Sean Palmerston

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

Die Hard – Nihilistic Vision

Similar to a post-modern poem, the album is dispersed and features lack of structure, which can be presented well if thought-out correctly. Despite half of the musical mess, the guitar work of Hasse is strong and precise that expresses undeniable talent above a clutter of sounds.

HELLBOUND RADIO: July 11th, 2010 Playlist

So in our ongoing new efforts to show the world that we have one of the most diverse metal radio shows on the planet, here is the playlist to last night’s edition of Hellbound Radio. This is our last show with all three of us for a while, as Kevin Stewart-Panko heads out on tour with CEPHALIC CARNAGE later this week. He will be tour-managing them for the first half of this summer’s SUMMER SLAUGHTER tour and we wish him the best of luck!

Click through to see the playlist in its entirety.

Icarus Witch – Draw Down The Moon

A thundering and energetic traditional sounding band of heavy metal thunder, Pittsburgh’s Icarus Witch continues their excellent approach with this, their third full-length album. A highly talented band, Icarus Witch is far too under-recognized for their ability to rip out albums that are well-crafted and chock full of shredding metal.

End Of A Year – You Are Beneath Me

There’s nothing easy about the album; no chant-along moments that incite crowds and establish instant followers. Everything with this affair is begrudging and hard-won on both sides of the band/listener relationship. Yet those who stick around long enough will realize that sometimes it’s those things we fight hardest for which wind up being the most enduring. To that extent, You Are Beneath Me is case in point.

HELLBOUND SUMMER METAL MELTDOWN: July 10, 2010 Playlist

In an ongoing attempt to show that our Hellbound radio programs are some of the most varied, interesting metal radio shows that can be heard on the radio/online, here is our playlist to last night’s edition of the HELLBOUND SUMMER METAL MELTDOWN. Kevin wasn’t around for this program, as he was preparing for his upcoming summer tour acting as road manager for CEPHALIC CARNAGE, but we did have another guest DJ in for the night.

Hellbound contributor, photographer and web guru Adam Wills came onto the show with Albert and Sean last night. It was his first ever experience on the radio and was a natural

Melvins/ Totimoshi @ Rickshaw Theater, Vancouver BC, July 5, 2010

“Having seen the Melvins in previous three-piece variants over the years, this was my very-excited first time seeing this four-on-the-floor version that includes the Big Business guys, even though the band’s been touring in this incarnation since 2006. First, the stage set-up is key: Looking like one monstrous kit, the twin drumsets are dead center of the stage mirroring each other as centerpiece of the show. Yes, everybody is situated right up front and gets to act as frontman-in-his-own-right in Melvins Mark, what is it, now, Eight?”

Kyle Harcott reviews the July 5th show Vancouver performance by the Melvins and Totimoshi.

Charred Walls of the Damned/ Piledriver/ Ash Lee Blade @ The Opera House, Toronto ON July 4, 2010

The awkwardly-named Charred Walls of the Damned delivered a solid headlining performance. While the other bands they shared the stage with has set a decidedly un-serious precedent, CWotD were much more straightforward and earnest in their presentation. Not to say that they were stuffy or stoic. They play unabashedly entertaining power/thrash metal, but choose not to caricature themselves to the point of complete cartoonification.