10 Hard Rock Live Albums You Need To Hear
1, 2, 3, 4!
Hard rock has always been a genre centered around the album. Beyond just the riffs, there's something about going into a studio and combing through every facet of your musical brain to bring magic onto the record. On the other hand, rock has always been a genre that was meant for the live stage.
Over the years, live albums have come out that have been landmark recordings in the rock genre. Initially just considered throwaways, these records showed the power a live record could have by capturing the maniacal freedom of the performances. Not only were these albums able to capture these acts at some of their greatest moments, but the audience adds a whole new layer to the listening process.
Instead of just hearing another high energy version of a song that you've heard a hundred times already, the crowd noise is able to put you in the mindset of the concert, with the blissful state of sonic anarchy all around you.
More than just a collection of songs, these records serve as a souvenir to the concert experience and show the band operating at the top of their game. Get your devil horns up and enjoy the show.
10. Live on Two Legs - Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam have become one of the more interesting live acts in recent memory. With each passing show, the band changes their setlist so that every single performance is unique, with many of their trademark classics thrown in for good measure. Even with all the bootlegs the band has of their live shows, their proper album Live on Two Legs is a great testament to the band's body of work.
Recorded in the late '90s, this album finds the band at a bit of a crossroads in their career, where they were beginning to transition from the grunge titans to more experimental rock music. The style is definitely varied amongst the track listing, but each performance provides an intense energy that few other '90s bands could reach.
On one hand there are songs like "Better Man," whose sound contributes beautifully to a live setting, while punk thrashers like "Do The Evolution" or "Go" give a taste of the more visceral sound that the band had cultivated back in the early '90s.
Arriving a few years before the band's disastrous performances at Roskilde, Live on Two Legs captures Pearl Jam before any of the harsh truths of reality creeped in. The members of Pearl Jam always look at themselves as an ever-evolving entity, but this is a good snapshot of that young and restless band out for blood.