Artist: Hell Yeah
Title: Stampede
Type: Album
Label: Spinefarm Records

There’s no doubt Vinnie Paul, founder/producer of Hell Yeah and Pantera drum legend is proud of his Texas heritage. The cover for Stampede, Hellyeah’s second album features a herd of charging Texas Longhorn cattle, and opening track ‘Cowboy Way’ blasts out of the speakers with the same ferocity and power, waving the flag for rednecks, hill-billies and Texas sin. Heavier then anything on their eponymous first release, this sets the tone for the heavier tracks of album; hook laden riffs, and pit inducing beats, far more towards the metal end of the spectrum then the country rock of the first. That’s not to say the influence of Southern Rock is forgotten, a nice slide guitar sound sneaking into the riffs of ‘Hell of a Time’, hints of classic Lynard Skynyrd coming through in the mix of acoustic strumming and bottle neck solos, the song fading out of the hiss of a beer being cracked open.

With their combined heritage of Pantera, Mudvayne, Nothingface, and now with Bob Zilla of Damageplan taking up bass duties, it is inevitable that the ‘Metal Supergroup’ tag is going to get bandied around. However, there is a lot more to Hell Yeah then the sum of its parts. There’s no doubt that those other bands will be invoked in the playing styles of the members, and with such a heritage it would be foolish to expect otherwise. ‘Better Man’, a story of growing up to overcome shadow of an abusive father, has hints of ‘Cemetery Gates’ in the verses, but new dimensions are added with swirling Hammond organ licks mixing with the guitars. After this dark rock ballad, the metal stomp blasts back with a vengeance with ‘It’s On!’, Chad Grey’s swaggering screams demanding a mosh, backed up by Vinnie Paul’s powerhouse drumming.

In Stampede, Hellyeah have grown and evolved from their first release. All the parts seem to fit better together. How much is due to the extra time together, and how much is due to a new, but familiar member is hard to say. The song writing throughout is flowing and more confident, guitars more assured, and Vinnie Paul’s drumming is as strong as it has been for years, whilst the tight knit sound of the album as a whole is testament to his growth as a producer. This is definitely an album worth investing in, and with their incomparable live pedigree, the UK tour promised for later in the year will be one for the diary.

http://www.myspace.com/hellyeah
http://www.hellyeahband.com
http://www.spinefarmrecordsuk.com