Review by Paul Monkhouse for MPM
For many, the achieving of arena headline status for Halestorm is a long overdue acknowledgement of their place in the world, the Pennsylvania quartet having more than paid their dues.
Whilst no strangers to the huge halls, this elevation to top billing confirms that their continued rise in hearts and minds is unstoppable, the band a force of nature that won’t slow down. It’s been a long road, full of challenges, but the family bond of the four-piece extends beyond siblings Lzzy and Arejay Hale, encompassing not just bandmates guitarist Joe Hottinger and bass player Josh Smith but also anyone else who comes into their orbit.
There’s a real sense here that everyone has won this victory and that level of mutual appreciation and support means that this capturing of their triumphant set at Wembley Arena last year crackles with a very special electricity.
All the best live albums capture both artist and audience in a raw and visceral way, something that this release certainly boasts, the sense of being there in the heart of the action palpable. A great souvenir for those present, ‘Live at Wembley’ is more than just a happy memory, this is the band at their ferocious best, playing a career spanning selection that shows their range. Whilst earlier albums somewhat frustratingly blended blistering hard rock with more sedate fare at times, the most recent release ‘Back from the Dead’ showed Halestorm really baring their teeth and ready to tear faces off. It’s this latter iteration that makes its presence felt here and it’s a mighty and breathless thing to behold.
As illustrated from the big vocal workout that opens the album as ‘I Miss the Misery’ kicks in, Lzzy Hale’s voice is something capable of laying waste to city blocks, its strength and raw power something jaw dropping. It’s the perfect start, the following ‘Love Bites (and So Do I)’ equally strident as this opening salvo shows that Halestorm can rock as hard as anyone out there.
Ms Hale is certainly a worthy figurehead and one of the most pleasing aspects of their shows is illustrated during ‘I Get Off’ as the number of female voices in the shows audience really make themselves heard, the songs mix of grit and sensuality unafraid to take exactly what it wants in an empowering way that crushes misogyny in the dirt. This display of positive ‘girl power’ is an all-encompassing thing though that never excludes anyone, the familial bonds highlighted and celebrated in a way that arguably few have achieved before in rock music.
What impresses also is the range displayed here, the band capable of going from the big swing of a stuttering ‘Freak Like Me’, through an extended workout of ‘Amen’ that sees Hottinger and Hale’s guitars really letting loose and then onto the peace and beauty of an acoustic ‘Terrible Things’.
This is all done with aplomb and with the twenty-six years since Lzzy and Arejay formed the nascent outfit when they were at school, there’s an ease that speaks of countless hard hours committed to honing their craft. The band are certainly no slouches on the songwriting front and the set highlights that they’re more than capable of knocking out anthems like ‘Rock Show’ alongside the dark ‘Familiar Taste of Poison’ and a wonderfully abrasive ‘Takes My Life’.
Always a big personality at the rear of the stage, Hale junior gets his chance to be in the spotlight for a drum solo and whilst most are usually the opportunity to go to the bar or skip to the next track, what’s performed here is full of a joyous spirit that makes it both entertaining and highly listenable. For any who may have drifted off slightly, a brutal ‘Back from the Dead’ and ‘Bombshell’ shake the foundations, the hefty one two punch loosening teeth before ‘I Am the Fire’ brings big rock vibes.
Once more bringing calm after the storm, ‘Break In – Shatter me’ and ‘Raise your Horns’ are gorgeous, the piano and vocals blending into something incandescent before the band close with the flag and lighter waving stadium rock of ‘Here’s to Us’ and punchy ‘The Steeple’. As ‘Live at Wembley’ so clearly illustrates, Halestorm are here and ready to take on the heavyweights, their trajectory forever heading for the stratosphere. Not just a good live album, but a truly great one that’s destined to become something of a classic. Thrilling.
FIND HALESTORM ONLINE
The digital-only album is available immediately for download or streaming. Get it here.
All photos by Jason Stoltzfus
