Released By : Eleven Seven Records
Genre : Groove Metal, Southern Metal
Link : http://www.hellyeahband.com/
Lineup:
Chad Gray – Vocals
Greg Tribbet – Guitar
Tom Maxwell – Guitar
Bob Zilla – Bass
Vinnie Paul – Drums
Tracklist:
01. War In Me
02. Band Of Brothers
03. Rage/Burn
04. Drink, Drank, Drunk’
05. Bigger God
06. Between You And Nowhere
07. Call It Like I See It
08. Why Does It Always
09. WM Free
10. Dig Myself A Hole
11. What It Takes To Be Me
I’ll never, never understand why people all group together to slam certain bands just because what they do isn’t considered ‘cool’ anymore. Maybe it’s because I’ve never been one to follow trends and have always been honest about what I like regardless of the possible backlash from my peers and contemporaries. Why am starting an album review like this you ask?…. Well it’s because I’m truly sick to death of the fact that HELLYEAH have become one of those bands that it’s cool to hate. Sure the music these guys make together might have had its day in the sun, but surely that’s no reason to put them out to pasture. It seems to have more to do with the fact that most of the younger brigade these days are more into all of that screamo shite (admittedly some of it is really good), and the older brigade think it makes you dumb to listen to bands that aren’t either intricate or obscure. Fuck all of that shit guys, just listen to BAND OF BROTHERS from HELLYEAH…It really does kick some serious ass. In case we’ve all forgotten, METAL used to be a fun genre to be into and when PANTERA was king of the jungle life was good.
BAND OF BROTHERS may not quite be PANTERA, but it’s the closest thing we’ve had since Anselmo and Co. did the old splits. Vinnie Paul still sound totally killer behind the skins and this is sort of songwriting that suits his style to a tee. MUDVAYNE vocalist Chad Grey also goes for an Anselmo-ish approach in places, especially in the few spoken sections that remind me of GOOD FRIENDS AND A BOTTLE OF PILLS. That being said, he is certainly no imitator and still brings plenty of his own unique approach to the fold. The groove metal guitar work of ex-NOTHINGFACE guitarist Tom Maxwell and MUDVAYNE guitarist Greg Tribbet may not be revolutionary by any means but their semi-simplistic approach is chunky and head-bangingly appetizing and would make Dimebag proud.
There is a noticeable improvement in the lyrics department on the band’s third album too and while there’s still nothing here that will convince the haters it’s a nice touch that fans of the band will respect. The album title BAND OF BROTHERS is a nice touch too. It’s a good way of finally announcing that HELLYEAH are a real band not just a group of like-minded muso’s getting together occasionally. Obviously there’s not very much I could say in this review that would convince haters to open their ears and minds, so this review is more for the fans…BAND OF BROTHERS is a very good album, probably the best album that the groove metal genre has seen since PANTERA and easily the best thing to come out of the HELLYEAH camp so far.
Written By ZeeZee
Rating : 8/10
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