With forgettable pop music coming from the likes of Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber undeservedly hogging the headlines in recent years, the hard rock music scene has ebbed from the high it enjoyed in the 80s to a few rare quality bands remaining today, like Velvet Revolver and Airbourne, and of course, Alter Bridge.

After Creed’s split in 2004, lead guitarist Mark Tremonti, bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips joined up with Myles Kennedy, previously of hard rock band The Mayfield Four to form Alter Bridge. Throughout Alter Bridge’s 6 years and 3 albums, they’ve been moving further and further away from their Creed origins and sound.

Alter Bridge’s guitarist, Tremonti, told The Pulse of Radio AB III would have “darker” lyrics, as well as a bit of “spontaneity” in it due to the shorter 6 weeks that they had to arrange the music before meeting their producer. Alter Bridge also revealed that AB III would be a “loose concept album”, with a connecting theme either in its lyrics or instrumentals. It definitely shows in the darker tone of the album, with the songs echoing the ‘loss of everything you thought to be exist’.

“Slip to the Void” opens the new album with a whispering Kennedy sounding out clearly in a background of a heavy synth melody mixed with gentle finger-picking guitars, contrasting magnificently with the thumping synth. Before long, the chorus smashes furiously through, like it’s washing away your expectations as Alter Bridge showcases their updated hard rock style.

“Ghost of Days Gone By” is another great, slower track that brings out the most in Kennedy’s versatile soft voice. It’s amazing how high the three-octave man can go, and to hold it there at that. It’s no wonder Slash invited him to collaborate on 2 songs for his self-titled debut solo album, Slash.

Unlike the rest of the track-list, there’s a remarkable self-restraint in not overdoing instrumentals, and “Ghost of Days Gone By” is unarguably the highlight song of the album, with Kennedy’s screaming of “I don’t wanna die!” sending shivers down the spine.

The guitar work by Tremonti and Kennedy in AB III is stellar as it has always been, with epic guitar solos in tracks like “Slip to the Void” and “Ghost of Days Gone By” that metal heads will be spending the next month trying to master. Kennedy’s also playing a lot more lead guitar in AB III than in their previous 2007 album Blackbird, a great thing since the multi-talented vocalist is also deft at playing guitar.

However, disregarding one or two gems (Ghost of Days Gone By, Slip to The Void) in AB III, the remainder 11-12 tracks are disappointing mashing instrumentals carelessly put together that won’t likely win any of their fans over to their new style. Despite Kennedy’s affirmation that they didn’t want to “alienate” longtime fans, with the heavier metal sound of AB III, and their moving into less mainstream territory, it’s something that’s bound to happen.

And it’s a change that’s been a long time coming.

Artiste: Alter Bridge
Album: AB III
Rating: ★★✩✩✩

Language: English
Genre: Hard Rock/Alternative Metal
Record Label: Roadrunner Records
Release Date: 8 October 2010

Track list:

  1. Slip to the Void
  2. Isolation
  3. Ghost of Days Gone By
  4. All Hope Is Gone
  5. Still Remains
  6. Make It Right
  7. Wonderful Life
  8. I Know It Hurts
  9. Show Me a Sign
  10. Fallout
  11. Breathe Again
  12. Coeur d’Alene
  13. Life Must Go On
  14. Words Darker Than Their Wings