Top 5 On Friday – My 5 favorite bands that only released 2 albums
Welcome back to another Top 5 On Friday! This week, I will cover my top five favorite riff rock bands that only released two full length albums. In most of these cases, tragedy struck and a band member passed away, which ultimately led the band to break up. After researching the band list for this post, it was quite difficult to narrow it down. My number one and two picks were solid but the order could flip flop depending on the day. The other choices proved to be difficult to decipher also. Some of my choices could be substituted out with other bands but I decided to keep this list as intended. I narrowed it down to two full length albums only and not count EPs and compilations. I also tried to keep the choices within the last thirty years or so and nothing super old, for convenience sake. I’m sure I forgot a bunch of bands that fit the criteria but that’s how it goes. I would love to hear your choices. Comments are always welcome and thanks for reading.
5. THE SKULL
The Skull was founded in 2012 from three former members of the Chicago doom metal band Trouble. The band recorded two full length albums for Tee Pee Records. In 2014, The Skull released their debut album For Those Which Are Asleep and in 2018, The Endless Road Turns Black. Sadly, on August 22nd 2021, lead vocalist Eric Wagner passed away after being hospitalized from pneumonia due to Covid. They were definitely one of my favorite doom metal bands that wrote excellent songs. The music was heavy and not too slow and repetitive, and was accentuated with Eric Wagner’s beautiful voice. His death left a huge hole in the hearts of many and his former band mates put together a new band to honor his legacy. Legions Of Doom was born and just released their debut album, The Skull 3 (review here), on September 13th 2024. The band features three former members of The Skull, Ron Holzner on bass, Lothar Keller on guitars, and Henry Vasquez on drums.
https://teepeerecords.com/pages/the-skull
https://the-skull.bandcamp.com/album/for-those-which-are-asleep
https://the-skull.bandcamp.com/album/the-endless-road-turns-dark
4. HACKMAN
Hackman was a Boston based trio that consisted of: Darryl Sheppard (Kind, Milligram) on guitars, Jase Forney on bass, and Todd Bowman on drums. Both Forney and Bowman played in Boston’s boogie rock band Lamont. Drummer Bowman left after the first album and was replaced with Owen. Hackman was all about the riffs. Imagine if Karma To Burn included a more doom approach to their songwriting. You would be close but there was more to it than that. Mostly instrumental, with occasional sludge vocals from Sheppard, Hackman released two albums on Small Stone Records. Their debut, 2007’s The New Normal and 2008’s Enterprises are both excellent! I got to see the band play live opening for New Jersey’s finest Solace, years ago. They were awesome and devastating! The band came at the right time for me because Karma To Burn (article here) were on their hiatus at that time, and Hackman quenched my thirst for the heavy instrumental riff rock.
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/the-new-normal
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/enterprises
3. NOVADRIVER
Novadriver was a stoner/ psychedelic rock band from Detroit, Michigan. The band was active between the years 2001-2005. Novadriver consisted of: Mark Miers on vocals and keyboards, Billy Reedy on guitars, Eric Miller on drums, James B. Anders on bass, and Eli Ruhr on guitars. The band released two albums on Small Stone Records, 2001’s Void and 2005’s Deeper High. Tragedy struck just before the release of Deeper High, when bassist and main songwriter James B. Anders died unexpectedly from a heart attack. The band tried to carry on but failed to make it work. Novadriver had a 70’s hard rock sound with some spacy/ psychedelic sounds mixed in. I enjoyed both of their releases a lot and thought the band had a promising future ahead of them. I still revisit their recordings from time to time.
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/void
https://smallstone.bandcamp.com/album/deeper-high
2. ACID BATH
When The Kite String Pops came out in early 1994 and was such a fantastic and unique album. Acid Bath from Louisiana, was one of most influential sludge metal bands, combining elements of death metal, doom, hardcore, blues, gothic, and southern rock, to create a very original and unique sound. Their second album, 1996’s Paegan Terrorism Tactics was incredible also! The lineup was: Dax Riggs on vocals, Audie Pitre on bass and backing vocals, Sammy Duet on guitar and backing vocals, Mike Sanchez on guitar, and Jimmy Kyle on drums. Tragically, bassist and main songwriter Audie Pitre, along with his family, was killed in an automobile accident on January 23rd, 1997. The band broke up shortly afterwards. Acid Bath was a huge influence on many bands that exist today and no one has come close to doing what they did back then. The music has stood the test of time and still sounds devastating today. Acid Bath is still one of my all time favorite bands.
1. ONLY LIVING WITNESS
I first heard Only Living Witness back in 1990 when I bought their four song Self Titled demo cassette at a local record store. I have been a big fan of the Boston based band ever since. When their debut album, 1993’s Prone Mortal Form came out, I was completely blown away! It still sounds fantastic to this day and I still listen to it often. The follow up, 1996’s Innocents is equally amazing! I was lucky enough to see the band live on many occasions between ‘92-‘96 and a reunion show in 2008. No other band has had the lasting power like OLW has had on me, to this degree. I can easily rank this band as one of my favorites of all time. The classic lineup consisted of: Jonah Jenkins on vocals, Craig Silverman on guitar, Chris Crowley on bass, and Eric Stevenson on drums. Sadly, drummer and chief songwriter Eric Stevenson passed away on August 9th, 2001 from a lengthy battle with melanoma. Considered a metal band, OLW appealed to hardcore and rock music fans alike. Their impact on the music world is forever lasting. The band just repressed both albums on vinyl and is available here.
