This is a bit of a curious one. 'Human Remains' marks the return of Hell after a 24 year hiatus. Who the hell are Hell though, you may ask? Well, Hell are the NWOBHM band that a certain Andy Sneap was an uber fan of before he went on to play guitar for the mighty Sabbat and then subsequently become THE producer of all things metal.

The ten tracks on 'Human Remains' were all written back in the 80s in their first incarnation and have been resurrected, given the Andy Sneap production treatment and unleashed in all their glory. Well, glory of sorts anyway.

As opening track proper 'On Hell As It Is On Earth' kicks in you get quite carried away on the Diamond Head cum Sabbat dynamics, but as the album progresses you move from attentive to somewhat blasé as the album does begin to meander slightly. Sure the music on offer is as good a modern day take on the best of NWOBHM as you'll find, but the theatrical timbre of Dave Bower's really are an acquired taste. Whilst Sabbat subsequently took Hell's musical blueprint and beefed it up with some blasting thrash and a few folk and pagan overtones, Hell's style remains more out-and-out theatrical in many places and at times it's almost like listening to a heavy metal play. It seems a shame to put a negative slant on it, as there are some great sections to songs like 'Let Battle Commence' and 'Blasphemy And The Master' but ultimately it  comes across as a little lightweight and a little dated.

'Human Remains' is certainly well worth checking out, but sometimes hindsight can be a bitch and if Sabbat hadn't come along and done this thing a whole lot faster, heavier and better we might be viewing Hell in a totally different light.  For me however I'll take 'History Of A Time To Come' and 'Dreamweaver' any day.

http://www.myspace.com/hell