HELL, RICHARD & THE VOIDOIDS Blank Generation (Warner Bros) cd 12.98

HELLA Acoustics (5 Rue Christine) cd 8.98
You wouldn't think that a band revisiting their past would make us fall in love with them all over again but that is precisely the case with this new ep from Hella. Acoustics finds Hella reworking some of their early songs but this time done all acoustic! Hella + acoustic? "Huh? What? How?", you might be asking yourself, but the answer is a huge big colorful YES!!!
We have to admit we were getting a little cold on the whole Hella thing, but with Acoustics they have totally regained our attention and recaptured our hearts, with their intricate spazzy convoluted prog laid totally bare (err... well acoustic at least). Hard to imagine Hella acoustic, but it's pretty darn cool, maybe like Gastr Del Sol on a steady diet of crystal meth and cocaine, or a more manic Cheval De Frise. While it's easy to sound crazed and weird and spastic with amps turned to eleven and feedback busting out of every speaker, it's a whole lot harder to maintain that same sort of intensity with no electricity at all. That's what separates Hella from so much of the spazzy pack. Sure anyone can freak out hidden behind huge amps and silly costumes, but only the truly talented and demented can knock your block off with an all acoustic record. We think someone should slip a copy of this to Tom Waits as Hella in this incarnation would make the perfect backing band for his next record. OK, Lightning Bolt, Wolf Eyes, Black Dice -- the gauntlet has been thrown down... can you get it up up when the power is out? Hella sure as hell can! So totally recommended!
MPEG Stream: "1-800-Ghost Dance"
MPEG Stream: "Welcome To The Jungle Baby, Your Gunna Live!"

HELLA Bitches Ain't Shit But Good People (Suicide Squeeze) cd ep 8.98
At last, this ep is now out on cd (but out of print on 12" vinyl). The Sacramento twosome known for a million riffs a minute and insane drumming brings some electronic video-game beats to the party before tearing into some incredibly dense noise prog fulla widdly guitar solos and clattering drums. Like Orthrelm and Lightning Bolt (who they sound even more like here, perhaps due to the production), Hella turn two people into a finely honed instrument of sonic destruction. While the drumming never lets up its multilayered, frantic pace, the guitar (augmented here and there by keyboard) takes Hella's sound from This Heat precision to all out noise and into more accessible song territory on the fourth and last track, which features vocals, a first for the band!
MPEG Stream: "Bitches Ain't Shit But Good People"

HELLA Bitches Ain't Shit But Good People (Suicide Squeeze) 12" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A new 12" on nice marble vinyl. The band known for a million riffs a minute and insane drumming brings some electronic beats to the party before tearing into some incredibly dense noise prog. Like Lightning Bolt and Orthrelm, Hella turn two people into a finely honed instrument of sonic destruction.
While the drumming never lets up its multilayered, frantic pace, the guitar (augmented here and there by keyboard) takes Hella's sound from This Heat precision to all out noise and into more accessible song territory on the last track, which features vocals, a first for the band.

HELLA Church Gone Wild / Chirpin Hard (Suicide Squeeze) 2cd 15.98
Whooahh man. Hella's latest (and third) release is an overwhelming, two hour long, double solo album exploration. Drummer Zach Hill's Church Gone Wild battles guitarist Spencer Sein's Chirpin Hard. Church seems to be a dismembered hour-long noise mantra in 12 parts. It's pretty driving and kinetic, a swirling maelstrom of free-noise muddied by pitch-shifted vocals and tape manipulation.
As for Sein's contribution, imagine the pixelscapes of Nintendo NES' Tennis, Joust, Tetris, Zelda, Double Dragon, Mega Man, Golf and Cobra Command all meshed into one massive super-game being played at a warehouse free-noise show and we could have it's documentation here with Chirpin Hard. Hella fans will lovingly dive into this behemouth double album without hesitation.
MPEG Stream: "Half Hour Handshake"
MPEG Stream: "Gold Mine, Gold Yours"

HELLA Concentration Face & Homeboy (5 Rue Christine) cd + dvd 17.98
Do you rememer that scene in the movie, "Hook" where Rufio and all the Lost Boys have a massive feast *powered by imagination* and all the food looks like radioactive play-doh and then they start having a food fight and everyone gets smattered with colorful edible goo? No? Ok well....then just imagine a radioactive play-doh food fight. Now convert that into sound. There you go. That's this album. Except....every 6th or 7th wad of play-doh food is actually a bag full of flaming fists. Sloppy, raucous, and punch you in the face fun. Woah. Disc two is a double feature DVD from Hella's Japanese Tour.
MPEG Stream: "Gothpel for You Not Them"
MPEG Stream: "If I were in Hella I would eat lick"

HELLA Falam Dynasty (5 Rue Christine) 7" 4.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A couple of brief outbursts of precision mayhem from Hella, featuring their trademark maniacally dense drumming and head splitting guitar riffery.

HELLA Hold Your Horse Is (5rc) cd 14.98
Well now, this record is certainly a breath of fresh air. I mean when was the last time you heard a decent mathrock record? Hella is two Sacramento guys on guitar and drums and they've made this loud 'n awesome record, which is super listenable and accessible, so those of you who aren't into mathrock, you should still hear this. While the guitarwork is manic and soaring and epic (akin to Don Cab or Storm & Stress), the drumming is even more insane! It's complicated and full of energy; there are quick stops and it's almost all hectic drum fills, one lightning speed kick drum attack after another, and another. Hella is the smart math radness of the (Fucking) Champs without the metal. Really cool. Highly recommended!
RealAudio clip: "Been A Long Time Cousin"
RealAudio clip: "Brown Metal"
RealAudio clip: "Cafeteria Bananas"

HELLA Hold Your Horse Is (5rc) lp 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Well now, this record is certainly a breath of fresh air. I mean when was the last time you heard a decent mathrock record? Hella is two Sacramento guys on guitar and drums and they've made this loud 'n awesome record, which is super listenable and accessible, so those of you who aren't into mathrock, you should still hear this. While the guitarwork is manic and soaring and epic (akin to Don Cab or Storm & Stress), the drumming is even more insane! It's complicated and full of energy; there are quick stops and it's almost all hectic drum fills, one lightning speed kick drum attack after another, and another. Hella is the smart math radness of the (Fucking) Champs without the metal. Really cool. Highly recommended!

HELLA The Devil Isn't Red (5RC) cd 14.98
The precision, nutso drumming of Zach Hill and the frantic, fearless guitar playing of Spencer Seim is something the world needs more of, and they are happy to oblige with this, only their second full-length recording after a few eps and live discs. Yay, Hella!
This dynamic duo hold the lease on hectic, headspinning math rock mayhem, tempering their breathless performances with a very eclectic, electric variety of sounds and good sense of what's catchy and what isn't. The Devil Isn't Red is perhaps denser than their debut Hold Your Horse Is, but no less delightful. As almost always, this is all-instrumental, with cryptic art and song titles to add to their aesthetic of controlled chaos. Into indie-prog a la Don Caballero, Lighting Bolt, Ruins, This Heat? Well if you haven't already, now's the time to make room for a Hella section in your record collection. (By the way, did you notice how 'Hella' no longer seems like a dumb band name, it just means Hella the band? You know, just like with the Melvins, for instance. They're good enough and have been around long enough now to make that transition.)
MPEG Stream: "The Kid The Mother Could Be You"
MPEG Stream: "Welcome To The Jungle Baby, You're Gonna..."

HELLA The Devil Isn't Red (Suicide Squeeze) lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The precision, nutso drumming of Zach Hill and the frantic, fearless guitar playing of Spencer Seim is something the world needs more of, and they are happy to oblige with this, only their second full-length recording after a few eps and live discs. Yay, Hella!
This dynamic duo hold the lease on hectic, headspinning math rock mayhem, tempering their breathless performances with a very eclectic, electric variety of sounds and good sense of what's catchy and what isn't. The Devil Isn't Red is perhaps denser than their debut Hold Your Horse Is, but no less delightful. As almost always, this is all-instrumental, with cryptic art and song titles to add to their aesthetic of controlled chaos. Into indie-prog a la Don Caballero, Lighting Bolt, Ruins, This Heat? Well if you haven't already, now's the time to make room for a Hella section in your record collection. (By the way, did you notice how 'Hella' no longer seems like a dumb band name, it just means Hella the band? You know, just like with the Melvins, for instance. They're good enough and have been around long enough now to make that transition.)
MPEG Stream: "The Kid The Mother Could Be You"
MPEG Stream: "Welcome To The Jungle Baby, You're Gonna..."

HELLA There's No 666 in Outer Space (Ipecac) cd 16.98

HELLA Total Bugs Bunny On Wild Bass (Narnack) cd 9.98
That rad Sacto duo Hella is back, guitar and drums just goin' for it in a punk-prog stylee. You can still use Lightning Bolt and the Ruins as comparisons, but with the added instrumentation -- noisy, new wavey synths -- they're getting further away from the Bolt template. All instrumental save for some funny voices bookending the tracks, this album is just as kinetic and hyperchaotic as their previous output, veering into a bit o' Carl Stalling style cartoon music as befits the title. 7 songs in just under 20 minutes, plus for those with computers, a live video clip for "Brown Metal" from their first album. Definitely a treat for those into drums, math, and spinning around until you're dizzy. FUN!
MPEG Stream: "Your DJ Children"
MPEG Stream: "Magixburg"

HELLA Tripper (Sargent House) lp 19.98

HELLA Tripper (Sargent House) lp 19.98

HELLA / DILUTE split (Sick Room Records) 2cd 15.98
Here's a good buy for fans of either or both bands: a double cd, featuring a disc each of Hella and Dilute performing live. SF's Dilute do "Apple", "Alphabet", "Sickroom", "Balloon Song" and "Sold" while Sacramento's Hella play "Republic of Rough and Ready", "Better Grab a Broom!", "Cafeteria Bananas", "Biblical Violence", and "City Folk Sitting, Sitting". If this was a competition, we'd have to say Hella has the better song titles. But it's not a competition and both bands are winners, with Dilute being one of the Bay Area's best, most creative post/indie rock combos and Hella being NoCal's answer to Lightning Bolt, a two-piece instrumental tour de force. Go see both bands if/when you get the chance, and in the meantime don't miss out on this double live document (which maybe could have fit all on one disc, but whatever).
MPEG Stream: DILUTE "Apple"
MPEG Stream: HELLA "Republic of Rough and Ready"

HELLA / FOUR TET split (Ache) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

HELLACOPTERS Cream of the Crap!: Collected Non-Album Works Volume 1 (Gearhead) cd 13.98
A compilation of Hellacopters tracks you might've missed 'cause they're all from singles, 10"s, split releases, etc on labels from Sweden, Spain and the U.S. As is often the case, some of the best songs appear in limited release on 7"s, and so it is with the Hellacopters. If you're a fan of the garage punk revival (particularly the Swedish one - hello, Hives!) you'll surely want to check this comp out.
Nicke Royale (aka Nicke Andersson ex-drummer of Entombed) writes some damn catchy retro rock anthems full of ballsy guitars, hammering piano, gang vocals. And they do some respectable rockin' covers of songs by the Stones, Iggy Pop, Nino Tempo and Social Distortion. One thing though, the cd's packaging is a bit confusing. I opened up the six panel foldout and found that one whole side is taken up by a "Cream of The Crap" poster. The weird thing is it looks as if the poster was supposed to be nine panels instead of six and they just sliced off the top three. Confused? Me too. On San Francisco's garage, punk and hotrods label Gearhead Records. Also features the track 'Killing Allan'. Hmmmmmm.
RealAudio clip: "Thanks For Nothing"
RealAudio clip: "Television Addict"
RealAudio clip: "I Got A Right"

HELLACOPTERS Super Shitty to the Max (Man's Ruin Records) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

HELLACOPTERS, THE By The Grace Of God (Universal) cd 15.98
This band rules so hard. Big guitars, big hooks, leads all over the place, even that sort of pounding piano that hasn't been cool since forever. Or more specifically, since your Dad was high as a kite holding up his lighter to Bob Seger's "Turn The Page". Or your Uncle was feeling up some girl in the parking lot of a Lynyrd Skynyrd show. This is totally classic, fucking awesome rock and roll. The kind you should still be able to see in stadiums instead of nu-metal and MTV crap. Huge in Sweden, it's a crime they're not packing Madison Square Garden here. But that's good too, 'cause it means that's it's still okay for all the hipsters to still dig 'em. But ignore all that stuff and just buy this record. Think every stadium rock show you've ever seen, Kiss, Lynrd Skynrd, Alice Cooper, Bob Seger, Van Halen, Peter Frampton, and then supercharge it, filter it through a bunch of former death metallers, and you've got the Hellacopters. In a perfect world bands like the Darkness and the White Stripes would be begging for a chance to open for these guys! Or not. Includes two videos, a video interview and a patch!
MPEG Stream: "By The Grace Of God"
MPEG Stream: "All New Low"

HELLACOPTERS, THE High Visibility (Gearhead) cd 13.98
The domestic release! Sweden's been churning out some fiery garage punk in the last few years. Example #1: The Hives! Example #2: these guys! Actually calling these guys garage punk - a genre in which they've been frequently categorized - is a bit misleading. In fact, this is slick hard rock - think Rocket From The Crypt meets MC5. Lead by former Entombed drummer Nicke Andersson (now on guitar and vocals), they kick out driving tunes heavy with '70s rock guitar and some almost Rick Springfield or Foreigner-ish vocals. It's been well-documented how seriously both bands rage in the live arena, kicking butt on most of their American contemporaries. So if you're seekin' some rawkin' good times - maybe a companion disc to your Hives' "Veni Vidi Vicious"? - look no further!
RealAudio clip: "Toys And Flavors"
RealAudio clip: "You're Too Good (To Me Baby)"

HELLACOPTERS, THE Hopeless Case of a Kid in Denial (Universal) cd ep 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Limited edition little cardboard "box set" ep from these hard-rockin' Swedes... Includes five tracks, 4 of which are previously unreleased, plus 2 videos for your computer and a patch for your jean jacket.

HELLACOPTERS, THE Rock & Roll Is Dead (Liquor and Poker) cd 16.98

HELLACOPTERS/GLUECIFER Respect the Rock America (Man's Ruin Records) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

HELLCHILD Bareskin (Howling Bull) cd 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hellchild are the undisputed kings of Japanese metalcore. And for good reason; huge complex compositions that are brutally heavy and ultra fast, downtuned and furious. We have both their full lengths as well as the limited 10" that features two absolutely unbelievable medleys (track one: Whiplash/ Metallica/Exodus/Destruction/Slayer/Kreator and track two: Motley Crue/ Motorhead/U2 (!)/Sex Pistols) twisted and contorted almost beyond recognition. Almost.

HELLCHILD Circulating Contradiction (Howling Bull) cd 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hellchild are the undisputed kings of Japanese metalcore. And for good reason; huge complex compositions that are brutally heavy and ultra fast, downtuned and furious. We have both their full lengths as well as the limited 10" that features two absolutely unbelievable medleys (track one: Whiplash/ Metallica/Exodus/Destruction/Slayer/Kreator and track two: Motley Crue/ Motorhead/U2 (!)/Sex Pistols) twisted and contorted almost beyond recognition. Almost.

HELLCHILD Speed Metal Hell/Rock'n Roll Bastards (Howling Bull) 10" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hellchild are the undisputed kings of Japanese metalcore. And for good reason; huge complex compositions that are brutally heavy and ultra fast, downtuned and furious. We have both their full lengths as well as the limited 10" that features two absolutely unbelievable medleys (track one: Whiplash/ Metallica/Exodus/Destruction/Slayer/Kreator and track two: Motley Crue/ Motorhead/U2 (!)/Sex Pistols) twisted and contorted almost beyond recognition. Almost.

HELLFISH One Man Sonic Attack Force (Planet Mu) cd 14.98

HELLFISH AND PRODUCER Bastard Sonz Of Rave (Planet Mu) cd 15.98
"Rave Is Back! (It's Official)" has been the DJ Scud / Ambush slogan for the past year and UK's Hellfish And Producer have followed suit with their much anticipated follow-up to 2000's "Constant Mutation". Not a whole lot has changed in the last couple of years, but these boys can still crank out the adrenaline charged fuckstep mashup gabba jams they've become known for. Plus, they plunder in some old school B-Boy jams like "Rock The Bells" and rude boy deejay toasting for fun and good measure. Just as great, if not better, as anything out on DHR or Praxis or Ambush. And unlike much in this genre, there's a healthy amount of humor and good fun prevalent, rather than the usual apocalyptic propaganda that plagues it. Full on headpummeling beatdown that never fails to piss off at least one customer every time it's played in the store...
RealAudio clip: "Crawl & Die"
RealAudio clip: "Professional Psycho"
RealAudio clip: "Toilet Wars"

HELLFISH AND PRODUCER Constant Mutation (Planet Mu) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
With this punishing record, Hellfish & Producer has filled the surprisingly empty noise-beat market left wide open by Alec Empire and the rest of his Digital Hardcore empire, which has been remarkably quiet for the year 2000. "Constant Mutation" is a continuously mixed disc of singles previously released by Hellfish & Producer. Unrelenting 909 gabba / drill & bass beats tear throughout the record well beyond the pace that a sober / non-tweaked individual can keep up with. Silly samples that anthemically call for the death of rock 'n' roll and headrattling blasts of white noise march through the pounding beats. Yup, Hellfish & Producer certainly give Mr. Empire a run for his money.

HELLHAMMER ONLY DEATH IS REAL (Sanctuary) cd 12.98

HELLHAMMER The Demon Entrails (Century Media) 2cd 12.98
No frills version. Cheaper but see our review of the other version and you'll want it instead.
MPEG Stream: "Crucifixion"
MPEG Stream: "Maniac"
MPEG Stream: "Decapitator"

HELLHAMMER The Demon Entrails (Century Media) 2cd + book 27.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We could easily fill several paragraphs talking about the historical significance of Hellhammer (speaking of metal history, not world history, of course, though for some of us the two are of equal importance). But if you're reading this, and possibly already considering buying a deluxe double cd (or triple vinyl!) set of the band's early demo recordings, you probably already know something about the seminal significance of Swiss primal metal trio Hellhammer, the precursors to Celtic Frost. If you do want to know more, we'd point you to the liner notes to this release, written by HH/CF mainman Thomas Gabriel Fischer (aka Tom G. Warrior, aka Satanic Slaughter), which were adapted from his forthcoming book Only Death Is Real, all about the early '80s origins of those two bands.
As you probably know, Hellhammer started off as an amateur but enthusiastic exercise in teenage worship of NWOBHM black metal originators Venom, but took Venom's defining sound to further extremes, becoming a pioneering band not only in the black metal genre, but also for death metal and sludgy doom metal as well. And all this without much of a recorded legacy, just the 1984 Apocalyptic Raids ep and some compilation tracks and these demos, the band's initial recording sessions at long last presented officially on cd and vinyl, remastered from the original master tapes.
These three demo cassettes -- Satanic Rites, Death Fiend, and Triumph Of Death -- were released in mere handmade handfuls back in 1983. Including raw(er) versions of such later classics as "The Third Of The Storms", "Triumph Of Death", and "Revelations Of Doom", as well as many otherwise unheard Hellhammer hammerings, such morbid morsels as "Dark Warriors", "Crucifixion", "Decapitator", "Ready For Slaughter", and, er, "Bloody Pussies", it's 29 tracks, 102 minutes of truly ancient evil that any self respecting black/death/doom metaller should revel in. With a twanging low-end of rubbery bass, lurching riffs, pogoing rhythms, echoed vocals, these decidedly lo-fi recordings sound almost like a no-wave take on metal. Accidentally avant-garde (unlike Celtic Frost's later efforts to intentionally be so), Hellhammer were so wretched and fucked up that they've defined "necro" for all time. Hear here how they began.
The limited edition double cd version is packaged in a handsome, slipcased hardback digibook, 5.5" x 7.5", with a 36 page booklet bound inside, plus a small poster. Within the booklet, you'll find hella vintage black and white necro photography, xeroxed flier artwork, the original cassette covers, lyrics and liner notes from the band. Along with occult artwork, including a previously unpublished demonic pencil sketch by bassist Martin Eric Ain that, since it's rendered on graph paper, has us speculating that these guys probably were playing D&D in their bunker as well as recording the metal of death.
Meanwhile, the vinyl edition (also quite LIMITED, the eight we have are probably all we'll ever have) is a truly weighty proposition, 180 gram vinyl in a thick gatefold package with the aforementioned booklet, etc. as well.
Once the deluxe cd edition is gone, we'll have the regular, less-deluxe (but also less expensive) version.
MPEG Stream: "Crucifixion"
MPEG Stream: "Maniac"
MPEG Stream: "Decapitator"

HELLHAMMER The Demon Entrails (Century Media) 3lp 39.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We could easily fill several paragraphs talking about the historical significance of Hellhammer (speaking of metal history, not world history, of course, though for some of us the two are of equal importance). But if you're reading this, and possibly already considering buying a deluxe double cd (or triple vinyl!) set of the band's early demo recordings, you probably already know something about the seminal significance of Swiss primal metal trio Hellhammer, the precursors to Celtic Frost. If you do want to know more, we'd point you to the liner notes to this release, written by HH/CF mainman Thomas Gabriel Fischer (aka Tom G. Warrior, aka Satanic Slaughter), which were adapted from his forthcoming book Only Death Is Real, all about the early '80s origins of those two bands.
As you probably know, Hellhammer started off as an amateur but enthusiastic exercise in teenage worship of NWOBHM black metal originators Venom, but took Venom's defining sound to further extremes, becoming a pioneering band not only in the black metal genre, but also for death metal and sludgy doom metal as well. And all this without much of a recorded legacy, just the 1984 Apocalyptic Raids ep and some compilation tracks and these demos, the band's initial recording sessions at long last presented officially on cd and vinyl, remastered from the original master tapes.
These three demo cassettes -- Satanic Rites, Death Fiend, and Triumph Of Death -- were released in mere handmade handfuls back in 1983. Including raw(er) versions of such later classics as "The Third Of The Storms", "Triumph Of Death", and "Revelations Of Doom", as well as many otherwise unheard Hellhammer hammerings, such morbid morsels as "Dark Warriors", "Crucifixion", "Decapitator", "Ready For Slaughter", and, er, "Bloody Pussies", it's 29 tracks, 102 minutes of truly ancient evil that any self respecting black/death/doom metaller should revel in. With a twanging low-end of rubbery bass, lurching riffs, pogoing rhythms, echoed vocals, these decidedly lo-fi recordings sound almost like a no-wave take on metal. Accidentally avant-garde (unlike Celtic Frost's later efforts to intentionally be so), Hellhammer were so wretched and fucked up that they've defined "necro" for all time. Hear here how they began.
The limited edition double cd version is packaged in a handsome, slipcased hardback digibook, 5.5" x 7.5", with a 36 page booklet bound inside, plus a small poster. Within the booklet, you'll find hella vintage black and white necro photography, xeroxed flier artwork, the original cassette covers, lyrics and liner notes from the band. Along with occult artwork, including a previously unpublished demonic pencil sketch by bassist Martin Eric Ain that, since it's rendered on graph paper, has us speculating that these guys probably were playing D&D in their bunker as well as recording the metal of death.
Meanwhile, the vinyl edition (also quite LIMITED, the eight we have are probably all we'll ever have) is a truly weighty proposition, 180 gram vinyl in a thick gatefold package with the aforementioned booklet, etc. as well.
Once the deluxe cd edition is gone, we'll have the regular, less-deluxe (but also less expensive) version.
MPEG Stream: "Crucifixion"
MPEG Stream: "Maniac"
MPEG Stream: "Decapitator"

HELLHOUND Metal Fire From Hell (Planet Metal / Black-Listed) cd 13.98
Japanese crazy metal. Very '80s.

HELLISH CROSSFIRE Bloodrust Scythe (I Hate Records) cd 15.98
Awesome German retro-thrash.

HELLISH CROSSFIRE Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram (I Hate Records) cd 14.98
Awesome German retro-thrash.

HELLO, BLUE ROSES The Portrait Is Finished And I Have Failed To Capture Your Beauty (Locust) cd 14.98
Awwww, February, blossoming romance is in the air! Fans of fey femme folk, here's a Valentine sweetie for you! Dan Bejar (Destroyer, New Pornographers, Swan Lake) and his ladylove Sydney Vermont took some time out from North America and travelled to Spain for a spell. The musical inspirations that their journey spawned are found on this here album. It's an earthy, ephemeral melange (yes, we said "melange"!) of Kate Bush drama, waif-pop Lavender Diamond, '70s soft rock AOR singers such as Melissa Manchester or Carly Simon. With a description like that you could be warily anticipating a somewhat milquetoast listen, but fear not! It's all distinguished and elevated by Bejar's unmistakable musical eccentricities. His prickly guitar and distinct voice are perfect foil for Vermont's lilting soprano tones -- particularly on fine songs like "Mediterranean Snow" and "Sunny Skies". Oh and yes there's even flute (ya hear me Andee?). Go on, don a flowing chiffon gown and sway to this floral loveliness. Includes a cover of Kevin Ayers' "Hymn".
MPEG Stream: "Hello, Blue Roses"
MPEG Stream: "Sunny Skies"
MPEG Stream: "Skeleton Aim"

HELLVETE De Gek ((K-RAA-K)3) lp 19.98
Hellvete is the work of one of the members of Belgian funeral folk collective Sylvester Anfang, and while in many ways, the two outfits are similar, Hellvete takes the loose abstraction, and stumbling freeform mystery of SA, and tightens it up, into epic slow burning pieces that sound and feel more composed, majestic one moment, haunting and hushed the next, strings and subtle percussion, buzzing steel string guitar and thick undulating drones, a sprawling epic soundtrack to an imaginary film, flickering images of some forgotten world, a time lapse exploration of the birth and death of the black forest.
Long drawn out, almost sitar like buzz, drifts beneath ethereal female vocals, super minimal Eastern sounding percussion underpins some skeletal folky twang, a slow building bit of dronemusic, like Godspeed gone black Appalachia. Strings swoop in, upping the cinematic vibe, minor key, tense, dramatic, echoey vocals wrap around buzzing steel strings, transforming into thick raga like drones, laced with druggy space rock pulses, a sort of Spacemen 3 vibe, buried beneath the smoldering black shimmer. Tinkling chimes dapple the soaring strings, all wound into bursts of Sunroof! like skree.
Abstract free drumming hurls out swirling clouds of cymbal shimmer, fields of speckled skitter, way off in the distance, wordless voices moan and chant and hum, eventually swallowed up by thick grinding sheets of coruscating guitar buzz, a furious explosive crescendo, slipping back into that black Appalachia, before finishing off with a muted, but still intense burst of full on swirling psychedelic drug rock. Awesome stuff. In many ways even better than the Sylvester Anfang jams that came before, as if SA had somehow evolved, the sounds and compositions grown more lush, more expansive, while at the same time, gotten even darker, heavier, and more epic. WAY recommended.

HELLVETO In Arms Of Kurpian Phantom (God Is Myth) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

HELLVETRON Death Scroll Of Seven Hells And Its Infernal Majesties (Hell's Headbangers) cd 12.98
A killer slab of blackened lo-fi doom from these Texas misanthropes, whose sound is echo drenched and dismal, a murky, muddy abyss of downtuned guitars, and reverby vox, that are WAY up in the mix, so when the vokills bellow, everything else disappears into the background. It's the sort of muddy hellish sonic miasma that seems to ooze black energy, the band plodding though tarpits of riffage and pounding slomo dirgery, the songs peppered with the (very) occasional burst of buzzing blackness, but for the most part, remaining in the realm of doomic creep, grim, filthy, crusty, blackened rituals that lurch and lumber like some hellish black beast, dragging itself from the pit.
Hellvetron features members of another group called Nyogthaeblisz, who like lots of black metal bands, definitely have a problematic ideology, but in Hellvetron, the focus seems to be on something much more abstract, the usual black metal stuff, darkness, hell, oblivion, death and damnation, demons and of course SATAN, the sound thus appropriately foul, the doomic churn laced with some surprising elements though, chantlike background vox, what sounds like swirling synths, which adds a strange sort of liturgical vibe to the proceedings, as if these were indeed some sort of sonic rites being performed for the dark ones, the sound blurred and smeared and gloriously washed out, the black buzz muted and muddied, making it strangely meditative and trancelike, which weirdly enough ended up making this sound surprisingly soothing to us, infusing our blackened souls with some sort of demonic tranquility, the perfect grim black trance.
MPEG Stream: "Sheol - Grave of Supernals"
MPEG Stream: "Abbadon - Wings of Perdition"

HELLWELL Beyond The Boundaries Of Sin (Shadow Kingdom) cd 13.98
Epic heavy metal fans know that it's been fairly frequent occurrence of late that we've gotten new a reissue of an old '80s album by US underground metal eccentrics Manilla Road, and also once in a while, a brand new release from that still active (and still epic) cult unit. But this is a bit more unexpected - the debut from a Manilla Road SIDE PROJECT, called Hellwell, featuring MR main man Mark "The Shark" Shelton. The Hellwell name we thought was kind of faux-scary goofy, until we learned that the other driving force behind the band was a personage in fact named Ernest Cunningham Hellwell, who plays organ and synths. Also on board, Bryan "Hellroadie" Patrick, sharing some of the vocals with lead guitarist Shelton much as has been the case on Manilla Road albums of recent vintage. And really, name aside, this is basically another new Manilla Road album, and a good one. MR fans will feel right at home with it, it's hardly a big departure. Except, imagine Manilla Road with ornate Deep Purple style keyboards, loads of 'em (courtesy of the eponymous E.C.), AND an extra emphasis on the more "extreme" side of the MR equation - lots of fuzz, some guttural death metally vox and the like - whilst keeping it quite epick and eldritch indeed. Think Poe and Lovecraft. 'Cause lyrically, these songs are rooted in good old pulp literature. It's tale-telling of the horror story variety, in the grand tradition of Mercyful Fate/King Diamond and of course Manilla Road themselves, among othersÉ Music to listen to after dark, in other words, especially if you can get yourself in the mindset of someone in the '40s listening to a creepy radio play or something, as delivered by a band part '70s prog, part '80s heavy metal, part gothic doom, part modern extreme metalÉ It's a cool mix, again one that most MR fans will dig 'cause that's basically what MR is all about anyway. You know how Slough Feg has gotten their share of Manilla Road comparisons? Well, perhaps Hellwell could likewise be compared to Hammers Of Misfortune.
MPEG Stream: "The Strange Case of Dr. Henry Howard Holmes"
MPEG Stream: "Eaters of the Dead"
MPEG Stream: "Acheronomicon I: Tomb of the Unnamed One"

HELLWITCH Syzygial Miscreancy (Displeased) cd 13.98
A few weeks back, we highlighted Acid Witch. Now, Hellwitch! What (or which, or witch) will they think of next? Although, Hellwitch aren't really new. This is a reissue of an obscure Florida death metal album from 1990, done up deluxe with hella-witch bonus tracks. Wait, wait, make that a TOTALLY BATSHIT INSANE Florida death metal album, i.e. the sort of thing that we think AQ customers who aren't necessarily big death metal fans but who DO like really weird fucked up music would dig. Sound intriguing? Heck, they had us at "syzgial miscreancy" whatever that might mean. We had to look it up. (In astronomy, "syzygy" is when the sun, moon, and earth are aligned in a straight line, apparently... now make that villainous, somehow.)
So we gave Hellwitch a listen, and it turned out to be some freakin' gonzo stuff. Experimental death/thrash music, we guess, super chaotic and complex. The vocals are more thrash/HC punk sounding that cookie monster DM, often electronically treated especially on the bonus demo tracks. Or at least, we hope they're electronically treated... otherwise how on earth to explain the truly disturbing shrieks in the track "Mordirvial Dissemination" that sound like Judson Fountain singing black metal??! Electronic effects abound elsewhere as well, there's tons of flange on the guitar solos ferinstance. The music itself is spastic and technical, songs crammed with angular non-repeating riffs, soloing that sounds like swarms of insects, aggro-octopoidal drumming, and plenty of WTF? extras, like the when in the midst of a particularly brutal passage Hellwitch will switch into an acoustic folky jig. Makes the likes of Melt-Banana not seem so strange.
Recorded, like all good Florida death metal, by Scott Burns at the infamous Morrisound studios, this is an unearthing of an immediately forgotten gem that anyone into the cult avant-edges of weirdass tech-death-grind should check out, fans of the likes of Obliveon, Kataklysm, Nocturnus, Atheist, Gorguts, Pestilence, Exit-13...
According to this reissue's detailed liner notes, written by lead guitarist/vocalist and founding member Pat Ranieri, the band started off, in the context of smoking lots of pot and listening to old '70s prog rock and then-current '80s crossover thrashpunk, with a mission to be as original as possible, to quote: "Each riff was to sound like no other. Each lyric/title was to be completely fresh and never before read." Well, he goes on to admit that the band didn't always succeed at these quixotic goals, specifically and humorously citing the obvious, their name, as not quite living up to the concept: "With originality as key, we chose the most generic name possible to define something never heard before." Whoops! But heck, they tried, how they tried, and the results we think are pretty special, and we're damn glad this got reissued 'cause somehow we missed out on 'em back in 1990...
The cd booklet, in addition to Ranieri's notes, includes full lyrics, photos, lots of full-color graphics (demo tape covers, and old show fliers - they played with Morbid Angel and Die Kruezen, among others), and even a Hellwitch comic strip. Also it sports the album's original, kinda goofy cover painting that makes a bit more sense when you know what syzygy means.
This remastered cd reissue includes not only the band's sole album but also a dozen crucial bonus tracks, taken from demo and rehearsal tapes recorded between 1984 and 1989. It doesn't get any more syzygial than this, miscreants!!
MPEG Stream: "Mordirvial Dissemination"
MPEG Stream: "Sentient Transmography"
MPEG Stream: "Nosferatu ('87 demo)"

HELMS ALEE Night Terror (Hydra Head) cd 14.98
Review courtesy of Justin Foley, long time aQ customer, and member of fellow Hydra Headers The Austerity Program!
Long time readers of the AQ mailing list may remember Northwest sasquatch-metallers Harkonen, whose two EPs and full-length or two charted out a wooly mass of distortion-laden virility. Harkonen's pummel stumbled across the line between Cavity's fierce crust/metal and Schlitz-dripping barn burners. At the head of this obviously unshaven trio was Ben Verellen, pumping out distorted bass lines and howling a great rock yell that is probably a family heirloom.
Harkonen broke up a few years back and after a while word got around that Ben was in a new band - Helms Alee. Putting on their first full length - Night Terror - those who know some or all of the history above won't be too surprised at first. Ben's driving, fuzzed-up bass starts things off with an off kilter riff that spins into the instrumental intro "Lefty Man Handle", sounding a bit like Harkonen dipped in the soundtrack to a Sergio Leone movie. At the beginning of the second track, the same voice that bellowed over Harkonen's amps builds up from a measured sing to a top-of-the-mountain whoop - I'm telling you he's got a set of pipes on him. And by the time the song really opens up, the drummer is slamming on the cymbals, the bass and guitar are locked in a hypnotic two note riff and that guy's just roaring at you.
Then something truly wonderful happens.
And this is why the Helms Alee is surely my favorite record from 2008. Because while I love the ripping stomp that the song had purposefully built into, the band suddenly drops out the bottom and the drums, takes a breath and shifts into a guitar shimmering break. A two part female harmony picks up the song and carries it to what you later realize was the only place that it could have gone. It's like coming out of a tunnel into early daylight. And for the next 35 minutes or so, they deftly weave the pounding, yelling sweat-rock of the best Harkonen stuff with the equally strong and bittersweet beauty of an unexpected melody and harmony. Some times this happens at the same time, at others they switch back and forth. But it's done nearly perfectly over the course of the whole record, resulting in a sound that's equally poignant and heavy.
Make no mistake - it's still a loud rock record that probably eviscerates live. But the thing that's really special about this band is the unexpected space they've found in a type of music that often seems like it runs out of new room. Special mention should be made of two things. First, the recording work on this is great - clear, physical and very unobtrusive. Second, those who buy it and sit for a full listen will really be rewarded by "Shmnna" - a record closer (almost, there's actually a nice coda song) that's obviously the climax of what the whole thing's building toward. The song's final guitar bit absolutely brings down the house. So good!
I've noticed that AQ likes to give reference points, so I'd suggest anyone who craves the male/female juxtaposition of X or Barbaro, the aging prizefighter nobility of Tar, or even some of the more rock parts of My Bloody Valentine must buy this record now. There's probably whole other groups who I should target as well - anyone who's into other stuff on the label, anyone who likes loud rock music at all, anyone who is signed up for the AQ mailing list, anyone who's not my sister - because this thing is a real, unexpected treat.
MPEG Stream: "Left Handy Man Handle"
MPEG Stream: "A New Roll"
MPEG Stream: "A Weirding Away"

HELMS ALEE Night Terror (Robotic Empire) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Review courtesy of Justin Foley, long time aQ customer, and member of fellow Hydra Headers The Austerity Program!
Long time readers of the AQ mailing list may remember Northwest sasquatch-metallers Harkonen, whose two EPs and full-length or two charted out a wooly mass of distortion-laden virility. Harkonen's pummel stumbled across the line between Cavity's fierce crust/metal and Schlitz-dripping barn burners. At the head of this obviously unshaven trio was Ben Verellen, pumping out distorted bass lines and howling a great rock yell that is probably a family heirloom.
Harkonen broke up a few years back and after a while word got around that Ben was in a new band - Helms Alee. Putting on their first full length - Night Terror - those who know some or all of the history above won't be too surprised at first. Ben's driving, fuzzed-up bass starts things off with an off kilter riff that spins into the instrumental intro "Lefty Man Handle", sounding a bit like Harkonen dipped in the soundtrack to a Sergio Leone movie. At the beginning of the second track, the same voice that bellowed over Harkonen's amps builds up from a measured sing to a top-of-the-mountain whoop - I'm telling you he's got a set of pipes on him. And by the time the song really opens up, the drummer is slamming on the cymbals, the bass and guitar are locked in a hypnotic two note riff and that guy's just roaring at you.
Then something truly wonderful happens.
And this is why the Helms Alee is surely my favorite record from 2008. Because while I love the ripping stomp that the song had purposefully built into, the band suddenly drops out the bottom and the drums, takes a breath and shifts into a guitar shimmering break. A two part female harmony picks up the song and carries it to what you later realize was the only place that it could have gone. It's like coming out of a tunnel into early daylight. And for the next 35 minutes or so, they deftly weave the pounding, yelling sweat-rock of the best Harkonen stuff with the equally strong and bittersweet beauty of an unexpected melody and harmony. Some times this happens at the same time, at others they switch back and forth. But it's done nearly perfectly over the course of the whole record, resulting in a sound that's equally poignant and heavy.
Make no mistake - it's still a loud rock record that probably eviscerates live. But the thing that's really special about this band is the unexpected space they've found in a type of music that often seems like it runs out of new room. Special mention should be made of two things. First, the recording work on this is great - clear, physical and very unobtrusive. Second, those who buy it and sit for a full listen will really be rewarded by "Shmnna" - a record closer (almost, there's actually a nice coda song) that's obviously the climax of what the whole thing's building toward. The song's final guitar bit absolutely brings down the house. So good!
I've noticed that AQ likes to give reference points, so I'd suggest anyone who craves the male/female juxtaposition of X or Barbaro, the aging prizefighter nobility of Tar, or even some of the more rock parts of My Bloody Valentine must buy this record now. There's probably whole other groups who I should target as well - anyone who's into other stuff on the label, anyone who likes loud rock music at all, anyone who is signed up for the AQ mailing list, anyone who's not my sister - because this thing is a real, unexpected treat.
MPEG Stream: "Left Handy Man Handle"
MPEG Stream: "A New Roll"
MPEG Stream: "A Weirding Away"

HELMS ALEE Weatherhead (Hydra Head) cd 16.98
Although we've never technically reviewed anything from post-noise rock combo Helms Alee, we have actually listed one of their records before, the review was just not written by any of us. Nope, in fact, Helms Alee's Night Terror was reviewed by Mr. Justin Foley of The Austerity Program, who while perhaps not THEE most objective reviewer, considering his band is in fact labelmates with Helms Alee, was definitely of the same mind as us that Night Terror was in fact, a killer record. It definitely helped that we were all pretty nuts for pre-Helms Alee outfit Harkonen. And while we can't hope to match Foley's unique way with words, we figured that on the occasion of the new Helms Alee record, Weatherhead, the time had come for us to weigh in ourselves.
As Mr. Foley mentioned, there are still plenty of residual Harkonen-isms In Helms Alee, but HA are definitely their own band, a much more melodic beast for sure, the first track immediately brings to mind Torche and Big Business and even Cave In, that sort of sludge pop drum heavy melodic crunch, and that opener "Elbow Grease" is a doozy, not even two minutes but packed with plenty of buzz, wild tribal drumming, woozy tangled guitar harmonies, and cool multitracked vocals, which leads right into "8/16", which begins again, all super melodic, but quickly shifts gears into something seriously bombastic and aggro, howled vox and downtuned guitars, a lurching lumbering crush, but still shot through with tons of melody, and the first appearance of female vocals, which definitely change the vibe, and that song is all over the map, frantic and mathy, tripped out and psychedelic, chugging and churning, and that sort of plays out over the whole record, which for the most part is WAY more varied and melodic than the already admittedly melodic and varied Night Terror, lots of acoustic guitars, shimmering harmonies, and meandering slowcore, hazy angelic vocals, low slung bass creep, pure jangle pop, tripped out almost looped sounding riffage, seriously unhinged bellowed boy vocals, total classic rock sounding crunch but wrapped in super crumbly distortion, and rife with cool boy/girl harmonies, all that peppered with brief blasts of serious heaviness, like on the closing title track, which explodes with a super intense mathy workout, then gets all warped and punky, before getting dirgey and doomy, only to finally blossom into something totally melodic and hooky. Definitely all over the map, but the various bits and pieces do manage to all come together into a seriously kick ass and crazy catchy chunk of post everything heaviness.
MPEG Stream: "Elbow Grease"
MPEG Stream: "8/16"
MPEG Stream: "Music Box"
MPEG Stream: "Pretty As Pie"

HELMS ALEE Weatherhead (Hydra Head) 2lp 30.00
Although we've never technically reviewed anything from post-noise rock combo Helms Alee, we have actually listed one of their records before, the review was just not written by any of us. Nope, in fact, Helms Alee's Night Terror was reviewed by Mr. Justin Foley of The Austerity Program, who while perhaps not THEE most objective reviewer, considering his band is in fact labelmates with Helms Alee, was definitely of the same mind as us that Night Terror was in fact, a killer record. It definitely helped that we were all pretty nuts for pre-Helms Alee outfit Harkonen. And while we can't hope to match Foley's unique way with words, we figured that on the occasion of the new Helms Alee record, Weatherhead, the time had come for us to weigh in ourselves.
As Mr. Foley mentioned, there are still plenty of residual Harkonen-isms In Helms Alee, but HA are definitely their own band, a much more melodic beast for sure, the first track immediately brings to mind Torche and Big Business and even Cave In, that sort of sludge pop drum heavy melodic crunch, and that opener "Elbow Grease" is a doozy, not even two minutes but packed with plenty of buzz, wild tribal drumming, woozy tangled guitar harmonies, and cool multitracked vocals, which leads right into "8/16", which begins again, all super melodic, but quickly shifts gears into something seriously bombastic and aggro, howled vox and downtuned guitars, a lurching lumbering crush, but still shot through with tons of melody, and the first appearance of female vocals, which definitely change the vibe, and that song is all over the map, frantic and mathy, tripped out and psychedelic, chugging and churning, and that sort of plays out over the whole record, which for the most part is WAY more varied and melodic than the already admittedly melodic and varied Night Terror, lots of acoustic guitars, shimmering harmonies, and meandering slowcore, hazy angelic vocals, low slung bass creep, pure jangle pop, tripped out almost looped sounding riffage, seriously unhinged bellowed boy vocals, total classic rock sounding crunch but wrapped in super crumbly distortion, and rife with cool boy/girl harmonies, all that peppered with brief blasts of serious heaviness, like on the closing title track, which explodes with a super intense mathy workout, then gets all warped and punky, before getting dirgey and doomy, only to finally blossom into something totally melodic and hooky. Definitely all over the map, but the various bits and pieces do manage to all come together into a seriously kick ass and crazy catchy chunk of post everything heaviness.
MPEG Stream: "Elbow Grease"
MPEG Stream: "8/16"
MPEG Stream: "Music Box"
MPEG Stream: "Pretty As Pie"

HELVETETS PORT Exodus To Hell (Pure Steel) cd 14.98
Jussi from Circle recommended this Swedish band to us (we've found out about a lot of cool bands thanks to our friend Jussi), and after we tracked down some copies of their cd, we realized we needed to recommend 'em to you, too! Helvetets Port (which means Gate of Hell or something like that) are a current band playing a very deliberately retro, almost tongue-in-cheek style of '80s heavy metal. Not a joke though. They're totally for real, yet revel in the most ridiculous aspects of the music they love so much and strive to emulate. You can immediately see how this would appeal to Jussi (and us), since the next better thing than Circle's "NWOFHM" is of course the actual NWOBHM, which this band is obviously especially inspired by. Helvetets Port are four metal-lovin' Swedes playing dress up in color-coordinated spandex and scarves, but going beyond that to deliver the goods with galloping guitars, piercing falsetto shrieks, wonderful lyrics about diamond claws, Japanese warlords, and the threat of being killed by a reaper. That's what's most charming about this band, their (inadvertently?) silly, seemingly earnest songwriting in the best "story-telling" Iron Maiden-esque tradition. Their songs, though none of 'em long (2-3 minutes, most of 'em), are all mini-prog epics, utterly over the top, the band pushing to the limit of their ability and beyond, always totally catchy but also a bit awkward, their ambitious arrangements quite quirky. The accent-laden vocals, too, sometimes seem a bit strained, but these factors are overruled by their enthusiasm and just add to this band's "real people" feel, making their retro NWOBHM worship (and not just NWOBHM, as we suspect they like other, over the top old schoolers like Manowar and Thor too) seem all the more authentic, bound for cult fandom if they can keep it up.
They remind us a bit of the USA's Harbinger, another young band who like to pretend it's 1983, in real life as well as on record, in fact, if you watch the impressive/hilarious video that's supposed to be included as a bonus on this disc (we couldn't actually find it, but it's on YouTube anyway) for their song "Lightning Rod Avenger" you'll see these kids doing things the old fashioned way...
This was produced by the singer from Enforcer, another spandex-clad Swedish metal band of retro persuasion whom we've recommended previously, though Helvetets Port way outdoes Enforcer with their sheer, sincere, imaginative eccentricity (if not in other ways too). Hail Helvetets Port!!
MPEG Stream: "The Shogun"
MPEG Stream: "Killers In The Sand"
MPEG Stream: "Helvetets Port"
MPEG Stream: "Diamond Claw"

HEMATOVORE Untitled (Acerbic Noise Development) cd 11.98
Shredding instrumental math-metal played in happy, major keys on downtuned guitars with dual (or even triple) harmonies?? Sounds good? Check. Sound familiar? Double check. If you're a fan of San Francisco's The Fucking Champs it should. But this ain't the Champs. A glance at the colorful, Aaron Turner (Isis/Hydra Head) designed packaging reveals that this is a band called Hematovore, and they're from Alabama. We guess it had to happen. The Champs had some downtime, people got antsy, and then along comes a band that sounds so much like 'em it's absolutely uncanny. Unoriginal maybe, but what the heck. If you've been eagerly waiting for a Champs VI, well, you need to get this now!! It's just what the (rock) doctor ordered.
What's weird is that according to their online bio, they've been around for, like, 13 years (just like The Champs). And no mention is made of them as an influence. So perhaps it's a case of parallel evolution, inspired by the same cool things -- Carcass, Thin Lizzy, Metallica, Maiden, technical death metal... But we doubt it. They've GOT to be really into The Champs. Though, there's a few differences. Hematovore rocks with THREE guitars and a bassist, whereas The Champs make do with two guitars (sometimes three, when the drummer isn't drumming) and no bass. And the blend of extremes, death metal on one end, indie/post-rock on the other, seems more pronounced with Hematovore. They get more hardcore METAL than the Champs do at times, but at others also more mellow and pretty.
There's almost no point in describing this further, 'cause if you're NOT already into The Champs you either wouldn't like this, or need to get some Champs cds first. But if you're a Champs fan (and why wouldn't you be??) then this is basically the new Champs album you've been wanting, just under a different name. More ear candy for Champs fans basically. So we can't help but recommend it!!
MPEG Stream: "Witherspoon, Pt. 2"
MPEG Stream: "Blasting Through The Back Nine"

HEMMINGSON, MERIT Queen Of Swedish Hammond Folk Groove (Amigo) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Wow! The wonderful, wonderful music of organist Merit Hemmingson combines a bunch of stuff we just simply LOVE but never heard quite like this before. The title of this "best of" collection boldly suggests as much to you too, right? Swedish Hammond Folk Groove, yeah!! We hadn't heard of her before we came across this, but now we know she made a handful of records in the '70s that brought together ancestral Swedish folk melodies, jazzy Hammond organ grooving, and some colorful psychedelic moves. Merit's Hammond is at the fore, playing her own swingin', riffin' take on these traditional tunes, but the arrangements also variously incorporate '70s funky wah-wah psych guitars, her lovely, wordless vocals, flutes and bongos and more... It's all so sunshiney and delightful, reminding us of everything from Hansson & Karlsson to Turid to The Free Design to a calmer, mellower version of Aavikko! And of course modern-day Swedish folk organ duo Sagor & Swing.
Merit's music is gentle, soulful, rhythmic -- so nice! It's total "grooving with trolls and flowers in the forest funk". Not your everyday organ jazz that's for sure, though Merit got her start in the '60s playing jazz -- she came over to the New York City to study, taking piano lessons from both Joe Zawinul and Lalo Schifrin and even getting to sit in with Miles Davis's band! But soon she went in a more pop/funk direction, and then became inspired by Scandinavia's rich history of olden folk music to create the sounds heard here.
The twenty tracks on this collection are all from albums originally released between 1971-1977 (Huvva, Trollskog, Bergtagen, Balsam, and Hoven Droven) except for a couple of recently-recorded tracks at the disc's end done in a similar style, featuring as sidemen members of currently happenin' Swedish retro-leaning rock bands (and big Merit fans) Dungen and The Ark! That's right, while obscure for years even in Sweden, she's undergone a bit of a hipster rediscovery lately and in fact this disc (the first time on cd for most of this music) is the prelude to a new album due out this year.
Queen Of Swedish Hammond Folk Groove is a nicely deluxe package, in a slipcovered jewelcase with a thick booklet full of photos, liner notes in both English and Swedish, and Merit's own track-by-track commentary. We had to go to a bit of trouble to import these from Sweden, but it was worth it!
MPEG Stream: "Mandom Mod Och Morske Man"
MPEG Stream: "Brudmarsch Efter Lisme Per"
MPEG Stream: "Setnmarks Slalompolska"