AB III

Alter Bridge | Format: MP3 Music

Product Details

• Original Release Date: November 9, 2010
• Release Date: November 9, 2010
• Label: ALTER BRIDGE RECORDINGS
• Copyright: (C)2010 Alter Bridge Recordings
• Total Length: 1:13:41
• Genres:
  • Rock
• ASIN: B0047K7A8E
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,177 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A True Hard Rock Masterpiece \m/ October 12, 2010

By R. James

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Excitement and anticipation were the feelings just before I played this CD!
Alter Bridge deliver with full force here, the 3 year wait was worth it!
I read that this is a loose concept album of sorts. And believe me, there's 14 songs here,
but none of them tend to bore you half way through.

And after listening to this cd for 3 days straight now - in the car, Home, Office Radio.. & so on..
Below is my track-by-track review of this album.

01. Slip Into The Void - Myles starts off this dark mood setter with soft sung, creepy vocals, something unheard in previous albums. Soft guitar picking in the background begin to paint a picture and give you a taste of things to come! The Riff here reminds me of "Find The Real"... Only darker and more twisted!

02. Isolation - this is the albums First single, all round fast paced and heaviest song on the album. There's some good drumming here.. Around 2m 19sec, Tremonti breaks into a brilliant odd / even time signature speed metal riff! Totally takes you by surprise... and of course, its followed by Myles' guitar solo.

03. Ghost of Days Gone By - The intro to this song brought a big smile on my face.. its very up beat with an almost punk feel to it... again, different! & a sound that's reminiscent of Alter Bridge's ghost of days gone by . . . . . ;o) But around the 2m 21sec mark, the song takes a complete 180° dive into darkness, reminding us what ABIII is all about \m/

04. All Hope Is Gone - This song is a highlight... its got a very different sound than other AB songs. Big Riffs combined with Myles' more soulful vocals. Its probably got the best lead solo of the album.

05. Still Remains - This song is all MeTaL!... Its got a BIG Stop Start riff going with a few Mid Eastern elements in the beginning & end of the song.. Highlight here is the crazy chug chug riff around the 2m 40sec mark.

06. Make It Right - A very positive message in this song... Myles sings, "Only you can Make it right" This is a trademark AB track.. its got all the elements that make AB songs stand out and different from any other artists music. Big Chorus + Constant picking and a Good closing solo.

07. Wonderful Life - This is the ballad of ABIII and a possible second single. It will easily relate with anyone. Its up there with "In Loving Memory", "Watch Over You" & "Blackbird" I'd like to hear an acoustic version of this!

08. I Know It Hurts - Another heavy / fast paced song with a great ending solo. Reminds me of similar AB songs like "Metalingus" & "White Knuckles"

09. Show Me A Sign - Clocking in @ 5m 56sec, this is the longest track on ABIII. It has a Doomy feel to it and its mid tempo takes you back in time and seems to venture into Creed's Weathered ~ Human Clay territory... definitely not a bad thing! That funny saying truly fits here... "you cant make this $#!T Up!" ;o)

10. Fallout - Good Mid paced heavy track, which gives us a glimpse of Myles' Country / Blues Roots. its got a very anthemic Chorus and a sweet Solo by Tremonti.

11. Breathe Again - Really sweet song, its pure AB Style and on a similar pace as their songs "Down to my last" & "Before Tomorrow Comes" A good showcase of Myles dynamic range vocals.

12. Coeur D'Alene - A very smart thing Mark Tremonti does here, by filling in guitar parts while Myles sings. It makes the song sound very guitar driven! A very straight forward rocker with a sweet closing solo.

13. Life Must Go On - The moment I heard this song, the intro stuck in my head, cuz I knew I had heard it before, but just didn't remember where... Turns out Mark had played an acoustic version of it on his "The Sound & The Story" DVD, under the Alternate Tuning / Finger-style chapter. Its a beautiful mid paced track with a big chorus, definitely making it a worthy crowd sing-along-song! I like the way Mark plays the same intro towards the end of the song along with Myles Vocals, and the short sweet epic solo in the end. (My personal favorite song)

14. Words Darker Than Their Wings - This song is a duet of sorts, between Myles and Mark. Showcasing more of Mark's vocal skills, which is not a bad thing, because He's quite a capable singer in his own right. The song itself is done very differently though, its not just two individuals singing, rather its more like a conversation between the two. Its on the lines and pace of their epic "Blackbird" , it's got a very distinctive 12 string guitar tone and it couldn't be a better closing song. Myles takes his vocals here to their peak which for sure is the highlight of this song!

In closing I'd like to say,

If One Day Remains was a transformation for them from Creed to AB~
and Blackbird was all about shedding old skin and out with the new~
I'd say over all this album boasts just one thing... and that is progression!
They're not Stagnant, but Constant and innovative in their own unique style!

Hats off & a Personal Thank You to Alter Bridge for this offering.

PS. Still waiting for the 3 bonus tracks, probably will review those too when they become available ;o)

Update -

US Bonus#1 - Zero - this ones got a familiar riff to it.. reminded me of a song by 12Stones.. but how AB own it is amazing.. strong bass here and as usual, good solo by Mark. The song may be named Zero but definitely there's nothing Zero about it. Good addition to the album.

US Bonus#2 - Home - this song's similar to "Make It Right" & "Words Darker Than Their Wings" off the same album.. straight up rocker.. the reverb echo effect used in Myles voice makes the song sound epic..

Japan Bonus#1 - Never Born to Follow - This song is very different from anything AB have done, yes it's the typical AB sound, but has a very 90's feel to it with an almost dreamy hook.. the ooohhhs & whoaas are a give away! Almost sounds like something that Myles would have done when he was in Mayfield Four.. probably we will get to hear more of this on his upcoming solo. (My suggestion.. get the US version & just D/Load this song.. or get it off itunes.)

Pulling off a feat like this is not easy.. These guys recorded a total of 17 outstanding Rock Anthems for ABIII,
which is probably 3 tracks short of a Double Album.. in only 3 to 4 months ?

Songs here might not be breaking new ground,
but its an evolutionary growth process for the Band, to expand to the full potential of their sound.
Kudos & All The Best to the band members for their hard work!

Rock On \m/ \m/

UPDATE - Hey guys, I finally got my hands on the ABIII.5 CD/DVD Pack so I thought I'd just leave a quick update.. the album .. well.. nothing more to say than I've already said.. just a quick update on the One By One DVD, as it's mentioned in the Product description, its the Making of the ABIII album.. its not entirely.. its got Production manager interviews, Slash speaks about the band.. of course the band members themselves also talk about life on tour, good times and hardships.. how they bought their way out of Wind Up Records to Universal.. & then again from Universal to their own.. it does have a couple of songs from all three albums filmed at various live shows... the highlight definitely would be "Rise Today" featuring a guest appearance by Slash on guitar of course ;o) he just ripped through the song and his solo towards the end was just epic \m/ \m/ - you have to check it out for yourself to believe it! (poor Mark :p)

So.. in conclusion id like to say that either way, whether you get the standard edition.. or the import with this dvd.. its totally worth it.

P.S. - The new Slash album with Myles, & Mark Tremonti's Tremonti Project would definitely be on the top of my list to look forward to this year. Read more ›

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Myles Ahead of the Competition. (4.5 stars) October 18, 2010

By A. Estes

Format:Audio CD

While the Creed reunion has been good in that it has kept Scott Stapp busy enough to stop chucking Orangina bottles at women, it has also put the superior Alter Bridge on the backburner. Money talks, and when Mark Tremonti, Scott Philips and Brian Marshall stepped away from the band to relive their turn-of-the-century glory days, no one could blame them. Had it meant the end to Alter Bridge - a band that is getting progressively better and better with each album - then surely it would be a tragedy. No worries though, as the band has reconvened with frontman Myles Kennedy and producer Michael "Elvis" Baskette (who oversaw production for 2007's "Blackbird" as well) to craft their epic third effort, simply titled "AB III."

Upon first listen to the album's dark and moody opening track, "Slip to the Void," it is obvious that Alter Bridge is ready and willing to step into new territory. No longer confined by their other dayjob, Tremonti and company let loose all over the record. Although more restrained than the riff-heavy "Blackbird," "AB III" shows a band branching out and honing their craft to perfection. These three guys play off of each other so naturally that they might as well be sharing a brain at this point. That's not to say Kennedy is a slouch himself, though. Quite the contrary, it is the singer who drives the bulk of the album. Whereas album's past were led by Tremonti's riffage and the solid rhythm section of Philips and Marshall, this record truly belongs to Kennedy. As one of the most unique and soulful singers in rock music today, Kennedy has become perhaps one of the most underrated frontmen in recent memory.... His versatile voice, combined with the dark subject matter of songs like "Words Darker than Their Wings" makes this sprawling set a compelling listen.

If anything serves to slow "AB III" down, however, it's that the album is almost too jam-packed with songs like "I Know It Hurts" and "Show Me a Sign" which don't offer anything particularly fresh or exciting and only serve to slow down the pace of the record. Minor grievances aside, however, this is about as good as modern hard rock gets. If you are approaching this with prejudice because of Creed, perhaps nothing aside from the quality of the music itself can change your mind. Alter Bridge is everything a rock band should be nowadays; Progressive yet accessible and technically skilled song-writers who keep their music down to Earth. Not only are they outdoing themselves with each consecutive release, but they are putting quite a few of their contemporaries to shame in the process. It won't be long now before Creed has to live in Alter Bridge's shadow.

"AB III" is currently set for a November 9th release in the U.S. Read more ›

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Alter Bridge continues to impress! October 13, 2010

By Michael

Format:Audio CD

Alter Bridge deliver their highly anticipated third album and it is another quality heavy rock release filled with even more blazing solos and another killer performance from the best singer in rock. It seems that Alter Bridge have decided to take the heavy factor to the next level on this album with more riffs and solos from Tremonti whose playing seems to have improved yet again. The songs are dark and the album is long with 14 songs at over an hour providing a real album experience. Myles Kennedy is again in absolute top form with his soaring melodic vocals and poetic lyrics that help lift the songs to epic levels. Highlights include the inspired heaviness and hook of "Isolation", the amazing verses of "Ghost Of Days Gone By", the absolutely epic "Make It Right", the intense ballad "Wonderful Life", and the melodic vocals of "Life Must Go On". If you like what Alter Bridge have released in the past then you will love this album although I still think that Blackbird is their masterpiece.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Slip Into It!!! October 9, 2010

By Glenn O. Kirms

Format:Audio CD

Just getting this release yesterday, this is just one more killer release from the guys of Alter Bridge. Whether you like Creed or these guys, a matter of constant debate, Alter Bridge just rocks out. Once again, not a bad track on the album as in their previous two releases. I'm not sure about a standout track at this point in time because I haven't listened to it enough times yet. This album has a rougher edge than Creed and Tremonti does some incredible guitar work. While that was noticed on Creed's last release I think he stands out even more with Alter Bridge. So, if you love their previous two releases you will not be disappointed with this one. Strap yourself in and slip into track one, but wait, a slow beginning, but then it takes off and you'll be glad you went along for the ride. And the closer, "Words Darker Than Their Wings" would have to be the standout after a few more listens. Rivaling "Blackbird" in texture it's just a great song to close out this great release. Can't wait to get the bonus tracks off the US release in November.