Sean Palmerston

Sean is the founder/publisher of Hellbound.ca; he has also written about metal for Exclaim!, Metal Maniacs, Roadburn, Unrestrained! and Vice.

Headline, Reviews, Reviews - Live September 3, 2010

Aborted/ Augury/ System Divide/ Horde of Worms @ Sneaky Dee’s, Toronto ON, August 28th 2010

“Only in death metal can you seriously announce that the next song is about the secret shadow-dwellers who live underground, have the room nod along seriously and then play a blisteringly brilliant song without a hint of irony. It’s damn fun to play mind-bogglingly intricate, complex music and still assert that the subject matter is inspired by psychic vampires. It is excellent, serious music delivered with charm, humour and monsters — there is nothing not to love.”

Natalie Zed reviews the August 28th Toronto performance by ABORTED, AUGURY and SYSTEM DIVIDE at Sneaky Dee’s. Live photos by Adam Wills.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio September 3, 2010

Enslaved – Axioma Ethica Odini

Despite some jagged rhythms and an unexpected groove Axioma Ethica Odini flows consistently to an abrupt not-quite conclusion, so that finally I’m perplexed but also persuaded that I want to work my way through it all again until I fully understand.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Live September 2, 2010

Mares of Thrace/ Spitfist/ Drunk Hussy @ Rancho Relaxo, Toronto ON, August 14, 2010

Mares of Thrace played last on the bill, and brought the night to a thunderous close. I am profoundly interested in the aesthetics of constraint and the way art can be produced by limitation. Mares of Thrace plug directly into this particular obsession. Consisting only of vocals, baritone guitar and drums, this two-woman force of nature produce a wall of sound: intense and varied, deep and resonant, pulsating and urgent, and shockingly complex.

Articles, Features, Headline September 1, 2010

Marky Ramone: The Hellbound Interview

“We didn’t want to overindulge in anything other bands were doing. In the mid-70s people were just doing guitar solos and drum solos and albums only had five songs. Rock was being diluted by jazz rock and folk rock and blues rock. We wanted the two-and-a- half minute approach. It was the same when I was with Richard Hell and the Voidods. We all liked Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash. Those songs were only two minutes and twenty seconds long. We only cared about the song. We didn’t care about solos. We just wanted a chorus that could be remembered and a song structure that wasn’t 20 minutes long.”

Justin M. Norton in conversation with the one and only Marky Ramone.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio August 31, 2010

Zed – The Invitation

A self-proclaimed “stoner metal” band from San Jose California, the quartet Zed has some of the elements you would expect: fuzz pedals, slow-rolling breakdowns, heavy bottom-end. They also have a crisp, commercial sheen that you could file under modern rock.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio August 30, 2010

Votum – Metafiction

The amazing thing about this release is the drastic change from their debut; with some work put in by the listener they will be rewarded with such a intelligent laid back prog masterpiece. This new direction may put off some of the heavier progmetal fans out there but if you are willing to put in the time and this could sit nicely by years end for top ten material.

Featured, Reviews, Reviews - Audio August 27, 2010

Black River – Black N’ Roll

What is it about black metal, and death metal, guys that makes them want to drop the corpse paint and put on a biker jacket? Black River aren’t the first side project formed by some guys who needed a break from their ‘day job’ band to just rock (see Chrome Division for example) but they certainly have created an album in Black N’ Roll that will get them noticed outside of the usual metal circles they travel in.