Godhound - God Above... Hound On The Road

Godhound

God Above... Hound On The Road

by Daniel Fox at 21 March 2014, 4:30 PM

I had the pleasure of meeting Victor and Paulo at an ICED EARTH concert recently; upon learning of our mutual interest in good Metal, they handed me a copy of the new album from their band, GODHOUND. Hailing from Brazil, the band plays a rough-and-ready brand of Hard Rock heavily influenced by MOTÖRHEAD, held together by an incredibly tight pound of guitars and drums and raucous, aggressive vocals, with leads drawn from classic Blues Rock.

"On the Road" begins with an endearing, clean intro, broken out into an upbeat overdrive by bluesy guitar licks, rebel-without-a-cause lyrics shouted by a Lemmy-influenced Paulo. This track is an honest homage to classic hard rock and proudly flies the MOTÖRHEAD flag. "Motorcycle's Hymn" is perfect biker music, with a few classy ZZ TOP influences shining through on the back of driving riffs. "Dog Day" exudes a rebellious side to the band with forceful, Rock 'n' Roll grooves; an obvious feel-good track with catchy licks.

"Being so Bad" is a slightly slowed-down groove, once again showcasing the band's strong Blues Rock foundations, that surprisingly crescendos into a speedy, Punk cascade of riffs. "Dust 'N' Beer” was probably my favorite piece with strong displays of aggression in both the guitar riffs and the vocals, catchy and emotive guitar licks filling in the cracks. "Home" is a strong, Punk-oriented track with well-arranged grooves, a percussive vocal delivery and displaying a subtly-intelligent use of dynamics through the track.

Admittedly, this style of Rock does not often find my way into my regular listening, but I can definitely consider this an impressive and earnest display of Hard Rock, and proof that Brazil is a melting pot of music, counterbalancing the likes of ANGRA and SEPULTURA. Lemmy would be proud.