One of the hardest working bands in the business, often clocking up well over 200 gigs a year, it is perhaps not surprising that this 2022 release is only the fifth album from the band formed by singer/guitarist Lzzy Hale and her brother, drummer Arejay. The line-up has been incredibly stable over the years, with Joe Hottinger (lead guitar) joining in 2003 and bassist Josh Smith the year later so apart from the first two self-released EP’s it has been the same line-up on all recordings. Along the way they have also won a Grammy (for “Love Bites…(So Do I)”) but for some reason I have only come across a few YT videos of Lzzy guesting with the likes of Tom Keifer on a cracking version of “Nobody’s Fool” so what would this be like?
It did not take long for me to be seriously regretting not seeing Halestorm when they played Auckland recently, as not only can Lzzy really sing, but the guys are a massively powerful outfit who hit really hard. It is difficult to realise that this is yet another Covid album with everyone working remotely, while Lzzy re-established her songwriting partnership with Scott Stevens and together they contributed 9 of the 11 songs, while Zac Molloy worked with the duo on another with the final being a combined band number. Stevens has been getting plenty of hits both with Halestorm and other acts, and there are times when Halestorm sound like a hard rock/metal version of P!nk (take “I Come First” as an example), but they can also slow it down and the acoustic ballad “Terrible Things” is immensely powerful, carried fully on Lzzy’s vocals.
Having not heard their other albums I obviously cannot compare, but reading other reviewers there is a common thread that this is the first album which comes close to capturing the power of the live act, and certainly there is an edge all the way through. It is an incredibly passionate release, with Lzzy releasing some demons, and the guys there with her all the way, switching from rock to metal and even dropping into nu-metal at times, changing the vehicles for Lzzy to show her skills. This album was my introduction to Halestorm and I am certainly not disappointed.
Rating: 8/10
Links:
https://www.halestormrocks.com/
https://www.atlanticrecords.com/
