| CD REVIEW Hellbound |
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Band : Hellbound Hum...3 Casket Music/ Copro records releases in a row which have the common trait that they share their bandname with other bands! I mean, there is/was a Death Metal act from Australia, a Black Metal band from Austria, a Death/ Thrash outfit from Germany, two Power Metal acts from Italy, a Death/ Thrash band from Spain, a Death Metal group from from the US, and even a Croatian one with the slightly altered name Hellböund (semantics, really, but just to be complete, right!?). And so now there's another band by that name...oh wait, they hàve been around since 2005!...from Gloucester, UK!!! Basically, this band was formed by a couple of pub-going friends who'd gotten fed up with the music scene of today! Combining their alcohol-drowned passion for Metal, their unwillingness to comply to corporate rulings, and a strong will for the kind of Metal they liked, these musicians (lead singer/ guitarist Dave Hellbound, guitarist Benny Bojangles, bassist Joe Penn, and drummer Dan Ellis) decided to get together once the alcohol haze around their heads was cleared, and start a band together in order to contribute in the fight of keeping True Metal alive. Obviously at a certain moment they also had to get out of the rehearsal room and start playing gigs, at which they received by increasingly more enthoused and numbered crowds. In fact, the boys already did festicval appearances which put them on a same stage with the likes of Motörhead, Saxon, the Wildhearts, UFO, Orange Goblin, and many more, making the band more and more “established” in their own region. Obviously, finally releasing an album would be the next step towards “global domination”...but what label can be trusted not to screw you in the process of distributing your material? The one possible answer to that question, really, was the one that' s doin' it now! Which brings me to having to describe the band's music, which is simply said a hell of a job, because while True Metal is such an easy clichée, the way it's perceived depends on each person's individual feelings about the point, isn't it? So, perhaps it's best to give you a list of the bands the members of Hellbound like themselves? There is, of course, the more evident: Pantera, Black Label Society, Megadeth, Anthrax, Slayer, Metallica, and Black Sabbath...but the guys also actively listen to Sysyem Of A Down, Machine Head, Lamb Of God, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne, all Dimebag Darrel-related stuff, Disturbed, KoRn, Slash, Inkubus Sukkubus, Eye For An Eye, Slipknot, and some lesser known bands such as Godsized, Unknown Fear, Reign Of Fury, Tempestora and...hold onto your hats...Pink Floyd! A lot of thrash Metal in there, you say? Well, you've got that in here as well! Some Southern Metal stuff in here as well? Y'ain't whistling Dixie, pal, 'cuz tha's exactly what's in here too! Some Progressive stuff too? Well, whadda ya know!? Yeah, it's all in there, all at once, and in each and every song too! All I need to add is that the pace is overall on the calmer side, without ever warranting the label “slow”, and that the frontman's voice has a nice mid-high pitch with some roughness to it. He also gets very nice (cleaner, which gives 'em an harmonizing touch) backings. Ah well...perhaps the vocal side of things is even more difficult to describe without making comparisons...which I simply don't wanna do! So, instead I'll just tell you to log onto (www.) myspace.com/hellboundmusic, where you can listen to 3 songs off the album (at the band's ReverbNationpage you will also find a “making of the album” video). 90/100 Tony. |