{"id":46798,"date":"2014-11-06T20:48:35","date_gmt":"2014-11-07T01:48:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=46798"},"modified":"2014-11-07T11:52:07","modified_gmt":"2014-11-07T16:52:07","slug":"born-of-fire-dead-winter-sun-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2014\/born-of-fire-dead-winter-sun-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Born of Fire | Dead Winter Sun<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Derric Miller<\/span>
\n– Managing Editor —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"bornoffire\"Just in time for the cheerful holidays comes the new release Dead Winter Sun<\/em> from the American metal band Born of Fire. Although they\u2019ve been around since 1998, the band\u2019s releases have been intermittent and far between. In fact, Dead Winter Sun is only their second full album release. However long it took Born of Fire to get here, none of that matters, because Dead Winter Sun<\/em> is one of the best metal albums you\u2019ll hear all year \u2026 <\/p>\n

Although the nexus of the band has been together from the start, they have now brought the multi-faceted singer Gordon Tittsworth into the fold. You may remember him from Images of Eden, Dread the Forsaken, All Too Human, and some side projects. What he brings to the band is a voice that can handle both the intricate and brutal, soaring vocals to meet the band\u2019s galloping compositions and also a certain majesty when they slow things down on songs like \u201cTears.\u201d They absolutely needed a talent like him in the band to make their compositions come to life, and it sure as hell worked. <\/p>\n

The brooding, somewhat doomy title track \u201cDead Winter Sun\u201d greets you darkly when you hit \u201cplay.\u201d With subtle guitar playing, slowly building to crescendo as Tittsworth\u2019s vocals go from calming to seething as the song breaks into full electric mode, there\u2019s just a lot to digest musically, vocally and especially lyrically. If you don\u2019t get chills when Tittsworth sings \u201cHow can we live tomorrow when we\u2019re dead inside today?\u201d then try harder. The ebbs and flows of the song, the breakdowns, the foreshadowing from slow to manic, the expert guitar solos and fevered drumming \u2026 yeah, this is a great song. <\/p>\n

Obviously, if there\u2019s a dead sun, it\u2019ll lead to the conclusion of \u201cWhen Hope Dies,\u201d the next track. This one is less complex than the opener; although they\u2019ll remind you of Fates Warning at times, they don\u2019t need to be complicated to be effective. With any great band in this genre, lyrics take on larger role. Think Queensryche\u2014yes, just listening to them is riveting, but if you know the story behind the songs, it enhances everything. In other words, just pay attention to the lyrics when Born of Fire is playing, or you\u2019ll miss lines like \u201cThe media has raped me of my sanity, invading another once innocent mind.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cLast Goodbye\u201d is a more atmospheric, mid-tempo composition. The song just breathes, allowing you to sink yourself into the somber mood and powerful vocals. This is actually an uplifting song, one of those \u201cseize the day\u201d ideas, although it feels darker because of the tempo and the overall dirge-like heaviness. And if you try to sing along with Tittsworth on the line \u201cAnd if I would have known\u201d during the chorus, you\u2019d best warm your vocal chords up for an hour first; it\u2019s not just high \u2026 it\u2019s full of emotion and energy. <\/p>\n

\u201cSpiritual Warfare\u201d is one of the smartest and heaviest songs on Dead Winter Sun. Although their slower songs full of tempo changes are excellent, they bring a rage on their most straightforward Metal tracks that are just a riot to bang your head to. \u201cSpiritual Warfare\u201d is all of the above, somehow. Not to get too theological, when you hear the angry question \u201cWhy do you fight for me? Why would you die for me?\u201d you can tether that to the many wars being fought over the past decade in the deserts of the Middle East \u2026 or you could be asking your version of Jesus why did he die for us, and are we really even worth saving? (That\u2019s just saying the poetry of the lyrics allows for multiple interpretations. It doesn\u2019t matter if you are right; it just matters that you contemplate while listening.)<\/p>\n

There is simply no song worth skipping on Dead Winter Sun. \u201cHollow Soul,\u201d \u201cEchoes of the Lost\u201d and \u201cIn a Cold World\u201d all have their varied strengths, especially the latter, which plays on the album\u2019s overall theme and is somehow contained cacophony. <\/p>\n

It all culminates on the song \u201cTears.\u201d It\u2019s not just rare\u2014this almost never, ever happens. Born of Fire saved the best for last. \u201cTears\u201d is an acoustic, sorrowful song with the most haunting chorus on the release. Again, if you follow the essence of their music, it\u2019s always darkest before the dawn. Yes, the album takes you down bleak roads at the beginning, while always offering salvation, glimmers of hope and calls to enjoy your time here because in the end \u2026 we all end. \u201cDo you remember when the tears turned to laughter once and for all?\u201d Tittsworth asks. There\u2019s your answer \u2026 <\/p>\n

Dead Winter Sun<\/em> is one of those albums that might experience a slow burn before metal fans start realizing in the glut of releases out there, this one is shining as one of the brightest of them all. When you bring sheer musicality, vocal prowess and philosophical lyrics all into one place \u2026 that place is Dead Winter Sun. <\/p>\n

Genre: Power Metal, Progressive Metal, Heavy Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nVocals – Gordon Tittsworth
\nGuitars, keyboards – Victor Morell
\nGuitars, bass – Bobby Chavez
\nDrums, percussion – Steve Dorssom
\nBass guitar – Michael Wolff<\/p>\n

Tracklisting:
\n1 Dead Winter Sun
\n2 When Hope Dies
\n3 Last Goodbye
\n4 Cast The Last Stone
\n5 Speed of Dark
\n6 Spiritual Warfare
\n7 Hollow Soul
\n8 Echoes Of The Lost
\n9 In a Cold World
\n10 Tears<\/p>\n

Label: Pure Steel Records<\/p>\n

Online: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pages\/Born-of-Fire\/498173826897778<\/a> <\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.6\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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