ALBUM REVIEW: Iced Earth (30th Anniversary Edition) – Iced Earth
Considering the output that followed, ICED EARTH’s debut album – the appropriately named Iced Earth – captures a band still in transition. Still, taking the record in isolation, ICED EARTH sound almost fully formed already. The thrash-inspired take on IRON MAIDEN’s gallop that has provided the rhythmic backbone of their career drives the album, while Jon Schaffer’s almost prog-like tendency to pile in riff after riff is already present. While the band would go on to morph and change over time, ICED EARTH’s self-titled album remains a compelling and unique part of their history. Three decades on, it’s been given a fresh coat of paint thanks to a meticulous remaster from producer Chris “Zeuss” Harris.
By the time they recorded Iced Earth, the band had come a long way from their days as PURGATORY. Thematically a power metal band of sorts, ICED EARTH’s initial incarnations cut their teeth around Tampa’s burgeoning death metal scene. While the band never leaned into the subgenre, ICED EARTH’s music did however absorb the ferocity and venom of their peers, imbuing their early releases with a particular heaviness. For those unfamiliar with the original album, the material oozes with energy, with Schaffer’s now trademark picking technique giving every track an unrelenting sense of momentum.
Songs that appeared on their demo, Enter The Realm, are reinvented in faster, more furious forms (Colors and Iced Earth in particular). Yet, there is colour and variation to the song-writing overall, with many cuts finding a well-paced balance between heavy riffing and clean melodic passages. Life And Death strays effortlessly between a languid ballad and aggressive thrashery, whereas instrumental tracks like the acoustic Solitude and the ambitious Funeral showcase a band not content to just be heavy. At points, it does feel like songs drag on for too long, so determined are the young ICED EARTH to showcase their musical stamina, but its rare that anything completely outstays its welcome.
While the song-writing and musical performance had mostly already come to fruition on the debut, there was one aspect that held the band back from truly finding their… ahem, voice. Gene Adam’s vocals are certainly unique; his gritty wail has a rough charm to it, suiting heavier tracks like the punishing Colors, but he’s clearly pushed to his limits when ICED EARTH sprawl out into more epic territories.
The quieter, more reflective moments on Written On The Walls and Life And Death are let down by Adam’s rather flat clean vocals, whereas Curse The Sky proves almost comical at points due to the off-key screams of its title. It wouldn’t be until the band’s next album, Night Of The Stormrider, that ICED EARTH would start to realise their more melodic ambitions (and even then, it would take until Matt Barlow, singer number three, joined the fold to really complete their sound). However, even if vocal performances would be improved upon over the years via re-recordings and live versions, the band’s instrumental chops are so strong that the songs remain compelling throughout.
Material aside, Iced Earth was always an album that was in dire need of remastering. It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time ICED EARTH’s debut has been remastered though, with the original versions of their first three albums seemingly deleted and replaced with updated versions in 2001. Although improving the production values, these remasters were an exercise in revisionism, taking some liberties with the original recordings via significant remixing and creative changes.
These tweaks were presumably made to bring the albums more in line with ICED EARTH’s current sound and it was clear that great efforts were taken to reduce anything that could sound dated, particularly affecting their earliest record. Moreover, the presence of guitarist Randall Shawver was notably reduced, with alternate guitar parts and harmonies either buried or flat out removed from the mix. Beyond Shawver’s often downplayed song-writing contributions, his idiosyncratic sense of melody and harmony was an important part of the band’s early sound (even if some of his solos are an acquired taste). The result of the original remaster was an inarguably clearer and more metallic production, but one that lessened the original recording’s atmosphere and creativity.
Thankfully, the 30th Anniversary remaster brings Iced Earth to a modern standard whilst retaining the spirit of the original recording. Synth parts on tracks like When The Night Falls and The Exorcist-tinged tinkling on Written On The Walls are no longer diminished. While reinstating the synths could have accidentally softened the music, Zeuss’s remastering adds some much-needed weight to the production overall. Where the original mix was thin and the 2001 remaster often brittle, the 30th Anniversary version has a thundering bottom end that ensures everything remains heavy. Moreover, previously absent guitar parts and production effects from the original record are carefully brought back into the fold, with Shawver’s off-kilter harmonies and the tasteful reverb on Adam’s voice showing great deference to the original recording and production.
The only real complaint that could be levied at the 30th Anniversary version of Iced Earth is a complete lack of extras. ICED EARTH have never particularly been a band for bonus tracks, but considering the landmark being celebrated, it would have been fascinating to hear any kind of archive material related to the album. Whether live cuts, studio demos, alternate versions or even a re-recording or two with the modern line-up, anything additional would have been welcomed.
Iced Earth is effectively the blueprint of the ICED EARTH we know today, immortalising the start of their long journey. Knowing how they would progress over the following three decades makes revisiting their debut an oddly captivating affair and, although some of the songs would be bettered on releases like Days Of Purgatory and Alive In Athens, these original recordings remain surprisingly vital. Moreover, there is no better way to enjoy them than this frankly definitive remaster. Even those who know the album deeply already owe it to themselves to reexperience it in this incarnation.
Rating: 8/10
Iced Earth (30th Anniversary Edition) is out now via Century Media Records.
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