Hammerfest 2012 Review: HellRoar Rock

Hammerfest 2012 Review: Hell

Stage 1 Saturday 17 March 2012, 6PM Review by Nev

March 26, 2012 in Hammerfest 2012

Bringing some well deserved theatrics to Hammerfest Stage 1 were Hell.

This is a band merging heavy metal with a number of different aspects and working it into an expressive stage performance. Hell seem to have managed to develop a more progressive, harmonised musical style with singer, David Bower, using his voice with as much of an instrument-like quality as the guitars in the band. Plus its always fun to see a little tongue in cheek poking at the religious types.

The singer has an innate ability for making this a very intimate show, holding sections of the crowd as if they are under his power. This fitted in well with the mood of the gig and aided by a good bit of the singers natural eloquence. With plenty of deviation no two songs sounded alike and it all sounded in step with not a hair out of place.

Then we come back to the persona of the band. I say the band, rather than the singer, as they are all part of the show and took full part in the stagecraft and dramatics of the performance. With guitarists playing and headbanging in sync to the steely glare from David Bower that locked on to the audience, this was quite the religious experience.