Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Attitude in the wrong hands can be devastating to the conscious of those caught up in the maelstrom, a cyclone that sweeps you off your feet and leaves you with nothing but broken and shattered dreams of unfulfilled truth and dreams. Attitude in the right hands is perplexingly cool, you don’t know you have been entangled in the wind and storm until you reach the apex of the motion and see beyond the horizon, for what is to be witnessed is power wielded with impervious brilliance.
Finland’s continual offering of magnificent heavy metal bands and their albums has been a wonder of epic proportions, and as Dead End Irony wield their debut album, Battles And Brotherhood, the overwhelming power of distinctive attitude is to embrace as it honours the genre, and sets out its own unique vision for the listener to feel the punch of true expression that its momentum creates.
The eight strong song album, created by Simo Jokela, Antti Pekonen, Kristian Valkama, Antti Vainio, and Vesa Winberg, is the result of patience, hard work and epic aggression, and as songs such as Patton, the twin passions of King Of Emptiness and Day Of Reckoning, Rise Up For The Light, and the sublime finale of Razor Gods all leave their emblazoned tattoo of sound for the world to rightfully notice, and take heed from.
Recorded at Teemu Aalto Music Production Studio, Battles And Brotherhood captures the essence of why Finland is considered by many as the now natural home in the 21st Century of the metal genre; away from its British roots, it’s American flair, and arguably its Germanic significance, Finland’s sheer amount of bands that compliment each other, that seem to push with a frankness and insistence that as one they can dominate, is to be seen as exceptionally tight, firm in their resolve, and the attributes of such are keenly on display as Dead End Irony join this illustrious crowd.
A marvellous debut from a new name for those outside of Finland, one to get with physically as the emotional assertion hits home. A terrific balance of sound, production, and dedication to the cause.
Ian D. Hall