Beyond Hell/Above Heaven *- By Volbeat

Artist:

Volbeat

UPC:

602527530048

Description:

Lyricist: Michael Poulsen.
Personnel: Michael Poulsen (vocals, guitar); Thomas Bredahl (guitar); Jon Larsen (drums).
Audio Mixer: Jacob Hansen.
Recording information: Hansen Studios.
Photographer: Erik Weiss.
A first listen to Danish "metal rockers" Volbeat`s Beyond Hell/Above Heaven, reveals how completely they`ve consolidated all the elements they`ve experimented with since 2007`s Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil: punk, roots rock & roll, rockabilly, heavy metal, death metal, country, and `70s hard rock. Power chords, hooky melodies, chanted choruses, lyric themes obsessed with the no-man`s land that exists between -- and beyond -- good and evil, and the sense of hard partying recklessness simultaneously reflect influences as wide as Social Distortion, the Misfits, AC/DC, and Metallica, Judas Priest, and Exodus. Once more recorded and engineered by Jacob Hansen, Beyond Hell/Above Heaven extends the narrative that began on Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood with two more chapters in the saga via the tracks "7 Shots," and opener "The Mirror and the Ripper." The former is a perfect aural illustration of Volbeat`s ability to integrate seemingly disparate elements by including banjos (courtesy of Rod Sinclair), bluesman Anders Pederson`s slide guitar work, and the heavy metal axe chugging of Kreator`s Mille Petrozza and Mercyful Fate-King Diamond six-string pyrotechnician Michael Denner. "Heaven and Hell" is pure AC/DC power riffage sent dimensionally askew by Henrik Hall`s killer bluesy harmonica work that transforms the tune melodically into something that balances the Phil Spector-esque side of Glenn Danzig`s melodic sensibilities (on the earliest Misfits singles) and late-`70s metal. This cut is followed immediately by the harder, darker, death metal of "Who They Are" that nonetheless carries within it an irresistible, nearly anthemic chorus. Likewise "A Warrior`s Call," with its furious doom-and-gloom intro that gives way to a big, bad, strutting rock & roll stomper. "Fallen" recalls the Foo Fighters` "Everlong" in approach, yet is heavier still. The thrash end happens on "Evelyn," with guest vocals by Napalm Death`s Mark "Barney" Greenway on the verses before Michael Poulsen adds his trademark lyricism in the chorus. (And this is to say little of the skittering punk-country of "Being 1," an irrepressible love song with teeth.) Any way you slice it, Volbeat, a skillful repository of so many lineage sounds, are their own thing: a band apart who are sophisticated, accessible, and utterly entertaining as songwriters and performers. Nowhere is this more true than on Beyond Hell/Above Heaven. ~ Thom Jurek

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. Mirror and the Ripper, The
2. Heaven Nor Hell - (featuring Henrik Hall)
3. Who They Are
4. Fallen
5. Better Believer, A
6. 7 Shots - (featuring Michael Denner/Mille Petrozza/Rod Sinclair)
7. New Day, A
8. 16 Dollars - (featuring Jakob Oelund)
9. Warrior`s Call, A
10. Magic Zone - (featuring Barney)
11. Evelyn
12. Being 1
13. Thanks

Album Information

Release Date:

12/14/2010

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Heavy Metal

Subgenre:

Death Metal

Label:

Universal Republic Records

Catalog Number:

15113

Original Release Year:

2010

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

Runtime:

50 : 51

Guest Artist:

Henrik Hall; Anders Pedersen; Michael Denner; Mille Petrozza; Rod Sinclair; Jakob Oelund; Barney

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