Iced Earth

Like any debut, Iced Earth’s first album is quite a far cry from the fiery sound they have become well known for in the modern day. This album and its two follow-ups instead exhibit an interesting blend of thrash and power metal with a few progressive touches every now and then. This particular album is made memorable for being the only one to feature drummer Mike McGill and controversial original vocalist Gene Adam.

Before we talk about the rest of the band, let’s get one thing straight: Gene Adam is not Matt Barlow. Hell, he’s not even John Greely! I like to think of him as sounding like some kind of cross between Metal Church’s David Wayne and Brian Johnson of AC/DC with some elements of Attila Csihar here and there. His shrieks may be rather grating and out of place on a number of tracks (The title track and "Colors" immediately come to mind), but he does have a few moments where he doesn’t sound too bad. In fact, his more melodic crooning during the bridge of "Written on the Walls" is very well done for his skill level. I imagine he'd sound better on a more extreme project...

Thankfully, the rest of the band’s performance on this album cannot and must not be judged on the basis of vocals alone for the excellent guitars and drumming keep things at a high quality level. Rhythm guitarist/bandleader Jon Schaffer provides plenty of great gallops that would make Steve Harris envious (The one at the end of the title track is particularly amazing), lead guitarist Randall Shawver performs some excellent solos throughout, bassist Dave Abell provides great backing, and McGill keeps the double bass drumming at a constant. The numerous tempo changes of each track also help keep things interesting and they even included a few interesting instrumentals to compensate for their weakest link.

Aside from what many people have already stated, this album has very few flaws. While the guitar riffs and song structures do manage to stay interested, they may be a little too complex for some listeners and the album’s production doesn’t do it that much justice. Overall, they’re relatively minor qualms.

If you can’t tolerate the vocals on this album, then I would highly recommend checking out "Days of Purgatory." The compilation features several songs from Iced Earth’s first three albums with the lead vocals re-recorded by Matt Barlow to a much enjoyable effect.

Pros:
1) Excellent guitars, bass, and drumming.
2) Interesting song structures and great tempo changes
3) The vocals do have a few decent moments

Cons:
1) Most songs on here sound better on "Days of Purgatory"
2) The production is excessively raw
3) Complexity could turn off some listeners.

My Current Favorites:
Iced Earth, Written on the Walls, Colors, Solitude, and Funeral