Album Review: HALESTORM - Vicious

01. Black Vultures
02. Skulls
03. Uncomfortable
04. Buzz
05. Do Not Disturb
06. Conflicted
07. Killing Ourselves To Live
08. Heart of Novocaine
09. Painkiller
10. White Dress
11. Vicious
12. The Silence

Halestorm is easily one of the best Heavy Rock bands in the world right now. I've been following them since I saw them play in a tent at Download Festival in 2010. I was absolutely blown away by their musicianship, live performance, and most of all Lzzy Hale's voice. Let's face it, her voice is nothing short of phenomenal. So yes, I've been rather excited to finally wrap my ears around their fourth full-length studio album, Vicious.

Opener Black Vultures kicks things off to a great start. It's a badass, defiant Hard Rock song with the kind of huge chorus that Halestorm have become known for. It does have a subtle Grunge tone that's present on most of the album, as though the band had been listening to a lot of Soundgarden before writing the record, and the spirit of Chris Cornell has weaved itself into the music. 

The massive tunes keep coming with Skulls and the single Uncomfortable. It's at this point that the magic formula becomes apparent. Halestorm clearly love a lot of different types of music, and they have honed their ability to seamlessly blend Pop, Grunge, Heavy Metal and Joan Jett-esque Glam Rock to create something that works so well. It's contemporary and classic at the same time. Arguably, their music has always been like this, but I think that Vicious shows a new level of craftsmanship in regards to the writing, and a tighter focus overall. 

A number of the tracks have a real sense of fun about them, especially the sexually charged Do Not Disturb, with the lyrics "I love your accent. I wonder what it sounds like when you cum" and Buzz, which would be the best song for a vibrator advert ever. Remember "Everybody's keeping their little secrets hidden in the bottom drawer". You can just imagine the band having a great time putting this record together, which I think helps the listener bond with the band that little bit more. 

It's funny, dark, aggressive, defiant, and pretty much everything a truly great Rock album should be. Halestorm have delivered a fantastic new album with absolutely no fillers, and enough potential hits to keep them invading the mainstream for quite some time to come.