Customer Reviews

Storm the Gates of Hell (Deluxe Fan Edition)

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I waited a few days to review this album and let the tracks really sink in. I went back to previous DH albums and was struck with the originality and quality of this new release. DH 's writing and taking the extra time in the studio has paid off big time. There attention to detail really comes through. The tracks are a diverse mix of metallic riffs and dark melodies yet beautiful mix of metal/hardcore intensity.

Lyrically this album is there best work even bringing Bruce Fitzbugh from Living Sacrifice. Ryan Clark effortlessly alternating between throat-shredding screams and powerhouse rock vocals. DH does what I like best, bringing Melody that's often lacking in this genre.
The music is inventive and well thought out. The album's art is interesting particularly the way the booklet opens, and the back cover depicts the band wearing clerical collars.

Picking a favorite song is difficult. Very rarely will I purchase a CD with all the tracks so listenable.I can't stop listening to Carry Me down. Ryan stated in the DVD interview it was a song about how he saw his Funeral. It is a very powerfull and moving song. The DVD has about 20 minutes and features a documentary and the music video to Fading Away. I would think they would have put more on this DVD, another video perhaps.

This is one of those rare CD's you just can't stop playing. The songs are infectious to the point of obsession. My only complaint is that the album in my opinion is slightly overproduced. I like some of the electronics however I prefer a more organic sound. Some of the guitar work should have been left alone or used more (ex; a guitar solo in the middle of Thread of Light would have been perfect.

The DH team deserves accolades and success for there new CD. I'm unsure how they could top this new album, I just hope the boys have many more albums to bless us with.

Wow! I used to have Demon Hunter's debut album & I remember thinking that it was just OK, but after checking out 'Storm the Gates of Hell' I'm now ready to check out ALL of their albums! This is really refreshing for me as a metalhead because I have so many kinds of metal CDs but this one really just gives you eveything in one: the music's heavy, it's also melodic, it has some commercial sounding stuff but it also sounds too heavy for the mainstream & it's positive! Who cares if they are a Christian metal band? I think it's hypocritical of many metalheads to get down on Christian or Christian influenced metal bands for their beliefs yet they listen to many evil/violent influenced bands & say "I'm not evil or violent but I like the music." You can say the same thing of Demon Hunter! I'm not Christian but the music sounds great so does it matter that they are Christian?? NO WAY! Give this a listen if you like all kinds of metal PERIOD!

Demon Hunter just keeps evolving... and each evolution gets better and better. And so it is with "Storm the Gates of Hell". So few bands these days are growing musically and that's why they fade away. Not so for our boys in DH. These guys just keep going and going and getting better and better. This release makes this point perfectly.

This album is just as metal and brutal as ever. But, the song structure and vocals are better (read: mature). That's the hallmark of a band composed of true musicians and not "rock stars". They care about their music and their message. That's rare in today's rock world. But, that's why DH will endure and continue to grow in populartiy and find favor with critics as well.

In short this is a well written, well performed, well produced (thanks Aaron Sprinkle) heavy metal album. Once again, Demon Hunter pushes metal (both Christian and secular) forward and challenges the industry and fans with songs that others should aspire to. Brutal... attacking... melodic... hopeful.

Buy this album... listen to it... you'll realize why "Hell hath no fury at all".

Fave track pick (so far): Follow The Wolves

When Demon Hunter put the first clip on myspace, alot of people feared the worst. Alot of fans posted comments, pleading for Demon Hunter to stay heavy. Not to turn thier backs on Metal. Soon after "Fading Away" showed up on Headbangers Ball. It sounded like Demon Hunter with a few new tricks. Then "Storm the Gates of Hell" came to myspace like a bomb, blowing some people's fears to kingdom come. When my copy showed up in the mail yesterday(Deluxe Fan Edition) I went straight to Stereo and sat down to the length of the disc. After it was over, I decided that Demon Hunter was still hunting. Everyone got worked up over nothing.

After a few more listens, I decided to describe it for those people who weren't sure. The album sounds like a combination of "Summer of Darkness" and "Triptych", closer to "Summer of Darkness". But of course there are a few new tricks up thier sleeves. Mostly in the vocals. Ryan hitting higher notes, and lower lows in his screams. A darker metal approach I guess you could say. The music is Demon Hunter with, in some spots, a little touch of Pantera. I could clearly hear a loving tribute to Pantera's "A New Level" and "Mouth for War" in there. Being a Pantera fan since 1993, I was thrilled. The Album itself is written and put together like every other one, except this time there are less ballad-esque, pretty songs(pretty much just "Carry me Down). This album is a Storm, as the title suggests. The version with the 2 extra tracks is worth getting. Hear them any way you can.

Overall, I'm not disappointed by this release. It's solid, and while it's somewhat predictable being pretty close to what you'd expect from Demon Hunter, this band takes a couple chances and tries some new things with this album.

Staying true to form (I mean that more literally than most would), the opener and title track is massive and intense. It's a song you'd expect to hear on Summer of Darkness perhaps. For that matter, this album is probably closer to that one than any other, but with one important difference: Demon Hunter seems to be trying new things. There are some beats (Follow the Wolves) and effects that are cool and seem to be an attempt at keeping things fresh. This album even has some "metal" leads, like the one on No Reason to Exist (one of the bonus tracks).

But the real thing that sets this album apart from other DH releases is that the lyrical themes and topics are overtly and brutally Christian. As far as Christian music goes, this is usually a drawback in my book for the reason that most bands can't seem to have their lyrics match the mood and tone of the music. Most super-Christian bands seem to be saying two things, and as a result, one or the other of those things seems fake or contrived. Unfortunately, it's usually the music. This is completely not the case with DH, and especially not with Storm the Gates of Hell. I think the music is almost violent enough and the message is definitely militant enough to stand up and in opposition to albums like Demigod or Attera Totus Sanctus. That doesn't mean that this release is better than those, but it's in the ballpark. And that's quite a feat, at least for me.

For those of you who were like me and disliked The Triptych, Storm the Gates of Hell should be a breath of fresh air in the Demon Hunter discography.

From the outset of the first track of Demon Hunter's fourth album, it's obvious that Storm the Gates of Hell is intended to be intense. The title track is possibly the heaviest song Demon Hunter has ever done, with the exception of maybe "Beheaded". The main difference in the first song is that...well, Ryan SHRIEKS. For too long I've suggested that he should attempt a higher range scream in addition to his familiar, guttural grunt that stays basically the same from album to album. Well, here it is.

The main thing about Storm the Gates of Hell that sets it apart is that Demon Hunter actually tried new things. The Triptych was disappointing to me and to others in the fanbase because it sounded almost exactly like a watered-down Summer of Darkness. That, and there were a billion ballads. Storm the Gates of Hell is like a perfect mixture of Demon Hunter's heavy self-titled album and the melodic side of Summer of Darkness. One can't help but think that this album is probably what DH was trying to do when they made The Triptych. There's weird keyboard parts and effects in some of the songs, (case in point, "A Thread of Light") which is great because it gives the songs a unique feel, at least in relativity to their other albums.

Also, while quite honestly the only songs off of The Triptych I enjoyed in particular were "Not I" and "A Thousand Apologies", Storm the Gates of hell has quite a few. One of particular interest is "Fading Away", along with the only ballad on StGoH, "Carry Me Down".

So, in summary: The new Demon Hunter album is refreshing in different, at least in the perspective of what they have done recently. It's definitely heavier than their previous effort, but there's also a more defined sense of melody. Heck, there's a friggin' guitar solo in "Fiction Kingdom"...It's a good-sized one, too, not one of the short ones like The Triptych had.

If your favorite albums from Demon Hunter were among their first two, you should like this one quite a bit. Four stars.

Demon Hunter started their career with what is commonly accepted as their best album and one which the band will probably never top. After that the band changed their sound and with their new release, Storm the Gates of Hell, being their fourth album shows that they are now perfecting their changed sound.

Storm the Gates of Hell feels to be far more mature than the prior released by this hard Christian metal band. This claim is evident when prying open the flaps of the album cover you can read "Hell hath no fury at all". The fact that Demon Hunter is a Christian band can be felt more with this release compared to the past ones, however still not preachy.

The songs are well written and this time around even contain a few guitar solos that the songs on the past albums desperately needed. The "growl" are vocals are still loud and aggressive and when singing with clean vocals they have more melody and do a better job of dodging an emo sound. This release also has two extra songs that are omitted on the regular release that make the album end much stronger. The bonus DVD is short but does have a nice pay off and is worth the extra couple of dollars. Demon Hunter is easily showing that whether Christian or not, they are a force to be reckoned with and will continue to compete with some of the best metal bands on the planet.

I am a 28-year-old woman who owns three Demon Hunter albums. "Summer of Darkness" and "Triptych" each had their own special flavor, and you can tell with each new evolution that they really worked hard on every aspect of their music. Their songs are really addictive, intelligent and layered but catchy enough that I can't help but think I'll be hearing them on the radio soon. They satisfy my metal side while still serving up melodies and harmonies that keep me from getting bored; in other words, they don't lose sight of the fact that metal should still be music, and skillfully use both the harder and more beautiful ranges of the musical spectrum in order to create emphasis, variety, and depth.

But this time, they REALLY outdid themselves. I cannot stop listening to "Storm the Gates of Hell." Every day when I do my normal routine, I put that CD on and I think it's been a month of nearly uninterrupted listening. Particularly "Sixteen" is addictive; in fact, it's one of my favorite songs of all time, and a huge inspiration for my writing, as it perfectly captures the feelings, moods, and phases of the very end of the entire series.

It took me a while to realize it a few years ago when I bought that first Demon Hunter album, because I was still a bit new to liking actual metal (mostly, I was raised on the great classic rock like Led Zeppelin, the Who, Jimi Hendrix, etc.) but once I got used to it, I realized that I love, love, love, love, LOVE Demon Hunter's music. Especially this new one. Take a listen to the samples and see if you like them. If you do, I guarantee you will not get tired of this cd for a long, long time. If you ever do. I've been trying to make myself sick of it and have failed.

I would recommend Demon Hunter to anyone. Parents looking to turn their kids on to modern music that is lyrically thoughtful and mature will be pleased by Demon Hunter's complete lack of swearing or the typical lame and tired "Look! I sing about sex and drugs, that makes me cool!" attitude of so many artists today; they're not censored or prissy, they just don't need that because they're more focused on singing about life and offering haunting images and stories. Teenagers who get sick of all the cheery, inauthentic affirmation crap that usually comes with parent-friendly music will be delighted by Demon Hunter's darker streak--they're not afraid to face the grim, painful, lonely, even horrific side of life with brutal honesty, but they won't drag anyone down into depression by moaning about how that's all there is; it's clear they don't believe that. If what I've seen of them is any indication, they are not just a great band, they're truly decent people who would be good to hang out with.

And anyone who, like me, just wants metal, melody, and mayhem without a lot of the fake posturing some bands do, will find themselves very well pleased and gladly anticipating the next album.

I must confess, I've not been a big fan of metal growing up, and only recently have I found I can pallet the harshness the genre (genres?). But if anything, it was Demon Hunter's pivotal song, "Not Ready to Die" from the album Summer of Darkness that intrigued me to the music movement.

In a time when many of my favorite bands are changing their sound for the worse, shifting towards the Pop Music sound that is an ever growing, barren wasteland, Demon Hunter's new CD is a breath of fresh air. There style has changed noticeably from the Triptych, which made me a little uneasy at first. But, they are nowhere near deviating towards mediocrity, and if anything Storm the Gates of Hell is a trend in the opposite direction. They have a few mellower songs, but at the same time the hard songs are all the edgier. Best of all, Demon Hunter are continuing to show you can scream your head off and still have a melodic, innovative style. There's no garbage noise-for-the-sake-of-noise here, like there is with other hardcore or metal bands.

I have no complaints with Storm the Gates of Hell. As long as they don't go acoustic or something silly like that, I think Demon Hunter will continue create good music.

I waited a few days to review this album and let the tracks really sink in. I went back to previous DH albums and was struck with the originality and quality of this new release. DH 's writing and taking the extra time in the studio has paid off big time. There attention to detail really comes through. The tracks are a diverse mix of metallic riffs and dark melodies yet beautiful mix of metal/hardcore intensity.

Lyrically this album is there best work even bringing Bruce Fitzbugh from Living Sacrifice. Ryan Clark effortlessly alternating between throat-shredding screams and powerhouse rock vocals. DH does what I like best, bringing Melody that's often lacking in this genre.
The music is inventive and well thought out. The album's art is interesting particularly the way the booklet opens, and the back cover depicts the band wearing clerical collars.

Picking a favorite song is difficult. Very rarely will I purchase a CD with all the tracks so listenable.I can't stop listening to Carry Me down. Ryan stated in the DVD interview it was a song about how he saw his Funeral. It is a very powerful and moving song. This is one of those rare CD's you just can't stop playing. The songs are infectious to the point of obsession. My only complaint is that the album in my opinion is slightly overproduced. I like some of the electronics however I prefer a more organic sound. Some of the guitar work should have been left alone or used more (ex; a guitar solo in the middle of Thread of Light would have been perfect.

The DH team deserves accolades and success for there new CD. I'm unsure how they could top this new album, I just hope the boys have many more albums to bless us with.