Top Ten Releases of 2024/Year End Review

Black Angel's Top Ten Releases of 2024

10. Babylon A.D. - Rome Wasn't Built In A Day

Babylon AD’s glorious return to Perris Records wielded a no-nonsense foray back into the halls of 70’s Hard Rock where all you needed was a muscle car and a pretty girl on a Friday night to have a good time! If you like it fast and loud, look no further.

9. Cock Sparrer – Hand on Heart

I'm sad to say this will be the last full length effort from Cock Sparrer. However, I'm pleased knowing the band went out with a BANG! While the wild days of the band are long behind them, this album finds the band growing older and telling us all about it with heartfelt gratitude. 

8. Judas Priest – Invisible Shield

The Priest prove once again that they can still get it up and RIP out new Metal jams with the best of them. I’d be lying if said I didn’t miss Tipton and KK though, while the guitaring is there, it’s not quite the same tone wise. Halford is still the METAL GOD though and that’s all that matters!

7. FEAR – The Last Time

Another of the “Last”. The final outing of the band FEAR. This one screams of the early days of Punk Rock. Good to know that FEAR still like it dangerous. As a lifelong fan I really appreciate some of the band’s older tracks getting facelifts/proper recordings before the band hangs it up.

6. Jack Russell/Traci Gunns – Medusa

Sadly, this was to be Captain Jack’s last recording. While I find the pairing of Gunns and Russell a bit odd, it fits really well. Russell’s vocals are top-notch. He had a golden voice and I’ll always be sad that there won’t be any more new music from Mr. Russell. This album is a fun listen, I loved it! I'm dying for someone to press this on vinyl, it's a necessity.

5. Vain – Disintegrate Together

Davy Vain and his band of battle-tested road dogs whip up another exquisite piece of Vain history. Vain’s vocals seem to get stronger with every release and his song writing never fails to reach new heights. I’d love to have a release from the band every year, they’re just too talented and good not to do it!

4. Sign Of the Jackal – Heavy Metal Survivors

This is a hidden Heavy Metal Gem that rips and roars much like Hellion’s debut album did back in the day. It's unassuming and then you get your head rocked! This is a band that can only get better as time marches on. I’d love to see them hit the USA for a tour!

3. Mean Mistreater – Razor Wire

This is REAL Heavy Metal like I was raised on in the 80’s. Great production value and incredible musicianship considering the band self-released it. The songs are fun and addictive, I’ve been listening to this album daily for months and I haven't grown tired of it yet! Lizzy Borden said that we all need American Metal back in the day and Mean Mistreater remembered the call and was all to happy to oblige! If you want it HEAVY, this band weighs a fucking ton! Definitely a band to pay attention to and look out for in the future. Razor Wire is a timeless classic in the making.

2. Marilyn Manson – One Assassination Under God Vol 1.

For the first time that I can recall Manson writes from the heart and at times reveals his truest feelings. Manson opens Pandora's box and lets us into the mind and life of the real Brian Warner. If this is any indication of the direction Manson is heading, he'll be back on top in no time. One of his best efforts to date!

1. Riley’s L.A. Guns – Dark Horse

Steve Riley’s last ride and his final recordings. This album couldn’t have turned out better. Riley’s band mates really stepped up their game on this one. The song writing, lyrics and music is fantastic! I am disappointed by the lack of PR though, but that doesn’t hurt the album’s greatness. This album should be celebrated by any and all fans of Riley's work, he was a true musician and while humanly flawed as we all are, he always did right by his craft.

Black Angel's Honorable Mentions~

Six Feet Under – Killing for Revenge

Kerry King – From Hell I Rise

The Lurking Corpses – Lurking After Midnight

Bat - Under a Crooked Claw

Prophets Of Addiction – Face the Music

Now that we’ve shared our Top Ten Releases of 2024. I’d like to take a few moments to share my gratitude and shine a light on a few people that have been an integral part of the success of Black Angel Promotions this year. While the site was on a blog for a good part of the year and this glorious site hasn’t been fully functional the entire year, it’s still enough to warrant some admiration.

To my girl, Renee’, I could never repay the kindness, love and belief you’ve shared with me these past 34 years. You’ve spent thousands on my gear, hauled me everywhere and followed me to the ends of the earth, just because I asked you to... You’ve also spent hours critiquing my writing and giving me the business when it needed to be better. I couldn’t do any of this without you and I wouldn’t want to. Your blind faith knows no boundaries and for that I’ll forever be grateful, and I’ll continue to love you faithfully until my dying day.  

To my main man, TJ – thanks for coming back for another round of this madness! Your support, partnership and belief are essential to our success. You’ve worked tirelessly to insure there’s great content and you never bitched about it, you’ve only came up with more ideas and ways to get us over. We’re a long way from 300,000 clicks a week, but we’ll get there again. It’s about the journey and the joy you have while on the way…

To Josh, the webmaster guru with the heart of a lion and the soul of an old man – Thank you! When I asked you about building a real website, you all but dropped everything and came running so we could plan it out and get it up and going. The work you’ve done here is incredible and the crash course in how to update stuff has been nothing short of amazing! You’ve always been a big supporter of mine and I can’t thank you enough for joining me in this feast.
 
To Jimmy Tremor and the rest of the Tremors family. Thank you for having the faith in me to Reissue/Remaster your debut album Scourge of The South. It’s been an honor and a joy to work with a band that I admire so much on the first release for the label. It would’ve been at the top of my list of releases of the year, but you can’t get high off your own supply or something along those lines. Your professionalism and can-do attitude have been astonishing. I picked the right band to work with the first time out for sure. I’m quite proud of the CD and how we’ve approached it. I’ll always be grateful for the support, and I’ll always be a fan of the band. The Tremors is not only a Rockabilly band, but also a way of life!
 
To the labels, PR Reps and the bands that have sent Promos in for review consideration. I’m ever thankful and I sincerely look forward to working with you all more as we move forward into 2025. There are too many of you to name here, but you know who you are. I truly enjoy writing about new releases and helping to further your brands and help in every way that I can – it’s just good fun and we appreciate being a part of your continued success. 
 
To the bands/artists that made it into our Top Ten Releases of 2024 and the honorable mentions. Thank you for busting ass and giving it your all from the practice space to the studio then to the stage. You had one job and that was to Rock and that you did – we felt it and we loved every fucking minute of it.

To the people who’ve read, shared and commented on our reviews, or those who have purchased the Tremors CD, THANKS! We still have a few more CDS for sale, please share with your friends on your socials and things of that nature… We’re shipping next day, always! Physical Media while not super popular is still better than a streaming site any day of the week!

There’s a great deal more to come from the Black Angel Promotions machine. The 2^nd release for the label has been signed and we have all the necessary info to send out for the CD press. The signing will be announced in a few weeks. I’m playing for keeps, I want the excitement to last a little bit longer.

Pieces,

Andy – AKA Black Angel

“And as we drift along
I never fail to be astounded by
The things we'll do for promises
And a song” ~  Ronnie James Dio

~Black Angel