Alter Bridge, the hard rock band fronted by Myles Kennedy and former members of Creed (Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall and Scott Philips), has become one of the biggest bands in rock today. Founded in 2004, Alter Bridge initially had a hard time breaking away from the massive shadow cast by Creed (Creed had been probably the biggest band in America in 1999).
Following Creed’s public meltdown, Mark Tremonti and Scott Philips called their old friend Brian Marshall and got to work. Tremonti would bring in Kennedy after most of their debut record had already been written.
Their first record, One Day Remains was released on the same label Creed was on, Wind-Up Records. Wind-Up attempted to put Alter Bridge into the same box as Creed, a post grunge, spiritual rock band. Tremonti had alway been leaned more towards metal than Creed’s releases did. Kennedy was most famous for his time in alternative rock band, The Mayfield Four, but also had blues and jazz roots.
16 years later, the band is known for pushing limits on their records and their tremendous musical abilities – both Tremonti and Kennedy are top-tier guitar players. (Tremonti was named Guitar World’s Guitarist of The Year for 3 consecutive years in a row, while Kennedy won Loudwire’s Vocalist of the Year 3 consecutive years in a row as well from 2012-15).
As the Covid-19 shut downs continue, I find myself listening to Alter Bridge on a daily basis, so I decided to dive into their discography and pick out 7 underrated songs that have helped me get through these days.
#7 – Shed My Skin
“Shed My Skin” is off their debut record, One Day Remains. This song is deep within the first record coming in at number 10 out of 11. If you didn’t know any better, you would think that this is a Creed leftover, but Kennedy helps take this song to a new level.
Kennedy does a great job showcasing what he can do with his vocals. This song hasn’t gotten much live play on the most recent tours.
#6 – Burn It Down
“Burn It Down” is another song off the first record that doesn’t seem to get much love. It is a ballad song that showcases Kennedy’s lower register and breathy vocals. Most of the song is a simple sounding chord progression with very simple sounding drums and bass lines.
The second verse actually showcases one of my favorite moments in an Alter Bridge song where Kennedy belts “hard to tell my nights now from my days” (also appropriate for the lockdown days we are in). This song made its return to the band’s setlist on the first leg of the “Walk the Sky Tour” when Kennedy was sick and Tremonti took over on vocals.