"From Hell with Love" By Beast in Black: A Review
A Track-By-Track Review of From Hell with Love by Beast in Black
1. Cry Out for a Hero: The style of this song is pure grandeur; wit hits blazing guitars, brights synths, quick pace, and soaring melody. This grandiose production perfectly matches the subject matter. The lyrics of this song are about Kenshiro, a daring martial artist who fights evildoers in a postapocalyptic world. Violet gangs rule this postapocalyptic world, but Kenshiro is both brave and strong enough to stand up to them. He is the hero who will fight for the downtrodden.
Rating: 8/10
2. From Hell with Love: This song has an exceptionally powerful and memorable melody. I can only describe the instrumentation style as "epic disco metal", and I mean that in the best, coolest, most 80s-tastic way possible. As good as the music is, the lyrics are just as high-quality. The lyrics are a passionate display of a hero's heartache after being left by the woman he loves. The song does an excellent job of illustrating the speaker's complex emotions: Deep despair because the woman he loves no longer loves him carefully blended with the fact that he still has a highly idealized vision of her.
Rating: 9/10
3. Sweet True Lies: This song is heartbreaking. It's about being in love with someone who no longer loves you; and doing everything you can to delude yourself into believing they still love you, no matter how much it hurts, even begging them to lie to you because you can't handle the pain. This subject is well served by the bold and flashy production, as the production does an excellent job of emphasizing the drama of the story and brings a sense of grandeur appropriate for colossal emotions.
Rating: 8/10
4. Repentless: Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! This is a song that makes you want to let out an evil laugh. The lyrics of the song are about a wicked man who gains divine power, and is now boasting about how he will use his new divine power to turn the world into his twisted kingdom and to destroy all who would oppose him. The music is appropriately dramatic and menacing. It also sounds quite a bit like Nightwish, which is definitely a good thing.
Rating: 7/10
5. Die By the Blade: Reckless death-seeking has never sounded cooler. With a killer synth line, punchy bass guitar, propulsive drumming, searing guitars, and an anthemic melody that soars like a falcon, this is a must-listen. The writing in the lyrics is a perfect portrait of the death-seeker complex; capturing all of its parts: The desire for annihilation, the joy of danger, the manic energy brought on by no longer being afraid of being killed, and the complete fearlessness towards death. It's as metal as pure titanium.
Rating: 10/10
6. Oceandeep: ... Wonderfully bombastic and melodramatic. The song has a lovely and graceful melody; and has a powerful build with acoustic guitar and delicate flute and the start; then adding romantic synths, melancholy strings, and sparse, echoing percussion; then the electric guitar enters, crashing like waves during a storm. The lyrics are about lost love and portray it beautifully. Not only does it beautifully express the main character's grief and longing for his dead lover; but it also shows how the main character feels a profound psychic bond to his lover even after her death, as she haunts (most likely metaphorically, but possibly literally) the main character's thoughts and emotions and he wishes that he could be dead as well so that he could join her in the afterlife. Actually, the subject matter - being filled with melancholy longing for a deceased lover while being enthralled with her angelic memory - is very Poe-esque. Coming from me, that's a huge compliment.
Rating: 10/10
7. Unlimited Sin: Here's a song that does a great job of portraying what it's like to be high on evil. It shows how tempting the joys of wickedness are while making it clear that if you indulge, you will lose your soul. The bright and stylish production emphasizes the alluring nature of the dark side.
Rating: 7/10
8. True Believer: This song is simply inspiring. The melody is forceful, sweeping, and memorable. That's perfect for this song, which is about fighting for what you believe is right in the face of evil. Combining that heroic theme with one-against-the-world Romantic individualism, this song is a fantastic anthem of courage.
Rating: 9/10
9. This Is War: This song is about the Band of the Hawk, a band of glory-hungry mercenaries out to gain a kingdom and slaying anyone who stands in their way. The sword-and-sorcery warlike theme is well reflected in the instrumentation. The fiery guitars and stomping drumbeat, as well as a surprising yet effective flute and strings interlude, create an air of militaristic majesty.
Rating: 7/10
10. Heart of Steel: It might sound strange to call a power metal song "lovely", but that really does describe this song. The song's lyrics are about a tormented warrior who find the inspiration to keep on fighting against all odds in the woman he loves. No matter what, he will always protect her and she will always be his light. It reminds me a lot of Roy and Pris's romance in Blade Runner. As cold and proud as Roy is, Pris is always the star of his life.
The instrumentation is appropriately romantic, with blasting guitar chords, glittering keyboards, powerful drums, a blazing solo before the bridge, and a wonderfully sweeping melody. The production actually sounds a bit like "The Last Stand" by Sabaton, and that's absolutely a compliment.
Rating: 9/10
11. No Surrender: Bold and flashy; with radiant guitar work, shining keyboard accents, and a propulsive beat. In the lyrics, there's a fantastic contrast between the verses and the chorus. The verses do an excellent job of depicting desperation and hardship. But the chorus answers the verses with a hopeful response: Courage, independence, and determination will lead to victory over hardship.
Rating: 8/10
12. Killed By Death: A rockin' cover of a rockin' song. What more is there to say?
Rating: 8/10
13. No Easy Way Out: Second verse, same as the first: A rockin' cover of a rockin' song.
Rating: 8/10
Overall average rating: 8.3077; rounds to 8/10 or four stars
Best lines:
10. Unholy martyr/To save this world/Hybrid utopia
9. Unlimited sin, unlimited power/One with pleasure and pain
8. Chasing the dream of a kingdom and throne/Hail to the Band of the Hawk
7. From sorrow's land our bleeding hearts/Cry out for a hero
6. Born to walk alone/They will never own your burning heart
5. The ties of love will be his shield/His fate at last will be revealed
4. Killed my light/To see your delight/Now see me ripped apart
3. Fear no evil/Let your flames of fury burn
2. Fight until you/ Die by the blade of the one you hate/End of reason, end of the game
1. Longing ocean deep/There's no remedy
1. Cry Out for a Hero: The style of this song is pure grandeur; wit hits blazing guitars, brights synths, quick pace, and soaring melody. This grandiose production perfectly matches the subject matter. The lyrics of this song are about Kenshiro, a daring martial artist who fights evildoers in a postapocalyptic world. Violet gangs rule this postapocalyptic world, but Kenshiro is both brave and strong enough to stand up to them. He is the hero who will fight for the downtrodden.
 |
| Kenshiro, ready for battle. |
Rating: 8/10
2. From Hell with Love: This song has an exceptionally powerful and memorable melody. I can only describe the instrumentation style as "epic disco metal", and I mean that in the best, coolest, most 80s-tastic way possible. As good as the music is, the lyrics are just as high-quality. The lyrics are a passionate display of a hero's heartache after being left by the woman he loves. The song does an excellent job of illustrating the speaker's complex emotions: Deep despair because the woman he loves no longer loves him carefully blended with the fact that he still has a highly idealized vision of her.
Rating: 9/10
3. Sweet True Lies: This song is heartbreaking. It's about being in love with someone who no longer loves you; and doing everything you can to delude yourself into believing they still love you, no matter how much it hurts, even begging them to lie to you because you can't handle the pain. This subject is well served by the bold and flashy production, as the production does an excellent job of emphasizing the drama of the story and brings a sense of grandeur appropriate for colossal emotions.
Rating: 8/10
4. Repentless: Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! This is a song that makes you want to let out an evil laugh. The lyrics of the song are about a wicked man who gains divine power, and is now boasting about how he will use his new divine power to turn the world into his twisted kingdom and to destroy all who would oppose him. The music is appropriately dramatic and menacing. It also sounds quite a bit like Nightwish, which is definitely a good thing.
Rating: 7/10
5. Die By the Blade: Reckless death-seeking has never sounded cooler. With a killer synth line, punchy bass guitar, propulsive drumming, searing guitars, and an anthemic melody that soars like a falcon, this is a must-listen. The writing in the lyrics is a perfect portrait of the death-seeker complex; capturing all of its parts: The desire for annihilation, the joy of danger, the manic energy brought on by no longer being afraid of being killed, and the complete fearlessness towards death. It's as metal as pure titanium.
 |
| When you're secretly hoping to die, what is there to fear? Bring it on. |
Rating: 10/10
6. Oceandeep: ... Wonderfully bombastic and melodramatic. The song has a lovely and graceful melody; and has a powerful build with acoustic guitar and delicate flute and the start; then adding romantic synths, melancholy strings, and sparse, echoing percussion; then the electric guitar enters, crashing like waves during a storm. The lyrics are about lost love and portray it beautifully. Not only does it beautifully express the main character's grief and longing for his dead lover; but it also shows how the main character feels a profound psychic bond to his lover even after her death, as she haunts (most likely metaphorically, but possibly literally) the main character's thoughts and emotions and he wishes that he could be dead as well so that he could join her in the afterlife. Actually, the subject matter - being filled with melancholy longing for a deceased lover while being enthralled with her angelic memory - is very Poe-esque. Coming from me, that's a huge compliment.
 |
| His love will never die... But neither will his sorrow. |
Rating: 10/10
7. Unlimited Sin: Here's a song that does a great job of portraying what it's like to be high on evil. It shows how tempting the joys of wickedness are while making it clear that if you indulge, you will lose your soul. The bright and stylish production emphasizes the alluring nature of the dark side.
Rating: 7/10
8. True Believer: This song is simply inspiring. The melody is forceful, sweeping, and memorable. That's perfect for this song, which is about fighting for what you believe is right in the face of evil. Combining that heroic theme with one-against-the-world Romantic individualism, this song is a fantastic anthem of courage.
Rating: 9/10
9. This Is War: This song is about the Band of the Hawk, a band of glory-hungry mercenaries out to gain a kingdom and slaying anyone who stands in their way. The sword-and-sorcery warlike theme is well reflected in the instrumentation. The fiery guitars and stomping drumbeat, as well as a surprising yet effective flute and strings interlude, create an air of militaristic majesty.
 |
| The Band of the Hawk. Feel free to hail. |
Rating: 7/10
10. Heart of Steel: It might sound strange to call a power metal song "lovely", but that really does describe this song. The song's lyrics are about a tormented warrior who find the inspiration to keep on fighting against all odds in the woman he loves. No matter what, he will always protect her and she will always be his light. It reminds me a lot of Roy and Pris's romance in Blade Runner. As cold and proud as Roy is, Pris is always the star of his life.
 |
| Roy and Pris; two bold androids in a lonely world. |
The instrumentation is appropriately romantic, with blasting guitar chords, glittering keyboards, powerful drums, a blazing solo before the bridge, and a wonderfully sweeping melody. The production actually sounds a bit like "The Last Stand" by Sabaton, and that's absolutely a compliment.
Rating: 9/10
11. No Surrender: Bold and flashy; with radiant guitar work, shining keyboard accents, and a propulsive beat. In the lyrics, there's a fantastic contrast between the verses and the chorus. The verses do an excellent job of depicting desperation and hardship. But the chorus answers the verses with a hopeful response: Courage, independence, and determination will lead to victory over hardship.
Rating: 8/10
12. Killed By Death: A rockin' cover of a rockin' song. What more is there to say?
Rating: 8/10
13. No Easy Way Out: Second verse, same as the first: A rockin' cover of a rockin' song.
Rating: 8/10
Overall average rating: 8.3077; rounds to 8/10 or four stars
Best lines:
10. Unholy martyr/To save this world/Hybrid utopia
9. Unlimited sin, unlimited power/One with pleasure and pain
8. Chasing the dream of a kingdom and throne/Hail to the Band of the Hawk
7. From sorrow's land our bleeding hearts/Cry out for a hero
6. Born to walk alone/They will never own your burning heart
5. The ties of love will be his shield/His fate at last will be revealed
4. Killed my light/To see your delight/Now see me ripped apart
3. Fear no evil/Let your flames of fury burn
2. Fight until you/ Die by the blade of the one you hate/End of reason, end of the game
1. Longing ocean deep/There's no remedy