DOMINUM

A new heavy metal year demands a breath of fresh air or two to get the blood flowing. Led by vocalist Felix Heldt, who appears here as "Dr. Dead", DOMINUM are exactly that. Despite its loudly proclaimed themes of ghosts, ghouls and the undead, "Hey Living People" is almost intolerably upbeat, perky and direct. These are all joyously succinct and catchy songs, delivered with the kind of wild-eyed enthusiasm that only occurs when a band knows that they are onto something. Admittedly, innovation and anything resembling a musical curveball can wait for another day — DOMINUM are traditionalists at heart — but exuberance is infectious, and "Hey Living People" is an unremittingly uplifting piece of work.

With pseudonyms, spooky costumes and tongues planted firmly in cheeks, DOMINUM are hardly doing anything new here, but Dr. Dead and his cronies have crafted a debut album that refuses to stop battering away with giant hooks and lashings of theatrical bombast. "Danger Danger" and "Patient Zero" are the previously released singles, and power metal fans may find them battling for supremacy in your skull after a single listen. But there are even greater treasures here, from superbly named zombie adventure "Cannibal Corpses", to the brilliantly cheerful "Better Shoot Yourself" ("You better shoot yourself at midnight/Before the mob gets you alive") and a sublime cover of DEAD OR ALIVE's deathless '80s smash "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" that cleverly manages to be as darkly camp as the original.

Covers aside (there are also fantastic versions of BILLIE EILISH's "Bad Guy" and MIDNIGHT OIL's "Beds Are Burning" tucked away as bonus tracks here),  DOMINUM are otherwise concerned with peeling off explosive but straightforward metal anthems, with hard rock sensibilities omnipresent, and brash, crowd-baiting choruses of an unwieldy size. That formula reaches its peak on "We All Taste The Same": an inspired nugget of cartoon macabre with gleefully goofy lyrics ("Would you like fries with that torso?") and a more expansive song structure that allows an atmosphere of theatrical splendor to develop. If it sounds like something from some sumptuously devilish rock opera, it was probably meant to. Either way, it is the strongest moment here and a possible hint at one direction DOMINUM could explore more deeply next time around.

For now, these reanimated Bavarian beasts are all about delivering big, choking, sugary hits of zombie-friendly heavy metal. "Hey Living People" is full of them, and DOMINUM sound fully committed to getting our brains, one way or another.