IRON FIRE – Voyage Of The Damned

Iron Fire has been providing a steady stream of Traditional Power Metal since their debut release back in 2000. Most people will attribute their sound to that of classic Power Metal bands like Hammerfall and Helloween. However, their latest project, Voyage Of The Damned, is an evolution of sorts in that Iron Fire has raised the bar from playing Traditional, Epic Power Metal to a more edgier and heavier style. This album certainly has a significantly more modern, almost Extreme Metal characteristic, which is both exciting and enticing.

Voyage Of The Damned is actually a concept album that tells the story of an epic adventure beginning with the first landing on the moon in 1969 through the final Space Shuttle mission, which involves some sort of secret conspiracy of a battlefield in space; or simply to quote the album trailer “A space crusade beyond your darkest nightmare from the battlefield.” Regardless of the Sci-Fi Fantasy connotations entered into the content, the music is a fierce and ferocious blend of an extremely compelling Modern Metal sound.

The band’s only original member and leader, vocalist Martin Steene, has always sung with a grittier style than most of his contemporaries. However, on this album he is more explosive than ever. He portrays a more emotive and theatrical presentation into his songs more so than any of his previous works. It comes off reminiscent of another premier Power Metal vocalist, Andy B. Franck of Brainstorm and Symphorce. Steene does an outstanding job of leading the listener through the emotions depicted in each track. Steene also incorporates more Death Metal style vocals into this album than on his previous work as well. All of the darker and sinister vocals play very well into the more Extreme Metal style of performances throughout the entire album.

One track that really stands out on this album is the acappella “The Final Odyssey.” Steene outdoes himself on this song as he shows off his great natural talent and exemplified passion. This song alone pushes him into the upper echelon of great Power Metal vocalists. His versatility and exuberance has earned him an incredible amount of respect.

Regarding the overall compositions on Voyage Of The Damned, there is not a weak track on this album. As mentioned, these tracks are all performed with an incredible amount of emotion. There are very powerful riffs and cutting edge melodies. There is a slight overuse of synthesizers, which provides a sense of orchestration to give the tracks a more theatrical element. They do not, however, take away from the pulsating riffs, which are the key ingredients driving these tracks. Musically, the album simply blows you away from start to finish.

Voyage Of The Damned is a very strong release. Even for fans who have not been exposed to Iron Fire’s music previously, this album stands well on its own. This band has matured and grown, and those traits have thankfully produced an absolutely amazing album.