Hemi - Avalon

Yeah, boys and girls. I don’t know how many times I’ll have to thank the great opportunity of being here writing and, most of all, knowing the avant-guarde of Metal. You, children of the night, like me have been reading, or hearing that Metal is a piece of crap, a bunch of living dinosaurs, unchic, and other not really kind words. But, as good fans as we are, we have our faith. And this faith has a name, and its name is Heavy Metal. I t doesn’t matter if you like classical metal, thrash metal, black metal, or whatever metal. Our faith is stronger.

I write these words every time I have the chance to listen to a band that I know will make history. Hemi are one of them. “Avalon” is exciting. An album that reaffirms the feeling that HM is evolving. How do they do that? By mixing a lot of HM influences. From Iron Maiden to Anthrax; from Dio to Metallica, Hemi got everything they learned from their predecessors and wrote one beautiful page HM history.

The six tracked album, “Avalon,” starts with “Re Vengeance” with a fast punk chord-riffing song. Deep down you can feel some early Iron Maiden rhythm guitars. Only a dash, and sololess, of what is to come. On second track, “Decay,” everything changes. There is an almost hidden keyboard in the beginning. Guitars and vocals are near thrash now. But the guitars have that lost NWOBHM touch of finesse added to some modern technique. It is slower than “Re Vengeance,” but also strong. Keyboards reappear in the end to give it a classical like break. Guitars, as usual, do a pretty good job in it. Hemi musicians are very skilled, and they dose it in each song, after all this is a metal act, not a jazz one. “Death Wizard” has also the punk grip in its beginning, but it soon gets rid of it with inspired and technical instrumental passages. Most would tell it is near technical thrash. Then comes “Darkhorse” and its epical beginning and a typical Iron Maidenish galloping guitar riff. No doubt it’s “Avalon’s” most beautiful song. Again, guitars are the center of attention. The shorter, but not the least important, “Avalon Averted” has a Metallica’s And Justice for All… grip. Technical, but strong. And the grand finale comes with “The Final Deletion” and all its guitar phrases and a more melodic vocal.