HEXEN - Being And Nothingness

Hexen is a band that comes from LA and exists since 2003. Now, according to the newsletter the band is playing Thrash music, but enhanced with various elements that add some extra diversity to it. Looking promising enough, I started to listen to it, and to be honest, the intro was a bit confusing, if not disappointing. Piano melodies, for about a minute, and then a mid tempo heavy tune, which is groovy I must admit, but not so Thrashy according to my book. Not a bad song at all, but not what you call Thrash either, it soon gave it's place to what we will talk about. Imagine a band trying to combine all the good elements of Thrash, with some neoclassical stuff, specially in the guitars, and some Progressive structures to their songs. The result is, at least, interesting, and intriguing most of the times. The typical crunchy guitar riffs end to melodies and shredding solos, and all are blended in such a wise way, that there are no weak points or things indifferent. The songs are very good, complex enough and the band really has done a perfect work, exploring their sound, and trying to create something more unique and personal than just another Thrash album. Of course this doesn't mean that their songs lack the energy or the attitude an album should have, it's just you get the feeling that there's so much more to reveal with each listening, and not just follow the rhythm and bang your head along. The vocals are a bit more harsh and brutal than one should expect, but fit perfectly with the nature of the music. This is their second album, and we are dealing with a band that doesn't afraid to experiment, but without leaving their Thrash roots. It's well performed, aggressive, with nice innovative ideas and, although catchy enough, needs your full attention to fully explore it.

9/10