09/27/2014 Show Review by Cryptic Rock
"Midnite Hellion seemed to come and go very quickly. Their music was well-received by the growing crowd, combining some very melodic elements to a Hardcore Metal sound that did not seem to stay within any one camp. Energetic and competent, they delighted the audience with a nice rendition of Metallica’s “For Whom The Bell Tolls.” ...Midnite Hellion possesses a lot of skill, chops, and they certainly had the admiration of the crowd, who cheered exuberantly after every song."
10/17/2011 Show Review by Keith Carney of FALLOUTZINE
But now, for my favorite part of the night, drum roll please....Trenton, NJ's famous batch of monsters. They're evil, they're ugly and they're coming for you; Midnite Hellion! I was lucky enough to catch their debut show up in Kearny, NJ back in September, which you can read about on here, and it was absolutely killer. So it should go without saying that I wasn't expecting anything less this time around. But at the same time, I sure as hell wasn't prepared to dodge all the shrapnel that came flying from this explosive performance....
While these guys were setting up their equipment a few people, including myself, helped set up some of their stage props. The MH guys had brought a number of sections of an evil Halloween fence to line the stage with, which wasn't exactly the most stable or durable thing in the world as we'd soon find out....haha. But we got it up & standing and got things looking a bit more evil then usual around there.
They also unveiled the killer brand spanking new MH banner that you may have noticed hanging behind them (how could you not notice that?) which my better half/partner in crime actually painted for them. AND, you may, or may not, have noticed the bands logo printed on the double bass drums. If you couldn't tell already, these guys have been putting some serious effort into their band and it goes well beyond just their image. These guys have a pretty solid traditional Heavy Metal sound with some elements of Speed & Thrash creeping under it to pull it all together.
Before kicking things off, their front man Sonny Zackeo got everyone in the crowd warmed up and laughing along with his hilarious commentary and stage antics, which was interrupted by someone's cell phone or something playing music through their amp every time the volume was turned up on their guitar. I still don't really know what was going on but it had me laughing.
Now, this was only their second show, but it was also their debut hometown gig and they had a pretty strong crowd there all fired up to see them before the had music even started. And just like in Kearny, you could feel something building up in the crowd before things came crashing together.
Kicking things off with the title track of their upcoming demo 'The Fever', they got things moving along right away and the crowd didn't need much time at all to catch up with them. So far so good as far as the fence was concerned, I had my eye on it....
Cranking out their sonic attack with Cross the Line and 1903; two more solid track off their upcoming demo, and following it up with a new one titled Witching hour.
It was about this time that I really started to notice how hyped up people were getting, jumping up and down off the stage, singing along, really getting into it and just going crazy. And just when you thought things have reached their limited these guys decided to push it over the edge with a Slayer cover; Black Magic!
The timing for this couldn't have been any more perfect, it was just like throwing raw meat into a pack of wild dogs. People began trampling over the fence to get on stage and sing along, grabbing pieces of it and smashing it against the stage, over their heads, throwing it and playing air guitar with pieces of it. By the time the song had ended there wasn't a single piece of this fence left standing or intact, all you could see were the smashed up pieces strewn across the floor, getting trampled on as MH pulled out one last song and another great cover for the night, Iron Maiden's Invaders!
This was the perfect end to a great set and I'm glad we got it all on video. Until next time....Beware of the Midnite Hellion!!!
9/22/11 Debut Show Review by Keith Carney of FALLOUTZINE
Now, perhaps it was just me, but after things started to wind down a bit from the Lethal Strike set and Midnite Hellion was gearing up to hit the stage, I swear you could feel the anticipation building up in the room. It was like FINALLY, after being kept in the dark and only given little bits an pieces of this monster that was being assembled behind closed doors over the past several months, it was finally about to be unleashed upon us. Excited is definitely a word I'd use to describe how I was feeling.....
Maybe it was just the vibe I got from these guys through their imagery, their choice of name, or the fact that I know some of them have pretty damn good taste in music, I'm not really sure actually. But I gotta admit, I did set the bar pretty high for this one, and I really had no worries about them reaching it, didn't even cross my mind actually. And sure enough, once that switch was flipped and the power began to surge, they shattered it to pieces!
There is something about Traditional Heavy Metal that is just so majestic. The way it manages to root itself so deeply into your heart and tug at it like no other. The sonic wrath of a duel guitar attack, the soaring vocals of a front man that can lift you up higher than the sky....nothing else compares to it, nothing.
And that my friends is exactly why I like Midnite Hellion, because that is exactly what you get from these defenders of the old faith. Even the fierce finger picking from their man on the four strings was impressive. Now combine that with their solid drumming, the killer vocals and the two ax wielding maniacs up front and you've got yourself a machine fit for battle.
These guys ran through their 5 song set list, which included a cover of Iron Maidens 'Invaders', without any problems. The two original songs that stuck out to me the most were 1903, which has a purely old school Heavy Metal feel to it that opens right up with great high pitched vocals and 'Cross the Line', which seems to start off with a very straight forward Heavy Metal riff that manages to make a smooth transition into Thrash, which the rest of the band follows while pretty much balancing the two styles throughout the entire song. Great stuff and a killer debut for these guys from Trenton, NJ. Be sure to get your ass out to see them with Warbringer in Trenton, NJ later this month, I know I will.
But now, for my favorite part of the night, drum roll please....Trenton, NJ's famous batch of monsters. They're evil, they're ugly and they're coming for you; Midnite Hellion! I was lucky enough to catch their debut show up in Kearny, NJ back in September, which you can read about on here, and it was absolutely killer. So it should go without saying that I wasn't expecting anything less this time around. But at the same time, I sure as hell wasn't prepared to dodge all the shrapnel that came flying from this explosive performance....
While these guys were setting up their equipment a few people, including myself, helped set up some of their stage props. The MH guys had brought a number of sections of an evil Halloween fence to line the stage with, which wasn't exactly the most stable or durable thing in the world as we'd soon find out....haha. But we got it up & standing and got things looking a bit more evil then usual around there.
They also unveiled the killer brand spanking new MH banner that you may have noticed hanging behind them (how could you not notice that?) which my better half/partner in crime actually painted for them. AND, you may, or may not, have noticed the bands logo printed on the double bass drums. If you couldn't tell already, these guys have been putting some serious effort into their band and it goes well beyond just their image. These guys have a pretty solid traditional Heavy Metal sound with some elements of Speed & Thrash creeping under it to pull it all together.
Before kicking things off, their front man Sonny Zackeo got everyone in the crowd warmed up and laughing along with his hilarious commentary and stage antics, which was interrupted by someone's cell phone or something playing music through their amp every time the volume was turned up on their guitar. I still don't really know what was going on but it had me laughing.
Now, this was only their second show, but it was also their debut hometown gig and they had a pretty strong crowd there all fired up to see them before the had music even started. And just like in Kearny, you could feel something building up in the crowd before things came crashing together.
Kicking things off with the title track of their upcoming demo 'The Fever', they got things moving along right away and the crowd didn't need much time at all to catch up with them. So far so good as far as the fence was concerned, I had my eye on it....
Cranking out their sonic attack with Cross the Line and 1903; two more solid track off their upcoming demo, and following it up with a new one titled Witching hour.
It was about this time that I really started to notice how hyped up people were getting, jumping up and down off the stage, singing along, really getting into it and just going crazy. And just when you thought things have reached their limited these guys decided to push it over the edge with a Slayer cover; Black Magic!
The timing for this couldn't have been any more perfect, it was just like throwing raw meat into a pack of wild dogs. People began trampling over the fence to get on stage and sing along, grabbing pieces of it and smashing it against the stage, over their heads, throwing it and playing air guitar with pieces of it. By the time the song had ended there wasn't a single piece of this fence left standing or intact, all you could see were the smashed up pieces strewn across the floor, getting trampled on as MH pulled out one last song and another great cover for the night, Iron Maiden's Invaders!
This was the perfect end to a great set and I'm glad we got it all on video. Until next time....Beware of the Midnite Hellion!!!
9/22/11 Debut Show Review by Keith Carney of FALLOUTZINE
Now, perhaps it was just me, but after things started to wind down a bit from the Lethal Strike set and Midnite Hellion was gearing up to hit the stage, I swear you could feel the anticipation building up in the room. It was like FINALLY, after being kept in the dark and only given little bits an pieces of this monster that was being assembled behind closed doors over the past several months, it was finally about to be unleashed upon us. Excited is definitely a word I'd use to describe how I was feeling.....
Maybe it was just the vibe I got from these guys through their imagery, their choice of name, or the fact that I know some of them have pretty damn good taste in music, I'm not really sure actually. But I gotta admit, I did set the bar pretty high for this one, and I really had no worries about them reaching it, didn't even cross my mind actually. And sure enough, once that switch was flipped and the power began to surge, they shattered it to pieces!
There is something about Traditional Heavy Metal that is just so majestic. The way it manages to root itself so deeply into your heart and tug at it like no other. The sonic wrath of a duel guitar attack, the soaring vocals of a front man that can lift you up higher than the sky....nothing else compares to it, nothing.
And that my friends is exactly why I like Midnite Hellion, because that is exactly what you get from these defenders of the old faith. Even the fierce finger picking from their man on the four strings was impressive. Now combine that with their solid drumming, the killer vocals and the two ax wielding maniacs up front and you've got yourself a machine fit for battle.
These guys ran through their 5 song set list, which included a cover of Iron Maidens 'Invaders', without any problems. The two original songs that stuck out to me the most were 1903, which has a purely old school Heavy Metal feel to it that opens right up with great high pitched vocals and 'Cross the Line', which seems to start off with a very straight forward Heavy Metal riff that manages to make a smooth transition into Thrash, which the rest of the band follows while pretty much balancing the two styles throughout the entire song. Great stuff and a killer debut for these guys from Trenton, NJ. Be sure to get your ass out to see them with Warbringer in Trenton, NJ later this month, I know I will.
