Life Of A Hero is a melodic hard rock band from the UK, formed by Russ Grimmett – son of the legendary singer Steve Grimmett (Grim Reaper, The Sanity Days) – and members of the hard rock band Midnite City. ‘Letting Go’ is the band’s debut album, and was released in 2021…
… features eleven, totally infectious and catchy songs. ‘Letting Go’ (the album) is forty fantastic minutes of heavy-hitting hard rock. The bombastic nature of every song on offer oozes oomph and pizzazz – a cracking combination to get pulses racing and fists punching the air in delight.
The album bursts into life with an immediate thunderstorm, courtesy of ‘3D’. Heavy hitting and massively infectious, ‘3D’ is rock-infused metal to head nod and foot tap to fairly vigorously. The title song ‘Letting Go’ picks up the pace and tempo, and will definitely increase the vigorousness of head nodding to an almost (metal style) headbanging! The infectious nature across the opening two songs has been absolutely incredible, and I defy anyone to not be smiling right now…maybe even grinning!
The melodious intent has been right off the charts too, and that’s where it stays for the punchy hard-rocking ‘In My Dreams’. Blending in elements of AOR, Russ Grimmett and co. are definitely taking the rock road, and not the metal one that his father Steve is on. Three songs in and ‘Letting Go’ (the album) has my full attention, the melodic rock flavor very strong, and extremely captivating. Pace increases once more for the rampant rocking ‘Caught In A Lie’ – the urgency and purpose at an all-time high. The typical blunt and in-your-face British rock style is non-evident, Life Of A Hero opting for a much more melodic AOR infused style. I must mention the energy levels too – very high, very intense, and seemingly never-ending! None more so than the blisteringly energetic ‘Don’t Waste My Time’. Life Of A Hero would be more than just the life and soul of a party, they’d be the fucking lifeblood, rocking the joint ’til dawn – and no-one would ever leave! That’s how infectious and captivating they are, and the album too.
And just because of the family name – I, probably like many others, was expecting a metal album. How wrong we all are… A change of pace sees the album slow down a little, but lose none of its oomph and punch – ‘Stay For A While’ bordering on ballad territory but keeping one foot firmly planted across the border in hard rock country, where the smell of AOR remains strong in the air. The nearest the album gets to the (aforementioned) British rock style, is the bustling ‘Down And Out’ – a more aggressive and in-your-face rock anthem. Blunter than anything heard so far, ‘Down And Out’ is traditional British rock. Unlike ‘Risk It All’, an up-tempo and highly energetic gallop of head bangingly infectious and catchy melodic hard rock. The band is just oozing electricity, shocking the senses with anthem after anthem of happy mood-inducing, instantly likable hard rock.
A melodic rock swagger comes to the fore with ‘Shine A Light’ – at least for the first thirty seconds or so! Then a pace changes, and ‘Shine A Light’ is galloping furiously like a champion racehorse in the final furlong. The pace changes again for the chorus break, and this roller coaster of a rock swagger is beautifully rocking back and forth. One of the hardest-hitting and punchiest songs on offer, ‘Falling Apart At The Seams’, also has one of the most rousing choruses ever. And don’t talk to me about the energy levels – they’re through the fucking roof!
It’s incredible how high the energy level has been all album. Yes, all album! Because the final song is just around the corner – ‘When We Let Go’ is the most AOR-orientated song on offer, and is a majestic swoon of epic proportions. What an ending to what has simply been a breathless journey of melodic rock – and one helluva big surprise too!
Overall, a captivating and infectious eleven-song swagger of high energy, high intensity, hard rock.
Life Of A Hero: Facebook
Release Year: 2021
Label: Battlegod Productions
Category: Album
Country: UK
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire, Metal Gods TV, and Metal-Roos.
