10 Greatest Tribute Albums In Hard Rock
3. Holy Hell - Architects
Whenever you lose a founding member of the group, there's always some speculation as to whether you should even continue or not. Given how much of the songwriting is a team effort, it's never going to be the same when you have a missing puzzle piece out of the equation. Although no one would have blamed Architects for wanting to hang it up after losing Tom Searle, Holy Hell is one of the most forceful final statements imaginable.
With Searle passing away after a long battle with cancer, Holy Hell feels like a desperate plea for life from the rest of the band, as they come to grips with continuing on without their musical brother. This is not that pleasant of a record though. Across almost every song, you can feel the frustration coming from these musicians as they try to make things work. But this isn't hopelessness...this is determination.
Taking some of the final bits and pieces that Tom had written before he died, Holy Hell is one of the most forceful final charges imaginable, as the band do everything they can to push through their hangups and come out on the other side as both stronger musicians and people. Death is not an easy thing to deal with, but when it does come for us, let's hope we deal with it with half the same energy as these guys did.