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Forget the last time I criticized an album’s cover based on the goofy press photo adorning it -- this one takes the cake. In fact, I can’t think of any band in the last ten years that has managed to look quite as much like a gaggle of goons as Atlanta, Georgia’s the Heart Attacks on the cover of their Hellcat debut Hellbound and Heartless.

OK, so it’s obvious they’re going for an image. The Nikki Sixx look? Close…“Glam punk.” You know, kind of like the New York Dolls. And they actually pull off the sound quite well.

The album kicks off with Johnny Thunders-style guitar licks on the opener “You Oughtta Know by Now,” introducing the snotty yet dramatic vocals of singer Chase Noles. The third track, “Eyes” is easily one of the catchiest numbers on Hellbound and Heartless, featuring pounding piano chords and impressive saxophone playing which gives the song a throwback rockabilly feel. That feel is taken one step further on the next track as the band takes a stab at Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Travellin’ Band,” which features a guest guitar solo by Mr. Tim Armstrong. Interestingly, the two songs with a saxophone are some of the stronger ones on the album, as it seems to set them apart in an album of songs mostly composed of similar instruments and rhythms.

Rock and roll legend Joan Jett makes a guest vocal appearance on “Tearstained Letters,” a great song that should have been cut off somewhere a little after the two-minute mark, but instead lingers for about two-and-a-half more minutes. “Runnin’ with a Gang” features solid music but unfortunately suffers from lyrics that are poor, yet indicative of the Heart Attacks: "Bats out let’s fight, bats out c’mon let’s fight / Knives out let’s fight, knives out that’s right let’s fight / Guns out let’s fight, let’s fight and we’ll all just die tonight / Yeah they’re big and they got ten, we got twenty, bats out, who you think’ll win?"

Produced by Lars Frederiksen and featuring guest spots from Tim Armstrong, Brett Reed, and Joan Jett, the Heart Attacks certainly have a foundation for success. Whether or not the Heart Attacks catch on remains to be seen, but they’ve proven themselves adequate with Hellbound and Heartless and offered a handful of fun, unique songs that can stand on their own.






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    Posted by YOUDONTKNOWMARK on 2007-04-15 00:35:30

    i have a feeling that most of the people on this site are 14 year old kids who just found out they can talk trash on the internet and not get caught. just because it isnt "Punk" fellas doesnt meen it aint music. grow up a tad please.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, February 2, 2007 at 12:03 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    you guy kick ass!!!!!----see you in buffalo

    Posted by The_Wayfarer on 2007-01-25 13:49:31

    Wow... didn't know they were touring with the Queers. That's disheartening.

    Posted by kirbypuckett on 2007-01-22 21:22:51

    I'd rather listen to The Heart Attack featuring Cee-Lo.

    - Kirby

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, January 22, 2007 at 8:52 PM (EST)

    hellbound and heartless? more like gay and dickless.

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, January 22, 2007 at 4:33 PM (EST)

    Haircut Rock!

    Posted by Hey_Asshole on 2007-01-22 03:21:35
    My Score:

    score is for the new york dolls

    Posted by GlassPipeMurder on 2007-01-21 15:55:22

    heh. there's five.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, January 21, 2007 at 11:31 AM (EST)

    is there really 5 guys in this band or just 3? because it looks like two of them are on the cover twice.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, January 21, 2007 at 12:53 AM (EST)

    nerds

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 20, 2007 at 2:26 PM (EST)

    its was fun watching people trowing cans of beer on the singer in montreal.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 20, 2007 at 11:21 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    yeah these guys suck real hard. i can look past the image if a bandwrites good songs but this shit isn't even as good as say Jet, and thats bad.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, January 20, 2007 at 2:48 AM (EST)

    More like the Fart Attacks. WHA-BAM!

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 7:29 PM (EST)

    The Dictators at age 60 could still whip all of these dorks' asses. Is it safe to just obliterate Hellcat/Epitaph from the collective memory of the human race at this point?

    -Ken

    Posted by millman on 2007-01-19 18:11:27

    the queers and the riptides definitely showed them up last night, as i'm sure they do every night

    Posted by GlassPipeMurder on 2007-01-19 18:04:49

    maybe joe queer will teach them a lesson or two on their upcoming tour together.

    Posted by dietcokeofpunk on 2007-01-19 17:49:44

    I saw them on tour with ACO, and they are not very impressive live.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 4:32 PM (EST)

    The Briefs?

    Posted by The_Wayfarer on 2007-01-19 14:46:24
    My Score:

    These guys... are just so bad. I hate them. I live not far from their hometown and I book shows locally. They have an ego the size of Atlanta and they often refuse to come play shows I'd book them for. They were rude and scheuvanistic.

    And besides that, this is probably the worst re-hash of '77 punk mixed with today's fast-paced standards I've ever heard... please... 1977 were glory-days... but keep them in the past where they belong. It's like flogging a dead horse.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 1:58 PM (EST)

    this album is absolute shit.....refer to their first record which they stole 5 songs from for this record....you will like it ten times better plus there is no cover of CCR....BAND RULE #1 NEVER COVER CCR YOU CANT DO IT BETTER THAN FOGERTY!

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 12:31 PM (EST)

    There's a really good band in Europe called the Heartattacks. Way better than the Heart Attacks.

    Posted by wentz_equals_death on 2007-01-19 12:07:10

    what does brett reed do in his guest spot?

    hit the snare drum?

    Posted by usapsychos on 2007-01-19 00:38:26

    I have seen these guys open for Rancid, but I have to say their singer got annoying really quick. The band themselves were excellent, but I feel if they had a different singer they would sound a lot better.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 12:16 AM (EST)

    "Hellbound and heartless" is right. This garbage doesn't even belong in the used CD clearance bin- it deserves the fate of being cast to thrift store shelves for eternity.

    What great lyrics. I'm sure these guys are the soundtrack to every lameass mallpunk's gangland fantasy. I'll be sure to "watch my back" next time I plan on going to Hot Topic (IE: never).

    -Willl

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 19, 2007 at 12:08 AM (EST)

    I've only heard one song by these guys. It was a pretty solid track, but I dunno if this is worth buying based on one song.

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