My Top 100 Favourite Songs 2010-14 Edition: #2

#2 “Bangarang” by Skrillex feat. Sirah

Released: 16/1/12

Album: Bangarang EP

If you would have told me five years ago that one of my favourite songs in recent years would have been a dubstep song I’d have laughed in your face. As a genre I don’t like dubstep but in my recent years, as explained a few times in this Top 100 listing, I have grown to appreciate certain dance  tracks due to going out clubbing a lot a couple of years ago. And this is as groovy to dance to as it gets. For a long time I didn’t know this was Skrillex in particular but that it was a dubstep track that got played in a remix in my local club all the time, usually fused in with “Be Faithful” by Fatman Scoop. I tried to find said remix on Youtube and couldn’t find it, and actually have attempted to do my own version of it on my computer with mixed to positive results. But the original, and that club remix I danced to many times over the years, has given me a huge appreciation for this song. Credit where it’s due, Skrillex has produced an incredible dubstep track here, and I can really see it being considered to be one of the best dance tracks of all time in years to come. It’s a heck of a banger.

Here's the video if you want to hear it!
  
If you missed #3 go here.

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My Top 100 Favourite Songs 2010-14 Edition: #28

#28. "Get Up!" – KoRn (feat. Skrillex)

Released: 6/5/11

Album: The Path of Totality

So my favourite single by KoRn in this five year period we’re covering is the first single off the experiment dubstep/metal album, The Path of Totality. I can’t believe this album is five years old now. Anyhoo, so while this was the first single off the album, it wasn’t the “main” single, that honour goes to “Narcissistic Cannibal” which you may remember got to #61 on this list. For me though, this is a far stronger song, not only does it sound heavier than “Narcissistic Cannibal”, but I also think the dubstep sounds better too. I’ve never personally understood why the other song was either promoted more, or “preferred” per se, but nevermind. If there’s one song in my opinion that you need to listen to when it comes to the very debatable dubstep/metal album by KoRn, it’s this one. I personally loved that album, but it’s really one of those things – you need to hear it yourself to make your own judgement on it.

Here's the video if you want to hear it!

 If you missed #29 go here.

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My Top 100 Favourite Songs 2010-14 Edition: #61

#61. “Narcissistic Cannibal" – KoRn (feat. Skrillex and Kill the Noise)

Released: 21/10/11

Album: The Path of Totality

If you like dubstep and you like metal, there's an album you MUST listen to if you haven't already, and that's "The Path of Totality" by KoRn. I'm not going to say you'll like it or you'll hate it, but either way it's an album that needs your attention because it's just so different from anything else out there at the moment. KoRn really made a groundbreaking album, for good or for bad that mixes to very different genres together and created a very interesting sound. If you're interested I did review the album on this site, you can read that here.

As for "Nacissistic Cannibal" this is a very good song to get your head around the general sound of the album. It's not my favourite on the album, but collaborating with Skrillex for the main single off the album made perfect sense for KoRn and the end result is a song that does its very hardest to incoorporate the two genres together. The chorus is very similar to a lot of other KoRn tracks but then you have some pretty sweet electronic solo music towards the end courtesy of Skrillex. It's a fine track in my opinion, but as I said it's not for everyone.

Here's the music video if you want to hear it!

If you missed #62 go here.

For the latest updates on my work, including all my latest radio shows, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

My Top 100 Favourite Songs 2010-14 Edition: #99

#99. “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites” – Skrillex

Released: 22/10/10

Album: Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites EP

For a long, long time I really disliked dubstep. And a large part of me still does. But there are select song in the genre that really make my ears perk. For the last few years I've developed a like for certain dance tracks. A few years back I went clubbing a lot, due to having a lot of spare time on my hands. Those times made me appreciate songs like this. It's a belter of a track in fairness and deserves to be played loud and proud.

Here's the song if you want to hear it!

If you missed #100 go here.

For the latest updates on my work, including all my latest radio shows, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

The Mercyside 100: #10 to #1

Welcome to the final part of The Mercyside 100. On Saturday at around midnight I posted the DJ show revealing the 10 songs I played more than any other in 2013.

You can listen to that DJ show here:

The Mercyside 100: #10 - #1 (24/2/14) by Johnny Mercyside on Mixcloud

But if you want to see the single/album artwork, or want to skip the show to find out The Top 10, here you go!

#10: Bangarang

Artist: Skrillex (feat. Sirah)

Album: Bangarang

Released: 2012

#9: Gentleman

Artist: PSY

Album: None

Released: 2013
Most played song of April 2013

#8: We Like Them Girls

Artist: Your Favourite Martian

Album: None

Released: 2012
Most played song of January 2013

#7: Back in the Saddle

Artist: Aerosmith

Album: Rocks

Released: 1976
Most played song of February 2013

#6: Get Low

Artist: Lil Jon

Album: Kings of Crunk

Released: 2002
Most played song of March 2013

#5: Blackout

Artist: Linkin Park

Album: A Thousand Suns

Released: 2010

#4: Thrift Shop

Artist: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

Album: The Heist

Released: 2012

#3: Linchpin

Artist: Fear Factory

Album: Digimortal

Released: 2013

#2: Speaking in Tongues

  
Artist: Eagles of Death Metal

Album: Peace Love Death Metal

Released: 2004

Okay... so... here we are... at the end. Before I reveal the most played song of 2013 in my personal media player, let's recap from #100 to #2...

• #100: Hey, Cruel World… - Marilyn Manson (Born Villain, 2012)
• #99: Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown - Rob Zombie (Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor, 2013)
• #98: My Curse - Killswitch Engage (As Daylight Dies, 2006)
• #97: Babylon - Skindred (Babylon, 2002)
• #96: Supremacy - Muse (The 2nd Law, 2012)
• #95: Ayo Technology - 50 Cent feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland (Curtis, 2007)
• #94: 212 (feat. Lazy Jay) - Azealia Banks (1991, 2012)
• #93: Right Now - PSY (PSYFIVE, 2010)
• #92: YYZ - Rush (Moving Pictures, 1981)
• #91: Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd (Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd, 1973)
• #90: Cities on Flame With Rock and Roll - Blue Oyster Cult (Blue Oyster Cult, 1972)
• #89: I Put a Spell on You - Screamin' Jay Hawkins (At Home With, 1956)
• #88: Verta Ja Lihaa - Turmion Katilot (Hoitovirhe, 2004) - Most Played Song November 2013
• #87: Get Up! (feat. Skrillex) - KoRn (The Path of Totality, 2011)
• #86: Low Hangin' Fruit - Tenacious D (Rize of the Fenix, 2012)
• #85: Children of the Grave - Black Sabbath (Master of Reality, 1971)
• #84: Holy Diver - Killswitch Engage (As Daylight Dies, 2006)
• #83: Drivel - The Union Underground (…An Education in Rebellion, 2000)
• #82: The Ritual - Saul Williams (The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!, 2007)
• #81: Tarantula (feat. Fresh) - Pendulum (Hold Your Colour, 2005)
• #80: Dracula - Basement Jaxx (2011)
• #79: Baby Got Back - Sir Mix-a-lot (Mack Daddy, 1992)
• #78: Sax Man (feat. Jack Black) - The Lonely Island (Incredibad, 2009)
• #77: Bom Bom - Sam and the Womp (2012)
• #76: Korea - PSY (2012)
• #75: Pussy Liquor - Rob Zombie (House of 1000 Corpses Soundtrack, 2003)
• #74: Pull Me Under - Dream Theater (Images and Words , 1992)
• #73: Vicarious - Tool (10,000 Days, 2006)
• #72: I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Disturbed (Asylum, 2010)
• #71: House of the Rising Sun - The Animals (The Animals, 1964)
• #70: My Wall (feat. Excision and Downlink) - KoRn (The Path of Totality, 2011)
• #69: Closer - Nine Inch Nails (The Downward Spiral, 1994)
• #68: I'm on a Boat (feat. T-Pain) - The Lonely Island (Incredibad, 2009)
• #67: Bad Girls - M.I.A. (Matangi, 2012)
• #66: Last Child - Aerosmith (Rocks, 1976)
• #65: White Limo - Foo Fighters (Wasting Light, 2011)
• #64: Fishfingers - The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster (Horse of the Dog, 2002)
• #63: Holy Wars... The Punishment Due - Megadeth (Rust in Peace, 1990)
• #62: Fukken Über Death Party - Hanzel und Gretyl (2012: Zwanzig Zwölf, 2008)
• #61: Jus' a Rascal - Dizzee Rascal (Boy in da Corner, 2004)
• #60: Death By Diamonds and Pearls - Band of Skulls (Baby Darling Doll Face Honey, 2010)
• #59: Slipping Away - Nine Inch Nails (Things Falling Apart, 2000)
• #58: Fire Like This - Hardknox (Hardknox, 1997)
• #57: Go Kindergarten (feat. Robyn) - The Lonely Island (The Wack Album, 2013)
• #56: Crying Lightning - Arctic Monkeys (Humbug, 2009)
• #55: Gold on the Ceiling - The Black Keys (El Camino, 2011)
• #54: Scentless Apprentice - Nirvana (In Utero, 1993)
• #53: People = Shit - Slipknot (Iowa, 2001)
• #52: Redneck - Lamb of God (Sacrament, 2006)
• #51: Sucked In - Jerk (When Pure is Defiled, 2003)
• #50: Pass Out - Tinie Tempah (Disc-Overy, 2009)
• #49: All Time Low - Nine Inch Nails (Hesitation Marks, 2013)
• #48: Low (feat. T-Pain) - Flo Rida (Mail on Sunday, 2007)
• #47: If I Had a Tail - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
• #46: Broken out in Love - (Mark Crozer and The Rels (2012)
• #45: Talk Dirty (feat. 2 Chainz) - Jason Derulo (Tattoos, 2013) - Most Played Song December 2013
• #44: Wretches and Kings - Linkin Park (A Thousand Suns, 2010)
• #43: Go Right Ahead - The Hives (Lex Hives, 2012)
• #42: Enough Space - Foo Fighters (The Colour and the Shape, 1997)
• #41: YOLO (feat. Adam Levine and Kendrick Lamar) - The Lonely Island (The Wack Album, 2013)
• #40: Bodies - Drowning Pool (Sinner, 2001)
• #39: The Great Destroyer - Nine Inch Nails (Year Zero, 2007) - Most Played Song August 2013
• #38: Figure it Out - Serj Tankian (Harakiri, 2012)
• #37: Elephant - Tame Impala (Lonerism, 2012)
• #36: Given Up - Linkin Park (Minutes to Midnight, 2007)
• #35: Salt in the Wounds - Pendulum (Immersion, 2010)
• #34: Gangnam Style - PSY (PSY 6 (Six Rules), Part 1, 2012)
• #33: I am the Warlock (with Jack Black) - Probot (Probot, 2004)
• #32: Hot Monkey Hot Ass (Remix) - Black Moustache (Unmade Beds Soundtrack, 2009)
• #31: Electric Worry - Clutch (From Beale Street to Oblivion, 2010)
• #30: Suit and Tie (feat. Jay-Z) - Justin Timberlake (20/20 Experience, 2013)
• #29: Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (Night Visions, 2012) - Most Played Song May 2013
• #28: The Vulture - Pendulum (Immersion, 2010)
• #27: Bassline Junkie - Dizzee Rascal (The Fifth, 2013)
• #26: Niggas in Paris - Jay-Z and Kanye West (Watch the Throne, 2011)
• #25: Structural Defect - Static-X (Machine, 2001)
• #24: Kalopsia (with Trent Reznor) - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
• #23: Night Street in Seoul (feat. YDG) - PSY (PSYFIVE, 2010)
• #22: Hey Man, Nice Shot - Filter (Short Bus, 1995)
• #21: Blurred Lines (feat. T.I., Pharrell Williams) - Robin Thicke (Blurred Lines, 2013) - Most Played Song July 2013
• #20: Panic Station - Muse (The 2nd Law, 2012)
• #19: Nobody to Love - Josh Homme and David Sardy (End of Watch Soundtrack, 2012)
• #18: Black Skinhead - Kanye West (Yeezus, 2013) - Most Played Song September 2013
• #17: Get to the Gone - Static-X (Machine, 2001)
• #16: Carry on My Wayward Son - Kansas (Leftoverture, 1976)
• #15: Church - T-Pain (Epiphany, 2007)
• #14: Came Back Haunted - Nine Inch Nails (Hesitation Marks, 2013) - Most Played Song June 2013
• #13: Smooth Sailing - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
• #12: Do I Wanna Know? - Arctic Monkeys (AM, 2013) - Most Played Song October 2013
• #11: Zerstoren - Rammstein (Rosenrot, 2005)
• #10: Bangarang (feat. Sirah) - Skrillex (Bangarang, 2012)
• #9: Gentleman - PSY (2013) - Most Played Song April 2013
• #8: We Like Them Girls - Your Favorite Martian (2012) - Most Played Song January 2013
• #7: Back in the Saddle - Aerosmith (Rocks, 1976) - Most Played Song February 2013
• #6: Get Low - Lil John (Kings of Crunk, 2002) - Most Played Song March 2013
• #5: Blackout - Linkin Park (A Thousand Suns, 2010)
• #4: Thrift Shop - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (The Heist, 2012)
• #3: Linchpin - Fear Factory (Digimortal, 2001)
• #2: Speaking in Tongues - Eagles of Death Metal (Peace Love Death Metal, 2004)

...so! The most played song on my personal media player last year was...

#1: Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole)

Artist: Rob Zombie

Album: Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor

Released: 2013

Such a great song. It's definitely been my favourite song to come out of 2013. It wasn't a single but I loved listening to this track since the first time it hit my ears. It's just awesome. I highly recommend you listen to it if you like groove metal, or Rob Zombie in general.

So there we go! After 7 weeks I've finally finished the list! I hope you've enjoyed reading, or listening, or both reading and listening to the 100 songs that shaped 2013 for me. Hopefully you've found some new stuff you've never heard before. Let me know if you have! It'll be great to know I've got you into something new.

Here's some statistics for you, if you're interested...

31 songs were not singles.
...which obviously means that 69 songs were singles!

Albums with Multiple Entries
A Thousand Suns - Linkin Park: #5 Blackout, #49 Wretches and Kings
As Daylight Dies - Killswitch Engage: #84 Holy Diver, #98 My Curse
Hesitation Marks - Nine Inch Nails: #14 Came Back Haunted, #49 All Time Low
Immersion - Pendulum: #28 The Vulture, #35 Salt in the Wounds
Incredibad - The Lonely Island: #68 I'm on a Boat, #78 Sax Man
Machine - Static-X: #17 Get to the Gone, #25 Structural Defect
PSYFIVE - PSY: #23 Night Street in Seoul, #93 Right Now
Rocks - Aerosmith: #7 Back in the Saddle, #66 Last Child
The 2nd Law - Muse: #20 Panic Station, #96 Supremacy
The Path of Totality - KoRn: #70 My Wall, #87 Get Up!
The Wack Album - The Lonely Island: #41 YOLO, #57 Go Kindergarten
Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor - Rob Zombie: #1 Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole), #99 Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown

...all the above had two entries. One album had three entries...

...Like Clockwork - The Queens of the Stone Age: #13 Smooth Sailing, #24 Kalopsia, #47 If I Had a Tail

...and "...Like Clockwork" was my favourite album of 2013, which makes sense.

Another interesting entry above is that The Lonely Island is the only artist with two albums with multiple entries.

Most Entries - Artists
2 Entries - Aerosmith, Arctic Monkeys, Dizzee Rascal, Foo Fighters, Jack Black (1 with Probot, 1 with Tenacious D), Jay-Z (1 with Kanye West, 1 with Justin Timberlake), Justin Timberlake (1 with 50 Cent, 1 solo), Kanye West, Killswitch Engage, KoRn, Muse, Skrillex (1 with KoRn, 1 solo)
3 Entries - Linkin Park, Pendulum, The Queens of the Stone Age, Rob Zombie, T-Pain (1 with Flo Rida, 1 with The Lonely Island, 1 solo)
4 Entries - The Lonely Island
5 Entries - Josh Homme (3 with The Queens of the Stone Age, 1 with Eagles of Death Metal, 1 solo), Nine Inch Nails, PSY
6 Entries:
Trent Reznor (5 with Nine Inch Nails, 1 with The Queens of the Stone Age)
8 Entries:
Dave Grohl (3 with The Queens of the Stone Age, 2 with Foo Fighters, 1 with Tenacious D, 1 with Probot, 1 with Nirvana)

I can't believe, technically, Dave Grohl appeared 8 times in this list! Very odd!

Here's some charts showing you how often songs appeared by the year, or decade...

Didn't think there was much point putting individual years until 2000.

Considering there were only 4 years in the 2010s so far, that's a lot of recent entries.

More songs were played from 2012 than 2013, which, when you think about it, makes some sense. Songs that were released in 2012 had at least a whole year of opportunity to get played, where as, say, Talk Dirty by Jason Derulo, only had from August to December to get played.

Okay, so that's the end of the list! Next week I'll be bringing back The Rock and Metal Double Feature Show, so if you have any requests in rock or metal genres of music, let me know! The show will be up at around midnight, Saturday 1st March! Take care!

The Mercyside 100: #10 to #1: 24/2/14
Track listing:
Bangarang (feat. Sirah) - Skrillex
Gentleman - PSY
We Like Them Girls - Your Favorite Martian
Back in the Saddle - Aerosmith
Get Low - Lil John
Blackout - Linkin Park
Thrift Shop - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
Linchpin - Fear Factory
Speaking in Tongues - Eagles of Death Metal
Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole) - Rob Zombie
Total running time: 01:10:13

See other parts of this listing!

#100 to #86 | #85 to #71 | #70 to #56 | #55 to #41 | #40 to #26 | #25 to #11 | #10 to #1

Other entries you might want to read:
Big News Regarding My DJing - Personal Blog
The Metal Hour Show (20/1/14) - DJ Show
My Top 50 Favourite Video Game Villains - Listing

For the latest updates on my work, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

Mercy Licks - March 2013

Hey there, and welcome to the third edition of my Mercy Links. This section is basically me revealing to you the ten songs I've been listening to the most every month. I did February last month and naturally that makes March next on the list.

So what are the Ten Mercy Licks of March 2013? Let's find out...

#10: "Thrift Shop" - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
This song was a sleeper with me. My brother told me to listen to it, I didn't like it. My friends started playing it, I still didn't think much of it. But it just kept being played in the background in my presence and eventually I caved in. I do like this song, it's very catchy and it sounds different to a lot of the hip hop around at the moment. It's a great track.

#9: "Elephant" - Tame Impala
I heard this on an advert and immediately sought out the song. Adverts are always a good source for decent songs that aren't immediately mainstream. It turned out this song wasn't a big hit when it came out in the first half of last year, and I seem like a minority in searching for the track beyond the advert, which is a shame, as it's a funky little psychedelic indie track. Give it a listen.

#8: "Figure it Out" - Serj Tankian
Serj's solo career away from System of a Down, while has never lacked in effort or quality, has for me and a lot of people been quite underwhelming. It's always hard for a solo career to outshine or even be just as good as a band career, but to be fair, it's even harder when that band is System of a Down, probably the most popular metal band of the last decade (although Slipknot may also claim that crown). But "Figure It Out" is a cracker of a track, and shows Serj has never left his SOAD roots, despite him changing his music direction quite a lot throughout his solo career. It really deserves a listen if you haven't heard it before, especially if you're a SOAD fan.

#7: "Low (feat. T-Pain)" - Flo Rida
I've always liked "Low", although I've never really liked admitting it. I've found myself playing it a lot recently for some reason, more than likely because it comes on a lot in the local club. It's just a really good RnB track, and man, I can't believe it's five years old now. That's a little weird.


#6: "Church" - T-Pain
Ladies and gentlemen! T-Pain makes the list twice, well, kinda. He wasn't the featured artist on the post above so I don't really consider him a double entry. Besides, this song is better than the one above, but chances are you haven't heard this track. I truly mean it when I say this is one of RnB's really great yet underrated tracks of the last decade. I really think you should give it a listen, if it's a genre of music you like chances are you'll really appreciate it.

#5: "Bangarang (feat. Sirah)" - Skrillex
Last Month: #2
And the first song to be featured in multiple months is "Bangarang" by Skrillex. I don't really know what to add to what I said last month, so all I'll say is that it's definitely not boring to play this track yet. It's still fricking awesome and I have it as my ringtone.

#4: "Linchpin" - Fear Factory

Last Month: #7
I predicted this would be featured in March and I was right. In fact, I played it more in March than I did in February. I do love this song a lot. It's just fantastic, and it's become one of my favourite ever industrial tracks. I don't know why I didn't pay more attention to it earlier; I had heard the song years ago!

#3: "Jus a Rascal" - Dizzee Rascal

It's funny. I also played "Bassline Junkie" a lot too, his newest track, which is pretty great I have to admit, but I recently rediscovered this song from his first album. It's probably my favourite Dizzee Rascal song but I had completely forgot about it, and how good it was too. If you're a fan of Dizzee and haven't heard this song, play it now, it sounds as fresh now as it did when it came out.

#2: "Niggas in Paris" - Jay-Z and Kanye West

For some reason, it took me ages to download this song, and since I have I have played it a shit load. It's just one of the best collaborations ever, but then again, Jay-Z has a habit of making great music with other music artists. And Kanye, musical talent wise, is great, even if he comes across as a total dick as a personality. Anyway, "Niggas in Paris" is just an incredible song, and one of the best songs to come out in 2011.

#1: "Get Low" - Lil Jon

Brrrrr-dum-dum... I love this song so much. And the bass is just so awesome on it when you turn it up. Not that that's the reason I've played it so much. I've just been hearing it a lot recently, and evidently played it even more at home. It was simply one of the best hip-hop songs of the last decade, and hasn't aged a bit. Whatever happened to Lil John anyway? He never stayed at the top for very long. This song is just a classic though. I love it.

So, that's a wrap for today. I hope you've enjoyed this list. Until next time, take care!

If you liked this article you might want to read:

• Mercy Licks - February 2013 - Listing
• Metal is Dead - Music Article
• Best of Industrial - Mixtape

For the latest updates on my work, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

Mercy Licks - February 2013

Hey there, and welcome to the second edition of my Mercy Links. This section is basically me revealing to you the ten songs I've been listening to the most every month. I did January last month and, while I'm a little late, I bring you February's ten songs now.

So what are the Ten Mercy Licks of February 2013? Let's find out...

#10: "Laid to Rest" - Lamb of God
You'll notice a theme with a lot of the songs in this list. And that theme is Guitar Hero. If it wasn't for Guitar Hero I would have never even thought about liking Lamb of God. I don't really like bands that shout from the bowels of fiery doom much, not when it's pretty much the only thing they do. But Lamb of God are one of the better bands in that bracket. And I do enjoy a couple of songs by the band. "Laid to Rest" is a pretty damn cool track.

#9: "Get to the Gone" - Static-X
I have been playing this a lot recently in general. I was surprised it didn't make last month's list. It's my favourite Static-X song and I have recently really been listening to a lot of Static-X. It's just so awesome, I love everything about it. I prefer it to the singles off the album, being "Cold" and "Black and White". If you like your industrial metal, seriously, give this track a listen.

#8: "Ayo Technology" - 50 Cent feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland
I had forgotten all about this track for years until my good friend reminded me. I really don't like 50 Cent. At all. He pisses me off big time and I really don't rate his music. But, naturally, working with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland, two of the better performers in RnB, brings the best out of Fiddy. It's a really catchy track and it's probably the best work 50 Cent will do, at least in my opinion.

#7: "Linchpin" - Fear Factory
I'm not a big Fear Factory fan to be honest. As industrial metal bands go they're not one that inspire me to rock out much. But "Linchpin" is totally badass. I really really like this song, so much that it may actually make the Top 10 in March as well. I have been playing it an incredible amount and to be honest, I'm not tiring of playing it yet. It's just awesome.

#6: "YYZ" - Rush
Here's a medley of Guitar Hero songs I've played a lot through the last month. The first being "YYZ", possibly one of the greatest instrumentals of all time, or at least I think so. I'd never really listened to Rush before I played Guitar Hero, and in honesty, I'm not a fan of the band but "YYZ" is just a piece of musical genius. It's funny as in some ways, it sounds a lot like the basis of Sonic music in the Megadrive era, yet ten years before. Just give it a listen if you haven't before.

#5: "Carry on My Wayward Son" - Kansas
As I said, this is a Guitar Hero medley of songs I've been playing a lot recently, but you could also put in a huge assist to Supernatural for this one. Most people nowadays think of Supernatural when it comes to this song anyways, and I have been watching the series a lot recently. I've always appreciated "Carry on My Wayward Son" because the guitar riff is so awesome, in honesty hair metal isn't my thing and it took me a while to like the rest of the song, but I really do now. It's a cracker of a track and love putting it on.

#4: "Free Bird" - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Man, what a song "Free Bird" is. It's just one of the best classic rock songs of all time. And it has to be played in the full nine minute version, no shortcuts. I recently saw "The Devil's Rejects" and the scene in the film that has "Free Bird" in it is used to perfection. The song just has an attachment to pop culture that will never fade, as far as I'm concerned. And of course, I love playing it on Guitar Hero, it's just great.

#3: "YOLO (feat. Adam Levine and Kendrick Lamar)" - Lonely Island

It's funny that this is the third most played song on this list as I'm actually a little underwhelmed by the new Lonely Island track. This is the first single off the new album coming out soon, their third album, but when you compare this track to the promoting singles off the other two albums, namely "I Just Had Sex" and "Jizz in my Pants", it just doesn't compare in comedy value and music quality. But it's still quite good, and the video is pretty funny too. The best thing about "YOLO" is simply, that it means we're getting a new Lonely Island album which is fantastic news.

#2: "Bangarang (feat. Sirah)" - Skrillex

There were two songs that flew away with the amount of times I played them, and this marginally lost out on the top spot. Bare with me here. You may remember me saying I really don't like dubstep, nor do I really listen to chart music or popular music. But I have been going to clubs a lot more recently and this kept on coming on, and I loved dancing to it. I never knew it was Skrillex, nor what it was called for months. I kept asking my friends but, well, how can you describe a dubstep track in sound without making a lot of "bwa bwa bwub bwub" noises? Exactly. So I finally found this track and I just love it. Fair play to Skrillex, despite me really disliking him, I now like two of his songs. Ah well.

#1: "Back in the Saddle" - Aerosmith

Unlike the other tracks on this list that have appeared in Guitar Hero games, this entry isn't really because of the game. It's actually because of Supernatural. The song came on when I was watching series 6 and I forgot how absolutely badass it is. It's by far my favourite Aerosmith song. "Carry On My Wayward Son" appeared on this list because of Guitar Hero, this appeared beause of Supernatural. But you can say I've definitely had my fill of Guitar Hero and Supernatural this month and that's what makes this list what it is.

So, that's a wrap for today. I hope you've enjoyed this list. Until next time, take care!

If you liked this article you might want to read:

• Mercy Licks - January 2013 - Listing
• Metal is Dead - Music Article
• The Rise and Fall of Guitar Hero - Game Article

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