Iron Fire

Iron Fire – Beyond the Void Review

Iron Fire – Beyond the Void Review

Iron Fire have been hitting the pavement for a long time with dogged persistence. Despite a three-year hiatus, they’ve knocked out their ninth album this year since their 2000 debut, which is a staggering pace of release to keep up for so long. Yet their most recent work, Among the Dead, was not up to snuff with their preceding release, according to our own Jean-Luc Ricard. With Ricard in absentia, it falls to me to judge whether Beyond the Void fares better than its immediate predecessor.” Dull and void.

Eruption – Cloaks of Oblivion Review

Eruption – Cloaks of Oblivion Review

“Two things come to mind when I see the word ‘eruption.’ One is filthy and the other is raunchy. The former isn’t for virgin eyes and the latter? Van Halen. Guess which one the Slovenian outfit Eruption fits in. Neither. Sorry pervs and, well… pervs. Instead, Eruption fit under a third, yet unlisted category: thrash metal. Yep, I said ‘Slovenian’ and ‘thrash’ in the same sentence. That combination alone should pique some interest for these worshipers of the old and true.” Slovenian speed and perversion.

Iron Fire – Among the Dead Review

Iron Fire – Among the Dead Review

“Formed at the turn of the millennium and billed in their promo material as “Denmark’s best-selling power metal band,” Iron Fire have consistently put out strong records with distinctive characters. 2014’s Voyage of the Damned was perhaps their darkest album to date, sounding like a cross between Dark Tranquility and Kamelot, but with more balls. Since then the band has seen some personnel changes: original drummer Gunnar Olsen has returned to the fold, and they’re now operating as a three-piece. What does this mean for new record Among the Dead?” Big in Denmark!

Iron Fire – Voyage of the Damned Review

Iron Fire – Voyage of the Damned Review

Historically speaking, I think the main reason our esteemed AMG hired me, the ever humble Steel Druhm, as a reviewer/minion [I prefer the term “bitch,” actually – AMG] was to make me the resident power and traditional metal nerd (my amazing prose and rugged good looks didn’t hurt none either). While I’m predisposed to drool over most old school stuff (cause I’m old), I’m actually quite the elitist snob when it comes to power metal. There’s some good in that genre, but there are way more generic, bad and monumentally awful things lurking in the ether. Case in point, I’ve had a love/hate/meh relationship with Iron Fire over the years. Their Thunderstorm debut was decent and moderately rabble rousing, but things have been inconsistent since then and their discography reads like the good, the bad and the WTF? After being unmoved by their past few releases, I hoped for more from their seventh release, Voyage of the Damned. Turns out, I heartily appreciate the new lyrical slant toward outer space themes, as it’s a nice diversion from the usual “dragon ate my wizard’s maiden” schtick. It’s also safe to say, this is much better than expected and it slowly won me over, despite initial doubts. Roping in elements of Gamma Ray, Stratovarius, Grave Digger and Metalium, this features some highly enjoyable Euro-power with some surprisingly heavy moments. It also delivers far less generic freight than past Iron Fire shipments. While not exactly a “must hear” album, Voyage ends up being a solid release from a band with a spotty track record.