Hard Rock 2000s Albums - Page 4

Dreams for the Daring layers tearful guitar, smooth high vocals and poised rhythm to draw melodic hard rock with real melancholy.

Human Zoo refines Gotthard’s hard-rock core through thick riffs, sticky groove and Steve Lee’s powerful voice.

No Regrets uses rough guitar, bouncing beat and spit-out vocals to make punk-leaning rock and roll.

Higher combines delicate melody, thick harmony and tight guitar riffing into refined hard rock.

HIM's fourth album, from April 2003. Ville Valo has called it the record on which the band found their sound.

A largely covers-based record made alongside the Hanoi Rocks reunion: thirteen songs taking in Eddie & The Hot Rods, X-Ray Spex and Leonard Cohen.

Arachnophobiac places Michael Schenker’s fluid lead guitar inside a sturdy hard-rock frame.

The Long Road uses distorted guitar, heavy beat and Chad Kroeger’s rough voice to make direct rock with large-scale choruses.

Gilbert Hotel lets Paul Gilbert fold his formidable guitar skill into short, welcoming songs rather than placing virtuosity above everything else.

The eighth Praying Mantis studio album, released by Pony Canyon on 19 March 2003 as PCCY-01636 — issued in Japan first, as this band's records had been through the 1990s. Ten songs.

Leave a Whisper combines heavy guitar, steady rhythm and Brent Smith’s powerful, emotional voice into melody-driven American rock.

The band's return after a three-year gap, recorded at House of Music Studios in Winterbach. Primal Fear's Ralf Scheepers sings backing vocals on "Finalizer".

Thickskin pushes Skid Row toward a rougher, heavier strain of hard rock built on cutting riffs and low-slung groove.

Cats and Dogs uses springing bass, crisp guitar and Jeff Scott Soto’s expressive voice to make tough but nimble hard rock.

The Darkness's debut album, released in the United Kingdom on 7 July 2003. It topped the UK chart and has sold over 1.4 million copies there alone.

The Wildhearts Must Be Destroyed packs short, sharp guitar, restless rhythm and twisted melody into concise songs.

A live album recorded in Carlisle, England and released by Angel Air Records in 2003. Its sixteen tracks set songs from the then-current Noises From the Cathouse beside the 1980s repertoire.

A studio album issued by Communique Records. The band's own discography dates it to 2003 and this page follows that; MusicBrainz says 2004. The edition on streaming services is the 2016 Angel Air reissue, which adds three bonus tracks.

Letter to God revisits XYZ’s glossy hard-rock instincts through more settled songwriting.

Overload is Anthem's ninth studio album, released on 9 October 2002. It is the second record made after the band reformed, and its title track was re-recorded in English for Nucleus in 2019.

1919 Eternal joins Zakk Wylde’s enormous guitar riffs with Black Label Society’s bluesy, shadowed sense of melody.

Turning Back layers soaring vocals, bright keyboards and lyrical guitar with great order and polish.

Bounce brings Bon Jovi’s anthemic writing into a more modern guitar sound while carrying a direct message of resilience.

X by DEF LEPPARD: track list, Spotify player and English liner notes on METAL BOOST.

Dio's ninth album, released by Spitfire on 21 May 2002, was its only one with guitarist Doug Aldrich and reached number 199 on the Billboard 200.

Long Way Home reunites Dokken’s strengths in melancholy melody, soaring choruses and precise guitar work.

Twelve Shots on the Rocks reignites Hanoi Rocks’ mix of punk roughness, glam-rock flash and street-rock ease.

II brings Hardline back to melodic hard rock with powerful vocals, thick choruses and firm guitar work.

Weight of the World combines Harem Scarem’s detailed harmonies, restrained guitar work and emotional melodies.

Prism by JEFF SCOTT SOTO: track list, Spotify player and English liner notes on METAL BOOST.

The ninth album. Its title is also the name of his publishing company, and comes from a Jimi Hendrix lyric.

The eighth L.A. Guns studio album, released by Spitfire Records in 2002 — the last studio record Tracii Guns played on before leaving. Ten songs.

Biosphere is the seventeenth Loudness album, released by Tokuma Japan Communications on 4 September 2002 — the third record by the reunited original line-up.

A six-track EP released only in Japan: two new songs plus live versions of four earlier ones.

Hammered was released on 9 April 2002. An official video was made for "Brave New World", and Victor issued the Japanese pressing on 22 May that year as VICP-61874.

Burning Organ is rooted in Paul Gilbert’s astonishing guitar ability, but it places the fun of the songs first.

Hollyweird pulls Poison back toward the energy of a real band, putting rawer guitar and catchy choruses ahead of excessive decoration.

The tenth album and the last of the Massacre years; months later the band's management collapsed and a long stall began.

Queens of the Stone Age's third album, out on 27 August 2002. Dave Grohl plays the drums, and the record is loosely framed as a drive out of Los Angeles into the desert.

Vapor Trails marks Rush's return after a long silence, built from the raw drive of guitar, bass and drums with almost no synthesizers.

Not 4 Sale lets Sammy Hagar move easily among hard rock, blues, funk and Caribbean-flavored grooves.

Stone Sour’s debut combines heavy guitar riffs, alternative-rock atmosphere and vocals that leave emotion exposed.

The Hellacopters' fifth album, released in 2002. Its red, white and black cloud-and-lightning design became the band's trademark.

UFO's sixteenth album, released in September 2002 and produced by Mike Varney and Steve Fontano, was Michael Schenker's last with the band.

Just Push Play brings digital textures and pop-minded hooks into Aerosmith’s blues-rooted framework.

Andrew W.K.'s debut album, issued by Island Records in November 2001. "Party Hard" and "She Is Beautiful" were taken from it as singles.

Seven Hills is Anthem's eighth studio album, released on 22 August 2001. It is the first record of the band's second era, restarted by Naoto Shibata nine years after the 1992 split on the condition that it be a band living in the present rather than a nostalgia act.

Sounding the Seventh Trumpet is Avenged Sevenfold’s debut, mixing hardcore urgency, melodic-death-metal guitar and classic-metal ambition.

Eyes of Darkness adds darker shades and stronger drama to Axxis’s clear melodic-hard-rock foundation.

Beautiful Creatures is a debut that blends L.A. hard-rock flash with punk roughness.

BLINDMAN combines intricate guitar phrasing with lyrical melody in a polished Japanese melodic-hard-rock record.

Time Bomb retains Buckcherry’s raw rock-and-roll charge while aiming for tighter, more urban hooks.

Here Comes the Flood is Dreamtide’s debut, built on flowing guitar lines and open, anthemic choruses.