A look back through Wrestlemania - from the worst to the best...

So the season of Wrestlemania is almost upon us. The big event of the wrestling calendar is approaching its 33rd instalment so I thought it'd be a good time to use the blog to take a look back at the other 32 and rank them in order from worst to best. Some of this may be controversial but hey, each to their own opinion. Anyway, let's get this thing going shall we?...

NB - I actually started this article a year ago in the run up to Wrestlemania 32 but didn't finish it in time so I've kind of kept it in storage until now. Luckily the intervening year hasn't changed my opinion too much...

THE BOTTOM TIER
Vince, What Were You Thinking?

32. WRESTLEMANIA 9 (1993)

Do I really have to go into details here? Basically, this was the year that was supposed to see the post-Hogan generation of wrestlers finally break out and come into their own...only for Hulk to return a month prior and squash everyone back down the card. But it's not just the fact that the main event here (Bret Hart loses the title to a very green Yokozuna who then gets squashed by Hogan in 20 seconds flat) left a very bad taste, it's the fact that 75% of the matches on this card flat-out sucked. If I have to pick a highlight, I'd go for the Steiner Brothers vs the Headshrinkers. Maybe at a stretch Shawn Michaels vs Tatanka (although at 18 minutes it's way too long for its own good) or Lex Luger vs Mr Perfect (despite a screwy ending) but one half-decent and two just about watchable matches is pretty damn poor for the big event of the year.

31. WRESTLEMANIA 32 (2016)

Just an absolute mess from start to finish, WM32 really did sum up everything that was wrong with WWE's booking in 2015-16. The main event of Roman Reigns vs Triple H was a real endurance test with the crowd simply not caring who won, Dean Ambrose and Brock Lesnar proved that PG street fights really don't work and even the better matches such as AJ Styles vs Chris Jericho and the Divas triple threat were spoiled by the wrong wrestler going over (if you believe the rumours, to ensure Reigns would get a pop when he won the title at the end. Which, erm, very much didn't happen). And at a mind-melting six hours, it makes Japanese water torture seem like a fun option by comparison.

30. WRESTLEMANIA 11 (1995)

WWF were in the doldrums financially and creatively at this point and boy did WM11 bear that out. The title match between Shawn Michaels and Diesel is probably the pick of the bunch here but it wasn't even the main event! That "honour" went to a match between Bam Bam Bigelow and NFL star Lawrence Taylor which well and truly sucked the meat missile. Beyond that, the IC title match between Razor Ramon and Jeff Jarrett is at least watchable (although the screwy DQ ending takes quite a bit away from it) and it's nice to see Owen Hart win his first gold in the WWF but the rest of the card was by and large terrible.

29. WRESTLEMANIA 15 (1999)

Ironic that during what's largely considered to be the Attitude Era's hot streak, WWF put out one of their worst Wrestlemanias. Vince Russo, who then had the book, had experimented with the fast lane style of booking at the previous year's Survivor Series and done it pretty well but WM15 proved it's difficult to capture lightning in a bottle twice. Inexplicable storyline arcs, rapid fire heel and face turns, matches with no backstory...by the end of it you were staring at the screen like a burnt out zombie. The saving grace was an entertaining brawl between the Rock and Steve Austin in the main event - without that, this would have had a very good chance of unseating WM9 as the worst ever.

28. WRESTLEMANIA 2 (1986)

Put this one down to a case of growing pains. After the success of the initial Wrestlemania, Vince McMahon decided that they should go all out for WM2 and book it across three cities. Unfortunately the quality of the matches was pretty poor. On the plus side, there's an entertaining tag title match between the Dream Team and the British Bulldogs, a fun brawl with the Funk Brothers taking on Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana, Ricky Steamboat carrying Hercules to a decent match and even the main event between Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy isn't that bad. On the flip side, the rest of the card contains a dull as hell boxing match between Roddy Piper and Mr T, five sub-three minute squash matches (including a contender for the worst WM match ever in Adrian Adonis vs Uncle Elmer), a dull double count out between Paul Orndorff and Don Muraco and proof that even Randy Savage can only work so many miracles when he's up against a slug like George Steele. Luckily Vince would learn from his mistakes the following year...

27. WRESTLEMANIA 29 (2013)

Wrestlemania 27 is usually the one that gets referred to first when it comes to recent disappointments but I would argue that 29 is actually worse. There was nothing truly awful but none of the big matches (Cena vs Rock, Triple H vs Brock Lesnar, Undertaker vs CM Punk) delivered the way they could have while the rest of the card was just forgettable. And somehow having a really dull Wrestlemania is arguably even worse than one that's a total train wreck - as least those can be perversely entertaining sometimes...

26. WRESTLEMANIA 13 (1997)

Probably the first WM on our list to contain one of the all time classic Mania matches in Bret Hart vs Steve Austin which was a fantastic brutal hate-filled brawl with an unexpected double turn at the end just to cap it off. Unfortunately, that's literally all it's got going for it. Of the other six matches on the card there's really only one that's even average which is the Chicago Street Fight between the Legion of Doom and the Nation of Domination and the main event between Psycho Sid and the Undertaker must be up there in the worst Mania headline matches of all time. You have to feel sorry for the Hit Man and Stone Cold really...

25. WRESTLEMANIA 4 (1988)

"Can we just concentrate on the match here Gorilla? It's too late and I'm getting too tired to argue with you now." That quote from Jesse Ventura late on in the event tells you everything you need to know about WM4. It was a brave idea (a 14 man title tournament to determine a new champion after the whole Hulk/Andre shenanigans) that didn't quite work just because of how long the whole thing was. If you're willing to persevere with it though there's a few decent matches in here - Randy Savage vs Ted DiBiase in the main event is well worth a watch while Ricky Steamboat vs Greg Valentine deserved better than to be buried as a semi-forgotten first round match. There's an entertaining tag title bout between Strike Force and Demolition as well and the battle royale that kicks the whole thing off is fun enough also. But at four hours...let's just say you're gonna need a whole vat of black coffee and plenty of matchsticks to prop your eyelids open to get through this in one go.

LOWER MID-CARD
Generally a couple of good matches here and there but approach with caution

24. WRESTLEMANIA 27 (2011)

Much maligned at the time due to the fact that a 15 minute borefest between Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler (which didn't even end that tiresome feud!) bumped Daniel Bryan vs Sheamus off the card, a poor main event between John Cena and the Miz and the presence of the Rock yukking it up between matches which quickly became tiresome. Yet get past those (admittedly major) disappointments and there were actually a few decent matches on here such as Edge vs Alberto del Rio, Cody Rhodes vs Rey Mysterio (probably Rey's last great WM moment), Randy Orton vs CM Punk and Triple H vs the Undertaker. The trouble is that, rather like WM25 a couple of years earlier, it's the bad stuff that everyone remembers and in this case it was really bad. Proof that two or three poor booking decisions can turn what would otherwise have been a half decent 'Mania into a bit of a train wreck unfortunately.

23. WRESTLEMANIA 12 (1996)

Similar to the previous year, this took place when WWF were struggling both financially and creatively and unfortunately it showed a bit. Putting Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels in the main event was a great idea. Making it a 60 minute Iron Man match with no falls until the final minute really wasn't - some people like it but I just find it dull unfortunately. That aside though, there's nothing particularly wrong with WM 12 (apart from the comically bad Backlot Brawl between Goldust and Roddy Piper) and all the matches are passable enough (Undertaker vs Diesel being my pick of the bunch with Steve Austin vs Savio Vega and the six man opening tag match also being worth a look), it's just that this really did need 30 minutes clipping off the main event and a couple more matches putting in.

22. WRESTLEMANIA 25 (2009)

If there was an award for worst organised Wrestlemania then this one would be right up there. It starts off great with a MITB match which officially marked the emergence of CM Punk as a major player. Then we get...um, a half hour Kid Rock concert. Followed by a Divas battle royale which was won by Santino Marella in drag and a legends match featuring a way past it Jimmy Snuka and Roddy Piper. There's a brief resurgence in the middle with a great match between the Undertaker and Shawn Michaels and a vicious brawl between the Hardy brothers, even the three-way between John Cena, Big Show and Edge is surprisingly watchable but the main event between Triple H and Randy Orton was another let down and drags this one below the average line.

21. WRESTLEMANIA 21 (2005)

I think this one suffered just because the previous four Wrestlemanias had been so good. It comes out of the traps blazing with a great MITB match and Rey Mysterio vs Eddie Guerrero but the pace drops off massively thereafter, only really coming alive again for a great technical match between Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle with both main events (Cena vs Bradshaw and Batista vs Triple H) being big disappointments just because of how green Cena and Batista both were at the time. And don't even get me started on that Big Show sumo match...

20. WRESTLEMANIA 1 (1985)

This gets a semi-free pass because it was the first time WWF had ever done something like this. In terms of the quality of matches it's not great but the nostalgia factor carries it through. The main event tag match is good fun and Andre slamming Studd is a good moment while the other three title matches (Wendi Richter vs Leilani Kai, US Express vs Sheik & Volkoff and JYD vs Valentine) are at least watchable. Don't get me wrong, compared to modern day stuff it looks ridiculously dated but if it doesn't at least give you the warm fuzzy glow of nostalgia then there's something wrong with you.

19. WRESTLEMANIA 28 (2012)

This one got off to a very bad start with an 18 second match between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan which nearly broke the Internet the next day because fans were so angry about it followed by three more forgettable matches. However, it picks up in the middle with a great match between Undertaker and Triple H and stays in fourth gear from there until the end with the CM Punk vs Chris Jericho and Rock vs Cena matches rounding things off in style. One that you have to persevere with but there's a few decent bits. Start watching it halfway through for best results though.

18. WRESTLEMANIA 6 (1990)

The second of the three "express line" Wrestlemanias from the turn of the decade. Despite a packed crowd in Toronto, it's unfortunately the weakest of the three. The main event between Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior is a deserved classic and the tag team title match is worth watching just to see Andre's final Wrestlemania match but beyond that this one's pretty poor to be honest with matches that either didn't deliver the way they should've done (Jake Roberts vs Ted DiBiase), were cursed with terrible gimmicks (Randy Savage and Dusty Rhodes being chucked into a poor mixed tag match when a singles match between the two would've served far better) or just plain forgettable (the rest of it). It just about gets a pass for the main event and the hyped crowd who keep the atmosphere going but this was a real missed opportunity when all's said and done.

17. WRESTLEMANIA 16 (2000)

Pretty much a two match card but the TLC match and the triple threat between Angle, Jericho and Benoit pretty much saved this from going the same way as WM15 the year before. The main event's decent enough but having a heel (Triple H in this case) go over on the final match of the night at Mania with Vince's help just feels wrong, especially given how bored to tears everyone was by the McMahon family feud at this point while the rest of the card was definitely a bit substandard. Ah well, them's the breaks.

UPPER MID CARD
Not quite classics but still a good way to spend 3-4 hours

16. WRESTLEMANIA 24 (2008)

Rather like WM23 the year before, this was a mix of good and bad. On the plus side, Michaels vs Flair was a great match and a fitting send-off for Naitch, Taker vs Edge more than delivered in the main event slot and the MITB match at the start is an awesome opener. On the downside, Kane squashing Chavo Guerrero in ten seconds was just a waste of a match, ditto Floyd Mayweather vs Big Show (the noughties' answer to Lawrence Taylor vs Bam Bam Bigelow?) and Batista vs Umaga wasn't much better. Pretty much the midway marker for Wrestlemanias so far.

15. WRESTLEMANIA 23 (2007)

This seemed better at the time to be honest. On the plus side, Shawn Michaels finally carried John Cena to a good Wrestlemania match in the main event, Chris Benoit vs MVP and Money In The Bank were both good efforts and even Undertaker vs Batista exceeded expectations. On the downside, Khali vs Kane and Lashley vs Umaga were both poor matches and drag this one back down to just above average. Could've been worse though.

14. WRESTLEMANIA 7 (1991)

The last of the trio of express line Wrestlemanias from the turn of the decade. This one felt like it had more on the line than 6 and in Warrior vs Savage it has an all-time classic. Hogan vs Slaughter in the main event wasn't bad either while the tag title matches between the Hart Foundation and the Nasty Boys and the IC match between the Big Boss Man and Mr Perfect at least kept interest up while the undercard had a hidden gem between the Rockers and the Faces of Fear as an opener plus the start of Taker's streak. True, there's still quite a bit of filler on there but at least this is well on the right side of watchable.

13. WRESTLEMANIA 5 (1989)

Confession time - I'm biased here as this was the first Wrestlemania I saw. It seems to get a lot of bad press mainly due to being one of the express line Manias but the main event of Hogan vs Savage is maybe the best main event Mania match that the Hulkster was ever in. Further down the card, there's entertaining matches like the Brain Busters vs Strike Force, Blue Blazer vs Mr Perfect and the Rockers vs the Twin Towers. Okay, there's some misfires on there as well but overall I think this one just shades it as the best of the three "cram everyone on the card" Manias.

12. WRESTLEMANIA 26 (2010)

After three average Manias, this one at least delivered with a good five quality matches capped off by a superb Taker vs Shawn main event. Add to that good bouts between Jericho and Edge, the triple threat match between Legacy, Rey vs CM Punk and Money In The Bank and that's a pretty solid card. Sure, Cena vs Batista was a bit underwhelming, the Divas and tag title matches weren't great and the Bret vs Vince match probably shouldn't have happened but this one at least has way more good than bad on it.

11. WRESTLEMANIA 31 (2015)

Take care of the basics and the rest'll take care of themselves. Okay so it's not exactly "What the World is Watching" but in terms of a tagline for Wrestlemania 31 it works perfectly. This was a good solid show with the only clunker really being the head-scratching Triple H vs Sting match. Even if there was no real "holy shit" moment, there's plenty to get your teeth into here including the IC ladder match, Cena vs Rusev, Taker vs Bray and Orton vs Rollins all being worth a watch. When even the Rock's talking segment works well, you know that the stars have aligned nicely.

10. WRESTLEMANIA 18 (2002)

Much like WM31, simply a good solid Wrestlemania card where pretty much all of the matches delivered to some degree and the big arena atmosphere definitely helped it feel like a "proper" Mania. Rock vs Hogan really is a "once in a generation" type match just for the atmosphere while the ultra-intense Taker vs Flair match is well worth a watch too. The main event of Triple H vs Jericho isn't bad either, it's just overshadowed a tiny bit by what's gone before.

9. WRESTLEMANIA 8 (1992)

If only the second half of this thing was as good as the first, this would be in the Top 5 easily. As it is, pretty much all of the first five matches (with the exception of the throwaway eight-man brawl which serves its purpose as filler) are all worth a watch with Savage vs Flair for the title being the highlight closely followed by Hart vs Piper for the IC belt. The main event with Hogan vs Sid was lacklustre but for the first half alone, this definitely deserves to be in the upper echelons of Wrestlemanias.

THE CLASSICS
If you're gonna start anywhere, start with one of these...

8. WRESTLEMANIA 19 (2003)

Ironically, WWE was suffering a bit of an identity crisis at this time following the end of the Attitude Era but not that you'd know it from watching this show. Apart from a below-par handicap match with Taker (and the questionable booking around the otherwise decent HHH vs Booker match), pretty much everything on here works to some degree right from the fast-paced cruiserweight opening match between Matt Hardy and Rey Mysterio. The three-way for the tag titles featured some of the best technicians in the company at the time, Hogan vs McMahon was an excellent hate-filled streetfight, Jericho vs Michaels was everything you hoped it would be, Austin vs Rock was a real "end of an era" moment and Angle and Lesnar put on a worthy main event to close the show out. Good stuff.

7. WRESTLEMANIA 30 (2014)

A solid show elevated up the list by the main event which saw WWE finally acknowledge the reaction Daniel Bryan had been getting from the fans and put him over to win the title in a real feelgood moment (similar to Guerrero and Benoit ten years earlier). Aside from that, Cena and Bray Wyatt had a much better match than they really had any right to, Lesnar vs Taker was a real "holy shit" moment due to the end of the Streak (the rights and wrongs of which have been debated endlessly elsewhere) and even if the Divas match and battle royale felt a bit like filler, this was a Mania that left you with a good feeling overall.

6. WRESTLEMANIA 22 (2006)

Another Mania which delivered despite coming at a time when WWE had gone a bit stale creatively. Rey winning the title in a great match against Orton and Triple H plus a vicious streetfight between Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon were the highlights but add in a great MITB match, a hate-filled brawl between Mick Foley and Edge, the Divas title match between Mickie James and Trish Stratus and a better than expected match between Triple H and John Cena and that's six good reasons to watch the show right there. Even the two below-par matches (Candice Michelle vs Torrie Wilson and the Boogeyman vs Booker T) are at least kept nice and short so as not to spoil things too much.

5. WRESTLEMANIA 14 (1998)

True, there have been better technical Wrestlemanias but WM14 pretty much symbolised everything that made the Attitude Era so watchable. The main event with Austin pinning Shawn for his first title run is a real "passing of the torch" moment while Taker vs Kane and the New Age Outlaws vs Cactus Jack and Terry Funk are both entertaining wild brawls. Essentially, this one is a riot from start to finish and that's what makes it so enjoyable. As with WM3, it's very much of its time but for the sheer atmosphere and excitement, this one is hard to beat.

4. WRESTLEMANIA 20 (2004)

Like WM30 a decade later, this is remembered for the feelgood moment at the end when Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, written off as "vanilla midgets" in their WCW days, both won their World and WWE Title matches and celebrated in the ring at the end. Subsequent events make it more of a sad thing to watch nowadays but it was a great moment at the time. There was plenty more to recommend about this Mania too including Evolution taking on the Rock 'n' Sock Connection in a high-octane brawl, Taker and Kane lifting the roof off the place (even though the match was solid rather than spectacular) and even the Goldberg-Lesnar non-match being enlivened by Stone Cold sending them off with a couple of Stunners much to the crowd's appreciation. Good stuff.

3. WRESTLEMANIA 10 (1994)

It's funny how sometimes the best Wrestlemanias come at a time when WWF/E as a whole isn't in good shape. In early '94, the company was basically a ship without a rudder with several big names having departed and the PPV's the previous year being somewhat underwhelming to put it kindly. Yet somehow they pulled a real rabbit out of the hat with WM10 capped off with Bret Hart winning back the title he should never have lost the year before and Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon both cementing their legacies as main event players with an awesome ladder match. Further down the card, Bret and Owen Hart had a technical masterclass in the opener and Randy Savage (in his last WWF PPV match) and Crush's wild "Falls Count Anywhere" brawl is good fun too.

2. WRESTLEMANIA 3 (1987)

Pretty much the gold standard by which all Wrestlemanias are judged, WM3 was the first real classic Mania and still holds up well today. The crowd was off the hook for the main event of Hogan vs Andre, matched only by a technical classic between Randy Savage and Ricky Steamboat. But every match on the card had a big main event feel about it with a solid build-up and good storytelling and that's what makes this the best of the early Wrestlemanias by a long chalk.

1. WRESTLEMANIA 17 (2001)

Take the fast-paced action of WM14, add in a good dose of quality technical wrestling (the only thing WM14 fell down on slightly), a packed out enormodome atmosphere and you've got the best Wrestlemania to date. The main event between Austin and Rock (despite a slightly screwy ending) is an all-out classic but the TLC match between the Hardys, Dudleys and Edge & Christian runs it close as do the matches between Triple H and the Undertaker and Angle and Benoit. In fact, the whole card is solid and every match keeps your interest. Let's just say that it'll take something very special from WWE to move this from the top of the tree in the future.

Album of the Year Pt 14 (THE TOP 5!)

5. ROLE MODELS - "Forest Lawn"

Another band who absolutely breezed the whole sophomore album thing following up 2015's storming debut "The Go To Guy". "Forest Lawn" was a worthy follow-up with nods to everyone from the full-on sonic chaos of the Stooges to the more laidback musings of Paul Westerberg and with killer tunes and riffs throughout. You can read the full review here and check out the video for "(I Broke My Back) Disappointing You" below.

4. CHEAP TRICK - "Bang, Zoom, Crazy...Hello?"

It'd be easy for a band who've been in the game as long as Cheap Trick to simply rest on their laurels and phone albums in at this point but "Bang, Zoom, Crazy,,,Hello?" was anything but a by-numbers effort with storming choruses, some great guitar work from Rick Nielsen and top drawer tunes all round. Basically, it's everything you'd want a Cheap Trick album to be and you can't say fairer than that. Full review here.

3. THE DOWLING POOLE - "One Hyde Park"

While their debut album had a bit of promise but occasionally came across as a bit too off the wall to really connect, "One Hyde Park" really saw the Dowling Poole spreading their wings. Mixing the political anger and sly sense of humour of their debut with added top drawer tunes and a real sense that you never quite know what's coming next culminating in the "Freddie Mercury jamming with Brian Wilson" epic title track, this was a triumph. Full review here and you can check out the video for "Rebecca Receiving" below.

2. HEY! HELLO! - "Hey! Hello! Too!"

Definitely the album which had the most difficult genesis of the year - after switching singers in 2015 with Hollis from the Love Zombies replacing Victoria Liedtke, Hey! Hello! had this album up and ready to go in February only for Hollis to abruptly quit the band to move to LA leaving the album pulled and the band back at square one again. However, as we all know, Ginger is a bit of an expert at making lemonade out of lemons and he quickly set about re-recording the album with a group of new vocalists and a few new tracks thrown in as well. And as always, the crafty bugger ensured it was an absolute triumph - 11 awesome songs and not a dud throughout. The group now have a full-time new singer in Cat and you can see a live version of their take on the old Sailor pop classic "A Glass Of Champagne" below.

1. THE URBAN VOODOO MACHINE - "Hellbound Hymns"

They've come very close with their last couple of efforts but with their fourth album, the Urban Voodoo Machine are deserved winners of my "Album of the Year" award for 2016. Building on everything that they've managed to put together over the previous three (not to mention the background of the group losing both Nick Marsh and Robb Skipper over the last couple of years). Tons of variety, great tunes throughout and pretty much every musical style you can think of chucked in the pot, this is a great reminder why in an era where "popular" music seems to get more anodyne and interchangable every year that we need groups like the UVM so badly. You can read my review of the album here and see the video for the group's tribute to Marsh and Skipper "Fallen Brothers" below.

Well there we go folks, odyssey at an end. Hope you've all enjoyed reading this and hopefully I'll be updating this blog a bit more regularly in 2017. In the meantime, hope you all had a great Christmas and enjoy New Year tonight!

Albums of the Year Pt 13 (The Top 10)

10. MAID OF ACE - "Maid In England"

"Maid In England" does what every good sophomore album should in that it takes all the promising bits from Maid of Ace's debut album a couple of years back, tightens up the loose fittings, adds a dose of killer tunes and riffs and lets it explode with H-bomb style power. A great effort from these Hastings punkettes - give the title track a listen below.

9. LAST GREAT DREAMERS - "Transmissions From Oblivion"

Some of you might remember the rather excellent "Oh Yes We Can Love" glam rock box set a few years back which looked at the full story of glam from its roots in 1940s music hall right up to modern day acts influenced by it. With "Transmissions From Oblivion", what Last Great Dreamers have done is essentially taken all the best bits from that and wrapped 'em up into an absolutely killer 40 minutes of swaggering tunefulness which Bolan would be proud to call his own. Full review here and you can check out the excellent video for the "Glitterball Apocalypse" single below.

8. NEW MODEL ARMY - "Winter"

It says a lot about what a career renaissance New Model Army have had in recent years that not only did they put out one of their strongest offerings for years with 2013's "Between Dog And Wolf" but they then went and actually surpassed it with "Winter". At once a reminder of everything that made them such a great band back in the day but with plenty of unexpected twists and turns on it, this is up there with their best stuff and comes strongly recommended. Full review here and you can see the video for "Devil" below.

7. CJ WILDHEART - "Robot"

A more than worthy follow up to 2014's "Mable", "Robot" saw CJ put together another great collection of earworms with plenty of variety, energy and choruses which stubbornly refused to leave your head once they'd got in there. You can read the full review here and check out the video for "FUBAR" below.

6. RYAN HAMILTON & THE TRAITORS - "The Devil's In The Detail"

A late entry on to this list but it definitely deserves to go in. Following up the excellent "Hell Of A Day" album from last year was never gonna be easy but credit to Ryan, he made it look as simple as falling off a log. "The Devil's In The Detail" contained some of the catchiest songs of the year mixed with some lovely haunting ballads and an overriding message of rising above the haters and doing what you want to do. Full review here and you can watch the video for "We Never Should Have Moved To LA" below.

Albums of the Year Pt 12 (15-11)

15. SUPERSUCKERS - "Holdin' The Bag"

Following frontman Eddie Spaghetti's brush with throat cancer in 2015, the Suckers returned in the early days of 2016 with a semi-unplugged album, kind of a follow-up of sorts to 1997's "Must've Been High". And thankfully with the tunes, hooks, attitude and swagger well and truly intact - this was a worthy follow-up to 2014's "Get The Hell" and proof that this band still have plenty of fire left. Full review here.

14. TONY WRIGHT - "Walnut Dash"

Following on from 2015's ultra-bleak and stripped down "Thoughts 'n' All", "Walnut Dash" saw Tony in a more positive frame of mind with "Music Is The Food Of Love" and "One Size Fits All" being two of the best songs of his post-Terrorvision career so far. On the flip side, the melancholy "Life's Too Short" and the sinister "Delete Repeat" provided a nice counterweight to the more poppy moments and ensured this was a good well-rounded album. Full review here.

13. SPIKE & TYLA'S HOT KNIVES - "The Sinister Indecisions of Frankie Gray and Jimmy Pallas"

After 20 years, the respective Quireboys and Dogs D'Amour frontmen finally got together to produce a follow-up to the excellent "Flagrantly Yours" and it was well worth the wait. Dare I say it, possibly even better than the actual Quireboys album that was released around the same time? Certainly the mix of Spike's more upbeat bar-room rave-ups like "Curse of the Day Time Drinker" mixes very well with Tyla's more downbeat nocturnal laments like "Enchanted" and "Anne Boleyn" and makes this a great listen from end to end. Full review here.

12. SONIC BOOM SIX - "The F Bomb"

SB6 have been at this game for quite a long time now and with "The F Bomb", they delivered one of their strongest albums to date. Fired up with plenty of political anger but with an over-riding positive message about rising above hate and staying true to yourself, this was SB6 at their best. Full review here and you can watch the video for "From The Fire To The Frying Pan" below.

11. TROPICAL CONTACT - "XS"

This album very nearly didn't get made at all - back in 2014, Tropical Contact announced that they were going on indefinite hiatus after a clutch of well-received EP's and it looked as though the world had lost yet another promising band before they filled their potential. Clearly they missed it as well though because 2015 saw them reform with a Pledge campaign for their debut album which they smashed quite easily. And it was worth the wait - full throttle Britrock with a wicked sense of humour lurking underneath - give the video for "Hero Brigade" a watch below.

Albums of the Year Pt 11 (20-16)

20. THE VIRGINMARYS - "Divides"

Definitely one of the big surprises of 2016, while the Virginmarys' debut "King of Conflict" was a decent effort, their sophomore effort "Divides" really saw them come into their own with a hefty slice of tuneful angst-rock recalling Therapy? at their prime - give the video for "Motherless Land" a spin below to see how far this group have come.

19. SPUNK VOLCANO & THE ERUPTIONS - "Shit Generation"

Brilliantly foul-mouthed glam-punk from Dirt Box Disco's guitarist and his other band which sounds like the Buzzcocks on a Special Brew bender. Sample lyric - "You're living out your life on Facebook Chat/Where she's a slag an' 'e's a twat!". Give the likes of "DNA Failure", "X-Factor", "Send The Boys Round" and "XR3" a listen for some of the most enjoyably foul-mouthed music you'll hear all year. Full review here.

18. JOANOVARC - "Ride Of Your Life"

Over a decade in the making, "Ride Of Your Life" saw Joanovarc put all of their experience to use to create a knockout debut album which saw rhem putting together some of the best songs from their early EP's along with some great new material to create a killer collection of songs. Full review is here and you can check out the video to "Live Rock 'n' Roll" below.

17. IMPERIAL STATE ELECTRIC - "All Through The Night"

A worthy follow-up to last year's excellent "Honk Machine", "All Through The Night" was an excellent varied album from Nicke Andersson and his troops ranging from flashy Hendrix style rock-outs through stomping Motown style ballads to countrified steel guitar numbers. Great stuff - you can read the full review here and check out the video to the title track below.

16. THE WITCHDOKTORS - "Voodoo Eye"

Stomping rock 'n' roll from the one-time 12 Bar regulars, "Voodoo Eye" was a great album full of tight as you like rock 'n' roll which recalls those now sadly-no-more nights out so many of us used to enjoy on Denmark Street in Soho before the property developers got their grubby mitts on it and ruined the place. Full review here.

Albums of the Year Pt 10 (25-21)

25. THE NOVEMBER FIVE - "Throwing Rocks Against The Sun"

While their debut "If You're Satisfied, You Are Dead" was a furious slice of political alt-rock with an '80s goth bent, "Throwing Rocks Against The Sun", the November Five's second album, was a full on panic attack set to music, a real 21st century breakdown album if you will. One of the darkest albums of 2016 and all the better for it - full review here.

24. THE WONDER STUFF - "30 Goes Around The Sun"

No less than the Wonder Stuff's eighth album and another solid addition to their legacy following on from 2014's excellent "Oh No...It's The Wonder Stuff". More of a mellow offering than their efforts of old but still with some fine tunes on there - give the title track and "Kids From The Green" a listen for proof. Full review here and you can watch the video for "For The Broken Hearted" below.

23. IGGY POP - "Post Pop Depression"

Iggy's output has been a bit patchy in recent years and the news that he was teaming up with Josh Homme (a man who hasn't put his name to a decent album since Queens of the Stone Age's "Songs For The Deaf" all those years ago) for his final effort didn't exactly inspire my confidence it has to be said. However, "Post Pop Depression" was a more than respectable sign-off from the Ig, harking back to the tightwire new wave sounds of 1979's "New Values". It wasn't completely flawless but the likes of "Break Into Your Heart", "Gardenia", "In The Lobby" and the foul-mouthed "f**k you" sign off of "Paraguay" were fine efforts indeed.

22. THE 69 EYES - "Universal Monsters"

Another icy slice of goth rock cool from the Helsinki Vampires and a worthy addition to their back catalogue. It combines their goth elements and their rock tendencies to good effect to make a good varied consistent album. You can read my review of it from Pure Rawk here and check out the video for lead-off single "Jet Fighter Plane" below.

21. THE HILLBILLY MOON EXPLOSION - "With Monsters And Gods"

After a disappointing previous effort (2014's "Damn Right Honey!"), the HMX put in an impressive return to form on "With Monsters And Gods", a punchy mix of country and psychobilly which was a good reminder of everything that brought them to our attention in the first place. Give the video for their version of "Jackson" a watch below and see for yourself.

Albums of the Year Pt 9 (30-26)

30. BOB MOULD - "Patch The Sky"

He may have been in the game for over three decades now but "Patch The Sky" showed that Bob Mould still knows his way around a thoughtful slice of tuneful angst with songs like "Voices In My Head", "Pray For Rain" and "You Say You" being cut from the same cloth that informed his best work with Husker Du and Sugar. Still very much a contender all these years on as the video for "Hold On" below demonstrates.

29. CHRIS T-T - "9 Green Songs"

In the year which gave us the most muddled Brexit imaginable, not to mention Donald Trump, "9 Green Songs" was an album for these times - full of political anger and desperately trying to make some sense of a world which frequently didn't compute. While the likes of "Cutting A Longbow" and "Border Crossing" were angry howls of protest at the injustice of the world, the savage "Love Me, I'm A Liberal" showed that Chris was just as angry at the apathy of his own political side as the cruelty of the other. Full review here.

28. THE EMPTY PAGE - "Unfolding"

The return of the artists formerly known as Obsessive Compulsive, "Unfolding" saw the Empty Page taking a more grungy approach to their work to good effect but keeping the fierce anger and individualism of their previous band intact on tracks like "Deeply Unlovable" and "Turbulence". Give the video for "Wardrobe Malfunction" a watch below and see for yourself.

27. TENSHEDS - "The Dandy Punk Prince"

Third album from Tensheds and it was an impressively varied effort, verging from Nick Cave style seasick blues through Springsteen style confessionals to fired up sleazy blues rock and pulling everything they turned to off with aplomb. If you've not yet discovered this band then you really should make an effort to put that to rights - in the meantime, full review here.

26. SURGICAL METH MACHINE - "Surgical Meth Machine"

Okay so essentially it's a Ministry album in all but name. But the difference is that Ministry haven't sounded this good for almost a decade. Brutal industrial rock with a wickedly sharp sense of humour lurking underneath it (just give "Rich People Problems", "I'm Sensitive" and "Unlistenable" a listen for proof). Full review here.