Hell-On
Hell-On is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Neko Case, released on June 1, 2018, on record label "Anti-". Case recorded the album largely in Stockholm, co-producing with Björn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John. Overview. "Hell-On" was recorded during a tumultuous period in Case's life. While already dealing with serious problems caused by obsessed stalkers, her farmhouse residence in Vermont was destroyed by fire while she was away in Sweden working on the album, leaving her homeless. The recording of the album in Sweden allowed her to focus her energy on  something positive and not dwell on these problems back home. Case promoted the album by touring with Ray LaMontagne. Critical reception. "Hell-On" received universal acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 85 based on 22 reviews. In the review for AllMusic, critic Mark Deming praised the album; "With "Hell-On", Case has once again given herself an ideal showcase for her talents as a vocalist, songwriter, and producer; it's lush but intimate, and one of the strongest and most satisfying  records she's delivered to date. Which, given her catalog, says a great deal." Cover art. Fans and critics have speculated that the fire in the album's cover art represents the fire that destroyed Case's Vermont home, but she has said it's actually completely coincidental. Inspired by the popular HBO series "Game of Thrones", she wanted to craft a family sigil. "I decided that my background was so trashy that my family crest would probably have a cigarette butt on it. But I was also obsessed with fake Hollywood cigarettes, so I thought it would be funny  to make a costume out of what looked like burning cigarettes", she said of the cover art.