Music
[Album Review] The Haunted ‘Exit Wounds’
The past few albums from Swedish melodic metal band The Haunted have not exactly received the kindest reception. Personally, I was a fan of the more hard rock approach but I can’t deny that the band was truly a force to be reckoned with when they wrote blistering, vicious metal.
I came aboard The Haunted train with The Dead Eye, which featured ex-vocalist Peter Dolving. That album had a huge impact on me and is still an album that I play with frequency. Perhaps it is because of this beginning that I preferred and appreciated Dolving’s contributions and works.
However, I still appreciate an album that kicks so much ass that no amount of toilet paper will clean up its mess. And since I already have a history with The Haunted I knew that Exit Wounds would be an album that I absolutely had to check out.
And with today being the release date, let’s dive into my review so you know whether or not you should pick this album up.
“317” kicks off the album with an unholy choir welcoming the listener to something unholy before throwing in thick, distorted riffs, the guitars demonstrating the patented The Haunted harmonization they’re known for. As cheesy as it sounds, this demonic cacophony really is welcoming you into one hell of an album.
I found myself blown away by the explosive snares of “Kill The Lights”, the Silent Hill-esque opening of “Trend Killer”, which transformed into a bass driven mechanical beast, and “Time (Will Not Heal)”, which features some truly badass riffing that will incite fearsome mosh pits.
Cultivating 14 badass tracks into a 45 minute package is no small feat but the band pulled it off. Some tracks don’t have the same “oomph” as others but what makes this album fun is that it can, and should, be listened to in one sitting. Tracks can be singled out for various reasons but the package as a whole is deeply satisfying.
The Final Word: Exit Wounds is the album that discouraged fans of The Haunted have been waiting and yearning for. It’s fast, it’s heavy, and it’s more authentically vicious than most “metal” released these days.
The Lost Boys: A New Musical officially kicked off on Broadway last month, and Deadline now reports that the show’s Broadway run has been extended into next year.
The show was originally set to run through November, but Deadline reports that The Lost Boys: A New Musical “has released a block of tickets through Sunday, March 7, 2027.”
The news comes in the wake of The Lost Boys: A New Musical becoming the most Tony-nominated musical of the season with twelve nominations including Best Musical.
Additionally, “The Lost Boys will launch a North American National Tour in Spring 2028, at Playhouse Square in Cleveland. Additional cities and tour dates will be announced later.”
The Lost Boys: A New Musical is of course an adaptation of the 1987 horror classic from director Joel Schumacher, with the cast including Ali Louis Bourzgui as lead vampire David (originally played by Kiefer Sutherland), Maria Wirries as Star (originally played by Jami Gertz), and LJ Benet as the soon-to-be-turned Michael (originally played by Jason Patric).
The horror musical’s cast also includes Shoshana Bean as Lucy Emerson, Benjamin Pajak as Sam Emerson, Paul Alexander Nolan as Max, Jennifer Duka as Alan Frog, Miguel Gil as Edgar Frog, Brian Flores as Marko, Sean Grandillo as Dwayne, and Dean Maupin as Paul.
The Lost Boys: A New Musical is Directed by Michael Arden, featuring Music and Lyrics by The Rescues, Book by David Hornsby & Chris Hoch, Story by James Jeremias & Janice Fischer, and Produced by James Carpinello, Marcus Chait & Patrick Wilson (The Conjuring) by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures.
When a mother and her two teenage sons move to Santa Carla in desperate need of a fresh start, they soon uncover the darker side of this sunny coastal community. While Lucy tries to piece her family’s life back together, Michael keeps pulling away in search of belonging.
As he finds connection with a local rock band and its charismatic leader, his younger brother Sam comes face-to-face with a terrifying reality: When night falls, Michael’s new friends are even more dangerous than they first appeared.
Joel Schumacher directed the original The Lost Boys vampire movie in 1987, wherein two brothers move to a new town and discover that the area is a haven for vampires.
You must be logged in to post a comment.