PURE SWEET HELL
"The
Voyeurs of Utter Destruction as Beauty" (Crash; 2005)
Reviewed by Mike SOS
Ambient and ambitious, Pure Sweet Hell is a three-man project devised by Van Williams, drummer of Seattle's Nevermore, as a more artistic and experimental metal endeavor than his day job. On this 13-track release, there seems to be a lot of abstract ideas floating around without much resolution, making "The Voyeurs of Utter Destruction as Beauty" sound a bit half-baked.
While many of the riffs, such as the monster runs in "Hangfire" and the slow crunch of "The Killers," are crisp and commanding, the compositions throughout tend to meander and lack definitive closure. Perhaps that is what the band intended, but from a listener's standpoint, Pure Sweet Hell's "Voyeurs," despite its superfluous creativity and the adventurous spirit displayed, employs the feel of doing a jigsaw puzzle with a few pieces missing.
For more information, check out http://www.puresweethell.com.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2005 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 09 Dec 2024 16:07:11 -0500.
