10 Best Hard Rock Albums Since 2010
The greatest headbangers of the past decade.
Once the 2010's started, good rock bands oftentimes felt very few and far between in the mainstream. Even if rock found its way onto the charts, it would always have to be interpolated with other genres like EDM and hip hop in order to be taken seriously. Rock seemed like it was dying...but maybe we just weren't looking hard enough.
Across the past decade, there were many fantastic albums surfacing that sounded like rock roaring back to life. Instead of putting out straight classic-rock plagiarisms throughout their runtime, these albums had the songwriting behind them to turn them from also-rans to career standouts. Some of these raucous records kicked so much ass that they are able to hold their own against the rock classics of decades past.
Whether it was seasoned veterans of the genre or bold new faces still going strong, these albums proved that not only was rock not dead, but will continue to thrive for decades to come. When the mainstream was steeped with rap and pop music, these records will still make you throw the horns up every time.
10. Rush - Clockwork Angels
After 40 years of writing the prog rock handbook, Rush had settled into their evergreen period as the new millennium arrived. With later releases like Vapor Trails, the band was still more than capable of producing fabulous hard rock songs that were euphoric musical headtrips.
At the turn of the decade, the band returned to the studio to work on their first full concept album with a story written by drummer Neil Peart. While the band had wrote long narrative pieces in the past, this new venture of an entire album was incredibly daring. Then again, with musical masterminds like this power trio, the project was never in shaky hands.
The way Peart's steam-punk narrative is woven together with Geddy Lee's thunderous bass and Alex Lifeson's eclectic lead breaks is done to near musical perfection. From the blast of "Headlong Flight" to the somber conclusion of "The Garden," the melodies present on each of these tracks cannot be denied.
After the accompanying tour and reunion shows, Rush quietly decided to call it a career and settle into retirement. Now that Neil Peart has left this world, Clockwork Angels stands as the band's stunning finish to a near-perfect discography.