HANK VON HELL – Dead (Album Review)

HANK VON HELL - Dead (Album Review)

Ego

Hot on the heels of his killer solo debut album Egomania, Hank von Hell is back in the saddle with the jauntily titled Dead.

Best known as the lead singer of Norwegian death-punk outfit Turbonegro, Hank von Hell and the band put things on ice in 2010 after the frontman spent a period in rehab for heroin addiction. As he was now a sober family man this maybe did not suit the crazy antics of Turbonegro.

Being sober, as I’m sure we’ll all agree, does not mean being boring, or uninteresting. Hank still continues to bring tracks full of pace, power and rhythm. He enjoys varying subject matter which he tackles with mirth and intelligence.

Latin

He also likes a bit of Latin occasionally, which is how Dead kicks off. “Ad Conteram Incantatores” translates as “breaking the spell”. This in essence is a 1-minute spooky scene-setter that ends with the words “you can’t kill me, I’m already dead”. Scene-setting indeed.

The real action begins with the title track which carries on where Egomania left off. With catchy hooks abound, this is a cracking opener-proper. 

Pic courtesy Rokfoto.net

Dead is not too dissimilar to Egomania in that it rocks along with melody and humour with great guitar licks and solos throughout. There are the odd departures from the norm, however.

Drift

“Disco” has a smoother feel, leading you to feel the song is about ‘disco’ where in actuality it is not. This track is more about the substances you may take to get through a night at said disco if you get my drift.

The highlight for me of Dead is “Crown”. This song features Geurnica Mancini sharing vocals. The contrast between her strong bluesy tones and Hank’s sound lifts the track to another level. I was left wishing she was on more tracks. Mancini is the lead singer of Thundermother.

Check it out

Dead proved to be an enjoyable return for Hank von Hell and whilst in my opinion it does not reach the heady heights of his previous effort, it is well worth checking out.

Dead is out now on Music For Nations.

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Sparky

Also, find more of my CGCM reviews here: Sparky

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