You'd be forgiven for thinking this was another standard Scandinavian power metal band from the name, logo, title... well everything about this release really... but this is why you shouldn't judge books by their covers. Hero incorporate a few Gothic rock influences as well, though these are probably more lifted from the “Love Metal” styling of HIM or perhaps the pseudo-pomp of Evanescence rather than Fields of the Nephilim or The Sisters of Mercy... but either way it makes for an interestingly varied release.
This is the second album from the band, and their first for American label Retroactive records. The first impression I get from the album is that this feels like a labour of love on the part of the band – they feel like they have taken their time to write, record, and mix the songs rather than rush it and get the album out, and I think that really comes through.
Track one 'Immortal', isn't the best track on the album – It has a nice intro to it, but feels like they were trying too hard to write a title track and got a little swept up in the technicalities. 'Blood Red Roses' is a nice strong metal track with a nice underlying groove that carries it nicely through the melodic choruses. 'R.I.P' is a lot heavier with a nice growl to start things off before returning to the melodic style of the previous track. 'Punch in the Face' is definitely not a punch in the face – it has a nice heavy lead riff, but the underlying song is a lot more subdued – at times it does throw you off somewhat though. 'Imagine This' is a nice soft Gothic feeling ballad with a big guitar solo and no drums, that does a good job at injecting some more variety to the album. 'Gasoline' puts me in mind of one of The 69 Eyes heavier moments, but doesn't quite have that same kick that The 69 Eyes can inject into their tracks. 'Funeral of Death' starts out a little proggy, before crashing into the heaviest riff on the album... unfortunately there are chunks of the song that really need that keyboard embellishment to stop it going totally flat. 'When Novembers Fall' is another ballad, though this time an acoustic one - not as interesting as the first one, but certainly a good one by rock standards. 'Rock The World' is a slice of Kiss fan-boy-ism, and why not? It does make an interesting and fun end for the record.
The album doesn't really suffer from much other than the 'Hero' formula does get a little over used, and that the band does have a tendency to repeat the same tricks a few times throughout. On a shorter record this wouldn't stand out half as much. But if you enjoy the formula and little tricks it shouldn't work against them on a subsequent listening.
http://www.myspace.com/herosweden
