IRON MASK

The third full-length album by Belgian Neoclassical Power Metal band.
A very solid album of Neoclassical Power Metal that doesn't overdo its technical theatrics. Everything feels "just right". Iron Mask seems to be a revolving door when it comes to band members, as new musicians come and go, similar to Avantasia, but in this case the rotation probably isn’t part of an artistic vision. Luckily, the creative juices all reside in Dushan Petrossi who, like Tobias Sammet, writes all the music and determines the direction of each album. "Shadow Of The Red Baron" is the successor to the excellent, if not near perfect "Hordes Of The Brave", and this is a great album too.
One of the band’s strengths is in vocalist Goetz “Valhalla Jr.” Mohr, a singer who occupies a very polar opposite to the 80s-style and at times upbeat Neoclassical riffing that permeates the album so tirelessly. He’s not guttural, per se, but he has a somewhat smoky, deep voice that he projects loudly and confidently, while maintaining clarity. Oliver Hartmann chimes in, too, and takes the lead on the song "Dreams", which seems to have been written just for him because his voice is just so strikingly similar to Jorn Lande’s that one would be hard pressed to differentiate the two.
Chief songwriter and guitar virtuoso Dushan Petrossi’s particular focus this time was to create superb songs first and foremost where the excellent musicianship only lift the music to an even higher level. With such a strong vocal presence Petrossi counters with equally strong songwriting. One tendency in Neoclassical Power Metal is to over-embellish solos into technical showcases that rarely fit comfortably into the musical direction of the song, but Petrossi has a talent for making the incorporation tasteful. Not one moment he drifted off into solo land just to showboat his skills.
“Shadow Of The Red Baron” is 11 tracks of melodic Neo-classical Metal yet is accessible enough for fans of Traditional Metal and Power/Symphonic Metal too. A number of traditional German Speed Metal fans who like a streamlined, Gamma Ray approach to songwriting could also be roped in by an album like this. We already knew that Petrossi is able to write catchy and melodic song material and this album proves this statement more than any of its predecessors! Don't be scared off by the Neo-Classical tag that undoubtedly hangs around Dushan Petrossi's neck if you're not really into the genre. There's enough material on "Shadow Of The Red Baron" that can keep any Melodic Hard Rock and Metal fan going for a while!!
Lion Music, 2010 (LMC276).


Tracklist:
1. Shadow Of The Red Baron 7:04
2. Dreams 4:32
3. Forever In The Dark 5:11
4. Resurrection 5:07
5. Sahara 4:21
6. Black Devil Ship 4:31
7. We Will Meet Again 4:33
8. Universe 4:51
9. My Angel Is Gone 4:16
10. Only The Good Die Young 3:56 
11. Ghost Of The Tzar 6:54
Total playing time: 55:16


Samples: http://www.last.fm