Category: Reviews

  • Katatonia @ The Montage Music Hall, Rochester NY, September 24, 2011

    Katatonia, the Swedish kings of melodic gloom, are enjoying a couple of anniversaries in 2011. To celebrate, the band is playing a little more than a handful of headlining shows on the nights when current tour mates (and fellow Swedes) Opeth have decided to take some time off. Hellbounders Adam Wills and Laura Wiebe caught…

  • Alice Cooper – Welcome 2 My Nightmare

    The nightmare thread notwithstanding, Alice and company could have given this a different title and stayed away from the ‘sequel’ aspect and still had this be the best, most complete sounding Alice Cooper album in a decade. Yes, even the song with Ke$ha (‘What Baby Wants’) is catchy as hell, if not a little discoesque…

  • Fleshgod Apocalypse – Agony

    The approach Fleshgod Apocalypse take to succeed in an extremely intricate sub-genre is successful as they combine balance, precision and experimentation for an intriguing listen that pushes past a world of concepts already tackled.

  • Absu – Abzu

    Without doubt, one of the best records I have heard this year.

  • Black Tusk – Set the Dial

    “These guys have definitely got the Georgia sound (Kylesa, Baroness, Zoroaster et al), though they mould it into shorter, faster and maybe not quite as loud tunes. Still better than most.”

  • ProgPower USA 2011 @ Center Stage, Atlanta, GA September 15th to 17th, 2011

    Although he almost missed it – please see inside for all the details – Hellbound’s Rob Kachluba finally made it back to Atlanta GA earlier this month for this year’s edition of the ProgPower USA Festival. Here is Rob’s recap of the three days that he was in attendance at the fest, which included performances…

  • Weedeater / Saviours / Bison B.C. / Fight Amp @ Lee’s Palace, Toronto ON, September 13, 2011

    “When headliners Weedeater began to play, I was immediately struck by how much effort they put into differentiating their sound from every other group on the bill. Their tone was harsh, ugly, abrasive and super-filthy, the guitars and bass drenched in feedback. Vocalist Dixie Dave Collins matched this perfectly, sounding like he’d been gargling with…

  • Falloch – Where Distant Spirits Remain

    Where Distant Spirits Remain is not the strongest release of its ilk this year, but overall it’s a good debut that shows much future potential and talent. The biggest issues found here (vocals that don’t always fit in as well as tendencies toward being long-winded) are hazards of the band’s chosen style, and both are…

  • Tyr – The Lay of Thrym

    This album isn’t breaking any new ground, but if you’re a fan of clean-voiced heavy/melodic/viking metal (with some power metal mixed in) this album is for you.

  • Iced Earth – Festivals of the Wicked

    Now after watching this thing twice I’ll bet anyone who would argue that Matt Barlow is not the one and only true vocalist for this band. His performance on the Metal Camp festival show is flawless. Such emotion and passion in his delivery, it will have you punching your fist in the air. Highlights are…