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By Jennifer Crowther

To say something has “changed my life”, is an incredibly bold statement to make. And I’m putting the weight of that statement on the shoulders of Alter Bridge. Sorry guys, you bear the responsibility of being life changers, life savers, and heroes.

Whenever I talk of Alter Bridge, there’s always the assumption on my part that the people who I’m talking to know exactly who they are. It never occurs to me that just because they are a huge part of my life, doesn’t mean that everyone else shares that same level of respect, affection and admiration. So let this be a musical education…

I hadn’t always listened to rock music. I used to “swim along the mainstream”, and be completely fine with that, although there was always something that was missing. I remember first hearing ‘Du Hast’ by Rammstein in, maybe, 2007 and thinking to myself, “Wow.” But because it wasn’t ‘cool’ to like metal and I was in high school and desperate to fit in, I suppressed my love for it and removed it from my iPod. This continued for a few years as I continued to ignore the draw towards that beautiful whine of the guitar solo.

And then Alter Bridge happened.

I was in the car with a friend and I’d requested that he put on Nickelback (cue laughter, although I will never understand the consensus that they are a ‘joke band’, because, quite frankly I love them), and he said, “If you like Nickelback then you might like this band Alter Bridge, I’ll put their albums on a USB stick for you.”

I just said, “Okay, cool”, and never really thought anything of it. He brought them over and I put them on my iPod. I plugged my headphones in and just went for the most recent album at the time, AB III. Little did I know I was about to have what I can only describe as a religious experience of sorts.

If you aren’t familiar with the opening song, ‘Slip To The Void’, the beginning is dark, it’s moody; all you hear is the lead singer, Myles Kennedy, and a sort of synth until those Alter Bridge guitars that I’ve come to be so familiar with kick in at 1:30.

Never have I been so absorbed in an album so fast; the lyrics were beautiful, the music was dynamic and powerful, the vocals were just unbelievable and unlike anything I had ever heard. Immediately, gone was my desire to be a ‘sheep’, gone was my fear of being ‘uncool’, I didn’t care anymore. AB III opened the door to who I was supposed to be and to who I am today.

From there I went backwards through the albums (at the time there were only three, now there are five), and let myself be completely immersed in this new music that I only ever wanted to listen to. Suddenly, there was nothing else. The album, Blackbird also had a profound effect on me, prompting me to go as far as to get the album cover tattooed on my back.

Through difficult times these albums have provided me with solace and comfort and they are a huge part of my life. I am forever grateful to these guys. AB III has changed my life.

Alter Bridge come to Manchester Arena November 23rd  2016.

Do you have a favourite album that has changed your life? Send your story to HumanityHallows.Editor@gmail.com

Jen is currently studying American History and in her final year at MMU. When she’s not studying or working at Ann Summers, she will most likely be found either at a gig or sometimes, even at the gym! She likes to read, listen to music, and have the occasional binge watch of Netflix.