Year Of Metal #097: Eternal Champion - Ravening Iron
Finally, at the death - a power metal album that I actually really enjoyed. I’ve seen this described variously as heavy or epic metal, but I think it’s fair enough to give it the power treatment - the band is called Eternal Champion, the songs are all about fantasy nonsense, and the cover speaks for itself. There’s plenty here that could easily put me off, but Ravening Iron won me over from the off by the virtues of very well written, tunefully captivating songs, and - crucially - a vocalist who doesn’t sing like a berk.
Opener “A Face In The Glare” kicks in with chunky riffs, guitar virtuosity within the first 45 seconds, and thunderous drums, but it’s the chorus that really grabs me. They take a little time in getting there - this kind of music would be nothing without a little indulgence - but when they do, the melody is crystal clear, the instrumentation dropping down confidently so that they can highlight the extent to which they’ve actually crafted a quality tune.
I’d imagine Maiden and Priest are the forefathers of the majority of power metal that followed, but Eternal Champion seem to have taken their inspiration more directly from the source than some other acts I’ve heard. While there’s an inherent daftness to a song like “War At The Edge Of The End”, the band sell it - they have enough about them to refrain from winking and nodding, and provide the song with the heft and fire that it deserves. The old school chugalug chords are paired with an incessant, needling lead line that means the vocals have a constant counterpoint.
There’s a semi softness inherent to power metal - it’s not confrontational stuff - but Eternal Champion can up the ante as it suits. The crunchy, super direct “Skullseeker” is one of my favourites on the record. They strip back and slow down, and the result is a pounding war march. Indeed they play with such conviction and weight that you can forget they’re essentially soundtracking a scene out of The Rings Of Power here. I can’t overstate how much of a difference it makes to me that vocalist Jason Tarpey refrains from warbling and shrieking.
Even the dorkiest moments on the record, like the title track, get away with it because they’re produced and put together so nicely. This song lays it in thick, with guitar overdubs galore and the rest of the band upping the ante to make sure they’re heard, but the songcraft is there, the melodies really pop. The record put me in the mind of Mastodon to an extent. They’re not as heavy (or, on the balance of this one album, as good), but they understand the twin importance of commitment to the bit and proper songcraft.
Ultimately I still probably wouldn’t want to be caught listening to this record, especially on a physical copy given the buxom wench who adorns the LP jacket. But if there’s any justice, these dudes should be flying the flag for epic, daffy, unapologetic power metal. So long as there are nerds in this world, there’ll be a market for this stuff, and I don’t know that I’ve heard anyone do it better.
