The weather today is absolutely shit, it’s windier and wetter than a category 5 queef…so I’ve decided to uproot and head to Italy! I’m just kidding, there’s perfectly good pizza in my local kebab shop I’m not going anywhere, but today’s band however are indeed from “lo stivale”…let me introduce you to HELL IN THE CLUB. Formed in Alessandria back in 2009 and consisting of vocalist David Moras, bassist Andrea Buratto, guitarist Andrea Piccardi and drummer Marco Lanciotti, the four-piece have been living their dream of sex, drugs & rock ‘n’ roll over the past couple of years, and with a couple of records under their belt already they’ve accumulated a strong fan-base, with their sound taking influence from the glam-metal heyday’s of the 80’s…2017 sees them release their brand new album “See You On The Dark Side”…returning Jedi or are they rock’s Jar Jar Binks? Let’s find out…
The album opens up with lead single “We Are On Fire” and immediately we hear their glam-metal influence…there’s a level of swagger here akin to the likes of MOTLEY CRUE and HANOI ROCKS in places, coupled with the melodic hooks, the gang vocals, all the way down to the guitar solo, acting very much like a time capsule full of 80’s rock splendour and they fit a lot into this relatively brief opener, setting a good tone for the record going forward; a decent start. “The Phantom Punch” follows this up with little to no change in overall approach then other than slight tempo changes; there’s a more power-metal tone in the chorus with Moras properly belting this one out, more gang vocals and another solo round this one off and again, it’s decent…
The incredibly random “I Wanna Swing Like Peter Parker” is a peculiar one…while upbeat and lively for the most part, highlighting an apparent fondness of Marvel comics, it’s got this wonderful soft-jazz fill halfway through the track, it’s a cheeky play on words; half web-slinger, half FRANK SINATRA, literally swinging and I imagine this was in part inspired by THAT scene from Spiderman 3…bizarre. “A Melody, A Memory” starts off well enough with a rich, groove-laden riff sequence but as we switch into the chorus there’s this really awkward key-change that doesn’t sound right at all…it kills all the momentum gained leading into it, while it should really burst into life for a bold chorus we get an underwhelming transition…disappointing this, before we finish up on a stronger, consistent note. Album highlights like “The Misfit” utilise vibrant, catchy pop-rock qualities to deliver a light-hearted, fun listen, while “Withered In Venice” by contrast is a more mature rock ballad; dramatic and emotive…ultimately there’s enough here to entertain fans of that bygone glam-rock era but it isn’t over saturated in clichés to the point where it’s a mere tribute act…or even worse, STEEL PANTHER. Now if you’ll excuse me…I’m off to dance my way down the street looking like an absolute prat like Toby Maguire, despite the rain. [6]
The album opens up with lead single “We Are On Fire” and immediately we hear their glam-metal influence…there’s a level of swagger here akin to the likes of MOTLEY CRUE and HANOI ROCKS in places, coupled with the melodic hooks, the gang vocals, all the way down to the guitar solo, acting very much like a time capsule full of 80’s rock splendour and they fit a lot into this relatively brief opener, setting a good tone for the record going forward; a decent start. “The Phantom Punch” follows this up with little to no change in overall approach then other than slight tempo changes; there’s a more power-metal tone in the chorus with Moras properly belting this one out, more gang vocals and another solo round this one off and again, it’s decent…
The incredibly random “I Wanna Swing Like Peter Parker” is a peculiar one…while upbeat and lively for the most part, highlighting an apparent fondness of Marvel comics, it’s got this wonderful soft-jazz fill halfway through the track, it’s a cheeky play on words; half web-slinger, half FRANK SINATRA, literally swinging and I imagine this was in part inspired by THAT scene from Spiderman 3…bizarre. “A Melody, A Memory” starts off well enough with a rich, groove-laden riff sequence but as we switch into the chorus there’s this really awkward key-change that doesn’t sound right at all…it kills all the momentum gained leading into it, while it should really burst into life for a bold chorus we get an underwhelming transition…disappointing this, before we finish up on a stronger, consistent note. Album highlights like “The Misfit” utilise vibrant, catchy pop-rock qualities to deliver a light-hearted, fun listen, while “Withered In Venice” by contrast is a more mature rock ballad; dramatic and emotive…ultimately there’s enough here to entertain fans of that bygone glam-rock era but it isn’t over saturated in clichés to the point where it’s a mere tribute act…or even worse, STEEL PANTHER. Now if you’ll excuse me…I’m off to dance my way down the street looking like an absolute prat like Toby Maguire, despite the rain. [6]
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