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Something Wicked This Way Comes

Iced Earth - Something Wicked This Way Comes Audio CD

A fair review of the Iced Earth "Something Wicked This Way Comes" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Iced Earth reviews here, or go back to the Iced Earth tabs.

Band: Iced Earth
Title: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Rating:

Release Date: 1998-07-07
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Burning Times 2: Melancholy (Holy Martyr) 3: Disciples of the Lie 4: Watching over Me 5: Stand Alone 6: Consequences 7: My Own Savior 8: Reaping Stone 9: 1776 [Instrumental] 10: Blessed Are You 11: Prophecy 12: Birth of the Wicked 13: Coming Curse

Some really good songs mixed with some okay songs
But after many plays I realised there are some really bad songs on this album. Let's start with the fact that I like Iced Earth a lot and I use to think this was their best album. Don't get me wrong this is still a very good album.
The really good songs to name a few are 'Burning Times', 'Disciples of the Lie' and the Something Wicked Trilogy. Their are some killer riffs in 'Prophecy', 'Birth of the Wicked' and 'The Coming Curse' (Which ends with a nice piano outro). 'Disciples of the Lie' will make you break out into windmill headbanging. '1776' is a Iron Maiden influenced musical, and if you pay attention Jon uses the Iron Maiden gallop guitar playing quite frequently.
The Bad: 'Watching Over Me' this song is not very good, a repetive chorus ruins it for for me. It's not becuase it's a ballad (Melancholy isnt a very heavy song but is still a very good song). 'Stand Alone' is another one of those repetitive chorus lines, although fun to sing a long too, it get rahter annoying. 'Reaping Stone' a kind of bluesy song that really never get going and is rather boring. Dropping 3 songs from this album and making it 10 would have made this one of their classic albums, like 'Night of the Stormrider' and the 'The Dark Saga'
And since I brought up 'Night of the Stormrider' since Jon is so obsessed with re-recording albums why doesnt he re-do Night with Matt singing the entire album.
Anyway a really good album with a few flaws. Buy this album now!.

Very flat
I love some other more melodic metal bands like Kamelot and Sonata Arctica. Maybe it's just that I can't appreciate heavy metal. However, I think these guys are seriously lacking. They have fairly good intros but everything is very repetitive. As soon as the singer comes in, he kills whatever melody might have been in the song. I must ask, is it really that hard to cross metal with melody and good singing? Apparently. By all means, though, if you like static, un-melodic, this could be for you.

The other really annoying thing is the constant switch-off between ballad and heavy. The singer sings half decently in the ballads (but not at all during the heavy) but the ballads are all fairly lame (they definitely would not hold up two seconds next to Kamelot's ballads). The lyrics are just painful. I listened to them for about two seconds and was kind of like, "Is this really the best you can come up with?" .

The more I listen to Iced Earth...
. . the more they annoy me. I think I hate power metal.

4.5-Star Offering that you can REALLY Bang Your Head to
I mean, in my opinion also, bands didn't exactly put out their most classic albums during that timespan. To most metal critics and some fans as well, memorable, simply undiluted metal was pretty sparse during the mid-late 90's. Just to list a few examples: Maiden put out their Blaze Bailey albums "X-Factor" and "Virtual XI" which I liked a lot, but most people bashed the crap out of 'em. Priest was basically dormant during this time, only releasing "Jugulator" and "98 Live Meltdown" both not up to par with Halford's classics by any means. Metallica experimented with their albums "Load" and "Reload" (both of which scared away many fans), Megadeth released "Cryptic Writings" which was quite good, but then put out their lowest point "Risk", and bands like Dio, Black Sabbath, and Ozzy were either releasing their worst albums or not putting any out at all. However, there was this one band in the 90's (don't worry, I know other bands were delivering the goods in the 90's like Pantera, etc) that held the thrash-metal torch high and proudly, not wanting to let their influences down. That band is the one and only ICED EARTH!

Just a devoted and humble group of guys who wanted metal to live forever, the crew of Iced Earth stood against the norm, beat all odds, and released some true, nose-to-the-grindstone classics during the 90's. "Something Wicked This Way Comes", which came out in 1998 is a perfect representation of their talent and reputation. The riffing can be thrashy, in-your-face, and aggressive-as-hell at times (on tracks like "Disciples of the Lie", "Stand Alone", or "My Own Savior") but it can also be quite melodic and emotional (i. e. "Melancholy", "Watching Over Me", or "Blessed Are You"). Basically, if you like Schaffer's heavier side then this cd is for you. But also, if you like his more melodic pieces that have passion and depth, then get this classic! Matt Barlow couldn't be better on this album as well. His voice is so well-ranged and powerful, it's just insane. He sings in his best thrash voice on the heavier tracks, but also really reaches low when the slow number comes up, singing emotionally and very sad on some songs (which is a unique and welcome effect). The drums and bass are also very much involved, taking the rhythm section to great heights.

As far as the songs go, SWTWC has great depth. There are almost an equal number of slow tracks as there are heavy ones, and for the first 10 songs they go in a pattern (heavy track, then a slow one). The heavy tracks are of course amazing, grabbing you by the balls and never letting go, but the power ballads grab you by the heart and act as a nice contrast to the heavy-hitters. Now I know that most fans are really dedicated to the thrashy, no-holds-barred style of earlier IE releases like "Burnt Offerings" or "Night of the Stormrider" but I really ask that you open up to their emotional side too. As for the tracks, "Burning Times" starts off the album and everyones knows that Schaffer never lets a sappy opener make an appearance. This heavy number isn't blinding fast, but it's a nice mid-tempo song with heavy riffage and soaring vocals from Barlow. The second number slows it down considerably, but is just as good. "Melancholy" is a very emotional song with some great guitar strumming and some of those "Sad" vocals from Matt. However, at the chorus, the heaviness is cranked up as the power chords rip through the speakers. Barlow then hit those high notes and really adds a lot to this hit. EVERY song is amazing, and while I don't have time to talk about all of them, I must mention the "Something Wicked" trilogy. What an amazing, all-out incredible way to end this masterpiece. All three songs (Prophesy, Birth of the Wicked, and The Coming Curse) are perfect thrash tracks, complete with fast-paced riffs, double-bass mania, and above-average vocals from Matt. They have their slow and emotional moments as well like the beginning two minutes of Prophesy, and the opening, classical piano piece on The Coming Curse. Just great, undiluted metal!

Get this plus every other Iced Earth classic. You won't regret it! .

A must have
A must have for any metal fan. Ths is one of their better albums. It runs the full musical range from very fast and heavy(Stand Alone), to softer (Watching Over Me). You Will NOT be Disappointed!!.

You can see a complete list of all Iced Earth discography, or go back to the Iced Earth tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.