Review: “Üdv A Világomban” by Heartkiller

The story of Heartkiller began way back in 2005 when the bands writing partnership of vocalist Nagy Gábor “Kenny” and lead guitarist Kis Sándor started their first band together in Poison Tear. That project was disbanded after five years of experimentation but gave rise to a second project called Black Jack which made its live debut at the Debrecen Flower Carnival main stage to an audience of over two thousand. In the summer of 2011 the name was changed to Heartkiller and a four song demo was completed. Having started out as a Pop-Rock act, over the next few years the band underwent a style shift into Melodic Death Metal with lyrics in Hungarian musing on themes of inner struggle, the relationship between humans and God and societal critique. An unholy trinity of EPs were released and line up changes were endured, the bands debut album “Üdv a világomban” (or “Welcome to my world“) finally completed with some re-worked older songs…

Do long song titles require brackets? You can be the judge, jury and executioner on that one. Heartkiller have created an instrumental introduction piece that ultimately serves as a something of a palate cleanser to bring their album to life and after a couple of spins you realise that it feels a bit out of place. It would have served better as an interlude piece because it doesn’t set the tone or create any kind of atmosphere. That being said, things really get going with first track proper “Lépned muszáj (Néha fáj)” (or “You have to walk (Sometimes it hurts)“), which races out of the gate with a roar. Adrenaline fuelled, the beast has awoken in Alternative Metal style with a few dirge laden moments creeping in from the guitars. Good use of vocal layering gives the impression of two vocalists where there is just one, the cleaner moments balancing off the unclean ones nicely. Its something of a nostalgia trip too with the over arching sound harking back to the late 90’s but with modern production giving it elevation. The energy of these compositions makes them infections and “Életre ítélve” (or “Sentenced to life“) is a fine example of that. Sparks fly from the fretboards during an old school Metalcore breakdown in the final third, the false ending making way for a final chorus as potent as it is powerful.

How about some Melodic Death Metal lead guitars? “Haldokló belső, halott szív (Pengékkel ágyba hív)” (or “Dying inside, dead heart (Blades call to bed)“) is brought to life by those and bring them back later on as they race through the material at the tempo of the damned, like their lives depended on it. An almost DJent fuelled moment adds another texture, the five piece clearly not afraid to experiment just a little to see what works. After a powerful opening passage “Félelmeiddel (F.E.A.R.)” (or “With your fears“) loses some of its energy in the clean mid section before returning to the stomp with verve and swagger in the guitars. A tasteful guitar solo is followed by a fleeting bass one before a final chorus and you can’t help but feel with a little bit of direction from a producer of stature they could get a bit more out of this. Perhaps even separating it into two distinctly different tracks. “A szívnek nincs akadály (Küzdj az álmodért)” (or “There are no obstacles to the heart (Fight for your dream)“) returns to an energetic pace with some Traditional Heavy Metal moments, sing and scream-a-long parts enhancing its joyful nature. At this point programming is probably the last thing you’d expect but the harsh and heavy introduction to “Most már elég (Élvezd)” (or “Enough is enough (Enjoy)“) finds the band embellishing their sound with it. They reach Fear Factory levels of intensity at points before allowing things to reduce to a simmer for clean vocal passages, bringing the temperature back up between each one. It works because of the quality of both the musicianship and the vocals which help to negate the loss of energy some what, the death growl at the end a totally unexpected thing.

Twisting and contorting once more “Miért érdemlem?” (or “Why do I deserve it?“) screams out of the speakers like a missile from the housing on the wing of a Jet Fighter plane. That electrifying energy is part of what makes the band an addictive listen, even for those who don’t speak the Hungarian language. Its smoother than a thick milkshake, the lack of a jagged edge preparing the ground for the title track “Üdv a világomban” (or “Welcome to my world“). Here’s where things get interesting because the Heartkiller get menacing and sinister from the very start with a nasty riff that leads to a world of powerful chug. Having grabbed the attention with the like Predator lifting Arnold Schwarzenegger to face him however they allow the darkness to fade with clean vocal passages and meandering guitars. Bringing the power back for a thirty second burst that is soaked in keys means it doesn’t quite match the introduction and it feels like something of a wasted opportunity. Arany Máté of Akela and Vörös István of Prognózis join Heartkiller for a rendition of “Hajsza közben” (or “During the chase“) by Prognózis to complete this collection and the pairing add that stardust quality that makes all the difference. All in all a mixed collection of songs that feel like they could be a little leaner and meaner [7/10]

Track Listing

1. Intro (Üdv a világomban)
2. Lépned muszáj (Néha fáj)
3. Életre ítélve
4. Haldokló belső, halott szív (Pengékkel ágyba hív)
5. Félelmeiddel (F.E.A.R.)
6. A szívnek nincs akadály (Küzdj az álmodért)
7. Most már elég (Élvezd)
8. Miért érdemlem?
9. Üdv a világomban
10. Hajsza közben (ft. Arany Máté of Akela and Vörös István of Prognózis) (Prognózis Cover)

“Üdv A Világomban” by Heartkiller is out 15th August 2025 via Inverse Records