Legendary Rock Singer Ranked New Album as Band's Best Yet
Everyone has their favorite album, even Shinedown lead singer Brent Smith.
This week, the legendary lead singer sat down for a moment to share how his own music stacks up by ranking each of the band's albums in order from best to worst. Each album name was called out in order of when it was released, as Smith shared where he would place it on the list.
The caption read, "We ranked every album… watch till the end for #1 👀 let's see your rankings 👇"
Shinedown's first album, Planet Zero ranked at No. 5 on his list, with Us and Them taking up eighth place. Surprisingly, The Sound of Madness took the second spot with Amaryllis coming in fourth.
Threat to Survival snagged the No. 7 spot, and Attention Attention took third. Smith put Planet Zero at No. 6, leaving only the No. 1 spot available, and he confidently ranked the band's upcoming album, EI8HT, as the top album.
This list is surprising and a bit exciting because The Sound of Madness is widely known as Shinedown's best album, giving us hits like "Second Chance," the title track "Sound of Madness," and "Devour." Released in 2008, this was the band's third studio album and their biggest commercial success, ranking double platinum, putting out six No. 1 singles on the Billboard rock music chart.
Not all fans agreed with Smith, with one writing, "I am not ok with Planet Zero being number 6! Haha! I love you guys! Can't wait for EIGHT! 💜"
Another shared, "Sound of Madness not being number 1 should be illegal."
"I'll never understand why Us and Them gets so little love. Amazing times as a Shinedown fan around that era," a third fan declared.
Others debated the rank with one surprising re-order placing The Sound of Madness at No. 6, and another proclaiming, "Leave a whisper is and will always be the best!!!"
Shinedown's eighth album, EI8HT, comes out on May 29, 2026, with 18 songs including the already released (and chart-topping) "Safe and Sound," "Outlaw," "Three Six Five," "Dance, Kid, Dance," "Killing Fields," and "Searchlight."
Ahead of the album release, Shinedown is headed back on the road when their Dance, Kid, Dance – Act II World Tour kicks off on May 13 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 9:11 AM.