An ongoing ranking and rating of my favorite albums of 2014. Items in bold are part of my personal CD collection.
THE TOP TEN
1. Emerson Hart ~ Beauty In Disrepair (10.2)
2. Big Wreck ~ Ghosts (10.2)
3. Rival Sons ~ Great Western Valkyrie (10.1)
4. Twin Atlantic ~ Great Divide (10.0)
5. Lonely The Brave ~ The Day’s War (9.8)
6. Anberlin ~ Lowborn (9.5)
7. The Pretty Reckless ~ Going To Hell (9.5)
8. The Glorious Sons ~ The Union (9.0)
9. The Wind + The Wave ~ From The Wreckage (9)
10. You Me At Six ~ Cavalier Youth (9)
THE REST: ALPHABETICAL BY RATING
21 Octayne ~ Into The Open (9)
Anubis Gate ~ Horizons (9)
Captain Black Beard ~ Before Plastic (9)
Evergrey ~ Hymns For The Broken (9)
In This Moment ~ Black Widow (9)
Little Eye ~ Fighting The Future (9)
Royal Blood ~ Royal Blood (8.8)
The Tea Party ~ The Ocean At The End (8.8)
Maverick ~ Quid Pro Quo (8.7)
The Trews ~ The Trews (8.6)
Ace Frehley ~ Space Invader (8)
Big Head Todd And The Monsters ~ Black Beehive (8.0)
Billy Idol ~ Kings & Queens Of The Underground (8)
Dynazty ~ Retanus (8)
Elbow ~ The Take Off And Landing Of Everything (8)
H.E.A.T ~ Tearing Down The Walls (8)
Iced Earth ~ Plagues Of Babylon (8)
Judas Priest ~ Redeamer Of Souls (8)
Linkin Park ~ The Hunting Party (8)
Sanctuary ~ The Year The Sun Died (8)
Starset ~ Transmissions (8)
The Struts ~ Everybody Wants (8)
The War On Drugs ~ Lost In The Dream (8)
Young The Giant ~ Mind Over Matter (8)
“Weird Al” Yankovic ~ Mandatory Fun (7.8)
Allen * Lande ~ The Great Divide (7.8)
Blues Pills ~ Blues Pills (7.8)
Unisonic ~ Light Of Dawn (7.6)
Angra ~ Secret Garden (7.5)
Nickelback ~ No Fixed Address (7.4)
Arion ~ Last Of Us (7.3)
State Of Salazar ~ All The Way (7.3)
Steel Panther ~ All You Can Eat (7.3)
Adrenaline Mob ~ Men Of Honor (7)
Black Stone Cherry ~ Magic Mountain (7)
Chevelle ~ La Gárgola (7)
Chris Robinson Brotherhood ~ Phosphorescent Harvest (7)
Coldplay ~ Ghost Stories (7)
Dragonforce ~ Maximum Overload (7)
Edguy ~ Space Police: Defenders Of The Crown (7)
Guano Apes ~ Offline (7)
HammerFall ~ (r)Evolution (7)
Jackson Browne ~ Standing In The Breach (7)
Kissin’ Dynamite ~ Megalomania (7)
L.R.S. ~ Down To The Core (7)
Lenny Kravitz ~ Strut (7)
Night Ranger ~ High Road (7)
Nightingale ~ Retribution (7)
Opeth ~ Pale Communion (7)
Pink Floyd ~ The Endless River (7)
Pixies ~ Indie Cindy (7)
Red Dragon Cartel ~ Red Dragon Cartel (7)
Spiders ~ Shake Electric (7)
Strand Of Oaks ~ Heal (7)
Triosphere ~ The Heart Of The Matter (7)
Within Temptation ~ Hydra (7)
Winger ~ Better Days Comin’ (6.8)
Freedom Call ~ Beyond (6.5)
Iron Savior ~ Rise Of The Hero (6.5)
Voyager ~ V (6.5)
Sammy Hagar With Vic Johnson ~ Lite Roast (6.3)
Audrey Horne ~ Pure Heavy (6)
California Breed ~ California Breed (6)
Chasing Verity ~ No Back Up Plan [EP] (6.0)
Flying Colors ~ Second Nature (6)
Flyleaf ~ Between The Stars (6)
Fozzy ~ Do You Wanna Start A War (6)
Gamma Ray ~ Empire Of The Undead (6)
Godsmack ~ 1000HP (6)
Mr. Big ~ …The Stories We Could Tell (6)
Rubicon Cross ~ Rubicon Cross (6)
Sebastian Bach ~ Give ‘Em Hell (6)
Sixx:A.M. ~ Modern Vintage (6)
Switchfoot ~ Fading West (6)
Tesla ~ Simplicity (6)
Theory Of A Deadman ~ Savages (6)
Threshold ~ For The Journey (6)
U2 ~ Songs Of Innocence (6)
Uriah Heep ~ Outsider (6.0)
Vandenberg’s MoonKings ~ MoonKings (6)
Work Of Art ~ Framework (6)
Yes ~ Heaven & Earth (6.0)
House Of Lords ~ Precious Metal (5.3)
Michael Schenker’s Temple Of Rock ~ Bridge The Gap (5.3)
Adrenaline Rush ~ Adrenaline Rush (5)
AdrianGale ~ Defiance(5)
Alestorm ~ Sunset On The Golden Age (5)
Timo Tolkki’s Avalon ~ Angels Of The Apocalypse (5)
Foo Fighters ~ Sonic Highways (5)
Harem Scarem ~ Thirteen (5)
In Search Of Sun ~ The World Is Yours (5)
Kix ~ Rock Your Face Off (5)
Lynch Mob ~ Sun Red Sun (5)
Saving Abel ~ Blood Stained Revolution (5)
Seether ~ Isolate And Medicate (5)
Skid Row ~ Rise Of The Damnation Army: United World Rebellion: Chapter Two [EP] (4.3)
Adelitas Way ~ Stuck (4)
Axel Rudi Pell ~ Into The Storm (4)
Quiet Riot ~ Number 10 (2.9)
CURRENTLY UNRATED
220 Volt ~ Walking In Starlight
AC/DC ~ Rock Or Bust
Accept ~ Blind Rage
Anathema ~ Distant Satellites
Animals As Leaders ~ The Joy Of Motion
The Black Keys ~ Turn Blue
Black Label Society ~ Catacombs Of The Black Vatican
The Contortionist ~ Language
Delain ~ The Human Condition
Exodus ~ Blood In Blood Out
Fuel ~ Puppet Strings
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band ~ Goin’ Home
Mike Lepond’s Silent Assassins ~ Mike Lepond’s Silent Assassins
Overkill ~ White Devil Armory
Primal Fear ~ Delivering The Black
Pvris ~ White Noise
Shaman’s Harvest ~ Smokin’ Hearts & Broken Guns
Ted Nugent ~ ShutUp&Jam!
Temperance ~ Temperance
Ten ~ Albion
The Treatment ~ Running With The Dogs
Vega ~ Stereo Messiah
Wolfmother ~ New Crown
Zodiac ~ Sonic Child
[Last updated: 2020.12.29]
ROCK IN A HARD PLACE 