Tag: progressive metal

  • HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE: The Metal Blade Reissues

    San Francisco’s Hammers of Misfortune have recently signed to Metal Blade, and as a result, the label has reissued their entire back catalogue in hopes that it will get the due recognition it missed the first time around. With no expectation and no foreknowledge of the band, I tossed myself in at the deep end…

  • Cynic – Re-Traced

    This EP plays a lot with the dynamics of sound. The interplay between loud and quiet, digital and analog creates rich waves of tension and release. I was struck by the depth of each of the tracks, not just in terms of the layers of sound but also the thought and care that went into…

  • Delain – Lucidity

    As for the bulk of the original album, it’s what you would expect from a former member of Within Temptation (Westerholt): soaring vocals, bombastic guitar solos, pounding drums, lush keyboard and symphonic string arrangements. All played with subtlety and an attention to contrast that it seems only those in power or progressive metal remember any…

  • STAFF PLAYLISTS: May 2010

    BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! Find out what HELLBOUND’s contributors have been listening to during the month of May. Almost every writer has submitted their Top 5 list and have an option to list a book and a film they are into right now too.

  • Porcupine Tree @ Sound Academy, Toronto, ON, May 8, 2010

    Were this simply an auditory barrage (which I am more than familiar with), I might have had more resistance. But it was much more than that. This show was a carefully orchestrated, beautifully curated performance. The video accompaniment interesting and tasteful, and varied enough that I was never able to settle fully into it or…

  • Haken – Aquarius

    I am totally blown away. Haken is the best thing to happen to progressive metal in many, many years. Hailing from England, this relatively young band has unleashed a masterpiece.

  • Barren Earth: When the Prog/Metal Fusion Works Out Right…

    “We all listen to progressive rock, so it’s natural that it comes across in the music. It was clear from the start that progressive elements would be featured in the band’s sound. And that was the reason for me to join. I remember seeing Opeth in 2006, and being very impressed by not just the…

  • The Ocean – Heliocentric

    This is an album that should truly be admired for its intelligent design. The band might get comparisons to Between The Buried and Me and I would agree with that except for the fact the The Ocean surpassed BTBAM in cohesive songwriting two albums ago. It’s a shame the scene kids won’t “get it”

  • Ludicra – The Tenant

    I’m new to Ludicra. Bad timing kept me from even checking out their live show opening for Hammers of Misfortune last summer. The Tenant has convinced me I’ve got some catching up to do.

  • Postcards From Natalie Zed, Part 2

    Hellbound readers, remember Natalie Zed? Natalie was our big grand prize winner back in January, taking home more than 50 CDs + and shortly after she received her huge box ‘o CDs, Ms. Zed asked us over at Hellbound HQ if we’d be interested in running reviews of her winnings if she did postcard sized…