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Iced Earth - Horror Show Audio CD

A fair review of the Iced Earth "Horror Show" 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.

Iced Earth Band: Iced Earth
Title: Horror Show
Rating:
Release Date: 2001-06-26
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Wolf 2: Damien 3: Jack 4: Ghost of Freedom 5: Im-Ho-Tep [Pharaoh's Curse] 6: Jeckyl and Hyde 7: Dragon's Child 8: Frankenstein 9: Dracula 10: Phantom Opera Ghost

*Don't listen alone!* Recovered Review From 2003.
Each track off this record is based on the classic monsters of film and literature. If the holiday of Haloween had a soundtrack, Iced Earth's 'Horror Show' would be it! Iced Earth has presented its fans with amazing concept albums in the past such as 'Night of the Stormrider' and 'The Dark Saga', but it is 'Horror Show' that tops them all. From the powerful blast of 'Wolf' to the haunting epic 'Phantom Opera Ghost', the listener is transported to the world that has haunted many before rock music was ever a conception in the mind of man. Matt Barlow delivers amazing vocals, while new guitarist Larry Tarnowski shows Metallica a thing or two about new band members. When I first purchased this album it stayed in my CD player for almost one month. This album an ingenious as it is terrifying, so if you are an easily scared individual make sure you listen with a friend.


great
Though I have a question for other owners of this album. This is a great concept album. During Im-Ho-Tep from around 3:50 to 4:20 it sounds like the song is skipping. Does anyone else notice that during their play of the song?.


Horror Show Holds Up Over Time
Iced Earth is a band that is loved/hated with very few in the middle. I tend to review things long after their initial release and let the dust settle. This album is in my opinion, aging very well. I have heard Jon Schaffer describe this as the album that fulfilled the Century Media contract and that he wasn't as into the concept as he was for Glorious Burden or the Something Wicked albums that follow. I think he needs to step back and give his Horror Show another spin. He should be very proud of this album. I agree with other reviewers that the idea of Horror Show could destroy a band if it ends up full of Cheese. Thankfully, there is very little Cheese here (Ghosts of Freedom aside). And besides, Horror Imagery and Metal go hand in hand.

Song wise, if I had to pick one song as the best, I think Damien is it. At over 9 minutes, this one never seems to drag. Barlow's delivery just before the solo can make the hair on your neck stand up (I will avenge thy torment).

I rarely skip through this album. It flows well start to finish, which is more than I can say for most metal bands these days. Other than Damien, great songs are Wolf, Jack, Im-ho-tep, Dragon's Child, Dracula and the cover of Maiden's Transylvania. I'm not a fan of bands putting cover songs on their propoer albums, but they put their stamp on it and it really fits in well appearing before Frankenstein and Dracula.

Ghosts of Freedom is in essence inspired by the Patriot (Mel Gibson Movie). It can be thought of as hint of things to come in the Glorious Burden, but Schaffer has always had a thing for historical references and Patriotism (1776 on Something Wicked this Way Comes). It is basically a nice ballad but not as metal as the rest of the album. Still, not as cheesey as When the Eagle Cries on Glorious Burden.

The album closer is Phantom of the Opera Ghost. This is an impressive offering in the epic album closer department. Just beware that it does not sound anything like Maiden's Phantom of the Opera. Schaffer has described this recording as unfinished. He indicated that some day in the future he would like to revisit this one and add more parts to better tell the story. Hopefully he keeps in mind that the fans do not want another Phantom of the Opera Ghost, they want a Barlow sung Something Wicked Box Set.

I have a few bootlegs from the Horror Show tour and the band was in tip top shape at this point. The energy of this band came to a crashing halt when Matt Barlow left the Band in 2002 before the follow up album was recorded(The Glorious Burden). As solid as this one is, somehow it just didn't seem right that Matt's last album was Horror Show. There seemed to be so much more that Iced Earth needed to do with Matt at the mic. Thankfully, in 2007 Matt returned and the band has since released the Crucible of Man. Hopefully the band will get back to that frame of mind and level of energy where they were when touring for this one and finish the Re-Recording of Framing Armageddon.

Muscially and Thematically, this album is great metal, especially compared to its not so metal themed successor the Glorious Burden.


As Good as It Gets
For me, it is the album that all other Iced Earth albums are compared to. 'Horror Show' has been one of my favorite albums of all time since I purchased it. On the two new albums (Armageddon and Crucible), Jon Schaffer and co. have mixed more slow/medium tempo songs into the mix than on the earlier albums. Horror Show is the perfect melding of 'Stormrider's speed and 'Crucible's' medium tempos. Every song is amazing, from the opening Wolf to a cover of Iron Maiden's Transylvania to the mini-epic The Phantom Opera Ghost, but the stand-out song is definitely Damien. Damien, which retells the story of the character from 'The Omen' movies, begins with a classic Iced Earth style chant that sets the mood for the religious-tinged song. Acoustic guitars add an eerie feel to the verses and there is plenty of Matt Barlow falsetto to enjoy. If you like Iced Earth at all or power metal in general, Horror Show is a must own.


Half Good, Half ???


I'm actually a bit surprised this CD has received such high marks. A quick disclaimer - I'm only giving this 3 stars based on Iced Earth material as a whole. Since transferring the files over to my MP3 player, I only kept 5 of the songs on my everyday playlist. The rest of the songs just didn't do it for me. I do love me some Damien and Dracula though.


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.

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