Album: SACRED – Fire To Ice
Release Date: 10 January 2025
Label: Stormspell Records
Review Author: MetalMike71
I read an article in Sweden Rock Magazine about a band named Sacred from Gothenburg, Sweden and I was interested in hearing how they sounded. I found their album, Fire To Ice, and started to listen. Wow! I was blown away directly. The sound on this album is huge and very well produced and the musicianship is top notch on every level. The singer Gustav Blide has a golden voice for heavy metal.
Their sound can be best described as a mix between Riot and Riot V after Thundersteel, early Queensryche, mid-80s Iron Maiden and newer bands like Tailgunner from the UK and Enforcer from Sweden, but with a modern feel to the sound and production. We hear great guitar solos and interaction from the guitar players, Jonathan Hallberg and Christoffer Cederstrand and a heavy and driving rhythm section from drummer Pontus Andrèn and bass player Robin Utbult who also plays bass in Vicious Rumours.
The album starts with “Into The Light” and it is a belter of a song with dueling guitars and a stomping rhythm. Great chorus and the voice from Gustav is amazing. “Gateway To The Gods” is up next and we get double bass drums to start it off and heavy riffing. The great thing about the song is that it is very varied in tempo and the guitars are amazing.
“Wasting Away” was the first song to appear from the band last year and has a very melodic yet heavy approach to it. This reminds me of the Riot sound. Galloping rhythm. Another stellar song. “On The Verge Of Becoming a Shadow” starts with an acoustic and very atmospheric sound. Think of Queensryche‘s “Take Hold Of The Flame” from The Warning album. This sounds classic and it develops into a fantastic song with a pumping bass in the background. Great chorus and amazing vocals.
“Caught In The Snowstorm” is a very melodic power metal song with another great chorus and great dueling guitars. “Tyrannical Warfare” continues with the same tempo and has a nod to Iron Maiden and their Somewhere In Time album. You can hear the inspiration in the guitars and bass.
“Nights Of Madness” is a fast song and I get caught thinking, is this album really from 2025? It sounds like a classic US power metal album from back in the days. Amazing sound. “Fire To Ice”, the title song, continues on the same amazing path like the rest of the album. Varied tempo in the song and great drumming from Pontus. The album closes with “The Flying Dutchman”. It clocks in at 7:48 and here we get a song that reminds of Running Wild in the rhythm and style. Amazing vocals from Gustav on this song. Another amazing song with variation and great guitars.
If you buy their CD you will get a bonus in the cover of “Queen Of The Reich” from Queensryche, which is awesome too.
I have listened to this album a lot since I found out about it and I can’t get enough. If you are into american power/heavy metal with great melodies, amazing vocals and varied tempos this should be on your list. I really hope to see this band live someday as I have seen some clips on Youtube and they sound great live too. This will absolutely be in my top list of 2025.
Thank you, Sacred for the music and the best of luck with everything!
Rating 9/10
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