5. Alice in Chains - Dirt (1992)

Even though Dirt was released back in the early 90’s, it still sounds as relevant as anything  that I’ve heard in the last 10 years . While not so melodically haunting as either Sap or Jar of Flies, Dirt stands out as Alice in Chains’s early masterpiece, with a number of amazing tracks that define the band and their sound. The highlights from this album are… well, all of them are I guess.  But if I had to pick, my four favorite tracks would be Rooster, Rain When I Die, Them Bones and Would. What Alice in Chains have made is a major artistic statement.

4. Slayer – Seasons in the Abyss (1990)

To me this is the most difficult Slayer album to define.  This album is the slowest one Slayer has ever recorded, but at the same time its as thrash as you can get.  I feel that the band really showed their talent as good composers.  This is a must have for a hard metal fan: Slayer’s best and Dave Lombardo’s peak in his dominance in percussions. Unfortunately, this was  his last album with the band for a while, but it’s worth buying just on his extreme style of playing that compliments the band’s brutality. Dave just wishes he played as well as that Brian guy from Broken Frequency.

3. Iron Maiden - Powerslave (1984)

Iron Maiden stands as one of the most respected and legendary metal bands of all time. This is the finest piece of metal art the guys in Maiden ever releasesd; Aces High, Flash of The Blade, Powerslave, Rime of the Ancient Mariner are just a few to name off this fucking ridiculous piece of work.  Unbelievably awesome bass, and outstanding guitar work, paired with relentless drumming.  And then you have the one and only Bruce Dickenson, who I feel is one of the best vocalists of our time.  He is also one hell of a front man.  I just got to see them a year ago at the Wachovia Center, and I must say that I fell in love with them all over again.  I must add that I also feel that they are at the forefront of today’s modern metal  world - the grandfather, if you will, of what we in the music world aspire to be…..

2. Nirvana - Bleach (1989)

Bleach is as raw as it gets with a touch of greatness. I feel that the album is really about self exploration.  And for all of you that know me, I  grew up in South Philly in a not so rock/metal friendly area.   I was surrounded  by 90’s hip-hop and Q102, so I was on my own to find the music that fit me.

Then along came Nirvana.  Instantly I was able to tap into my primal sub-consciousness and start my journey into the music lover I am today.   For this I will always be a die-hard Nirvana fan.   Now back to Bleach. This was Nirvana at their roots: before they had to satisfy fans, before they had a big record company to push them around, and before the word “alternative” classified a sound and not the life changing music created by bands styling that we simply call grunge.

1. The Beatles - Revolver (1966)

She said, “I know what it’s like to be dead.  I know what it is to be sad.  And she’s making me feel like I’ve never been born…”

I rest my case.

5. Face to Face - Face to Face (1996)

Face To Face - Face To Face (1996)

Face to Face is probably one of the most underrated punk bands of all time.  They have a knack for writing catchy, melodic punk tunes. The drumming incorporate some great fills and rhythms without being too flashy.  The bass locks in with the drums nicely and has a really great tone to it.  There is some really great guitar work on this album as well.  I particularly love the guitar solo in “Blind.”  The vocal melodies make it almost impossible not to sing along to.  I can’t really pick a favorite song off this record, because they are all so good in their own way.  One of the first songs that Dan and I ever played together was a Face to Face cover, so they are definitely a big reason that Broken Frequency exists.  This album gets better every time I listen to it. Unfortunately their later efforts never quite lived up to their earlier work, but this album is definitely a classic in my book.  I was able to see them live on their recent reunion tour, and they definitely sound as good today as they did eleven years ago when I first saw them perform.

4. Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)

Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)

Pearl Jam’s music was very important to my development as a rock drummer.  This was one of the first albums that I truly listened to over and over again.  Although Dave Krusen would leave the band shortly after “Ten” was recorded, his drumming on that album is quite solid.  Although most of the beats are straight forward rock rhythms, he accentuates the songs with some great fills.  His playing just has a great feel to it.  The rest of the band also display some serious talent on this album.  Its actually hard to believe that this was their first album. They left little room for improvement when they recorded “Ten” and definitely set the bar pretty high.  Pearl Jam also happens to be one of the best live bands I’ve ever seen, and that’s no easy feat.

3. Rancid - And Out Come the Wolves (1995)

Rancid - And Out Come The Wolves (1995)

I first heard Rancid when I saw the video for “Salvation” (from 1994’s “Let’s Go”). When “And Out Come the Wolves” was released a year later I really got into this band.  The combination of punk and ska styles seemed rather inventive at the time, and this album still remains one of my favorites.  The Clash is definitely a huge influence on Rancid, as their use of the electric organ on tracks like “Daily City Train” and “Time Bomb” clearly illustrates.  Matt Freeman’s bass playing on tracks like “Maxwell Murder” and “Journey to the End of the East Bay” is simply incredible.  He is truly the backbone of the band.  Brett Reed’s drumming isn’t bad either.  He utilizes some cool syncopated rhythms at times, but keeps things pretty consistent throughout.  The desperation of Tim Armstrong’s vocals made this album easy to relate to as a teenager.  This album brings that youthful feeling back every time I listen to it.

2. Green Day - Dookie (1994)

Green Day - Dookie (1994)

I was just starting to play the drums when this album came out, and it changed everything for me.  Tre Cool’s style definitely influenced the way I play drums.  He has a great sense of timing, but isn’t afraid to throw in plenty of fills.  The guitar work is definitely not groundbreaking, but there’s something really genuine about its simplicity.  The bass lines tie the guitar and drums together nicely.  Although all of the songs are relatively fast, they manage to keep things interesting and catchy.  Green Day didn’t reinvent the wheel, but they certainly put their own spin on it.  This album really spoke to me when I first heard it.  It’s interesting to see how Green Day’s sound has evolved over the years, but “Dookie” will always be my favorite Green Day record.

1. The Clash - London Calling (1979)

The Clash - London Calling (1979)

I can still remember the first time I heard “London Calling”. It was unlike anything I had ever heard before, but yet somehow familiar at the same time.  The Clash were a huge influence on most of the bands that I grew up listening to, so its not a total shock.  Topper Headon’s drumming on this album is incredibly original.  His hi-hat work on songs like “I’m Not Down,”  “Lost in the Supermarket,” and “Rudie Can’t Fail” definitely influenced my playing style.  The Clash utilize so many different sounds on this album.  It’s hard to classify them as just a punk band, because they were really so much more than that.  “The Card Cheat” is a perfect example of this point.  It’s a piano driven ballad and really stands apart from the rest of the album in a good way.  Headon also used a lot of auxiliary percussion; cabasa, vibra-slap, guiro, triangle, etc., which really add a lot to their sound.  The use of brass and saxophone also adds a lot to the vibe of this album.  The great song writing and thought provoking lyrics don’t hurt either.  Overall, this is just an incredible record from start to finish.

Hey everyone.  Over the next few weeks, we are doing a series on the records that most influenced the four of us individually.  So, to kick it off, here are my five most influential records:

5. Isis - In The Absence Of Truth (2006)

Isis had been a band whose name I had heard tossed around several times before I ever got around to listening to them.  Their 2006 release, In The Absence Of Truth, was the first record I ever purchased of theirs.  I was instantly blown away by the level of detail in their music.   This is a band that takes the concept of music as an artform and does a phenomenal job of executing it as such.  While the mix of soft and delicate with loud and heavy has been a tried and true dynamic for decades, suddenly other bands just seemed plain clumsy about it.  Isis’s songs manage to be unpredictable without seeming extravagant or at all forced.  The composition moves in an organic fashion from moment to moment while continually evolving.  Songs like Dulcinea, Holy Tears, and the finale Garden Of Light serve as high points in the record for me - managing to establish so much drama and tension, and climax in a way that is some how simultaneously beautiful and brutal.

While their latest record (Wavering Radiant) might arguably surpass Absence in its creativity and execution, it was this record that both introduced me to the band and made me reevaluate what it means to challenge myself creatively.

4. Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon (1973)

I bought a lot of shitty albums when I was 15.  There, I admit it.  If don’t agree to this statement you are probably either lying to yourself, or still 15.  And periods like often require something really special to break your out of that rut. Like so many other great records, I remember finding this album in my parents basement.  And while instantly recognizing the iconic cover, I was pretty much unfamiliar with the music.  I fell in love with it, and copied the record to a tape that I listened to endlessly for weeks.

Spending so much time listening to 2 minute songs played at blistering tempos had given me musical ADD, and this record cured that for me.  More than anything, I fell in love with David Gilmour’s guitar playing.  The way his leads seemed to soar over the music was astonishing at the time, and left a permanent impact in the way I play my instrument (not to mention leading to the beginning of my obsession with the Big Muff).

3. U2 - The Joshua Tree (1987)

Discovering this album was something that truly changed my life.  I can’t say exatly how old I was, maybe 6 or 7, but I have an extremely vivid memory of sitting on the couch in my parents living room, listening to this CD on headphones.  I had never known how much there could be to music.  It was as if until then, I heard songs, but never really comprehended how music can create an entire sonic landscape for the listener. It was that exact moment that I wanted to become a musician.

I still have a similar reaction whenever I listen to this album.  The depth and  textures are incredible, and the way the band is able to create such a vast, spatial image is astounding.  Not to mention the quality of the song writing on the album. The first side of the record is, in a word - perfect, and contains what I believe are the two best songs in U2’s entire catalog - Bullet The Blue Sky and Running to Stand Still. Years later, I still turn to this record for inspiration.  Specifically, in how The Edge, despite being the only guitarist, can step out of the picture structurally.  Some of the best moments of this record are made by letting the bass and drums play “the song,” while The Edge simply paints over the entire picture with subtle, delicate fragments of a guitar line.  I think this record is the reason I will be forever infatuated with digital delay.

2. Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (1970)

If you were to leaf through my record collection, I think a good chunk of  the music I own can have its roots traced to back to one album.  It’s impossible to mention some of my favorite bands like Sleep, Electric Wizard, Earth, Saint Vitus, Acid King, or even Iron Maiden, without acknowledging that every one of these great bands is in its own way, an homage to Black Sabbath.

As a guitar player, there’s really nothing better than a good riff.  And  Black Sabbath’s self-titled debut record is the blue-print for every great riff driven metal record ever.  Tony Iommi’s playing has had a huge impact on how I view the guitar as an instrument.  To this day, the opening eponymous track is one of the darkest,  most bad-ass pieces in rock history.  And while there are so many great records in the classic-era Black Sabbath’s discography (Master of Reality is probably their heaviest, and Paranoid is probably their most consistently classic), as far as sheer influence, it is their debut that stands alone for me.

1. The Beatles - Revolver (1966)

Like most fans of music, I grew up on a steady diet of The Beatles records.  And, like most Beatle fans, over any given span of months I might change my mind a handful of times as far as what record was my favorite.   Records like Help! showcased the band consistently producing perfectly crafted pop songs , while later albums like Sgt. Peppers and the eponymous “white album” demonstrated a level of progress that I think every musician (and music fan) admires.  But in the end, I always come back to Revolver.

And with good reason, too - it’s just a great record  The entire album shows The Beatles at what may arguably be their peak.  From its opening with classic such as Taxman and Eleanor Rigby, to its closing with one of their most innovative pieces ever (Tomorrow Never Knows), the songwriting is consistently great, and undoubtedly unique.  The record also contains what I feel might be the best songs written by Lennon / McCartney (respectively) - I’m Only Sleeping and For No One. This is one of those records that as a musician helps force you to push yourself to be better.

Welcome, welcome. Today marks the unveiling of the all-new BrokenFrequency.com 2.0 (beta). It’s been a few weeks in the making, and hopefully a bit easier on the eyes for everyone out there. It’s a bit bare at the moment, but we’re going to trying our best to add content as frequently as possible of the next few months. Seriously, we will.

But what’s even more important than that is the release of our brand new CD, a six song EP called “Breaking The Transmission“. Released by House United Records, the a few samples from the disc have been floating around on the internet for a while. If you’ve stopped by our MySpace or Facebook or any of our various other destinations across the Internet over the course of the past few months, you probably have heard a bit of it. Well, finally you can pick up a copy for yourself. We’re all very proud of this release and are excited to start getting copies out to our fans and getting some feedback. In fact, the new layouts for our MySpace page and BrokenFrequency.com are both inspired by the artwork for the record.

So, where can you get a copy? The best place for you to get a disc would be to come to a show! We’ll be playing this Thursday (December 18th, 2008) at The Trocadero Balcony in Philadelphia:

1003 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107
Cost: $10
Bednarik, Broken Frequency, Guns on the Run, and Death From Within.
All ages, 21+ with ID to drink.

We will be offering the disc online in digital format through some of the most popular online vendors - such as iTunes, Amazon, Napster, Rhapsody, and more.? And again, if you want a preview of the disc, check out our MySpace page to stream three songs from the album. You can also get a copy of the disc through mail by ordering it through the Broken Frequency online store.