinyl Awards 4th Qtr - Heavy Metal

Continuing our 4th Quarter announcements as we close out the pool for #PlatVnyl5 and begin the voting process for a possible Winter or Spring 2015 Awards show. That is the plan. But you can see how #PlatVnyl4 turned out. 

Tied with 7 entrants with Adult Contemporary as the lowest of the Single Genre Posts was Heavy Metal. We don't make the irony, we just cover it. Anyway, with out further ado, Heavy Metal.

Hard Rock/Heavy Metal

• Colossus - Badlands
• Darkness Divided - Written In Blood
• Forevermore - Telos
• Islander - Violence and Destruction
• Stryper - Live at the Whisky
• War Of Ages - Supreme Chaos
• Woven War - Woven War

Up next is Pop Music, which had eight entrants this final quarter. We go up to the big winner, and that will be revealed at the appropriate time. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.

Music Video Monday: #PlatVnyl4 - Hard Rock/Metal Video of The Year

We are at the penultimate post for the Video Awards of #PlatVnyl4. That means the next to last for those in Rio Linda. The first of the last is Hard Rock/Metal Video of The Year. As we are like to remind you, you can click on the genre to view the results for Adult Contemporary, Alternative, Pop, Dance, Electronic, and Hip Hop. 

The nominated videos, which you can check out at the Nomination Post, were: The Abandoning by +Love And Death ; Cover Girl by The Ongoing Concept ; First Sight by +The Devil Wears Prada ; If You Got it at Five, You Got it at Fifty by Norma Jean; and Transgressor by Colossus 

And the winner of the Hard Rock/Metal Video of The Year for #PlatVnyl4 is Transgressor.

That does it for this category. The last genre based video award is for Rock. Until next time, I am Awaiting Your Reply.