HELLRIDE – Goodbyes to Forever

HELLRIDE – Goodbyes to Forever

The German trio named Hellride have made a bit of a name for themselves over the years thanks to their original and at times quirky brand of acoustic metal. Consisting of two guitars and a vocal style that bears a strong similarity to what we often come across in a variety metal-related genres, these guys plow through nine pieces on “Goodbyes to Forever” that differ an awful lot in terms of quality. While some are heavy on atmosphere and contain splendid melodies and cool arrangements, others fall completely by the wayside and lack staying power and depth. Certain tunes also suffer from horrible vocals and downright uninspired performances. This is one of those annoyingly frustrating records that possess a lot of great ideas while simultaneously being ruined by a whole slew of other problems. The biggest problem is probably that the negative aspects outnumber the positive ones. The strongest track is arguably “nAPOLEONIZED” but you will not find any future classic here I am afraid.

“Goodbyes to Forever” ranges from entertaining and loose to half-baked and borderline awful. Having said that, Hellride certainly have a style and sound of their own, which is commendable, but in the overall perspective, this particular offering of theirs is anything but solid or remarkable. All in all, this is sadly a pretty forgettable output, which goes back to what I stated before about the less than thrilling moments outnumbering the wicked ones.