Lzzy Hale Names the 3 Metal LPs That Have Impacted Her the Most & They’re Surprising
Lzzy Hale is one of rock’s best vocalists and champions for the genre today, but she and Halestorm definitely have some metal influences. She touched on those in a new interview.
Speaking with Swedish outlet RockSverige, the singer was asked which three metal albums had the most impact on her that she still revisits. The first one she mentions is Ozzy Osbourne’s 1995 album Ozzmosis. Hale says, “I love the ‘Ozzmosis’ record. A lot of people don’t, but I love it and I’ve listened to a lot of that as well.”
She continues, “For some new old school, Disturbed’s ‘The Sickness’ and Sevendust’s ‘Home’, which I don’t know would be considered metal but they definitely dabbled in it. I remember that jolting me forward out of my ’70s and ’80s hard rock and metal.”
Hale, like certain rock fans, is dealing with that weird feeling of celebrating milestone anniversaries for albums she grew up with. She said of 2000’s The Sickness and 1999’s Home, “Those two albums were like crazy modern, but then of course that was a long time ago. All these albums are having anniversaries now and I’m like, ‘Oh no! I remember when that one was new.'”
Halestorm is currently on tour in Europe with Alter Bridge, with Mammoth WVH joining the tour on select dates. The New Year will see the band head to Australia and New Zealand for a tour with Theory of a Deadman. All those details and more can be found at HalestormRocks.com.
Halestorm: Their 20 Best Songs, Ranked
Halestorm debuted in 2009 with their self-titled studio album. In the years since, they’ve grown into one of rock’s most popular acts.
So far, Halestorm has had 13 top-ten hits on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. Six of those songs have topped the chart. They included “Freak Like Me,” “Apocalyptic,” “Amen,” “Uncomfortable,” “Back From The Dead” and “The Steeple.”
Halestorm first formed in 1997 with siblings Lzzy and Arejay Hale. While the band went through various lineup shakeups, guitarist Joe Hottinger and bassist Josh Smith would join in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Since 2004, Halestorm has featured this lineup, which is a rare feat in the rock world. Few bands have maintained the same lineup for such a lengthy period of time. It’s yet another example of what sets Halestorm apart from other bands today.
Since their 2009 self-titled debut album, Halestorm has consistently released a mix of LPs and EPs. Notably, the band’s EP releases have consisted of covers collections. Halestorm has covered a diverse collection of artists over the years. They’ve included Lady Gaga (“Bad Romance“), Daft Punk (“Get Lucky“), Sophie B. Hawkins (“Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover“), Temple of the Dog (“Hunger Strike“) and more.
While these covers are outstanding, Halestorm’s loyal fans are here for the originals. Their catalog currently contains five studio albums. Following their aforementioned debut was 2012’s The Strange Case Of… That album featured “Love Bites (So Do I),” which won the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance in 2013. Halestorm’s third studio album was 2015’s Into the Wild Life, which debuted on the Billboard 200 at number five. This is currently the highest-charting album in Halestorm’s catalog. Halestorm’s fourth studio album was 2018’s Vicious, and their latest album is 2022’s Back from the Dead.
To celebrate the band, here are Halestorm’s 20 best songs ranked.
Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights
