Released: March 2nd, 2002
Label: Teenage Rampage
Genre: Heavy Metal
Producer: Jesse Gander
My rating: 9/10
Links: Official site Label Video interviews Feb. 2002 article Canadian Independent Music Awards 2003 Stream concert Ride Darkhorse Ride MP3 Stream the album **
**All tracks except the last, "Balls Of Ice". Playlist:
1. Ride Darkhorse Ride, 03:26
2. Destroy the Orcs, 02:13
3. Headwaters of the River of Blood, 03:03
4. Heir to the Chaos Throne, 03:42
5. Skeletal Onslaught, 03:48
6. Journey to the Promiseland, 02:26**
7. Lady Deathwish, 03:44
8. Curse of the Lighthouse Keeper, 03:12
9. Blazing Fires of Evermore, 03:16
10. Hall of Heros, 04:21
11. Balls of Ice, 03:44
Total playing time: 37:02
**written and performed by guest band S.t.r.e.e.t.s Lineup on this record:
Clean Vocals - Cam Pipes (Ex-Allfather)
Screams - Jamie Hooper
Guitars - Sunny Dhak
Guitars - Bobby Froese
Bass - Rich Trawick
Drums - Geoff Trawick
Current lineup:
Clean Vocals - Cam Pipes (Ex-Allfather)
Screams - Jamie Hooper
Guitars - Justin Hagberg (Allfather)
Guitars - Shane Clark (The Almighty Punchdrunk)
Bass - Brian Redman
Drums - Alexei Rodriguez (Ex-Walls Of Jericho)
Review:
First, as you can see, there's been some lineup changes since this record came out in 2002, and the current lineup. Basically, the only ones still left from the original lineup is the two vocalists.
Well, lets not dwell too much on that, and get on with the review;
Already from the first seconds the listener gets captured, you hear some wind blowing, a horse riding in the distance, it's coming closer, and then suddenly, you hear a voice shout "He's coming, the darkhorse is coming!!", and then the galloping guitars kick in, in a NWOBHM fashion, and there we have it, now the first track on the album, "Ride Darkhorse Ride", has begun!
The whole album is packed with stories in each song, which shouldn't be surprising with titles like "Ride Darkhorse Ride", "Destroy The Orcs", "Skeletal Onslaught", "Curse Of The Lighthouse Keeper", "Halls Of Heros" and more, but I'm sorry to say I can't elaborate further, since lyrics were never wrote down from the band, and therefore never released, so I can only relate to the things I can make out of the singing, and that would only be bits and pieces here and there, so we won't go further into the lyrics, but instead I'll try to describe what makes 3IoB's music so special, and in my ears, so exciting.
The music we'll hear on this album isn't something that's totally revolutionary in the world of heavy metal, because mostly 3IoB draw their inspiration from old NWOBHM heroes like Iron Maiden, and especially guitar-wise you can hear that influence, with all the killer galloping rythms, and twin-harmony leads, just like 'ole Maiden, but much faster in general, and very groovy. However, what makes them stand out from the other heavy metal bands, is their 2nd singer/screamer, Jamie Hooper. On this record, just like on their 2nd album, "Advance and Vanquish", he screams his fucking balls off, however, the diffence is that on this album, the production is alot more raw, and therefore Jamie Hooper's screams seem alot more black metallish, in my ears. Basically he has a very raw, and ballsy scream, that mixes well with Cam Pipes' vocals, which are in a very high register, in some aspects he could be compared to Rob Halford of Judas Priest.
If you want to talk further about vocals, one could compare the Cam Pipes on this record, to the Cam Pipes on "Advance and Vanquish", and when you do compare those, one can hear that Cam has improved his vocals on "Advance and Vanquish", however, this doesn't mean that his vocals on "Battlecry Under A Wintersun" are bad, quite the opposite - I still think they fit the music nicely.
Another thing I must remember to mention is the cool little track, called "Journey To The Promiseland", it was written and performed by some friends of 3IoB, the band is called "S.t.r.e.e.t.s". On this track, we get to hear a cool medieval inspired acoustic track with a choir doing some stuff in the background, it's very mellow and relaxing.
At last I want to say, that I know I haven't gone into too much detail to describe each song, because there is no lyrics written down, and because I am a firm believer that one cannot try to "explain" how music sounds, one has to hear it. The only thing I can do, is to describe what elements they use in their sound, and that I have done. However, on a last note, I still want to mention a particular little funny song, it's the last track on the album, "Balls Of ice". Basically you could say that "Balls Of Ice" is a damn catchy metal anthem, with a bit of humour, and it used to be the closing song for many of their live shows, because who can resist screaming along to a metal anthem called "Balls Of ice"? ;-)
I've rated this album 9/10, because I can't put into words how much I enjoy this record. I know I gave their 2nd album the same grade, even though I said it was better overall, but one has to remember that this was their debut album, and they didn't have a big label to pay for a expensive production. When I said that the 2nd album was better overall, I also meant that it had more diversity in the songs, than this record, but that's because musicians evolve with time. And while it is true that this album is less diverse, the few things the guys did on this record, they did REALLY well, so I still stand by my grades, whatever anyone might say, because you have to see things in a context. The fact that I've read that it was deemed "Independent metal release of the year" in Canada, and that I've been hooked on them ever since I heard this album in 2003, only further proves my point, I think.. But judge for yourselves ;-)
BALLS OF ICE!!!
(Remember to cut me some slack, it's only my 2nd review, ever)
Sune Petersen©
3 Inches of Blood - Battlecry Under A Wintersun 
Linear Mode
