A man singing into a microphone while playing a guitar
A man playing a guitar next to another man playing a double bass
A man is playing a red gibson guitar
A man singing into a microphone while another man plays a guitar
A man wearing sunglasses and a leather jacket is singing into a microphone.
A group of people are standing on a stage playing instruments.
A shirtless man is playing drums in front of a sign that says el camilly
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High Warden Astral Iron CD Review

December 15, 2024
The cover of a game called the renfields

Dying Victims Productions is really pushing the boundaries of Metal this year it would seem. The label is consistently pushing out legit Metal releases and the bulk of them are classic in some way or another. The album we’ll be speaking on today is from the German Epic Doom Metal band, High Warden and it’s entitled Astral Iron. 


Upon the first listen to this album, I didn’t get it. But that happens sometimes with music like this, so I always give myself a listen or two to make sure I’m not leaving meat on the bone. Thankfully, on the 2nd listen, the album really shined, and I got it. This is Epic Doom Metal much like you’d expect from early Candlemass and Trouble albums – the Trouble influences really shine in the vocals. I also hear traces of Cirith Ungol influences all throughout the album too. Cirith are still one of the best bands ever!
 
It's my understanding that this album was recorded live in the studio so it’s not quite as polished as we’re accustomed to. However, the recording is honest and has an organic feel to it. Personally, I prefer recording music this way, so I can’t hate on a band that takes the same approach. I also tend to find a lot of slick produced Doom Metal albums to be repetitive and mundane. I strongly prefer the sound of this recording over some of the stuff from Candlemass themselves. The length of the songs is typical, ranging from 4 to 8 minutes. Stand out tracks are “The Morn is wiser than the eve”, “Pale Hunter” and “Astral Iron”.


Often Doom Metal doesn’t have great staying power for me, it tends to get repetitive, and I’ll wind up dumping it and or trading it away which is why I’m hard on the genre. It also hurts that a lot of the bands in the scene try so hard to out Sabbath, Sabbath. This is not the case with High Warden, this band is building onto and adding to the legacy of bands that came before them. If High Warden is any sign of where Doom Metal is heading, you can count me in for it, this is fantastic! I strongly recommend checking this album out and grabbing an LP so you can have a proper listen – that’s the only true way to listen to DOOM METAL!

~Black Angel 

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