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Four years after Force of Destruction, here we are with Hell Beyond Hell, 11th studio album by Paragon, released on March 18th via Remedy Records. The songs themselves are classic Paragon-like tunes, with vicious riffs, thundering choruses and resourceful musicianship. "Rising Forces" deliver a solid beginning with powerful lead guitars and a catchy chorus. "Hypnotized" follows in a similar fashion, with cool, hammering parts and efficient songwriting. Title track "Hell Beyond Hell" and "Stand Your Ground" continue with the trademarked aggressive sound – although not featuring entirely great climaxes, especially in the choruses – and the weird "Meat Train" provides an energetic atmosphere, while falling into a bit of a slump in the chorus. In fact, this is my complaint in the effort: the choruses don't really quite click with the tunes, and sometimes they feel kind of detached from the rest of the songs.

"Buried in Blood" picks up the pace once again and restarts the mayhem as a classic "sing with your fists high" Paragon tune, keeping up with the quality of the effort. My personal favorites and longest songs on the album, "Heart of the Black" and "Devil's Waitingroom", are what make Paragon so unique: they have drastic changes of pace and are carefully constructed, making them two really strong tunes. The first reminded me in some degree of "Masters of the Sea" (my favorite Paragon song), with the quiet passage in the middle of the track or the fact that it suddenly delivers a crushing blow, sweeping you off your feet. The second is a dark and sinister tune featuring some of the nastier vocal lines I've ever heard by Babuschkin, once again displaying the versatility of the band and "ending" the album on a high note. I used quotation marks on ending because there are two bonus tracks, "Thunder in the Dark" and "Heart of the Black (edit version)". The latter is self-explanatory, while the former offers a fun and refreshing straight-up heavy metal approach.

Hell Beyond Hell is a worthy album in Paragon's legacy, and a continuation to a triumphant comeback. Although not as good as Force of Destruction, it has many cool tracks and, while the choruses are sometimes unmemorable, the album itself will not get lost in the band's discography. If you cherish the Teutonic ways of playing metal, these guys do it better than most.