Music Review: Hellyeah - Hellyeah

Remember "supergroups"? Those collections of stars from other famous bands that would come together, pooling their collective talents in a new endeavor; Velvet Revolver to Audioslave, Damn Yankees to Bad English, Hindu Love Gods to The Traveling Wilburys, all the way back to Cream and the Dirty Mac. Here we are faced with something of a supergroup bringing together southern flavored hard rock and nu metal in a concoction that, while fun, is a mixed bag at best. I wasn't sure whether this project was meant to be taken seriously, after listening to it I am still not sure, it strikes me as a group of guys that got together with the intention of just put out a fun album of hard rocking tracks.

Hellyeah (or HELLYEAH, I haven't been able to make a determination of which was intended) is comprised of Vinnie Paul from Pantera/Damageplan behind the drumkit, Chad Gray and Greg Tribbett from Mudvayne on vocals and guitar, and Tom Maxwell and Jerry Montano from Nothingface on guitar and bass. Not quite the all-star lineup, but still a solid collection of musicians. Although, the proceedings are clearly dominated by Vinnie Paul and Chad Gray, with Greg Tribbett not far behind.

The music is an odd collision of styles, sounding like Pantera meets Mudvayne. All it is missing is the guitar pyrotechnics of Dimebag Darrell (RIP). It is great to hear Paul back on the sticks, following the tragic murder of his brother (Dimbag) onstage during a Damageplan show a few years ago. It was hard to picture him being able to get back out there. I am glad to say that he sounds as brutal as ever, and is the real highlight of the album.

The self-titled album kicks off with the band and album's namesake in music, "Hellyeah." It is a brutal headbanger of track that is the stage-setter for the rest of the album. It is relentless in its heavy aggression and catchy as all hell in its hook. This is destined to be a great live track. This is followed up by a slightly slower track that is not short on the groove, "You Wouldn't Know." Next is "Matter of Time," a southern fried rocker fused with a nu metal styled vocals.

Article Author: Chris Beaumont

Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about music and movies when he isn't indulging in them. He is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Interests: SF, horror, and metal. …

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