My first impression upon spinning the upcoming Let’s Raise Hell release from ATTICK DEMONS was simple. Maiden, Maiden, Maiden, Iron Maiden! That doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a bad album. I love Iron Maiden, even have the logo tattooed in my sleeve that depicts a guitar case “stickered” with the logos of a few of my favorite bands. It’s just that I was smacked so hard in the face and so fast with the Maiden resemblances. It’s hard to look past them.
Let’s Raise Hell opens with “The Circle of Light” and by 20 seconds in I wondered if Bruce Dickinson was fronting this band as a side project. The musical compositions parallel the NWOBHM champs and are very Maiden-like with the beats, octaves, twin guitar attacks and tempo changes. There are 9 tracks on the album, in similar fashion to some of the Maiden 80’s classics. More than half of the songs clock in upwards of 5 minutes, with one epic 7.5’er. Tracks like the six and a half minutes of “Dark Angel” are well worth the price of admission, although I will say that the lead-in intro drags on too long. After the Asian/Aladdin flavored intro, the song breaks open with a charging high energy and a soulful chorus thanks to the backing vocals. The title track rampages for nearly 6 minutes, while album closer “Ritual” beats you into submission with a grinding heavy riff. I’ll have to take “Ritual” as my pick of the litter here as it’s already gravitated to my gym workout playlist.
The cover art for Let’s Raise Hell is rather cool and a little Motorhead-ish. The artwork was created by Joe Petagno (Motorhead, Exodus) and Lordigan Pedro Sena. Overall I preferred this to a good portion of Iron Maiden‘s output since 1992…yep, that statement will probably get me lynched but I find this far more listenable than say, Dance of Death or even Book of Souls.
The Portuguese classic heavy metal band, ATTICK DEMONS are celebrating their 20th Anniversary as a band according to the bio! Seems to me that I should have crossed paths with them previously, but no matter, I’m here now.
They have adopted their Dickinson/Maiden comparisons it seems with the press release containing statements like: “…a voice that naturally evokes that of Bruce Dickinson…” and “ATTICK DEMONS managed to offer an album that captures the spirit of such classics as Somewhere in Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son.” It also says “The clean, robust production, the great song writing and the unforgettable melodies make Let’s Raise Hell a must for any Underground Heavy metal fan”. And I agree!
BUY: Attick Demons – Let’s Raise Hell
Cheers,
The Meister
