Last Friday, Iced Earth released their new album “Incorruptible“. It’s the 3rd album with Stu Block on vocals, and the 3rd album that started with the Dystopia-era. The album Dystopia is for me a new start with Iced Earth. That album took a stand, and told me that Iced Earth is still a band filled with hunger and rage, wanting to prove something to me. And Stu’s voice suits me like the hand in the glove…
My first impression when I listen to “Incorruptible” is; this is Iced Earth at it’s best! It’s exactly as Jon Shaffer said, you get a mix of “Dark Saga” and “Dystopia“! But it’s also a playful album, it sounds like a band in harmony. It’s thrashing Iced Earth riffs, dark and heavy.
And yet, sometimes when I listen, I get the feeling from a show I went to in Stockholm with Helloween for like a thousands years ago, where the audience were singing: “… happy happy Helloween…”… Which make me think that Iced Earth is a band in great harmony for the moment!
So, how about the songs?
The intro to “Great Heathen Army” is among the heaviest I’ve heard with Iced Earth! And the way it evolves with intrinsic riffs and melodies, I can only say… this is how you start a metal-album!
“Black Flag” is a song that make me think that they might have had too much fun in the studio! But it’s also a song that shows what kind of a band Iced Earth become after “Dystopia”. It shows that, you can still have fun doing songs. Got me thinking of the album “Horror Show”.
Raven Wing: First time I heard it I thought, this the best song I’ve heard with Iced Earth since the “Something wicked…” album! And then I heard the song….. and then I changed my mind. But this is the second best song on the album, it’s powerful, it’s beautiful! It starts like “Watching over me”, but when it changes from that, I feel shivers all over my body! That shredding riff….. stolen from “Dark Saga”… It’s so damn right!
The Veil: Wonderful and typical Iced Earth slow song at it’s best with a fat chorus and Stu’s filling the entire sound. This is Iced Earth doing slow without getting soft. It’s like when Iron Maiden in their early days tried to do ballads in the 80s. They can’t! And that is very positive.
Seven headed whore: Fucking threading heavy metal! Stu is on the top of his lungs! It’s like the Iced Earth version of Painkiller! Ripping my head into three pieces!
The Relic pt1: This one make me feel like there’s something wicked about to… Get the feeling of the Coming curse. Nice groove, and combined with the next song “Ghost dance”, it come to some clarity. Which make me wonder, why not do a really loooong song…? Now it’s just the song I won’t remember.
Ghost Dance: Almost instrumental. Have read reviews where they are asking, why? Why a instrumental and pretty long song? But I’m a Maiden-fan, and I really really love this long, slow songs with Iron Maiden, where there aren’t any vocals, so for me – this just super!
Brothers: Start out as a really crappy slow song, but it get better. Feels like a song they will play live, but people don’t really like. No, I don’t get this one. It’s ok to listen to, but nothing more.
Defiance: Yet another metal shredder, but still feels like the song Brothers. A decent song, but I will not remember it.
So, this were the songs. I think you understand what my opinion is regarding the album, but if you missed it, I fucking love it!
Although, I sort of miss a red thread. The thread that you can find in albums like “Night of the Stormrider” and “Something Wicked This Way Comes“. Those albums are more complete, where you feel that all of the songs are part of the album. But, beside that, this is an amazing heavy metal album, with riffs, melodies, heavy songs and amazing vocals.
I FUCKING LOVE ICED EARTH!!
This album will definitely compete to the best album of the year! LOVE IT!
\m/ Peps
BTW: Stay tuned for an interview with Luke Appleton later……
BTW2: Images are stolen from IcedEarth.com
