2025 Kick-Ass Rock & Metal

*"Best of Friends"* is a collection of songs, each chosen by our artist friends as the most representative of their music. It's not meant to be exhaustive - we've surely forgotten a long list of friends, and we apologize for that! We're still waiting for some of them to send us their picks. If you’d like to suggest your songs, send us a message, and we’ll make it right. Enjoy the music!😊

Best of Friends

My SC Faves

Faves-04-25

découvertes

Copy of South Florida Native

Get this song on all streaming platforms and/or see the lyrics at
https://mrgoodemployee.com/youre-not-the-victim/

You're Not the Victim

When you’ve lost your place
Spinning around in space
And all stands still
And you’ve searched the past
Did it slip away too fast
The time to kill
Is it all just fake
How much can you take
What’s this all for
Hard to face today
Has to be a better way
Is there something more

Always where you want to be (when it comes creeping in)
It means everything it’s everything tonight
Show me what you need to feel
You mean everything you’re everything tonight

If you see past the charms
You’ll find open arms
To lead you here
Find another way
Cast above the gray
Relieve your fears
Don’t look back again
Stand out in the rain
To cleanse your soul
Nights to long to roam
I’ll light your way back home
Reclaim control 

And when it all comes down
You’ll never stand alone

Everything

A funky instrumental track to have on while you relax, work, drive, or just chill out.

City and Sky

The future’s so bright shades aren’t going to help.

Tomorrow Will Be Fine

Collaboration

Check out Ramixjoe ♈︎ music
@josef-schweinzer

It Makes Me Believe

It Makes Me Believe -with Ramixjoe ♈︎

Reminiscence of Chief Joseph and the Nez Percé war 1877.
Some words about the historical background can be found here:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chief-Joseph

The lyrics are in part an excerpt of the original words which Chief Joseph spoke to his followers of the Nez Percé, when they finally surrendered on October 5th, 1877.


In the shadows of our fears,
We’ve shed too many tears.
Now it’s time to break free,
From the chains of enmity.

From the battles we have faced,
We’ve learned the costs of hate.
But in forgiveness we’ll find strength
To go beyond this war at end.

What he told me before
I have in my heart. 
I am tired of fighting. 
Our chiefs are dying.

Maybe I shall find them among the dead.
Hear me, my chiefs, I am tired.
My heart is sad and sick 
From where the sun now stands
I will fight no more forever.

The storm raged hard and broke our souls
The years of war did take their toll  
The face of yours turned into grey
No saving shores in any way 

What he told me before
I have in my heart. 
I am tired of fighting. 
Our chiefs are dying.
Maybe I shall find them among the dead.
Hear me, my chiefs, I am tired.
My heart is sad and sick.
From where the sun now stands 
I will fight no more forever.

Fight No More Forever

Lightning War (instrumental) (high quality album available on BandCamp)

You Don't Need 'Em

Time Drifter

Drums: Mateusz 'Mat' Melanowski
Lyrics & Vocals : Mauro Elias
Written by/ Guitars/ Bass/ Keys/ Production : Me!
Mastered by Marvin@Tidestudio

Lyrics:

I’m a drifter, lost in time,
Chased by echoes, a haunting cry

Falling in 
my own thoughts

The clock ticks slow, shadows cling
Moments stretch, they sting
Yesterday grips, won’t let go
A heavy weight I’ve come to know

Through dark halls, I wander blind
Ghosts of failures fill my mind
Each step drags, pulling me back
Lost in the past’s endless track

I’m a drifter, lost in time
Chased by echoes, a haunting cry
A thousand screams, I hear their call
I will break through and burn it all

Fragments scatter, torn apart
Guilt like poison fills my heart
I chase the light, but shadows stay
Time keeps laughing, I’m its prey

Every second, a heavy chain
Tied to moments filled with pain
But through the cracks, I’ll find my way
I’ll shatter time and seize the day

I’m a drifter, lost in time
Chased by echoes, a haunting cry
A thousand screams, I hear their call
I will break through and burn it all

I walk through time, no tether, no line
Moments blur, no reason, no rhyme
A fleeting glimpse, a fading spark
The future whispers, crying for the past

The clock still ticks, but I am free
No more shadows haunting me
No longer lost, I’ve claimed my way
The past is gone, I own today

Time Drifter

Helvedin - Moonlight Spirit

Todd Bulik, (Valley Forge Audio) My awesome childhood friend produced this entire track for me. He did mixing, mastering, guitar solos, melodies, and backing vocals. 
I'm am SO thankful for the time and effort he put into this track. I thought my Destiny was shitty demo's only haha!

He's a killer guitarist, Singer, and songwriter. Check out his One man Band "Under the Sword" Please DM him if you're interested in Recording, mixing/mastering or need guitar session work.

Link:
https://soundcloud.com/todd-bulik

Thank you!!!

Legacy (Featuring Todd of Under The Sword)

Barn Finds - Robert Grigg / Combstead

Hello everyone,
this track is very special to me for several reasons. It's the first song I've composed and written. 

I am incredibly glad that I was able to work and collab with the great Sarah Paradise-Brown for this song. Her voice is fantastic and I'm delighted and honoured that she's singing the song with me.
 
Yes, with me. I like challenges and dare to take on the microphone. This is completely new territory for me, normally I just press the keys ;-)

Have fun with ‘What we still feel’

Watch the song on youtube:

https://youtu.be/GXyGluGof8A?si=A88s9KuPN7L_cjdo
________________________________________________________________


"What We Still Feel"

I see you standing in the rain,
Your shadow whispers through the pain.
I told myself I’d let you go,
But my heart can’t seem to make it so.

Your voice still echoes in my chest,
A quiet song that won’t find rest.
We said goodbye, but not for real,
Some wounds take longer to heal.

What we still feel, we can’t deny,
It’s in the tears we try to hide.
Even apart, the love remains,
A fragile spark through all the pain.

I built these walls to keep you out,
But all they hold is fear and doubt.
I tell myself I’ve moved ahead,
But you still linger in my head.

I tried to fill the empty space,
But nothing takes your rightful place.
I thought our story reached its end,
But now I see it starts again.

What we still feel, we can’t deny,
It’s in the tears we try to hide.
Even apart, the love remains,
A fragile spark through all the pain.

If I could take back every fight...
If I could hold you through the night...
(I’d find a way to make it right.
‘Cause love like this can’t just fade out of sight.

What we still feel, we can’t deny,
It’s in the tears we try to hide.
Even apart, the love remains,
A fragile spark through all the pain.

I still love you...
I always will...
A love like ours is standing still.
What we still feel is all that’s true,
And somehow, I still...  
 ...feel you.

_______________________________________________________________
            Credits:

              Vocals: Sarah Paradise-Brown & Axel Menningen
Lyrics & Music: Axel Menningen
_________________________________________________________________

Visit Sarah's profile for more fantastic music from her:
https://on.soundcloud.com/aUdCKRxsvgucVSH66

What We Still Feel

Another from the back catalog.. recently re-recorded. Around the time this was written I had just resumed playing and writing after a 22 year layoff. It was at the tail end of a whole lot of ugly and nasty moments ... but the dust was finally settling and I needed time to collect my thoughts and heal a bit.  Mid-Life thing..? Yeah...
I remember distinctly writing this in the basement..  Early on I didn't have very good guitar skills ( At least I don't think so.. )  and this song was particularly hard for me to play and sing at the same time. I spent a long time writing it.. maybe a few months. I would sit and drink Dry Red and write songs.. I recall working on this with my song writing companion " Little Penguin ".😆  ( Cheap Australian Dry Red... )...  So that didn't help matters.
I have since, played this live thousands of times and can play it with or without dry red and eyes closed..

Lyrics

Don't you know that I get
Plenty of rest
because you know I know what's best
for these old bones
and don't you know that I drink
A little too much wine
You know i've got plenty of time on my hands
I need someone who understands
I've got to get my rest
so I can look my best
for when Big things start coming my way

Don't you know that I sleep till 10:15
with a couple of snacks and a couple of naps
in between
and don't you know that I sit
and read plenty of books
I might just mosey down into the kitchen and cook
I realize how this must look
but i've got to get my rest so I can look my best
for when big things start coming my way

I am a man.. of limited means
all the fancy things in this world
they don't add up to a hill of beans
I've got to save my strength
you know i've got to lay low
I've got to get my rest so I can look my best
for when big things start coming my way
oh yeah big things..are coming.. my way.

Big Things ( with Merlot )

BROKEN GENERATION
Music by Overdrive, Stop Sleeping & Chris Schlue
Mastering by Chris Schlue

Check out the IG promo video:
www.instagram.com/p/DF_cUIDsPnW/

OVERDRIVE

Overdrive is a music project that aims to explore the blend of different music genres, merging styles as different as electronic, rock, classical and world music. His work is prolific, unique, and is phenomenal 🤘 Make sure to check him out if you haven't already:

@overdrive_music

CHRIS SCHLUE

Chris is an incredibly talented German guitarist and composer, and as if that weren't enough, he's a walking encyclopedia on all things mixing and mastering. Chris is responsible for the exquisite technical quality of BROKEN GENERATION's mastering. Check out his great individual and band tracks on Soundcloud:

@chris-schlue

Broken Generation

Classic rock track with hooks galore.  Handclaps, cheesy keys, singalong choruses!  What's not to like?  Inspired by one of my favourite Australian bands 'You Am I' touring now performing Hi Fi Way and Hourly Daily back to back!!

Off the cuff
Life’s was so tough
Everyone told me I would never amount to nothing

All this time
My biggest crime
Was never noticing the look in your eyes

Indiscreet
But I was feeling obsolete
Acted like a fool coz I never saw a chance

A grown up child
Damn hog-wild
Throwing every caution to the wind

Always neck deep
The darkest of the sheep
I’m the guy whose Comfortable sitting in the cheap seats

All this time
Never heard the bells chime
Over all the noise coming from my mouth

Quick to tell a joke
Every word a masterstroke
Flashy cars and tabs at bars  but I was flat ass broke

Wasting life
On the edge of a knifep
You took my breath away when you said

I came so close
Almost pipped at the post
I’d still be here drinking with dust in my pockets

All this time 
No reason or rhyme
I couldn’t see what was right in front of me

Now I’m looking back
I was such a sad sack
How did you ever manage to see through it all

To you I owe
The whole damn show
Coz you had the heart to speak the truth

Be Strong

One Step Closer Demo

“Theater of War” is a scream from the inside: a raw, distorted anthem about internal chaos, emotional exhaustion, and the quiet violence of modern life.

It’s about the pressure to shut up, smile, and fall in line. The kind of burnout that doesn’t come from working hard but from pretending you’re fine when you’re not. We wrote it for the people who are still thinking, still feeling, still resisting in a world that rewards obedience over authenticity.

Theater of War

Howdy everybody! And Happy Easter!

We rarely give a preface to our songs 'cause we wanna leave everything up to interpretation as much as possible, but @thebeautifuldark inspired us to be more communicative. And so, we're back to Blues! No matter how far into Punk or Metal we go, good old Loud, Electric, Heavy Blues always pulls us back. This time around got @tezcatreal to give thanks for the Blues pivot. His crazy Hard Rock/Blues songs were a big inspiration for the overall theme. Check out both of them to listen music that is actually good!

So, a Blues Metal song about a blue sea, a sailor with the "blues", blue thunder clouds and an indescribable blue embodiment of all of those things (think Cthulhu) seemed like the most layers of one color we could stack up in under 5 minutes. 
Now what all that actually means, it's up to you to decide. We know what it means to us. 

Cover art by Ivan Aivazovsky is better than anything we could make. 

Enough blabbering:

Shades of Blue

We're out a-sailing
Miss my town, the waves they
Push us away into...
A storm at the edge of the earth
Reeling us

Pay no mind
Got Rum
And playing Dice all night, yeah...
Yeah!
Got the fish in the line!
Thunder, like drum
Scratching through the sky, yeah...
But we don't pay no mind...

Silence
Creeps slowly
And the waves seem so cozy
All of the sudden...
The Sea knows me
It could take us in its embrace
And swallow us whole

Yet!
We pay no mind, yeah...
Sailing through the night, yeah...
She'll take us for a ride
I'll awake 
Capsized
Holding for dear life, yeah...
We shouldn't have been so blind

[Solo]

Shades of Blue devour me
In a ship so alone
Lost at Sea, the mighty reef
It calls, Siren's calls

[Solo]

Waves of Blue are dragging me
Into a shadow from below
Shape uncanny surfacing
Beyond what I could show

[Solo]

These...
Chains of Blue, they weigh on me
Pulling down to the jaws
Of the Abyss of my beliefs
In this Sea, where I belong 

///////////APRIL 2025

Shades of Blue

For everyone who just can't seem to let it go

Obsession

Outlaw s Grin

01 DONT FADE ME OUT MASTER 2024

Impro qui commence a l'endroit et fini a l'envers avec un Loop guitar 
style wypernet
tout fait maison comme d'hab

La vie(instrumental)

I Stare Into Darkness

Where You Going Now

PERSUASIVE CHAOS

Hello, I’m Rob, or BOB! lol!
One man band: I play Guitar, Bass, Vocals, and program Drums (Extinction Level Event by Spectre Digital)

I’ve been playing guitar since I was 13.
I've played guitar, and enjoyed performing in a few bands over the years.
Now I’m finally trying out making tracks from home, solo. 
I'll be uploading finished tracks with vocals as soon as they're completed. Technology has been very kind to music, and the home studio recording world. 
There is much to learn, so I’ll keep cranking out demos and eventually make them more professional sounding with more time and learning. 
If anyone is interested is collaborating or chatting music, please don’t hesitate to reach out. 
I want to build relationships and know people for who they are, and not just what they play.

Rob Quinn

Legacy (Featuring Todd of Under The Sword)

Boblivion