Audrey Horne – Devil’s Bell Review

This time I’m writing about a different genre – hard rock. Audrey Horne is the best band for this as they are a melodic rock band of this generation. In order to learn more about the creation of Devil’s Bell. I have joined a D Metal Galaxy interview with Toschie, the frontman of Audrey Horne. This interview has given me a lot of depth on the sound, song titles, artwork and videos, which I will discuss and summarize in the end.

The music

When I heard Devil’s Bell for the first time I was blown away; it has great riffs and tunes. For some reason it felt like the best Audrey Horne’s album to date, but I was not able to put the finger on it.

Thanks to the chat with Toschie I realized what makes the album so great music wise. First of all Devil’s Bell is the heaviest one, due to the fact this is the kind of music they normally play live. Also, in this album the band is focussed on their greatest strengths: good melodies and guitarwork. The guitarists Thomas & Ice Dahl learned to co-exist throughout the years and in this album they decided to showcase it by twin solos and longer riffs. As a result, it gave the album a certain level of maturity and sophistication.

”DEVIL’S BELL IS MUSIC WISE THE MOST MATURE AND SOPHISTICATED ONE“

Song titles

A lot of song titles of Devil’s Bell have already been used by other bands, such as ”Ashes to Ashes” has been used by Scorpion, whereas “Danse Macabre” is a popular song performed by Ghost. Despite sharing the same name, the songs are quite different from the original ones. The very reason is Toschie’s brilliant strategy. He first starts with the lyrics and then he thinks about a song title that fits the song.

I love this approach as art is a way to give words meaning. It is a way to tell a story and it is interesting how Ghost gives a different meaning to this title. That is to say, Audrey Horne’s song is about jealousy, a sort of feeling you experience because of the situation or the surroundings you are in, whereas the lyrics of Ghost song do not indicate such a feeling. This was explained in our interview.

I think personally, this is one of the greatest strengths of this album. It shows how much dedication and thoughts were put into this album even for the smallest details. A daring approach as well as the song titles might be mixed up with another band, however it wouldn’t be art otherwise. Art is all about expression and bringing a message across, picking a similar album title as other artists is a great way to do so. The very reason is that you spark a discussion and give a different meaning to a particular word, stimulating the listener to discover the true meaning of the song.

”EACH SONG TITLE HAS IT OWN TWIST THAN THE ORIGINAL ONE“

Artwork

The artwork of Devil’s Bell is quite interesting as it has a much deeper meaning than all other bands alike. It basically tells the story of Devil’s Bell. What’s more, the blue colors are great eye catchers as it is something you won’t see often.

Most interestly the band had different artwork at first, however after the feedback of their fanbase they decided to recreate the artwork and to include a story. As a consequence, Toschie was the one who illustrated the cover we know today.

For me personally this cover is quite appealing due to the visual aspects as well as the functional ones. At the first glance you want to know more about the story behind the artwork and you are sucked into the album trying to figure out the meaning behind Devil’s Bell.

”THE ARTWORK CLEVERLY SUCKS YOU IN THE DEVIL’S BELL ALBUM“

Videos

Devil’s Bell is accompanied by four videos: Devil’s Bell the self-titled one, Animal, Danse Macabre and Break out.

The first thing that I noticed watching the videos is that they have a much darker undertone than similar bands. Some videos are incorporating something like corpse paint, whereas Animal is very animalish. This was a great strategy as it really grabbed my attention to study and analyze the videos. It also makes Audrey Horne stand out from other bands alike in this genre. What is more, it also gives some light on their roots and influences as the Norwegian scene is known for their extreme metal.

On the other hand, Animal shows how sometimes it can be simple to express a song with the right attitude and creativity. The video was shot in a couple of hours, yet it expresses the song perfectly in a memorable way. All the feelings, emotions, animal aspects and lust are brought across in this song.

The self-titular song perfectly brings the story of Devil’s Bell alive, enhancing the artwork and music altogether.

The next one, Danse Macabre is quite simpler than others, however it brings out the emotions which are bound to this song. Toschie has a great way of giving depth by using the right gestures.

Break out is the final released video where we see the familiar muppets were used in many other Audrey Horne videos. Break out has a great atmosphere and great tunes incorporating the soul of Audrey Horne having a good time and giving you the best hard rock in your life.

Summary

Devil’s Bell is a solid album of Audrey Horne that continues the legacy. The album is sharper, more coherent and much more leaning into their strengths than all albums before. The reason for this is that the videos & artwork are coherent with the music telling the story and at the same time strengthening the music style. It is a must have for every hard rock fan, but is well for those who are seeking for excellent music.

”DEVIL’S BELL IS DEFINITELY THE BEST HARD ROCK ALBUM OF THIS GENERATION“
MAIr