Album review: The Hellacopters – Eyes Of Oblivion

Nicke Andersson is an enviable man. Having been instrumental in defining ’90s death metal as the drummer for Entombed, the man's musical legacy is already something to behold. But ever since he stepped out from behind the kit to front The Hellacopters, he's also proven himself a genius with the riffs and swagger of the finest rock’n’roll of the ’60s and ’70s, throwing all together with a punky engine and a sense that his musical mind is actually from a far older decade than the head in which it is housed. The Rolling Stones like them so much they invited them to play with them. Not bad, really.

Now, not content with conjuring up glamour-Sabbath brilliance on last year's Lucifer album, IV, less than 12 months later his main band return with another doozy. And if you were in need of a reminder of the thrilling Friday night thrill of a loud guitar after the recent troubles, there are few better equipped for the job.

In Reap A Hurricane, they have perhaps their most 'let's have it' tune since their iconic By The Grace Of God. It's big, riffy, and smarter than it first sounds. A Plow And A Doctor makes a knowing nod in Jimi Hendrix's direction, while Positively Not Knowing rushes up, just aggressive enough with its snappy, quick-fire drums, but also with a beguiling charm as well. On So Sorry I Could Die they take a bluesy tack, on The Pressure's On something almost approaching Springsteen or Tom Petty at their most busker-y.

It's the natural swing they have, the apparent lack of having to try at this, that makes – and has always made – The Hellacopters such a good band. Little references pop up, but it's not that this is a studied take on rock’n’roll so much as an innate thing, an instinct. Cool, classy and effortlessly clear in their intentions, The Hellacopters continue to fly brilliantly.

Verdict: 4/5

For fans of: The Wildhearts, Turbonegro, Thin Lizzy

Eyes Of Oblivion is out now via Nuclear Blast