My Hero Is Me - Helen Of Troy

My Hero Is Me - Helen Of Troy

 

 

I write this with a bit of sadness in my heart. My Hero Is Me is no longer a band, they haven't been for a while. It is actually a loss considering the potential they showed especially in this album. Back in the early days of the whole hardcore/metalcore/core scene so many bands fought to prove themselves. Honestly MHIM is one of the bands that rose to the top and had a huge impact on the whole scene whether it's realized or not.

This is the first album they released back in 2006. It is a little rough around the edges, while the music is top notch the production is a little rough. Also as you can see the cover is a bit low budget. It's extremely misleading considering the quality of the actual music contained within.

A lot of what makes this album so good and one of the best aspects (not to downplay the others) of this band as a whole is the fantastic frontman Daryl. His control over his screams, his lows, his highs, and his smooth singing is impressive to say the least and rarely seen in the genre. Also he's a pretty cool dude. Listen to any of the songs and you'll probably come out convinced that the bands has at least two different vocalists, yet there's only him.

The guitar work on every song is also fantastic. It ranges from slower paced chords, to the heavy chugga-chugga riffs that went on to define the genre combined with throw away riffs that hit with power. All melded with a lot of blue's influenced sounds. It's interesting to say the least. You won't find a boring song on this album.

The vocals and guitar meld well together with catchy melodies and choruses that will have you humming along long after the album has finished. Combined with some terrific non-traditional song structure and you can easily see why these guys were pioneers for the genre even if they remain fairly unknown.

The album does feature some stand out songs. The opener titled The Plot To Kill Bob Barker, first of all has one of the best titles for a song, and second will stay in your head. The lyrics catch you, almost as written by Bob Barker him self, in regards to show business. It features one of the heavier break downs on the album, something that would go on to be a defining part of the genre. The ending is just sublime, everything slows down into a lament of someone tired of the limelight.

The song Even Cupid Drinks is actually pretty funny and written as if coming from cupid was really at a bar. It's funny, it's heavy, it's catchy, it's a brilliantly written song. It's reminescent of something from Every Time I Die. The Song Tree Houses With Broken ladders is a straight forward song, but it's heavy and fast paced. The main riff is pretty catchy as well.

I think I've pretty much summed up MHIM in a nutshell, especially this album. It's catchy and well written. Some of the songs may seem generic or dated at this point, but they were written before the genre became so saturated. Most do stand the test of time and always have something going for them. I really suggest any fans of the metalcore genre to take a gander and see one of the pioneers who're no longer with us.