Review MIDNIGHT ‘Hellish Expectations’

One of the most thrilling bands these days is Midnight, and it isn’t even a band in the traditional meaning. Midnight is a solo effort by Athenar which started back in 2003 in Cleveland Ohio. Since then, Midnight released five studio albums, flanked by numerous spilt releases, singles and EPs. Not to forget in this context is the Motörhead homage Whitespade.

What makes Midnight so special are the raging live shows and although the popularity is growing with every release, Midnight remains true to the roots. It’s mainly shows in smaller but sold-out venues in a beer-soaked atmosphere, being the right scenery for these explosive live shows.

To extend Midnight’s offer, the new album ‘Hellish Expectations’ will hit the shelves these days and as we know it from previous releases also the newest effort provides boiled-down and energetic metal.

For a next time, Athenar blends the savage power of metal, the anarchic spirit of punk and the energy of rock which leads to ten blistering new tracks. A running time of 26 minutes isn’t what one would describe as extremely long, but what fans get served is a musical punch in the face.

Already the relentless opener ‘Expect Total Hell’ sets the tone of voice. There is no sign of compromises when it comes to the furious overture that gives you an idea about what will come next. The frenzied ‘Gash Scrape’ is next and in case you’ re looking for peaceful moment to breathe you will be disappointed as ‘Hellish Expectations’ is a solely focusing of blasting speed metal.

The rock roots are a bit more present during ‘Slave to the Blade’ without adjusting the musical approach not even a millimeter. Listing to ‘hellish Expectations’ is like being caught in a blister that spits you out after half an hour. Although songs like ‘Dungeon Lust’ are kept in a more moderate pace it’s ‘Nuclear Savior’ that continues the raging spirit of this album.

Except for the opener, none of the songs pass the three-minute mark which shows how much to the point these songs are. Midnight deliver a new longplayer entails a hellish grin, captured in each of these ten tracks. No, trends, no hypes – just straight to the point metal that refers to the roots of an entire genre in great fashion.