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GUEST EDITOR

Best Of 2010, Guest Editors: Trans Am’s Nathan Means On Who’s Bluesier: Them Crooked Vultures Or Chickenfoot

As 2010 comes to an end, we are taking a look back at some of our favorite posts of the year by our guest editors.

Trans Am walks the same line between substance and style that its namesake car model did in its heyday. Often considered the leading light of the ’90s post-rock scene, the Maryland-based trio switches between big, loud rawk riffing and spacey, experimental ambience, sometimes within the same song. Trans Am gleans imagery and sounds from the synth- and vocoder-heavy music of decades past, but also informs its songs with a detached, millennial indie attitude. The group shifts gears from album to album, and this intellectual restlessness continues with the atmospheric, trippy Thing (Thrill Jockey). The LP should appeal both to new-school stoner-metal fans and the hippie oldheads at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, where Trans Am will be playing a free show on August 18. Nathan Means will also be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with the band.

Means: Chickenfoot come in with an edge over Them Crooked Vultures here simply because they are older and have experienced more heartache. Consider Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony. Although called “superstars” because of their time in Van Halen, these guys were always the doormats in the band. For most of their tenure, they were the two fellows in the band who last names weren’t Van Halen. Sammy always lived in David Lee Roth’s shadow, even though he was in the band for longer and they kept banging out multi-platinum records with him singing. Sammy could never match Diamond Dave’s insane personality or vocal chops. Worse: Michael was replaced by Eddie Van Halen’s teenage son on bass for the “original lineup” reunion shows. Then there’s Chad Smith, who always looks like a (unintentionally) more clueless Will Farrell. Chad is also the worst technician in his “famous band,” the Red Hot Chili Peppers, except when Anthony Kiedis is onstage. Meanwhile, Joe Satriani has had to spend most of his life playing to a bunch of guys who work at Guitar Center. The superstars in Chickenfoot all lead brutal lives, which lends a certain painful authenticity to their music. By contrast, Josh Homme and Dave Grohl wouldn’t know adversity if it bit them on their ass(es). They are mega-stars who remain soft and fresh, but without that vulnerability and spite for the world that makes Chickenfoot bluesier.

Videos after the jump.