Hard rock purveyors HELLYEAH have released their sixth studio album, Welcome Home, via Eleven Seven Music. It’s comes after almost 12 years since the release of their debut record, HELLYEAH, and just over one year since the passing of bandmate and brother Vinnie Paul.
“We were dealing with the shock of Vinnie passing and we realised that all his drum tracks were finished, everything, which was a pretty surreal moment, ‘cause we realised he left it for us to finish. We wound up going back to Vegas which was really hard to do as we were still just reeling from the funeral and just losing him, but we managed to get through it and finish the guitars and the bass tracks. Then Chad went in there and literally was left to his own devices to finish the record, so that was rough.
“Listening to it now, completed, it’s a shame as Vinnie would have really loved this record and he would have been super proud of it”, explains guitarist Tom Maxwell. “It’s a celebration of life, it’s a celebration of Vinnie”, adds drummer Roy Mayorga.
Welcome Home, reveals 11 tracks, driven by their love, loyalty, reverence and respect for their fallen brother, including album opener and raging track ‘333’, one of two tracks Vinnie heard before his passing, guitar-driven ‘Perfect’, the gritty ‘Oh My God’ and the band’s fastest-growing song at US Active Rock Radio ‘Welcome Home’, which reached the Top 5.
As a toast from the rock-gods and as a loving letter to Vince, HELLYEAH offers up their heartfelt, stripped-down track, ‘Skyy and Water’. ‘Choking back my tears again today, I can hear your voice / I can hear you say, don’t sweat the small stuff and just keep on keeping on.’
About being half good and half evil and the track ‘333’ vocalist Chad Gray comments, “A lot of people may think Vinnie was just a drummer, but he was much more than just a badass, slamming, smashing drummer…The lyrics embrace and recognise the feelings that most metal fans have. Being treated like outcasts and being judged for the way we look or dress. It’s a reminder to all the metal fans that no matter what, you will always have a place in our worldwide metal community. With that said…Welcome to the family! We’re all the root of half evil reppin’ 333.”
HELLYEAH continue their live assault across the US and Canada, kicking off the “A Celebration Of Life” tour in November through to December.
While on the road they have been honouring their late bandmate by donating a portion of ticket sales from each tour date to the American Heart Association in Vinnie Paul’s memory. Tickets and full routing are available HERE.
In addition to this initiative, HELLYEAH will host a TEXT TO DONATE campaign during each of their upcoming tour dates. Fans can TEXT ‘VINNIE’ to #41411, or head to a special CrowdRise page where they can also DONATE to help fight heart disease, as well as read more about the American Heart Association and HELLYEAH’s interview with them HERE.
Be the first to comment