HELL — Curse & Chapter (review)

HELL — Curse & Chapter album cover Album · 2013 · Heavy Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
Kev Rowland
Hell were viewed as an important underground band in the Eighties, but when the label they had signed to folded two weeks before they were due to record their full-length debut, singer Dave Halliday committed suicide. The band stopped, and no-one ever expected to hear any more from them, but their name had been kept in the public domain, most notably by guitarist/ producer Andy Sneap. In 2011 he and David Bower (vocals) joined original members Kev Bower (guitar and keys), Tony Speakman (bass) and Tim Bowler (drums) to record the debut album at last. There was a very positive response to the outcome (and it reached #46 in the German charts) but no-one was sure if it was just a one-off or if there would ever be more material. Well, the guys have been touring a great deal and the feeling is that Hell were once again a band, as opposed to a project, so back into the studio they went. The new album is comprised of 50% old material, and 50% new, but it isn’t possible to state which is which as it is a complete piece of work. Andy has built a reputation over the years as a producer, and along with Colin Richardson is one of the ones that I personally rate most highly in this field, so I knew what the sound was going to be punchy and powerful, but what about the music?

Hell were a band that passed me by first time around, so I am hearing all this material for the first time, and really the only thing to do with an album like this is just put it on repeat and keep playing it, as it is simply awesome. Imagine a slightly more commercial version of Iron Maiden combined with some of the heavier elements of Uriah Heep and you may just get close to what these guys are like, but of course don’t forget the vocals of Davis Bower who has been paying a lot of attention to classic Raven as well. The first time I played this I burst out laughing during the song “The Age of Nefarious” as there is a direct musical steal from the classic 5th Dimension “Age of Aquarius” in the chorus, just the one line but I wonder how many of people younger than me will get it? In many ways it sums up the album for me as there is the impression of five guys out there not only paying respect to what they did before but creating something that is brand new and incredibly powerful while having fun doing so.

There have been some incredible metal albums released during 2013, but this is one of the finest.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Suffocated By Fungal Odors Deathcore
VISCERAL EXECRATION
Buy this album from MMA partners
Lethargy Metalcore
HEARTLAPSE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Vitriol Deathcore
BEHEADING THE ICON
Buy this album from MMA partners
Cecità Atmospheric Sludge Metal
NITRITONO
Buy this album from MMA partners
Resiliencia Metalcore
SOURCE OF MYSTERIES
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Suicidal Tendencies - Send Me Your Money
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 13 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - Trip at the Brain
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 13 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - Nobody Hears
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 13 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - You Can't Bring Me Down
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 13 hours ago
Thanatos - Source Of Mysteries (Video Oficial)
SOURCE OF MYSTERIES
Bosh66· 1 day ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed