Band Origin: Finland
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Release Date: 2019
Album downloads only available to members
Album Info / Review
For a few albums prior, Bodom had experimented with a stripped-back, punchy thrash metal template that occasionally muted what made them unique. On Hexed, they let the freak flag fly again. The secret weapon here is the massive return of neoclassical melody and complex, syncopated arrangements. Daniel Freyberg’s arrival on rhythm guitar injected fresh energy, anchoring the low-end so Laiho could run rampant across the fretboard.
The Sonic Architecture
The Neoclassical Renaissance: The album breaks out of basic verse-chorus patterns. Songs turn on dime-store melodies and sweeping minor-scale runs that recall the golden Hatebreeder and Follow the Reaper days, though handled with the restraint of older musicians.
The Balanced Duel: The legendary guitar-and-keyboard skirmishes between Alexi and Janne Wirman are fully revitalized. Rather than Wirman just filling space with heavy modern synth pads, his keyboards are back out front, cutting through with bright, aggressive harpsichord leads and eerie digital patches.
A Technical Edge: The tempo is quick and unpredictable. Songs utilize erratic, twisting riffs that require pinpoint accuracy from the rhythm section of Henkka Seppälä and Jaska Raatikainen.
The Key Pillars
“This Road”: A furious statement of intent to open the album. It bursts with a classic, spiraling melodic death metal lead that proves the band’s songwriting instincts were sharper than they had been in a decade.
“Under Grass and Clover”: The standout single. Built on an incredibly bouncy, almost joyful keyboard hook that completely contrasts with the grim lyricism, it captures that distinct “Bodom party vibe” perfectly. It’s an instant earworm.
“Glass Houses”: A relentless thrasher that showcases Laiho’s frantic, snarling vocal delivery. The mid-song solo trade-off feels urgent, like a band with everything to prove all over again.
“Platitudes and Barren Words”: A brilliant hybrid of heavy groove and anthemic pop-sensibility. The choruses are massive, backed by a driving rhythm that makes it impossible not to move to.
“Knuckleduster”: A re-recorded version of an old track from their Trash Lost & Strungout EP era. It fits perfectly here, bridging the gap between their mid-2000s aggression and their late-career technicality.
The Review: A Brilliant, Bitter Swan Song
Looking back from 2026, it’s impossible to separate Hexed from the knowledge that it was their final bows. Yet, treating it purely as a sentimental piece does a disservice to how genuinely excellent the record is on its own merits.
The Production:
Recorded once again at Danger Danger Studios and mixed by Mikko Karmila, the production strikes a delicate balance. It maintains the heavy, dense guitar wall that the band favored in their later years, but gives the high frequencies room to breathe. You can hear every subtle accent in Janne’s keyboard lines and the natural snap of Jaska’s drums. It feels polished, yet it retains a sharp, dangerous bite.
The Verdict:
Hexed is easily the band’s strongest work since Hate Crew Deathroll. It succeeds because it stops trying to fit into contemporary metal trends. Instead, it finds Children of Bodom accepting exactly who they are: pioneers of a chaotic, brilliant, and deeply melodic style that nobody else could ever quite duplicate.
It’s an album that doesn’t wallow in nostalgia; it weaponizes it. It leaves the listener with a bittersweet realization of just how much creativity and fire Alexi Laiho still possessed until the very end.
Final Thought: It isn’t a quiet fade into the night. It’s a high-octane, neon-purple explosion that serves as the perfect punctuation mark to one of the most influential legacies in modern extreme metal.
