Ten Days Before Summer

From Jimi Hendrix in the 1960s to Alice in Chains in the 1990s, brute force and melody have often been a powerful combination. Being melodic doesn't mean that you can't be blistering, and Hangnail is obviously well aware of that fact on its first full-length album, Ten Days Before Summer. With influences ranging from Metallica and Nirvana to Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, this alternative metal CD often favors a sledgehammer approach, but is quite musical nonetheless. Ten Days Before Summer is also fairly unpredictable; the British headbangers aren't afraid to take their share of chances -- and when it's appropriate, you'll hear them incorporating elements of folk and, on a few occasions, Middle Eastern music. Though the expressive Harry Armstrong provides 90% of the album's vocals, female singer Katty Heath also proves to be an asset thanks to her haunting guest spots on the Middle Eastern-influenced "Side/Slide" and the eerie "4:28" (a folk-ish ballad that, unlike most of the album, really falls outside of metal). Heath isn't an actual member of Hangnail -- she's strictly a featured guest -- but her memorable performances indicate that the band would do well to feature her more often. ~ Alex Henderson