Tuesday 7 March 2017

Quayde LaHüe - Quayde LaHüe (2016)

Randy Quayde LaHüe

Behind this peculiar band name hides a solid traditional metal/rock band with a strong sense of originality and a take no prisoners approach. The band is quite elusive on the omnipotent internets outside of their Bandcamp page but let it be known that they share three of their members with the excellent Christian Mistress also from the Pacific Northwest area.

The comparisons between the two bands being inevitable, I'll play the game. They're both fronted by women who have more in common the rough 80s days of heavy metal (see Acid or Détente) than anything with corsets released by Nuclear Blast or Century Media. The vox of Jenna Fitton have this natural way to charm you with how imperfect and cozy they are. She just rocks hard and it's truly fun to hear. It's just much more interesting than yet another diva who went to music school. They also evolve in the same nice but CM are more metallic. If you like the Christine Davis' band, you'll surely like this one as well. They like their music groovy, sad but hopeful and with a strong dark imagery.

The riffs of Diedrich and Wulf (not a German band, guys) are infectious and melodic in their lo-fi feel and their simplicity. They have good ears for hooks and catchy leads without turning the whole thing into a technical snooze fest. They worship Thin Lizzy and the rockier side of NWOBHM and you should too.

This twenty-five minutes release is also quite varied. Alternating from mid-paced quasi ballads ("Same Old Song") to melancholic riffier affairs like the opener "I Am Unworthy", Quayde LaHüe are keeping things slow, sad and loose. The production is tight though and it makes you feel like you're right there with the quintet in their rehearsal room. Sometimes modern heavy metal is a crunchier and heavier version of past oeuvres but this retains the same atmosphere as many bands from the formative days of the genre. Days where the line between rock and metal wasn't set in stone.

This first release is right there with Angel Sword, Legionnaire or Scalare as far as heavy metal is concerned. It's classic stuff with a distinctive and voluntarily amateurish sound that is miles ahead of their "well produced" peers catering to newcomers who just discovered Battle Beast. This is a super good EP, I can't wait to hear more stuff from this band.

Bandcamp

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