Alter Bridge is one of my favorite bands ever and its an understatement to say that I was excited about The Last Hero. Their fourth album Alter Bridge is one of my favorite bands ever and its an understatement to say that I was excited about The Last Hero. Their fourth album Fortress was possibly their best album of their career and its probably one of my favorite albums ever. Alter Bridge shows with this effort that their music continues to evolve as time passes and they still never write a weak song. The Last Hero reminds me a bit of AB III in terms of content because it almost feels like a concept album. Several of the lyrics explain similar topics and revolve around heroes or leaders.



The album opens with the lead single Show Me a Leader, a song that blew me away on first listen but manages to improve with each listen following that. The song kicks off with an extended intro thats purpose is to engage you in the song and the album that follows. The lyrics are as relevant as ever in today's world and the chorus (which can be considered a strong point for singer Myles Kennedy's writing regardless of which band he is in) is one of the best Alter Bridge has ever done. Kennedy also does a lot of heavy lifting through the intro and solos. The powerful choruses continue through the next two tracks The Writing on the Wall and The Other Side with both songs standing out as some of the album's signature tracks. Hopefully both songs will eventually become cornerstones of the bands live sets. The Other Side can be described as epic, much like some of the songs on Fortress and some of the later tracks on The Last Hero.



The band then throws a change-up with My Champion, a lighthearted, radio friendly track that grew heavily on me when the band released it a month before the records release. The lyrics are very simple and remind me of Ghost of Days Gone By, a Alter Bridge song that proved to be a commercial success for the band. My Champion probably has some of the most personal lyrics on the record.



Poison In Your Veins is a display of aggressive optimism. The guitar playing of Mark Tremonti is very strong and steady and Kennedy sings over the music with very simple and motivational lyrics in a song that also has some potential to be a single later on.



Cradle to the Grave brings something new to the table that may remind fans of some of bands memorable tracks from past records like Blackbird with a slower tempo but a big and powerful chorus. The album does hit a rare hitch with Losing Paitence, a song that is good but it doesn't quite meet the quality of the excellent back half of the album. I feel like this may have been a better fit for a bonus track that doesn't interfere with the songs that are on a higher level. I wouldn't classify the song as filler, its just a slight downgrade and its probably the least memorable song on The Last Hero.



This Side of Fate brings us back to classic Alter Bridge and its a great addition to the band's catelogue. Its certainly one of the competitors for the best song on the album with several great riffs, an incredible solo from Tremonti and perhaps the strongest lyrics on the album.



You Will Be Remembered could be a huge radio hit for the band with a great sing along chorus that Kennedy uses to pay tribute to the veterans. I think Alter Bridge would be foolish to not release this song as their next single as I think it could potentially bring them success on the radio that they probably won't get with any other song on this album.



I found the last few songs on this album to be the time where Mark Tremonti really gets a chance to showcase his ability and it starts with Crows on a Wire. Tremonti seems to be throwing original riffs from left and right on this song and the lyrics return to politics once again. I enjoy Twilight a lot as well although several other reviewers consider it to be one of the weaker moments on the album I have come back to it a few times over several listens and find more to enjoy with it.



Island of Fools almost teases you with a light opening that launches into some of the heaviest riffing that Alter Bridge has over offered. It may be my favorite song on the record and the guitar stands out once again from Tremonti but this time Kennedy matches him on vocals with a song that is made for a live setting. I don't consider Alter Bridge to be a metal band but they were there with this track and it still manages to find its spot on this album and it fits as well and any other song.



I was expecting The Last Hero to be the icing on the cake like Fortress was on their last album. I don't think it is on the level with that song but I think its a very good way to end the album. It brings some closure to the hero subject that Myles Kennedy has brought up on many of the songs. Tremonti gives a few more magical and heavy riffs for good measure and Alter Bridge's fifth record comes to an end.



The Last Hero continues to build musically on Fortress with a more produced feel than any other album that the band has made to date. It keeps the band on a very high level but I think it is one of the weaker albums that have come from the band so far. It will certainly please fans and provide them with another 10 memorable songs. This album may have benefited from being a little shorter which hasn't really ever been a problem for Alter Bridge. Their past 3 albums have all been around 13 songs and I never found any of them to get stale like The Last Hero does around the mid section, but other than that I really can't say anything bad about this record. It will certainly be in my rotation for years to come despite one little flaw. … Expand