REVIEW: HORNDAL - HEAD HAMMER MAN

Hailing from the town of the same name, Swedish sludge metal act Horndal have used their music as a means to tell the extraordinary tales of their home, as well as to speak out against the systems of oppression and capitalistic greed that have plagued it throughout its history. After the success of 2021’s ‘Lake Drinker,’ the group are back once again with their 3rd LP ‘Head Hammer Man,’ bringing both their epic storytelling and brutal performances to new heights.

From the haunting chimes that kick off the record, Horndal create a chilling atmosphere that persists throughout ‘Head Hammer Man;’ few moments break away from this crushing sense of dread and despair that ties perfectly into the album’s lyrical content. Across its ten tracks, the LP tells the story of Alrik Andersson, who fought to keep Swedish iron workers on strike in the early 20th century in the face of food shortages and military evictions. Though he was successful, Andersson was subsequently blacklisted from work throughout Sweden, eventually leading him to spend the final years of his life in Chicago. Weaving excerpts from his speeches into the anthemic title track, Horndal have used this album as ‘a chance for his story to live on,’ and have masterfully drenched every song in the appropriate melancholy. Tracks such as ‘Fuck the Scabs’ or ‘Famine’ are laced with such poignant and honest imagery that you would swear the band were speaking from personal experience: the twisted imagery of ‘hunger is a knife, starvation is a gun’ and the captivating simplicity of ‘they don’t need what they have, we don’t have what we need’ persistently tug at the listener’s heartstrings. Brilliantly, Horndal also present the cold and calculated view of the antagonists, such as the haunting final remarks detailing the rights— or lack thereof— of third class passengers as Andersson undertakes his voyage across the Atlantic.

This would all be for nought, however, if the band had not delivered such captivating and electrifying musical content. Across its 43-minute runtime, ‘Head Hammer Man’ is consistently brutally heavy, packing in crushing riff after crushing riff while never growing stale or monotonous, largely due to the record’s palpable energy. Levahn’s vocals are simply massive, being perfectly suited to a story this sweeping and emotionally gripping— from the naked rage of ‘The Shining Specter’ to the hair-raising growls of ‘Famine,’ his performance is raw and even frightening at times. The rest of the band is similarly impassioned, transitioning between clean and distorted playing seamlessly without sacrificing character. This is only further uplifted by the group’s uniquely fuzzy guitar tone that will likely be many listeners’ first impression of the band. This praise cannot, unfortunately, be said for the drum production, which is consistently thin and underwhelming throughout— a great shame, given the ferocity with which Levahn is obviously hitting those cymbals. 

The album’s songwriting also stands out as a cut above the rest. The gigantic opening title track sets the mood with its thunderous guitar riffs and driving rhythms, thrusting the listener swiftly into a pounding verse and subsequently terrific chorus— seriously, try not to sing along to the domineering statement of ‘I am the head hammer man.’ ‘Calling: Labour’ keeps the energy high soon after while also showcasing Horndal’s capacity to write more melodic sections, sporting triumphant guitar leads straight out of a power metal record. This mix of intense heaviness and more eerie passages continues throughout ‘Head Hammer Man,’ continually keeping things fresh and engaging. ‘Fuck the Scabs’ has the frenetic drumming and blazing tempos of a prime Slayer song, while the album’s most grandiose moment, ‘The Shining Specter,’ incorporates unexpectedly well-suited brass and clean guitar moments that make it feel more like a dark and twisted symphony than a metal track. While cuts such as ‘Exiled’ or ‘Creature Cages’ may not be quite as memorable as their contemporaries, not a single moment feels superfluous as Horndal excel from start to finish.

Much like Alrik Andersson, Horndal deserve so much more recognition than they’ve been given; on ‘Head Hammer Man,’ the group prove that they are a force to be reckoned with in modern metal. Their 3rd LP is emotionally gripping, wonderfully ambitious and straight-up heavy in a way few bands are brave enough to pull off in 2024. This album speaks to a band with a clear and precise vision, and hopefully to one with a bright future ahead of them.

'Head Hammer Man' is out on the 5th of April via Prosthetic Records.

Words: Jay Kirby

Photo: Daniel Liljas