A Sound of Thunder  - Queen of Hell EP
Label: Nightmare Records
Tracks: 4
Total time: 21:54
Language: English

Formed in 2008 by guitarist Josh Schwartz and drummer Chris Haren, Washington D.C.-based metal band A Sound of Thunder went through various line-ups and band member changes before finally hitting gold with vocalist Nina Osegueda in 2009. From there, the band’s popularity and reputation in the metal scene seemed to skyrocket; catching the attention of everyone from Raven frontman John Gallagher to Lemmy, a metal god who needs no introduction. Their first album, 2011’s Metal Renaissance, brought the band to femme-metal festivals such as Dame-Nation, and garnered them the recognition they would need when the time came to go back into the studio for their second album, Out of the Darkness. Their reputation afforded them the luxury of working with famed producer Kevin “131” Gutierrez, known for his work with mainstream rock bands such as Shinedown and legendary artist Johnny Cash. While working at Gutierrez’s Assembly Line Studios, the unsigned band pressed ahead and planned on releasing the album independently when the time came. But A Sound of Thunder’s ever-increasing luck only got better when at literally the eleventh hour before the album’s release, executives at Nightmare Records approached them with a deal. A Sound of Thunder had become metal’s new Cinderella story.

Released in March 2012, Out of the Darkness was met with enthusiasm all across the metal community, and even got some recognition in the Washington Post. Featuring John Gallagher (Raven) as a guest vocalist on one of the tracks, A Sound of Thunder was getting noticed from both modern-day and old-school metal fans alike. Their first official music video, “Murderous Horde”, received over 5,000 hits online within its first week. Hearkening to the days of metal’s past with influences clearly reminiscent of early Black Sabbath and Judas Priest; coupled with Nina’s aggressive but unquestionably feminine vocals, A Sound of Thunder had something for everyone: the tried-and-true classic metal style, fused together with the modern take on metal from the womanly approach. Hailed as “Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson’s love child”, Nina’s powerful vocals were undeniably a throwback to metal’s glory days, but putting a fresh new spin on things at the same time.

It went without saying that when the time came for the band to reconvene and make new music, everyone was curious to hear what they would do next. As the band continues to raise funds for their upcoming full length album, Time’s Arrow, they have decided to sate the fans’ unquenchable appetite for more music. In January of 2013, A Sound of Thunder roared back onto the scene with the Queen of Hell EP, showcasing songs from the album in progress, as well as an alternate version of the EP title track; featuring Veronica Freeman of the metal band Benedictum on guest vocals. A band that once vowed never to do cover songs, A Sound of Thunder found themselves breaking their own rule on the EP with a cover from their heroes, Black Sabbath; paying homage to the lesser-referenced Born Again-era with their take on “Trashed”.

Starting off 2013 not only with new music under their belts, but also a coveted gig opening for Doro on the Raise Your Fists tour, A Sound of Thunder was serving metal straight-up to the masses and it was time to hear if they would live up to the expectations.

Chiming keyboards slowly start off the opening track, as chanting fades in…”Hail, queen of hell! Hail, queen of hell!”, growing louder and louder until all that is heard is the chanting, the crunching guitars, and the pounding drums. Then, just in case you weren’t sure this song was going to kick ass, in comes Nina with a scream that implies that perhaps she is the Queen of Hell! “Welcome; brothers, sisters, I am the Queen of Heeeeellll!” she introduces herself to the listeners. And then the song proceeds to rock hard for the next 6 minutes, chock-full of ripping guitar riffs, ball-busting drum beats, and vocals that grab you by the jugular and hold on tight. An awesome guitar solo in the middle, dispelling the myth that no one does guitar solos anymore. “Bow down before me, the Queen of Hell!” Nina demands in the chorus; and by the end of the song, if you haven’t complied, you are either deaf or have more guts than brains! Nina’s maniacal laughter brings this song to a twisted little close. This song is deemed on their website as “a taste” of what Time’s Arrow will be. If “Queen of Hell” is a “taste”, we’re in for a feast that would put the hedonists to shame!

A Sound of Thunder, circa 2013

The heavy riffing and primal beats keep on going straight into the second track, a quirky ditty called “Hello Nurse”. It tells the tale of a nurse’s secret love for the doctor she assists in surgery; as she watches him turn “an arm, a leg, an organ too; they’re now a masterpiece”. Nina’s voice is tortured as she begs the object of her affections to notice her, and how she longs for the way he says the song’s title to her; the time at which a male voice says “hello, nurse” in the way one might say, “hello, ladies” (or, if I have to give a reference to something, it reminded me a little of the Grinch song by Trans-Siberian Orchestra; the way they said “Grinch”, the delivery is somewhat similar here). This song also clocks in around the 6-minute mark, featuring tinkling pianos right before the wailing guitar solo. Then we hear a bit of dialogue beneath all the music, and then the nurse acquiescing to the doctor’s requests…”yes doctor; right away, doctor”, and then the eerily out-of-place sound of a chainsaw before Nina’s vocals come back in, and then the song ends with the dissonant puttering of the chainsaw, making us wonder where the hell this doctor got his medical degree!

Nina Osegueda & Josh Schwartz; live, circa 2012

Some no-holds-barred rock takes us right into track 3, the Black Sabbath cover “Trashed”. Nina’s howling scream introduces the vocals as she takes us on a journey through a night of debauchery resulting in a drunken car accident. After the close call, Nina’s vocals are pleading as she swears off such irresponsible behavior after her life has just been spared. From there we have a guitar riff that seems to match the chaos of the lyrics, and then back to Nina’s promise of never getting trashed again…except she knows it’s all a lie. Back to the bar, and back to the same old stuff that got us here in the first place! The song ends on a fade-out, leaving us to wonder what kind of trouble the narrator will get into this time without any of us around to hear about it.

Nina Osegueda; live, circa 2012

As all good things must come to an end, even better things end where they began! And so it is here with Queen of Hell’s final track; an alternate version of “Queen of Hell”, featuring Veronica Freeman of Benedictum singing the verses this time. This version is slightly different; there is no piano or chanting to start off this time. We get straight to the point with fast, crunchy guitar riffs. Instead of Nina’s howl heralding in the song, we get a nice scream from Veronica, who proceeds to introduce herself as the Queen of Hell in a more guttural style. But don’t worry; Nina is not too far behind in the chorus, as she and Veronica’s voices duel for supremacy over who is the true Queen of Hell. But in this contest, everyone is a winner! I’m certainly not going to tell either one of them that they’re not the true Queen of Hell, are you? These two voices compliment each other well and make an already awesome song even better. If Nina is the product of Halford and Dickinson, then Veronica is a hybrid of Ronnie James Dio and Tom Araya from Slayer! So imagine all of those voices coming together to make a stew of epic metal goodness, and you have Nina and Veronica’s duet version of “Queen of Hell”.

Nina Osegueda and Jesse Keen; live, circa 2012

Overall opinion: From the time I heard “Queen of Hell” (album version) on the band’s Soundcloud page, I was hooked; and hearing the EP in its entirety has made me a full-blown addict! As someone who is at that age where I remember the glory days of metal (but am not old enough to be so sentimentally attached to it), but also was young enough when the femme metal scene first started to really appreciate it from the ground level, I really love what A Sound of Thunder has brought to the table. They have taken the straightforward metal riffs of early Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, and coupled it with the feminine sensibilities of vocalists like Doro Pesch and Phantom Blue’s Gigi Hangach. But A Sound of Thunder has the advantage of bringing back the nostalgia of old-school metal; while making it seem new all over again with the unique trump card that is Nina’s voice. To paraphrase the friend who linked me to the band’s Soundcloud and thus started me on this sonic journey: “This is the future of heavy metal!” As all things go in cycles, sometimes the future is quite reminiscent of the past, and it’s about time metal got the much-needed shot in the arm and the kick in the ass needed to get back to their roots. A Sound of Thunder is “keeping it real”; no frills, no added elements that has become so commonplace with the femme-metal bands these days (additions of orchestras, choirs, etc.). There’s certainly nothing wrong with those things, but there’s nothing wrong with not hearing them all the time either! Nina has a pure rock voice; no sweet, lilting polished tones or harsh, raspy death grunts (as it seems to be “either-or” in the scene these days). Same with the band; they give it to you straight, they incorporate solos into their songs (something of which many longtime metal fans have been complaining is sorely missing in a lot of the current metal music), and there’s no tinkering around with other instrumentation (no turntables here, no flutes or violins, etc.). There are keyboards, but the music is not overpowered by synths and the songs have a nice flow of “everything in its place”. This 4-song EP has been an excellent introduction to A Sound of Thunder and a great starting point for anyone wanting to check them out. My only “complaint” (if one could call it that), is that this EP wasn’t nearly long enough! If this is an indication of what the upcoming album is going to be like, we are definitely in for a treat!

9 / 10

A Sound of Thunder, circa 2012

All pictures courtesy of the band’s website: asoundofthunderband.com
Pictures provided by Nina Osegueda and used with permission.
Thanks to Nina Osegueda, Josh Schwartz and A Sound of Thunder.
Special thanks to Tim Borzi.

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