Review Summary: Iron Griffin successfully shows off another side of their epic metal approach
Iron Griffin’s first album, 2019’s Curse of The Sky, could be described as an excellent album hindered by its confines. The organic musicianship was promising but unbalanced with an incredibly talented vocalist completely overpowering the somewhat muffled guitars and stilted rhythms. The songwriting was great, but a half-hour runtime made the overall presentation feel a little rushed at times. Thankfully their sophomore outing, Storm of Magic, sees some finetuning though going about it in a noticeably different way.
While Curse of the Sky was shaped by an epic medieval atmosphere, Storm of Magic sees the band completely immersing themselves in it. The individual songs feel more methodically structured, making for a more cohesive overall length, and there’s considerable time allotted to lighter instrumentation. The opening “Lady of Space and Time” and the title track both feature extended dungeon synth-esque sequences while “The Witch and the King” commits to acoustic-driven minstrelsy. The band’s long-running Manilla Road inspiration draws more from their spacey early work here with some Ashbury thrown in for good measure.
Thankfully this adjustment keeps the heavier components from feeling restricted and even allows them to stand out in a more balanced, dynamic fashion. The vocals are still the band’s most commanding aspect, but a better mix allows the powerful performance to accentuate the instrumentation rather than have her shine at its expense. “Unholy Epistle” is a particular standout with its beefy mid-tempo riff set steering more toward Witchcraft territory, especially with that mysterious mellotron while “Goddess of the Moor” puts it in the most work to assert its contrasts.
Of course, there are still a couple minor nitpicks that come with this progress. This may be a softer sounding album, but the production may be a little too quiet for its own good, making for the sort of album that you’ll have to account for volume adjustments before and after listening. The title track is also a doozy as its sixteen-minute length takes up nearly half the album’s duration but considering its multi-part suite structure, it’s a fun if a little doomy throwback to old school prog epics ala classic Rush.
Overall, Iron Griffin successfully shows off another side of their epic metal approach with Storm of Magic. The adjustment to a more laid-back style works greatly in the band’s favor as their previously established dynamic feels considerably more at home here than before. The atmosphere also feels more potent and even the unpolished aspects do more to give it character than cripple it. A compilation of the two albums’ best songs with boosted production would be one of the greatest 21st century albums in epic metal, but Iron Griffin always has something interesting to offer.
