The driving groove of Lynam’s modern glam rock sound had my attention right from track one, “Rise Up”, all the way through until the closing number “Wrong Side of the Grave”. This quartet hail from Birmingham, Alabama, although they look and sound very L.A. in this tight and well produced EP of 6 tracks.
Halfway to Hell has all the trademark hooks you would come to expect from an American glam rock outing, punchy verses and melodic choruses, but with a few pleasant twists and turns along the way. The fourth track, “Cold” has a very distinctive 80’s nod to it, reminding me at times of Billy Idol. This homage to the past continues into the following track “Store Bought Halo”, the shortest song of the lot, with its ska inspired verses reminiscent of an early Police tune (Roxanne comes to mind but much quicker). “Wrong Side of The Grave” closes the EP with a chunky guitar riff and wavering vocals, and every time I hear it I can’t help but think of Lane Staley from Alice in Chains. These little references are quite subtle and are homogenized nicely into Lynam’s sound.
All of these elements make Halfway to Hell a fun listen. A great batch of songs to party to and I wouldn’t give them any more depth than that. I look to forward to an album that can sustain this same level of energy.
Richard Leggatt, HMS
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