''Hand of Blood'' is the second EP by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine, released on 22 August 2005 through

Trustkill Records Trustkill Records was an American independent record label that started as a hardcore punk fanzine in April 1993. It started releasing hardcore, metal and rock records and merchandise in 1994. In 2010, the president of Trustkill, Josh Grabelle ...

. The EP is almost the same as the previous, but with completely different artwork and slightly altered track listing ("4 Words (To Choke Upon)" was track 6 on the Japan version of the self-titled EP). ''Hand of Blood'' included the single "4 Words (To Choke Upon)", accompanied by a music video, along with "Hand of Blood". The songs "4 Words (To Choke Upon)" and "Cries in Vain" were later included on the band's full-length debut, ''

The Poison ''The Poison'' is the debut studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 3 October 2005 through Visible Noise Records in the UK, and on 14 February 2006 in the United States, through Trustkill R ...

''. The title track also appears on the limited edition of the same album.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

asserted that the EP is "essentially a deluxe version" of the band's self-titled 2004 EP.

Appearances in other media

The song "Hand of Blood" is featured in the video game

Burnout Revenge ''Burnout Revenge'' is a racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360. Similar to its predecessor '' Burnout 3: Takedown'', ''Revenge'' focuses on a mixture of racing in th ...

in the in-game soundtrack, as well as in '' Need for Speed: Most Wanted''. "4 Words (To Choke Upon)" is featured in the soundtrack for

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and

Madden NFL 06 ''Madden NFL 06'' is an American football video game which was released in 2005. It is also a launch game for the Xbox 360. It is the 16th installment of the Madden NFL series by EA Sports, named for noted color commentator John Madden. The produ ...

Critical reception

Daniel Lukes of ''

Decibel Magazine ''Decibel'' is a monthly heavy metal magazine published by the Philadelphia-based Red Flag Media since October 2004. Its sections include Upfront, Features, Reviews, Guest Columns and the Decibel Hall of Fame. The magazine's tag-line is currentl ...

'' believed that, although the music itself wasn't bad for what it was, it was, in his opinion, not original enough. He compared the EP to

Avenged Sevenfold Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Zacky Vengeance, ...

and

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, stating that he thought they wanted to steal their fanbases. He went on to sum up his entire review by stating, "The worst part is that the music itself isn’t all that bad, for the genre." He went on to comment that the band should be "embarrassed" about the release. Zeromag's Josh Joyce complimented the band on "how technical they can get without confusing the kids". "Damrod" of

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...

gave the EP a solid 4/5 stars, stating that "the songs are played well and show a lot of potential for the future". He continues to say that the guitar work shows obvious influences such as

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

and

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, without sounding "like a rip-off of these bands". Damrod wrote that the singing style was a successful blend of screams and clean vocals, citing "Hand of Blood" and the chorus of "Just Another Star" as great examples.

Singles

Track listing

Personnel

Bullet for My Valentine *

Matthew Tuck Matthew Tuck (born 20 January 1980) is a Welsh musician, best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the metal band Bullet for My Valentine. He is also a singer and guitarist in the Supergroup (music), supergroup AxeWound, which was ...

– lead vocals, rhythm guitar, bass guitar (uncredited), guitar solo on track 1 and 5 *Michael "Padge" Paget – lead guitar, backing vocals *Jason "Jay" James – bass guitar (credited but doesn't perform), backing vocals *Michael "Moose" Thomas – drums Production *

Colin Richardson Colin Richardson is a British record producer, mixer and recording engineer. He has worked on over 100 albums and is most frequently associated with heavy metal and its subgenres. Career Some of the bands he has worked for include: * 3 In ...

– production *Dan Turner – engineering

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hand of Blood Bullet for My Valentine albums 2005 EPs Trustkill Records EPs