Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Two trains of thought arise when humanity is faced with interesting times, that of seclusion, argumentative fear and dominance on one hand, and on the other the backdrop to the epic, the inbuilt memory of tales handed down throughout spoken and written history, the fine line drawn between heroism and cravenness, the Master of Masters and the individuality we seek.
A person cannot serve two masters, so we must choose which persona, which function we wish to perform, that of principal player to which the epics insist we can achieve, or the slave to our emotions, to wear the Iron Mask in defiance or to hide away covered from head to foot in a disguise not suited to your belief.
It is in the nature of the epic and the hammered home glorious approach by the Belgian Metal group Iron Mask that sees their new album dominate the senses, but which also understands that we must be allowed to take the path we choose without being led, that in the same way that literary heroes such as Achilles, Tiresias and Beowulf had their flaws and shortcomings in the eyes of certain disasters and foes, so they too rose higher to overcome them, or at least to inspire others to do so in their stead.
A four-year break has done nothing to stem the sense of completeness and encompassing theatre that comes with Iron Mask’s music, and indeed with the touch of the Progressive that is revealed in Master of Masters, the group, with the addition of new vocalist Mike Slembrouck, finds extra muscle and grit to pull of one rather superb album, one that does grace to the band’s previous output, and which sits comfortably in a new realm of discovery.
With tracks such the outstanding Tree of the World, Dance With the Beast, the earthly Mist of Loch Ness, Sagittarius A and Revolution Rise all giving ammunition to the album as a whole and refusing to treat prisoners of their own conscious and free will any differently to the already enticed and cheerleaders, Masters of Masters is more than a new child to keep safe, it is a thing of beauty in its own terrific right.
Powerful, demanding, inclusive, Iron Mask expertly show just how to rule without fear, but to convince with clarity and ease.
Iron Mask’s Master of Masters is out now and available from AFM Records.
Ian D. Hall