So Iron Fire is heading into space huh? That's odd. It should still be good though.

Damn they sound good in space!

Oh shit, I was never much for this band, but Hansen Studios? Jacob Hansen almost always comes away with some of the industry's best music. And Nils K. Rue? I'll be taking this very seriously now...

Written by R'Vannith on 12.01.2012 at 18:24

Damn they sound good in space!

Oh yeah, I'm diggin' this shit. Kind of like Anubis Gate and Dragonland together with a touch of the heavier elements of Symphony X. Will certainly make the list. Now to determine how good it really is...

Written by strade on 19.01.2012 at 06:44

Written by R'Vannith on 12.01.2012 at 18:24

Damn they sound good in space!

Oh yeah, I'm diggin' this shit. Kind of like Anubis Gate and Dragonland together with a touch of the heavier elements of Symphony X. Will certainly make the list. Now to determine how good it really is...

I can definitely hear a bit of Symphony X in there as well as the inevitable Pagan's Mind influence with Nils' presence. They've always had their own sound but haven't really managed to grab my attention quite like this album.

So everyone seems to like this, here I'm not quite sure what to think of it... there are some pretty extreme power and even Gothenburg sounding intros here, the vocals are weird but the sound is nice and I really like those influences you guys talked about, and the solos are top notch.

Written by Milena on 30.01.2012 at 00:25

So everyone seems to like this, here I'm not quite sure what to think of it... there are some pretty extreme power and even Gothenburg sounding intros here, the vocals are weird but the sound is nice and I really like those influences you guys talked about, and the solos are top notch.

If there's one thing that would put people off it's those vocals I think. Even if you enjoy Power metal vocals they aren't the easiest to appreciate. But don't let that deter you, this is some really well executed Power metal, full of interesting ideas.

Written by R'Vannith on 30.01.2012 at 01:52

If there's one thing that would put people off it's those vocals I think. Even if you enjoy Power metal vocals they aren't the easiest to appreciate. But don't let that deter you, this is some really well executed Power metal, full of interesting ideas.

Don't worry, I get used to weird vocals pretty fast

Track 13 is absolutely 'meh' and a letdown for an ending. The rest of the thing is pretty decent. The vocalist sounds like a crazy mix of Dickinson, Bon Jovi and Roy Khan (a tinge) in the cleans and like any other artist who growls. Overall, I'm liking it.

Finished listening to this album today. I was very surprised, my biggest problem is Iron Fire was their guitar tone, and then I put this CD in, wait with excitement through the into, and then I got blown away with a truly metal tone and blasting synths. I do have one problem with this album though, the first Iron Fire song I had ever listened to was Dragonheart, a song that has one of my favorite choruses of all time, Iron Fire has amazingly catchy choruses, but this album seems to be lacking in this department. There are some exceptions like The Final Odyssey and Verge to Collide (although that chorus is very similar to Alone in the Dark from Revenge) though. If the next album combines the overall tone of this album with the catchiness of albums like Thunderstorm and Blade of Triumph, I might have an instant 10 out of 10.

Also

I kind of like space power/prog metal. Pagan's Mind, Stratovarius, Dragonland, now Iron Fire. All good albums based around space themes that took the band in a new direction for a little while. It's a good change of pace, you can't stay in the past forever, right? You have to venture into the unknown sometimes. Plus it allows for some spacey keyboard parts and chromatic solo parts, good show!

The vocals are good, he smokes so I suspect he's going to keep losing his range but it still sounds good as a raspy baritone, most of the time anyway. There are parts where the vocals just sound weak, but it's solid for the most part. It totally works for this album, as does the growling. Those=scary alien monster thing coming to get you.

I approve!

Jumping on the wagon here, this one's killer! The atmosphere is perfectly placed with spacey sounds, creepy intros, etc. Impressive how heavy this is but never lets go of that intense sense of melody and the schisophrenic voice of Martin Steene. He sounds angry, reflective, sad, desperate, angsty, dangerous, insane... perfectly complementing the mystical themes and also it's barrier of sound. "The Final Odyssey" is such a mesmerizing ballad it's incredible. "Voyage Of The Damned" is a towering 10-minute of a titletrack that grabs you on a ride through a musical journey and sudden shifts in atmospheres, what an epic! Also love how songs seem to be connected conceptually, very focused lyrics and compact collection of Power Metal. Great stuff!

Written by Patrick. on 15.09.2012 at 04:57

Jumping on the wagon here, this one's killer! The atmosphere is perfectly placed with spacey sounds, creepy intros, etc. Impressive how heavy this is but never lets go of that intense sense of melody and the schisophrenic voice of Martin Steene. He sounds angry, reflective, sad, desperate, angsty, dangerous, insane... perfectly complementing the mystical themes and also it's barrier of sound. "The Final Odyssey" is such a mesmerizing ballad it's incredible. "Voyage Of The Damned" is a towering 10-minute of a titletrack that grabs you on a ride through a musical journey and sudden shifts in atmospheres, what an epic! Also love how songs seem to be connected conceptually, very focused lyrics and compact collection of Power Metal. Great stuff!

Finally listened to the whole album and can only agree with the above statements.

Written by GT on 31.10.2012 at 21:54

Finally listened to the whole album and can only agree with the above statements.

That's cool. What score would you give it? Were there any highlights in the album for you, a particular song?

This album is wicked! i listened to it many times in these 6 years, and i still love it. True power metal, It's energetic, heavy riffs, martin's voice is as good as ever, and the theme is a space odissey. Loock at the album art - no cheesy dragons anywhere in sight, Instead a weird planet, a giant worm and a human both possed by an alien material, a Voyage Of The Damned indeed.

Nice riffage, interesting sound and I like the space theme. Martin has a unique voice, not my favorite, but I don't mind it. It's a power metaly voice with some deeper tones thrown in. He doesn't have the range as other famous PM singers although in previous albums he did demonstrate a bit of range. Highlights are the guitar solos and the spacey keyboards in some songs.