Halestorm - Vicious

[tts42572]

Looks like the first single called Uncomfortable has been released from the new album Vicious due out July 27th:

Sounding pretty good to me.

 

[heavyharmonies]

Doesn't immediately grab me. We'll see what some replays and other songs the album brings.

[Geoff]

Oh, I remember this band. This is that band that started out really good and now suck. Last album was very poor and this song doesn't make me think we're in for a return to form.

[Maarten]

Joan Jett meets Metallica...

[Dead Planet]

Works for me.....

[Captain Howdy]

The last album had a few duffers on it, but was overall damn good, and this sounds great as well. Looking forward to this.

[tts42572]

Liking what I'm hearing from the first couple songs....Sounds like they're bringing the rock back.

 

 

[Crazysam]

The new songs sound solid, but for me the hooks aren't as immediate as the singles off the debut and "The Strange Case of...".  Maybe I'll enjoy more after a few more listens.

[Glen]

it's not the debut by the way. Their debut was very average.

Saw some comments on FB that was more like their second album.

I quite like the new tune 

[Crazysam]

4 hours ago, Glen said:

it's not the debut by the way. Their debut was very average.

Saw some comments on FB that was more like their second album.

You're right, I recalled listening to an EP, but in looking at the HH main site they also put out an album way back in 2001

[Crazysam]

New song

 

[tts42572]

51 minutes ago, Crazysam said:

New song

 

Like that...cool groove.

Looking forward to this album.

[Geoff]

Last album was rubbish but this is definitely far more in line with what I'm sure 90% of people want from this band. The song is solid, but the sound is pure, proper 100% Halestorm. Nice. 

As for their debut, average is the largest compliment someone could pay it. It's one of very few albums I actually scored 0/100. As bad as it gets. 

[Captain Howdy]

On 6/23/2018 at 2:03 PM, Glen said:

it's not the debut by the way. Their debut was very average.

Saw some comments on FB that was more like their second album.

I quite like the new tune 

The self titled album is most defo their debut studio album, as everything else prior to that were more EPs than albums.

(Don't mess with the) Time man was only 6 tracks.

Break the silence was 7 tracks, but two of those were the same song.

One and done was a 5 track live EP as well.

I think the band pretty much classifies those first two as self released demo's anyway.

 

 

[Geoff]

18 hours ago, Captain Howdy said:

The self titled album is most defo their debut studio album, as everything else prior to that were more EPs than albums.

(Don't mess with the) Time man was only 6 tracks.

Break the silence was 7 tracks, but two of those were the same song.

One and done was a 5 track live EP as well.

I think the band pretty much classifies those first two as self released demo's anyway.

 

 

Yeah, the one I'm thinking of - 'Forecast for the future' (1997) is a 6 track EP too. 

http://lzzyhale.net/details_forecast_for_the_future.shtml

 

[Captain Howdy]

Forgot about that. That one was defo a demo. I think on that one and Time man, their dad played on them instead of an actual band.

[Captain Howdy]

There are some good songs on this new album, but on first listen it all sounds a bit samey. I think after the negativity around some of the songs on the last album being a bit too experimental for some fans, they seem to have stepped back and stuck to a basic formula for this one.

With the exception of a few songs I already knew, nothing really stood out. Even the balladesque songs never really stood out either.

I have a feeling that this one will take some repeat listens before it really comes into its own, but without the instantaneous hooky "hit single" type songs they have had on previous albums, it just kinda does its thing then finishes.

 

I never like to judge any album after a single listen, but this is the first Halestorm album that has not given me a few songs that sucker me in straight away.

I do love Uncomfortable, but I certainly do not think this is as good a song as the big songs off of previous albums.

[tts42572]

1 hour ago, Captain Howdy said:

There are some good songs on this new album, but on first listen it all sounds a bit samey. I think after the negativity around some of the songs on the last album being a bit too experimental for some fans, they seem to have stepped back and stuck to a basic formula for this one.

With the exception of a few songs I already knew, nothing really stood out. Even the balladesque songs never really stood out either.

I have a feeling that this one will take some repeat listens before it really comes into its own, but without the instantaneous hooky "hit single" type songs they have had on previous albums, it just kinda does its thing then finishes.

 

I never like to judge any album after a single listen, but this is the first Halestorm album that has not given me a few songs that sucker me in straight away.

I do love Uncomfortable, but I certainly do not think this is as good a song as the big songs off of previous albums.

Interesting to hear being I recall you've been a big supporter of the band in the past.  By all accounts, I've read 6-8 reviews and all have been pretty glowing.  

I was very lukewarm on the last album.  I liked Apocalyptic and Mayhem....I Am the Fire was pretty good....But didn't much care for the rest.  

My copy should show up tomorrow and looking forward to checking it out.  I don't listen to much female fronted stuff (or any lol) so Halestorm always feels like a little bit of a welcomed departure for me as they're just different than everything else I listen to.

I've liked what I've heard from the singles so far so we'll see,

[Captain Howdy]

Yeah you are right, I am a massive fan, but that is probably why this one has not hit me so well.

As I say, it is a good album. I lacks those out of place songs from the last album, which is a bonus, but for me, traditionally Halestorm albums tend to grab me on first spin with certain tracks standing out. On this one, I am struggling to think or one song that is as good as the best songs from the previous albums. Yes, Uncomfortable has a familiarity to it due to listening to it on my playlist etc for a few weeks now, but everything else just went by without grabbing me.

I will say that sometimes an album that does not hook me straight away can often end up moving above ones that do once they have had repeated plays, so I am certainly not writing this off.

Wild Life was actually a really good album, but was a little patchy in places, so I think they have taken onboard the negative comments about that and tried to make a more cohesive album this time.

[PeterS]

Couple of listens this morning and I like it.  If I remember right the last one was a bit too soft for my liking. This one has a bit more bite. 

[Crazysam]

Similar to a few other recent releases it looks like Halestorm has posted the entire new album on Youtube.  Unlike the latest Kissin' Dynamite and Lizzy Borden releases though the band looks to have posted all the tracks individually rather than as one upload.

[tts42572]

Only one time through so can't say much yet....But liking it better than the last release already.  The last album just got a bit too poppy/commercial for my liking.  

Definitely more general bite and aggression which is mostly what I want from this band when I listen to them.  My only small complaint would be that I'd like to see them combining that aggression with a bit more melody in the choruses and maybe using some backing vocals.  They still seem to find ways to add hooks though with tempo changes and other quirks so it's not a huge deal.

I do agree that I don't know if anything really jumped out too much at me as being overly awesome.  But by the same token, nothing really jumped out as being terrible either.  I do like Uncomfortable.....Killing Ourselves to Live is pretty good.  And kind of liking Do Not Disturb too.   

I need more listens to see how it settles.  I don't think it'll be anywhere near my top 5 this year though.

[Captain Howdy]

For anyone interested, the Walmart version has two bonus tracks, Letters & Nobody.

The vinyl, which is not out yet, also has those two bonus tracks plus two more, Now that you're gone & Golden.

 

Someone on Facebook pointed out that it is not fair to give the vinyl bonus tracks and leave everyone else out in the cold, and Lzzy gave some excuse about it being a reward for their patience due to the delay for vinyl, but that the bonus tracks will become available for everyone else somehow later down the line.

I know it is not the bands fault, and is pure record label decision, but it really is this kinda shit that pisses people off and turns people to illegal downloading.

 

I said on that post that I understand why Jap releases get bonus tracks due to the price they have to pay for CDs, but in this day and age there really is no excuse for different formats having different amounts of songs.

[Geoff]

I seem to be on about the same wavelength as you guys. The album is infinitely better than the last album, and very true to the sound/style we've come to expect from them since their rebirth with their s/t album in 2009 or whenever that was. 

But as solid as it is, I also can't really find a stand out track here or anything really worth sticking in my 2018 playlist. But it's all definitely solid and all around that 70% mark. 

I thought the closing ballad was really nice - showed some good passion and a bit of variation from the aggressive rest of the album. I only wish they'd used the full band from the first chorus or second verse onwards. It's a nice acoustic song, but I'd have loved to hear a full band version instead. Her voice sounds amazing on it. 

But yeah, anyway, it's good stuff. I can say now it won't feature high on any of my favourite lists this year, but it's a huge step back in the right direction after the last album. 

[Glen]

their worst album to date for me. I skipped nearly every song and she's way over singing on this.

disappointing