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France's Hemoragy have been around since 2002, but their second album, Headbang Till Death is my first exposure to them. Composed of brothers Johannes (guitar, vocals) and Steve (drums) Musslin and "Basstarde" Lynda Siewicz (bass), Hemoragy play a fairly straightforward, 80s inspired brand of Heavy Metal on Headbang Till Death. They've even decked out the cover of the album with retro artwork of a headbanger literally losing his head while moshing (the janitor cleaning up the club and throwing the head in the trash on the reverse is a nice touch); reminiscent of those old Tankard covers (think The Morning After.)

The music is a real mixed bag on Headband Till Death. The instruments are played competently, with bassist Siewicz distinguishing herself with some excellent Steve Harris-like riffs (the lead guitars were handled by a session musician). The first two tracks on Headbang Till Death, the self-titled opener and "Sold-Out," are a couple of quality Maiden-inspired songs. Mid-paced, with sold riffs and bass work, they remind me of the Di'Anno era quite a bit. After that, however, the album's flaws become painfully obvious. Starting with "My Ticket For Hell," a distinct groove vibe starts to infest the album. Shifting from Maiden, Hemoragy start to sound like late 90s band Ignorance and their ilk, and from there things get ugly fast. Also, Johannes Musslin's vocals are a bit tough to take. He has a higher register growl, but absolutely no power or depth to his performance. He's just sort of "there." And while I don't normally knock bands for stepping outside of their native language (in this case French), Musslin mauls the English language to the point of distraction. Add that to the generic songwriting and Headband Till Death seriously underwhelms. Oh, and the last song, simply titled "Outro," is a COUNTRY/WESTERN instrumental. A strange and ill-advised album closer.

Better lyrics, better songs and perhaps a new vocalist should be on Hemoragy's wish list. They are by no means awful, but with Headbang Till Death, they are going nowhere fast.