Demon Bitch – Hellfriends

The heavy metal/USPM scene is in good hands these days with bands like Visigoth and Eternal Champion leading the way. Another new contender is Detroit’s Demon Bitch. With their debut LP “Hellfriends”, this band takes a considerably different approach from the aforementioned groups. Musically, they have more of a blue-collar USPM approach, with more aggressive, thrashy riffs. Despite this, their vocalist comes from the white-collar side of USPM (think bands like Crimson Glory, Screamer, Fates Warning, etc.). He’s a total wailer, which works both in the band’s favour and to their detriment. Regardless, there aren’t many bands that come to mind who are able to combine both sides of the USPM spectrum, which makes “Hellfriends” a compelling listen. This combination is actually most reminiscent of the excellent power/thrash band Realm, but Demon Bitch is more on the power metal side of things, whereas Realm’s roots were in thrash.

Generally, the music on this release is pretty killer. Demon Bitch has no shortage of riffs, and because this record clocks in at just over 35 minutes, the band throws everything in their arsenal at you. There are wild, unexpected tempo changes, and a general uncontrolled feeling to the music. No song gets too comfortable for very long, as the band mixes a lot of different grooves and feels into each song. The previously noted tendency to get thrashy brings back memories of some of the more aggressive Manilla Road records of the late 1980s, but Demon Bitch pushes the boundaries of speed even further (“Beneath The Ice Caves” being the fastest tune). This also comes through in the guitar solos, which are completely off-the-hook.

Though “Hellfriends” is a stellar release musically, your enjoyment of this record will come down to the vocals. Calling their singer disorderly doesn’t even begin to explain how insane he is. The notes he hits seem to be totally random, making for a somewhat incoherent result. While unique vocalists like Sean Killian or Mark Shelton have their appeal, it is more difficult to appreciate the singing on this record. It is quite likely that these vocals will grow on you with time, but upon the first few listens, they get in the way of otherwise stellar music. 

The end result is that “Hellfriends” is a unique and innovative record, but is brought down by the very thing that makes it so identifiable. Some people are going to love this sound, but after multiple listens, I still fail to get past the absurdity of the vocal approach. Both Visigoth and Eternal Champion manage to be catchy and memorable with their takes on this style of music, but unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Demon Bitch. That doesn’t make this a bad record at all. In fact, it is to be commended for standing out amongst the crowd of clone bands that have invaded heavy metal these days, but it also doesn’t make it an automatic album of the year contender.

Be sure to check out and like Demon Bitch on Facebook!

Highlights

"Beneath The Ice Caves"

"Hellfriends"

Final Rating

3.6/5 or 72%. 

Written by Scott

Insomnium – Winter’s Gate

“Winter’s Gate” is the seventh record by melodic death metal gods Insomnium, and takes a considerably different form from any of their previous work. This album is simply one 40-minute song. It is composed of 7 different parts, but as they form one track, it is more difficult to tell them apart. There are clear beginnings and endings to each of the 7 parts, but you’re much more likely to recognize this album as a single song. Though this is a bit of a strange tactic, it makes sense for Insomnium. Their albums have always had songs that blend into one another, so having one song simply increases the cohesion of the record.

Musically, “Winter’s Gate” is exactly what you’d expect from the band. They still are far better than any other band at writing music that is both depressing and uplifting at the same time, catching a variety of seasons, moods, and atmospheres. This record has crushing riffs abound, blasting, catchy melodies, and introspective instrumental passages. It manages to succinctly summarize everything the band has done in their previous work. The only real problem is… it’s just one song. Though this album is filled with memorable sections, there’s nothing to latch onto. You can’t say “that one riff in the bridge of this song is awesome” because instead you’ll have to say “the part at 16:49 is really cool”. Except nobody does that because nobody watches the clock while an album is on. That doesn’t devalue what Insomnium has done with this record; it just means that you can’t reach for parts of the record, and will end up listening to it less as a result.

One slight change on “Winter’s Gate” is that it feels like the clean vocals are slightly less prominent than they were on “Shadows of the Dying Sun”. They still show up on this album, but don’t really dominate the record that much. This is both good and bad: on the one hand, Insomnium’s clean vocalist isn’t all that technically skilled, but his approach works for a band that is based on creating intense emotions. At the end of the day, however, Niilo Sevänen’s growls are potent enough to do this as well, so it’s not a major loss.

The fact that Insomnium is not bound to conventional song structures on this album works for the band. It might not be as effective for the listener to follow along, but every second of this album is enjoyable, and it never feels like the band is retreading another chorus in order to write a song in a particular way. As a one-off experiment, “Winter’s Gate” was a good way to generate some discussion about a new Insomnium record. Overall, I prefer a more song-based approach, but this record is a nice change of pace too. 

Be sure to check out and like Insomnium on Facebook!

Highlight

All of it

Final Rating

4.2/5 or 84%. 

Written by Scott