Dante's Inferno 2011

It seems that whenever Iced Earth gets a new singer, our dear friend Mr. Schaffer can't help but re-record old tunes with their new set of pipes. The difference this time is that it's MOTHERFUCKING DANTE'S INFERNO! And it's a free download, which is always sweet.

This single was made available to commemorate the addition of "Dante's Inferno" to their regular live setlist (which hasn't been played since "Alive In Athens"), and is also the band's first chance to show off the vocals of new frontman Stu Block (of Into Eternity) before the new album, "Dystopia."

Really, not too much is different about this song from the original, besides the slightly more polished production (which makes the bass slightly more audible and gives the guitars a bit more crunch), a few extra solos, and (this version of the song's biggest downfall, I think) the lack of the Gregorian chant in the middle. C'mon, that was one of the best parts of the original!

Stu Block seems to fit well into Iced Earth. He may not have the melodic sensibilities or vocal range of his predecessors (though, coming from doing death metal vocals to a cleaner style is admirable), but his voice has a nice rough, thrashy edge that seems to fit into Iced Earth. Only time will tell if Stu will fit into more original material from good old Iced Earth.

So, considering this is a free download, there's hardly reason to complain, unless you don't have a lot of space on your hard drive (it IS 17 and a half minutes). It gives you a nice preview of new Iced Earth, and you get to hear an Iced Earth classic with pretty good modern production. If you can't hear it without the Gregorian chant in the middle, knock off a few points from my score.