To the Grave is Power Metal stalwart Iron Fire's fifth release. On it they cover the same ground they've traversed with every album since their debut Thunderstorm. Iron Fire's typical subject matter, dealing with warriors and battles, has been spiced up with a Norse theme running throughout the album. Otherwise, there are no surprises , either musically or lyrically, and that makes for some positive as well as negatives on To the Grave. More on that later.
Founding member/vocalist/chief songwriter Martin Steene is back with his trademark Johnny-Rotten sneer and quirky singing style. Not that he's a bad singer, but his vocals can take some time to truly appreciate. Overall, Steene and lead guitarist Kirk Backarach have put together a collection of riffs that is crunchier than a peanut butter sandwich at the beach. The rhythm section is solid and the sound on To the Grave is simply massive. The album sounds great.
That brings me to the songs. Uneven is the best way to describe To the Grave. The album starts with a killer one-two punch of "The Beast from the Blackness" and "Kill for Metal." Both are blazing double kick powerhouses. Tracks like "March of the Immortals" and "Hail to Odin" have wonderfully catchy choruses that you will be singing for days. Unfortunately, mixed in with these superlative offerings are some true filler-type songs. "The Demon Master," "Cover the Sun" and "Doom Riders" are just plain boring. Riff-by-numbers song structures and dull choruses that simply repeat the song title over and over give the impression that Steene ran out of ideas somewhere around halfway through the writing process.
To the Grave isn't going to set the world on fire, but it is a safe, solid pickup for Power Metal fans.
