by Dan Skiba
— Columnist —
Hailing from the U.K. are the up-and-coming rockers Hell’s Addiction, and V1.0 is their latest release. With an album entitled V1.0, you’d think this was the band’s debut offering, but in fact the band has been active in the studio since 2012 … they’ve just sort of piece-mealed their creations in erratic phases.
But, don’t hold that against them because this EP is a solid offering. The first two tracks, “Free Your Mind” and “Masking The Pain”, are wonderfully rough around the edges Garage Band Hard Songs that are aggressive, melodic, and raunchy … not so different from the early days of Aerosmith. There’s “soul” in these two tracks, solid musicianship, and impressive vocal talent displayed by Ben Sargent. Both of these tracks will get your adrenaline flowing and grab your attention.
Next up is “If Time Stood Still”, which evidently is the band’s first ballad. If you’re a Hard Rock/Hair Metal ballad fan, then you’re sure to like this track, but as far a placement on the EP in the #3 slot, you’ve gotta wonder because the momentum gained after the first 2 tracks is inevitably compromised. But, be that as it may … all is forgiven with the closing track “Running Away”. It’s more polished than “Free Your Mind” and “Masking The Pain”, which places it more in the Melodic Metal subgenre, but it’s arguably the best track on the EP. “Running Away” features easy to absorb music and a simple chorus that’ll stick with you for the rest of the day.
Some bands, whether they deserve it or not, catch a break early and have opportunities presented to them that they can either exploit to their advantage or piss away to their dismay. Hell’s Addiction isn’t one of those bands gifted with that luxury … instead, they’re a band working like hell to make a name for themselves and to get noticed. V1.0 is a compilation of 4 songs that are worthy of your notice. Give Hell’s Addiction a chance and check out this EP. You’ll be glad you did.
Genres: Hard Rock, Garage Band Hard Rock, Melodic Metal
Band:
Ben Sargent – Lead Vocals
Liam Sargent – Guitars
Dan Weir – Guitars & Background Vocals
Jason Green – Bass
Luke Morley – Drums
Tracklisting:
Free Your Mind
Masking The Pain
If Time Stood Still
Running Away
Label:
Independent
Website:
http://www.hellsaddiction.com
Hardrock Haven rating: 
(8 / 10)