Hell (British band)
Hell are an English heavy metal band from Derbyshire, formed in 1982 from the remaining members of bands Race Against Time and Paralex. Due to a series of unfortunate and tragic events, the band originally folded in 1987. They were amongst the first bands to wear proto-corpse paint as part of their stage show, which featured hysterical ranting from a gargoyle-adorned pulpit, along with the use of a pyrotechnic exploding Bible which caused outrage amongst the clergy when it originally appeared in 1983. Although they were largely ignored by the media and record companies in the 1980s, their music became known through the underground tape trading phenomenon, and the band achieved a degree of cult status. In 2008 they reunited, and were signed by Nuclear Blast. Their first full-length album, Human Remains, was released in May 2011. The album topped at No. 46 on the German album chart in its first week of release. History Early years (1982–1987) Hell was founded in Derbyshire in 1982. They signed to the Belgian label Mausoleum Records, but two weeks prior to the recording of their debut album, the label collapsed into bankruptcy. Guitarist Kev Bower subsequently quit the band. He was briefly replaced by Sean Kelley, though Hell split up soon afterwards, which led to the suicide of vocalist Dave Halliday by carbon monoxide poisoning. Dave Halliday taught Andy Sneap (later to form heavy metal band Sabbat) to play guitar and Sneap mentions Hell as one of his main influences. Sneap went on to become a world-renowned record producer, with over 100 albums and a Swedish Grammy Award to his credit, and a touring guitarist for Judas Priest. Reformation (2008–2011) The remaining original members of Hell reunited in 2008 to finally record their album which was entitled Human Remains. Sabbat members Martin Walkyier and Andy Sneap agreed to play on the album to replicate Dave Halliday's vocals and guitar tracks respectively, with Sneap also acting as the producer. Although Walkyier spent a few evenings (not the "several months" he often claims in frequent social media rants) recording test vocals for various songs on the album, this process was halted once it became clear that his vocal style and somewhat acerbic temperament were unsuitable for the task. Kev Bower's brother David (who is known as David Beckford in his career as a stage and television actor) was invited to do a voiceover for the song "Plague And Fyre" and then joined the band as lead vocalist, re-recording all the lead vocal parts. Sneap also joined the band as a permanent member. 2011 The new line-up played their first gig at the MFN club in Nottingham on 20 May 2011, playing songs from Human Remains and also Race Against Time's "Bedtime" as a tribute to David Halliday. This was followed by a run of festival shows in Europe and the UK, including Metalfest Open Airs in Switzerland, Germany and Austria, Rockstad Falun in Sweden, the UK's Download Festival, Tuska Open Air Metal Festival in Finland,