“HELLFOX are an all-female Italian alternative metal band with melodic death influences, a unique musical entity shaped by the fusion of four completely different backgrounds,” according to the band’s bio. “Musically, HELLFOX are deeply rooted in Nordic melodic death metal but embraces an experimental edge, incorporating pop and electronic elements, particularly in the synths and clean vocals” and “HELLFOX refuses to be boxed into a single genre or definition.” When you listen to HELLFOX‘s latest piece “The Spectrum Of Human Gravity“, out on June 6 via Rockshots Records, you will find out that all of this is true. We caught up with vocalist Greta Antico to talk about this new album.

When HELLFOX was formed in 2019 as an all-female metal band, was it natural to be an alternative/melodic death metal band rather than a symphonic/power metal band like most other Italian female fronted metal bands?

“Absolutely, yes. In terms of our musical tastes and backgrounds, we’re much more aligned with those genres (though our interests are also quite broad). To be honest, I’m not particularly fond of either symphonic or power metal. Choosing melodeath as our foundation felt natural – it also allowed us to stand apart from other bands typically associated with female vocals. We enjoy experimenting, and that experimentation helps us grow.”

How is it to be in an all-female metal band? What are the advantages?

“I imagine it’s like being in any other band in 2025. There are pros and cons – we’d simply like to be seen as a band. Nothing more, nothing less.”

In 2022 HELLFOX released their debut album “The Call” which did not go unnoticed, as you switched from Music For The Masses to Rockshots Records. HELLFOX’s new album is titled “The Spectrum Of Human Gravity”. Who came up with that title and how should we interpret it?

“Thank you! We came to the conclusion together that the title needed to encompass all the different facets of the album. The idea for the title was mine, but it was always discussed and agreed upon as a group. This concept album brings together many aspects of the human soul, hence “The Spectrum Of Human Gravity.” Emotions are represented as different forms of gravity, as if coming into contact with another person means arriving on a new planet and needing to adapt to a different atmosphere, gravity, oxygen levels, and so on.”

Looking at the album cover art, we see people at the top, water below and something emerging from the water in the middle. What more can you tell us about the artwork?

“The cover was commissioned from a dear friend of ours, Eva Marabot. She did a beautiful job blending Hans Rudolph Giger’s “Atomic Children” with the image of a totem that evokes Rorschach inkblots. Her presence completes the picture (which is actually an oil painting), giving it both context and meaning. Water symbolizes life and knowledge – and it’s said to retain memory.”

The first single and official video from the new album was “Seaweed Braids”, which is also the album opener. The full title, though, is “Nautilus + Seaweed Braids”. Can you elaborate on this? What exactly are ‘seaweed braids’?

““Nautilus” is the name we gave to the brief instrumental intro at the beginning of the track. Seaweed braids are the underwater strands of algae that the song’s protagonist gazes at with a sense of melancholy, lost in memory.”

I like how Priscilla’s bass dominates “Empty”. She’s also doing all the harsh vocals on the album, but is she involved in the songwriting as well?

“I’ll let her answer that one!”

PRISCILLA: “Well, the songwriting starts from the instrumental part. Usually by me and guitarist Gloria Kaps, from a riff written by chance or luck. 😂 Anyway, yes absolutely, each of us is involved in the songwriting process.”

The combination of growls and clean vocals is fairly common in death metal, but the way you do it is quite unique. “Pareidolia”, for example, sounds like pop music meets extreme metal.

“As I mentoned earlier, our goal was to blend diferent musical genres without locking ourselves into just one. My vocal lines, even though I was trained as a soprano, are very pop-oriented – and I think that adds a distinctive flavor and makes HELLFOX recognizable.”

Centipedes are harmless, multi-legged animals that in many cultures are often seen as symbols of bad luck or omens. But what is HELLFOX’s story behind the song “The Centipede”?

“I imagined a swamp where an unfortunate soul finds himself caught in the coils of a massive centipede… But the centipede mentioned in “The Spectrum” is actually just a part of the narrator’s psyche – it’s the part that sees what lies beneath perfection and ‘normality’ (a concept we believe doesn’t really exist) and tries to open your eyes. It’s up to you whether to stay on your current path or break out of the Matrix.”

Before the album closes with the beautiful “Voices”, the absolute highlight for me is “The Warrior, The Child, The Healer”. It’s also the only song without harsh vocals. Was it hard to leave them out and who are these three figures?

““The Warrior” is very important to me. Maybe one day I’ll tell you more about it – but for now, I’ll just share that it represents a very deep, well-explored part of myself. It might be the only truly authentic thing in the entire album. That’s why it features only my voice.”

When “The Spectrum Of Human Gravity” is released on June 6th, what’s next for HELLFOX?

“Priscilla, please explain!”

PRISCILLA: “Well the most relevant thing at the moment are the live dates that will promote the record around Italy, we are considering with the girls the possibility of promoting it abroad as well! Also during the June 6 release party in Rovellasca, we will be doing live takes of our song “Water On The Ceiling”! For anyone who will be there, it will be an opportunity to partcipate in our video!” ■

Henk van Nieuwenhoven