Treat - "Roar"

Ready to roar, ready or not, ready to give it all I've got, gotta live to win, get up, get out, get even

Rating: 5/10

The Song: Roar is a fairly average rock song. It's not the greatest, but it has one amazing quality, the chorus makes the most amazing introduction music. If you need an epic song for someone coming on stage or something, this is your song. It is very catchy and just has this quality that is hard to describe that makes it perfect for epicness in the right situation. This song is also the main theme of Facebook app game "Monster Galaxy".
The Album: Coup de Grace is the most recent album by Treat being released in 2010 and one of their most successful albums.
The Band: Treat is a Sweedish hard rock band formed in 1981. They had minimal success and eventually broke up in 1993, however in 2005, their compilation album, Weapon of Choice, sold surprisingly well leading to a reformation of the band in 2006. They played at several festivals and release Coup de Grace in 2010 which was a major success leading to their first world tour since the 1980s.

Tiesto & Wolfgang Gartner feat. Luciana - "We Own The Night"

k-k-keep shining -ke-keep shining with desire

Rating: 6/10

Skating up in here with some space-age synths, Dutch disk-jockey Tiesto starts off this solid tune with a silky dance beat. Then, you're drawn back in by a rising bass and light keyboard sounds, which are finished off by the saturated vocals. This collaboration was definitely a success and, as stated by award-winning house producer Wolfgang Gartner: "I think 'We Own The Night is destined to be a classic. We were already happy with the musical part, but something special happened when Luciana came into the project and put her vocal touch on it. The only way I can describe it is...magic. I can honestly say this song is my favorite of all the collaborations I've ever done." Together, this trios soaring vocals and strong synth jabs only add to that massive unce when you pump up the bass.

Muse - "Unnatural Selection"

counterbalance is commotion we're not droplets in the ocean

Rating: 7/10

In 2009, the English alternative band Muse came out with their fifth studio album, Resistance. Among these new-prog songs, is "Unnatural Selection". It, along with much of Muse's music, has a great bass line. The track goes between fast and slow paces that makes it fun and interesting. The instrumentals in the song are brilliant and mix well with Matthew Bellamy's smooth voice. I'll admit, the first times I heard Muse I was not a fan; but the more I listened, I realized how amazing this band is.

Dio - "Rock 'n' Roll Children"

She was meant to be wild He was nearly a child But they only could feel each other

Rating: 6/10

The Song: This song used to be one of my favorite songs but I don't like it as much anymore. It is a story of two children who are very similar and are meant for each other, but at the same time are very different. It is really nice song but is isn't anything particularly amazing.
The Album: Sacred Heart is the Dio's third studio album and is one of their most known albums.
The Band: Dio was a band lead by former Black Sabbath lead vocalist Ronnie James Dio, they released 10 studio albums from 1982-2010. They had many lineup changes over the year with Ronnie James Dio being the only constant member. It dissolved in 2010 when Ronnie James Dio dies of stomach cancer.

Hollywood Undead - "Been to Hell" (explicit)

now you're in the world of wolves and we welcome all you sheep

Rating: 6/10

The band Hollywood Undead started out with their first album in 2008. They came out wearing masks and using stage names, but as time passed they revealed their real identities. All six members of the band provide vocals in a rapping style and one of them records the clean vocals. In 2010, clean vocalist Deuce was kicked out of the band and Danny Murillo joined and replaced him. American Tragedy was the first album released using his vocals and the first on which they used synthesizers. In my personal opinion, Deuce's voice fits the band better most of the time; however, many people enjoy Danny's more. "Been to Hell" is one of the best songs on the album with Danny's voice actually fitting the song and J-Dog, Johnny 3 Tears, and Charlie Scene providing great rap parts. The music behind it all is dark in a way that matches the lyrics and has an awesome rock beat. I really like the song, but Hollywood Undead is definitely not for everyone with their angry and explicit music.

Metallica - "Fade to Black"

Life it seems, will fade away, Drifting further every day.

Rating: 8/10

The Song: Fade to Black is a heavy metal ballad with an absolutely stunning acoustic intro. It starts off very slow but speeds up more and more as the song progresses. It has been stated in interviews, and it is very clear from the lyrics that it is a song about suicide, when the song was written, the band was going through a rough time, their gear had just been stolen, and we had been thrown out of our manager's house.
The Album: Ride the Lightning is, in my opinion, the best Metallica album, it was their second studio album and was released in 1984. I has many of my favorite Metallica songs such as Ride the Lightning, Creeping Death, Fade to Black, and the instrumental Call of Ktulu.
The Band: Metallica is one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time. They have released 9 studio albums to date with the most recent one being Death Magnetic in 2006. They were formed in 1981 and released their first, self titled, album in 1963.

Stone Temple Pilots - "Out of Time"

longing is the animal inside you when you bleed suffering is critical in finding what you need

Rating: 7/10

In February this year, the Stone Temple Pilots fired their vocalist of over 20 years, Scott Weiland. Last night, STP played at KROQ's annual weenie roast with a surprise appearance of Chester Bennington as the lead singer. The same day they released their new song "Out Of Time" with Bennington singing. The Linkin Park vocalist had been looking up to STP since he was a kid and being able to join their band is a great opportunity for him. The band had been talking about going back to the style of their first album Core and they did with this song. It is fast, fun, and full of energy. Bennington is not Weiland, but the band didn't choose him for nothing; he does a fantastic job in making the song what it is. The track is great and I can't wait to see what else the new STP comes up with.

Dead By Sunrise - "Walking In Circles"

walking in circles now, do not disturb, scream in silence, everyone's sleeping

Rating: 7/10

When vocalist Chester Bennington began writing songs that didn't fit the Linkin Park style, he started a side project on his own until friend Ryan Shuck of Julien-K heard his demos and decided to join in. Chester collaborated with Julien-K to form Dead By Sunrise and they released their album Out Of Ashes on October 13, 2009. Many of the songs were written by Chester in a dark period of his life and it was like he was stepping out from that with a renewed sense of life; hence the album title. The music and lyrics create a dull, heavy mood with a beautiful harmony. The vocals, once again, are wonderfully done by Chester capturing the overall feel of the song. With a little bit of electronic added to the more traditional rock, this track is a good example of the Bennington take on Julien-K.

Archetek + Diggabeatz - "Revenants" (Free Download)

Rating: 8/10

Archetek is mashing up some incredibly stylish tunes over here. Revenants takes you on a journey, where growling, almost bubbly bass lines draw out your fantastical landscape, and high synths dabble in the flora and fauna. The rare two-step pattern is accentuated by Diggabeats's glitch sounds, which bring together this energetic track. I've been following Archetek for a while, but this track really exemplifies the atmospheric, and yet danceable selection he produces. Looking forward to more.
Download Here

Julien-K - "Forever"

Carry on...it's not like life's this crushing nightmare

Rating: 5/10

Julien-K came out with their debut album, Death To Analog in 2009. The band started as an electronic side project for Orgy band members, Ryan Shuck and Amir Derakh. As two more guys joined, Julien-K became more than a small project so Ryan and Amir left Orgy to focus on their new band. Their music has a rock edge brought over from their previous style, but is primarily an electronic sound. The music in the track is catchy and light with a heavier beat. Ryan provides smooth vocals with a high range fitting to the song. It is somewhat slow, but quite fascinating.

Rhapsody - Emerald Sword

For the glory the power to win the black lord, I will search for the emerald sword.

Rating: 8/10

The Song: Rhapsody as a band and Emerald Sword as a song are basically the quintessential symphonic power metal and in that way is it totally awesome. Although it is totally awesome it also shows some of the flaws with the genre such as the lyrics being very hard to understand.
The Album: Symphony of Enchanted Lands is the second album in a series of five albums telling a high fantasy story about the Ice Warrior who must search for the legendary Emerald Sword to defeat the dark lord Akron.
The Band: Rhapsody, now known as Rhapsody of Fire is a metal band known for being the pioneers of the symphonic/power metal genre, what they call Hollywood Metal due to it's resemblance to film scores. They released 9 studio albums and 1 live album with the original members. In 2011 the band split, on good terms, into two separate bands, Luca Turilli's Rhapsody lead by lead singer Luca Turilli and bassist Patrice Guers, and Rhapsody of Fire with the remaining members.

Grey Daze - "What's In the Eye?"

What's in the eye that I cannot catch? Is it me? I want to know why it's so hard to let go.

Rating: 5/10

Even if you have never heard of the band before, you may recognize the vocals. Before Chester Bennington joined Linkin Park in 1999, he and friend Sean Dowdell formed the post-grunge band Grey Daze. Although they hardly lasted five years, their music was not bad. Their first album, Wake Me, came out in 1994 with "What's In the Eye" being the first track. The song has a good beat and soothing music to go along with the verses until it builds up to the harder chorus. It gets a little redundant and can seem boring at times, but (and I suppose I am a bit biased) the vocals in the song are amazing. Chester has a fantastic voice with the ability to sound beautiful on softer parts and equally great on rougher parts with more harsh vocals. Some of the chorus seems a little difficult to decipher, but one does not hear many voices more skilled than that of Chester Bennington, even in his grunge days.

Bad Company - "Shooting Star"

Don't you know that you are a shooting star, and all the world will love you just as long, as long as you are.

Rating: 6/10

The Song: Shooting Star is a story driven song about a boy who becomes a rock star, however, it also explores the darker side of the rock and roll life as the boy in the end, due to the excess of the rock and roll lifestyle he dies of a drug overdose. According to the band's lead singer, it is a warning about the dangers of the rock and roll lifestyle.
The Album: Straight Shooter is the second album by English rock group Bad Company. Released in 1975, It contained 8 tracks and there were 2 singles released from it.
The Band: Bad Company is an English rock group who were active in three separate periods, this song is from the first period, 1973-1982. They also operated from 1986-2002, and from 2008-present.

Hoodie Allen feat. Kina Grannis - "Make It Home"

I wanna go where the lights are low and the dreamers are chasing...

Rating: 7/10

Hoodie Allen has been rocking over smooth hiphop beats since 2009, but this time he's gone for an acoustic sound, which plays out very well on this new track. The lyrics move a little off the beat, but they're brought back by the rising chorus, and it all comes back in one fell swoop. While maintaining his trademark tumbling flow. Hoodie is able to dip into some of the struggles in personal dreams. The music stands on it's own, but this song is made by the contrast of the empowering vocals and the soothing melody. Definitely a strong contestant in my playlist.

Hedley - "Invincible"

I found the strength inside to see found the better part of me and I'll never let it go

Rating: 6/10

Hedley is a pop-rock band from Vancouver, Canada. Like many bands, they started as a rock band (even classified as punk by some), but as time passed they produced much more of a generic pop sound. However, despite the change in style, their music is still original and the lyrics are still good and have more meaning than some of the popular music of today. Their album Storms came out in Canada on November 8, 2011 and has yet to be released outside their home country. Much of the album was inspired by the bassist Tom MacDonald's fight against cancer. The song "Invincible" in particular was also written about a time when front man Jacob Hoggard looked at his life and did not like what fame had turned him into. The song is incredibly beautiful and uplifting; I remember seeing it played live and acoustic was one of the best moments of my life.