Monument – Hellhound

Label: Rock of Angels  Playing Time: 58 Min  Release: 25th May 2018

Monument are a band from East London and they aim to bring back the true sound of British Heavy Metal. A very ambitious goal, especially because most of the originals are still alive and kicking and still releasing good to great albums. Monument have been on their mission since 2012 but have not left a big impression in central Europe yet. Let’s take a look if this changes with “Hellhound “.

First of all I have to say that the sound of the guys has indeed much in common with some of the most prominent bands of the NWoBHM. There a lot os parallels to Iron Maiden’s “Piece of Mind” to “Powerslave” period. Monument use similar arrangements, harmonies and also a similar sound. Listen to songs like ‘Wheels of Steel’ and ‘Attila’ and you know what I am talking about. In addition there is singer Peter Ellis. In some moments, his way of singing has much in common with Bruce Dickinson. Listen to the title track or to the Maiden cover ‘Deja Vu’ and you will hear the similarity.

The songs are diversified and dynamical. But there are also some weaknesses, especially in terms of catchiness and partially also in terms of vocals. Although Peter Ellis reminds me sometimes of the air raid siren himself, but there are also some weak moments. He has still a lack of power and also charisma. However, Monument are definitely a case for fans of Iron Maiden’s sound of the 80s. I guess that there are some of them out there.

www.monumentband.com