Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

It is a peculiarity affixed to humanity that unless we are seen to be controlled by the clock then we cannot be seen as to be productive, there is seemingly no room in the concerns of those who set the agenda that we can be off the clock, dedicated to our own well-being, our spiritual growth. There is always in the back of our minds the pressure of utilising the moment between the tick and the tock, a chilling spectre that eats at our soul and which insists that we make lists, to be continually busy, for in the end it seems we are nothing but a Slave of Time, and the clock continuously marks down the minutes in which we serve this insatiable master.

For London based Enterfire, Time is the dichotomy in which surrender to the beast is not for debate, it is freedom in which to rebel, and whilst we cannot escape Time’s clutches, the band show that instead of being a slave, we can at least regard it as a companion, one with its rules and wants, but also not to be scared of should our own needs overwhelm it, so instead of being flogged we instead marvel at the creation within our own hands.

Slave of Time sees Niki B, Loakeim Aktinoudis, Mr. Webster and Nick Thivaios set out their own definition of what Time means, a monster to be slayed by many, instead singeing its wings but then offering to nurse it back to health, a battle cry of the Progressive unsheathed from the Metal foundry as Time’s finds out that not all can be conquered, not even subdued or cowed into restraint and shackles.

Time will always win in the end, but whilst you are able to fight back then the respect earned will show in your creativity, and as songs such as Edge Of Knife, A Thousand Voices, Hands From Hell and the album title track, Slave of Time send out the volley of shots required to warn those that see the interval between the ticking seconds as proof of further control, that art stands as defence, a protection, even if for a short while, against the need for being in the thrall of the cuts to a person’s own growth and pleasure.

An album of intriguing perspective, utilising the best of Metal and the Progressive encountered, a Slave of Time but one with its own cool agenda.

Ian D. Hall