ALBUM REVIEW: Ravening Iron – Eternal Champion

Fans of sword, sorcery and searing heavy metal rejoice, for the peerless ETERNAL CHAMPION have returned at long last with Ravening Iron, a follow up to 2016’s incredible The Armor of Ire. But with any self respecting fan of epic heavy metal eagerly awaiting this release, can the indomitable Texans strike gold for the second time?

The album opens with A Face In The Glare. A rapid introduction that quickly slows to a mid-paced stomper, a war-march permeated by heavy drums and wailing guitars. While it is not quite as strong an opener as the one belonging to their 2016 effort, it is still a quality opening gambit. It is followed by title track Ravening Iron, which steps up the speed, aggression and virtuosity by blending rapid fire riffing with Jason Tarpey’s soaring, unique vocals to effectively produce one of the best songs in their back catalogue, the chorus of which you will probably find stuck in your head for weeks.

A progression that is immediately apparent is that the production is much bigger and thicker. Ravening Iron has a lavish and massive sounding production provided once again by Arthur Rizk, which enhances the quality of the music to no end. A great example of this can be seen on third track Skullseeker. A full-on, riff-heavy headbanger showcasing the thunderous engine room of the rhythm section, this track almost feels like a flex of their shiny new production job, highlighting just how enormous ETERNAL CHAMPION can really sound.

The middle section of Ravening Iron does not give even the slightest hint of a drop in quality. War at the Edge of the End is another complete banger with a galloping riff and a stirring battle-cry of a chorus. The riffs on display here are utterly relentless, ETERNAL CHAMPION throw riffs with the same ferocity as Zeus himself throws thunderbolts. This is a theme that continues into Worms Of The Earth, which comes in shredding and serves to highlight the excellent double frontal assault laid down by Powers and Ibanez, who seamlessly blend layers of melody with riffs thicker than orcish biceps.

ETERNAL CHAMPION have toned down the instrumental breaks for this album, whereas The Armor of Ire held two, occupying roughly five minutes of the album’s 34 minute run time, here we have only one. The Godblade is an interesting inclusion and is worthy of mention because while it is an (almost) three minute keyboard heavy instrumental, it manages to drip with all the atmosphere of the eve of a great battle, while setting the listener up perfectly for the album’s closer, the colossal Banners Of Arhai. Most importantly though, it manages not to fall into the category of poorly-executed power metal cheese, a rare feat indeed…

Overall, Ravening Iron is a late but strong contender for album of the year material. ETERNAL CHAMPION have clearly made a concerted attempt to give the fans what they want, but without straying too far from their formula or just repeating the same works. They have clearly thought long and hard about every aspect of this album and in doing so have managed to find a groove where they don’t disappoint. There is a definite sense they achieved this by simply making an album for themselves first and foremost. There are points which feel like you can almost hear them grinning from ear to ear while playing and if you have even the slightest bit of affection for fantastical, no-nonsense heavy metal, you will definitely find yourself grinning too.

Rating: 9/10

Ravening Iron is out now via No Remorse Records.

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