Slik Helvetika
Hafnium

January 2010
Released: 2009, Screamin' Mimi Records
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewer: Robert Williams

Hailing from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and featuring within their ranks alumni of Quiet Riot and Destroyer comes Slik Helvetika and their hard rocking second full length album HAFNIUM. There have been some lineup changes and modifications since the debut; goner is former bassist and vocalist Kurt Wagenseil, and in his place is Kjell Benner on bass and Slik Helvetika mastermind Mikhall Myers helms the vocals in addition to performing his lead and rhythm guitar duties.



Melodic hard rock goodness reminiscent of the late eighties / early nineties is what you can expect from Slik Helvetika on HAFNIUM. "Money Tree" is a hipshakin' party rock anthem, featuring stellar backing vocals and lots of hooky riffs. Another standout track would be the fourth number "Burnt" that begins with an acoustic build before building a nice dynamic range and crashing into the hypnotic chorus. "Wide" pounds and thumps along, probably the heaviest of the albums tracks, yet always melodic ala Galactic Cowboys due to the harmonic backing vocals.



Everything on this David Ivory produced disc sounds great in terms of production values and musicianship. I would highly recommend this disc to fans of the aforementioned Galactic Cowboys and Killer Dwarfs and anyone who enjoys melodic hard rock or eighties nostalgia.