Reviewed! Five Finger Death Punch - The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1

Five Finger Death Punch

The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1

Prospect Park

Listen, if you’re a fan of Five Finger Death Punch, then you know what you’re in for on the bands latest, The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1, and if you’ve spent some modicum of time with any of the bands previous releases, you should damn well know what to expect. But if you’re new to the FFDP game (and if you are, seriously, shame on you), then what you’re getting with The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell is a hulking beast of a record, plain and simple.

No, the review isn’t over. So keep reading. Please.

On The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell there is absolutely no shortage of living, breathing monsters that are unafraid to spit fire, ferocious circle pit soundtracks brimming with shredtacular guitars that feature no off switch (“You,” “Burn MF”). Hell, you don’t even have to wait three whole minutes on The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell to hear a killer guitar solo. In true FFDP fashion, vocalist Ivan Moody and the gang can stomp the brakes and turn things on a dime, tempering the pace of The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell in a sheer moment’s notice to fire off a radio ready pop metal ballad (“Wrong Side of Heaven,” “M.I.N.E. (End This Way)”).          

Sadly however, many of the guest appearances on The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell fall short of expectations. While the album opener, “Lift Me Up,” featuring metal legend Rob Halford, stands as one of the albums shining moments, other outings featuring In This Moment’s Maria Brink (“Anywhere But Here”), Soulfly’s Max Calvera (“I.M.Sin”), Hatebreed’s Jamey Jasta (“Dot Your Eyes”) and rapper Tech N9ne (cover of LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out”), don’t come across as strong as perhaps they did on paper.

The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1 is fucking legit. Enough said. Go buy this album.

Grade: A-

Go Download: “Burn MF”