| Dystopia | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Iced Earth | ||||
| Released | October 17, 2011 (Europe) October 18, 2011 (USA) |
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| Recorded | May – July 2011[1] at Morrisound Recording. |
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| Genre | Heavy metal | |||
| Label | Century Media | |||
| Producer | Jim Morris and Jon Schaffer | |||
| Iced Earth chronology | ||||
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Dystopia is the tenth studio album by American heavy metal band Iced Earth. Released on October 17, 2011, it's the band's first album with vocalist Stu Block, who joined after former vocalist Matt Barlow left the band for a second time on August 6, 2011.[2]
The album was recorded during the summer of 2011 at Morrisound Recording, with co-producer Jim Morris, who has worked with band on most of their studio efforts.[3] Some of the recording and mixing process was chronicled in five "making of" episodes, released between September 16 and October 21.[4][5][6][2][7] While not a concept album, many of the album's songs are inspired by dystopian themes and films,[3] very much like the group's 2001 album Horror Show, which was largely inspired by horror movies and similar subjects.[8] Two of the album's songs ("Dystopia" and "Tragedy and Triumph") also feature the return of rhythm guitarist Jon Schaffer's Something Wicked concept, which has appeared on many of the band's previous albums.[3]
During it's first week, the album sold over 6,000 copies in the United States and charted in eight countries, including Germany, Finland and the UK.[9][10][11] The album was met with a very positive response, with some critics calling it one of Iced Earth's best albums.[12][13] Many also praised Stu Block's performance and wide vocal range.
Contents |
On March 3, 2011, Iced Earth vocalist Matt Barlow issued a statement on the band's official website, stating that he was retiring from the band (for a second time) in order to spend more time with his family.[14] Barlow was still going to take part in the bands upcoming festival gigs during the summer, and he played his final show with Iced Earth on August 6, at the Wacken -festival in Germany.[2]
Shortly after announcing Barlow's departure from the band, Iced Earth announced that Into Eternity frontman Stu Block had been chosen as the bands new lead vocalist.[15] In an interview with Hard Force TV, band leader and rhythm guitarist Jon Schaffer told how he was introduced to Stu Block:
"Robert Kampf, the guy whose one of the CEO's at Century Media, told me to check out Stu. And so I looked at a couple of the Into Eternity -videos and I really liked the presence, the look in his eyes, the passion. I wasn't sure about the voice at that point, if it was the right thing, because he was singing pretty differently in Into Eternity, so, you know, the next step was to get in contact and get him out there for an audition. And that's what we did."
In the same interview, Stu Block told how he got the gig in Iced Earth:
"Well, basically, you know, I got a phone call from a Century Media -representative, and of course I, you know, they had told me who was looking for a singer and I was totally happy, I was, I was actually impressed that they would think of me. And so I got Jon's phone number, and I phoned him and we hit it off on the phone and I was sent some instrumental tracks [of] older songs. I recorded them, sent them to him. I don't have the best recording skills in the world, so he needed to hear more, you know, behind a better microphone, and all that kind of stuff, so he flew me out and we wrote two songs together, "End of Innocence" and "Dark City," which are now on the album. So basically, after that experience, he also needed someone who could contribute to the writing also, so, I mean, I've got a fairly decent grasp on how to write a verse and how to, you know, I can listen for different chorus melodies and all that kind of stuff, so. It's was a great match, it was really great chemistry right away and then he offered me the job and I of course said yes, because it's a great opportunity. I've been a fan of Iced Earth ever since Burnt Offerings, so. I think it was a great experience and a great match."
A lot of the writing was done at Jon Schaffer's home studio in Indiana.[17] In an interview with The Aebyss, Stu Block talked about writing the lyrics for the album:
"Every day, at the end of the day, if we wanted to write a song about a movie, lets say for instance V for Vendetta, I think we were eating pork rinds, drinking some beer and I had a pad of paper and a pencil and we'd just watch the movie jot notes down about the plot and certain things, ideas and all that kind of stuff. And the next morning I'd wake up and start writing to the music."
The album was recorded at Morrisound Recording between May and July with producer Jim Morris, who has worked as producer/co-producer and occasional musician on all of the band's albums from Burnt Offerings on (his brother Tom Morris produced the group's first two albums).[1][3] On July 13, Jon Schaffer posted an update saying that they were currently master tracking the album in Florida.[18]
Although not a concept album, many of the album's lyrics are inspired by dystopian themes and movies, such as V for Vendetta, Dark City, Soylent Green, and Equilibrium.[3] Two songs, "Dystopia" and "Tragedy and Triumph," feature the return of Jon Schaffer's Something Wicked Saga, which had previously appeared on the albums Something Wicked This Way Comes, Framing Armageddon and The Crucible of Man.[3] In an update on the band's official website, Jon Schaffer told how the two songs fit in to the Something Wicked universe:
"The opening song is a step back timeline-wise from the 'Come What May.' 'Come What May' sets the scenario that it's up to us and the decisions we make that will determine the future of the human race. These two songs ['Dystopia' and 'Tragedy and Triumph'] take place at a time when people are in highly controlled prison-like city states, and their eventual emancipation in the closer, 'Tragedy and Triumph'."
On the idea of continuing the story, Schaffer said:
"I remember it hit me like a ton of bricks in '97, the whole Something Wicked story did. I thought, 'Man, this is going to be so cool.' Many years later, we were on tour for 'Crucible' and we were doing an interview over in Eastern Europe. A buddy of mine said, 'You know, Jon, this whole Something Wicked thing could be true.' I thought about it a moment and said, 'Well, I don't know about that. But there are some creepy parallels in contemporary life.' So as I was thinking about all of the great movies, albums, and books with dystopian themes, I remembered that conversation and it occurred to me that the 'Something Wicked' story could continue in a few tracks here very nicely"
In an interview on The Aebyss, Schaffer was asked if "Tragedy and Triumph" will be the end of the Something Wicked Saga, to which he replied:
"It's my wishful thinking I think, but, you know, at the end of the day that doesn't mean I won't write anything more. I mean the cool thing about the Something Wicked story is that you can take any period of human history, and apply it to the Something Wicked universe and come-up with a badass story to write about, so to say that there's never going to be anymore songs about it would be foolish, because I don't know that, I mean, I'm not thinking about the next record right now, you know. That'll come up in due time and I'll write about whatever I feel like. [That] is the right thing to do just like I always do. What that'll be I don't know, but I know I could tell hours and hours more stories related to the Something Wicked Saga. That's easy. And it's actually fun to do it."
The song "Anthem" was described by Stu Block as a celebration of "people [...] the human spirit [...] and life," while "End of Innocence" is about Block's mother who is battling cancer.[1]
On July 27, the cover art and release dates for Dystopia were released.[3] The album was announced to be released on October 17 in Europe and on October 18 in the US.[3] The tracks "Anthem" and "Days of Rage" were released early on promotional CD, that came with the October 2011 issue of Rock Hard magazine.[20] On October 6, the title-track was made available for streaming on Revolver magazine's official website.[21]
Between September 16 and October 21, Century Media released five "making of" -episodes, which featured footage from the album's recording process.[4][5][6][2][7]
The album was released via Century Media Records on October 17 in Europe, and on October 18 in the US. The album was made available as a normal CD, a gatefold LP and as a digital download as well as two limited editions. The first is a limited digipak that includes two bonus tracks, a slipcase, and a printed patch.[22] The second is a limited deluxe box set containing the limited digipak with the printed patch and bonus tracks, as well as a belt buckle, a lighter, a wrist band, a printed patch, a beer coaster, and a set of 3 buttons.[23] During it's first week, Dystopia sold 6,100 copies in the United States.[9]
On October 28, the music video for the title track was released.[10] The second music video, "Anthem," was filmed at Essigfabrik in Cologne, Germany on December 7, 2011, during the band's World Dystopia Tour.[24]
Main article: World Dystopia Tour
The album was followed by a massive world tour, which kicked off on October 30, 2011 in Bochum, Germany.[25] Prior to the albums release, the tour was named "the most extensive world tour Iced Earth has ever undertaken"[3] and that it would take the band "to countries it has never previously played."[26][25] So far, 36 European, 7 South American, 2 Australian and 37 North American tour dates have been confirmed.[25]
On October 16, the band announced Fury UK and White Wizzard as the supporting acts for the European leg of the tour.[27] On October 31, Iced Earth announced a co-headlining tour across North America with Symphony X, with supporting act Warbringer, who will also be supporting Iced Earth at their own shows across North America.[28][25]
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metal Army America | (A)[29] |
| Imperiumi.net | (10-/10)[12] |
| About.com | [30] |
| Hallowed.se | [13] |
| BW&BK | [31] |
| Ultimate Guitar | [32] |
| The Metal Critic | [33] |
| Metal Storm | [34] |
| The Newreview | [34] |
| Allmusic | [35] |
| Kaaoszine.fi | [36] |
The response to the album has been mostly positive. Mape Ollila, from Imperiumi, called the album "without a doubt Iced Earth's best album as whole since 1996's The Dark Saga, maybe even better than that," while Max Lussier from The Newreview called the album "easily the best thing to come from the IE camp in nearly a decade."[34] Caj Källmalmm from Hallowed also called Dystopia "by far the best full length album from Iced Earth."[13]
Many of the songs, such as the title track, "Anthem" and "Tragedy and Triumph", have been praised. Mape Ollila described the title-track as "a fast, classic Iced Earth composition"[12] and Juha Attola from Kaaos called it "familiar Iced Earth."[36] The title-track was also one of Allmusic's track picks.[35] Caj Källmann named "Anthem" as one the albums best songs[13] and Chad Bowar from About described it as "appropriately enough, anthemic."[30] Keith Chachkes of Metal Army America also called "Anthem" "a rousing call to arms against hypocrisy and sycophants who seem to be overrunning the world these days." Jay Brown from Ultimate Guitar named "Tragedy and Triumph" his favorite track on the album,[32] while Ollila called the song "one of the biggest rally's of Iced Earth's career", and that it makes "an over aged fan boy do a one man circle pit across his living room."[12]
Many have also praised Stu Block's performance as the new lead vocalist. Jay Brown felt that Stu Block "makes himself at home as Iced Earth's new singer on Dystopia."[32] Caj Källmalmm called his vocals "very much like Matt Barlow['s], but much better."[13] Mark Gromen from Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles praised Block on how he shows off "his ability to tread the lines of both Tim "Ripper" Owens and Matt Barlow, yet make the song his own"[31] while Chad Bowar also praised Block on how he "brings a varied performance, and delivers the lyrics convincingly no matter if it's an aggressive lower pitched section, traditional singing or belting it out." Keith Chachkes also said that "Stu Block steps right in and does a fantastic job."[29]
On the other hand, some have criticized the album. Juha Attola criticized the album for being too much like the bands previous outputs, but still gave positive feedback of Stu Block's vocals.[36] In the end Attola "was left with a somewhat subdued image of the album", but recommended it for "fans of the band, and for anyone who likes traditional heavy metal." Baz Anderson from Metal Storm also recommended the album as "a confidence-boosting album that will be much appreciated and gladly received by anyone with an interest in this long-running and respectable band," but also said that the album "doesn't go beyond being just good."[34]
| Regular edition[37] | |||||||||
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| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length | |||||
| 1. | "Dystopia" | Stu Block, Jon Schaffer | Schaffer | 5:49 | |||||
| 2. | "Anthem" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:54 | |||||
| 3. | "Boiling Point" | Block | Schaffer | 2:46 | |||||
| 4. | "Anguish of Youth" | Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:41 | |||||
| 5. | "V" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer, Troy Seele | 3:39 | |||||
| 6. | "Dark City" | Block | Schaffer | 5:42 | |||||
| 7. | "Equilibrium" | Block | Schaffer | 4:30 | |||||
| 8. | "Days of Rage" | Schaffer | Schaffer | 2:17 | |||||
| 9. | "End of Innocence" | Block | Schaffer | 4:07 | |||||
| 10. | "Tragedy and Triumph" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 7:44 | |||||
| iTunes bonus track | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length | |||||
| 11. | "The Mob Rules" (Black Sabbath cover) | Ronnie James Dio | Geezer Butler, Dio, Tony Iommi | 4:19 | |||||
| Downloadable bonus track (included in all physical releases is a code for a free download for the track) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length | |||||
| 11. | "The Trooper" (Iron Maiden cover) | Steve Harris | Harris | 4:19 | |||||
| Limited edition | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length | |||||
| 1. | "Dystopia" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 5:49 | |||||
| 2. | "Anthem" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:54 | |||||
| 3. | "Boiling Point" | Block | Schaffer | 2:46 | |||||
| 4. | "Anguish of Youth" | Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:41 | |||||
| 5. | "V" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer, Seele | 3:39 | |||||
| 6. | "Dark City" | Block | Schaffer | 5:42 | |||||
| 7. | "Equilibrium" | Block | Schaffer | 4:30 | |||||
| 8. | "Days of Rage" | Schaffer | Schaffer | 2:17 | |||||
| 9. | "End of Innocence" | Block | Schaffer | 4:07 | |||||
| 10. | "Soylent Green" | Block | Schaffer, Seele | 4:20 | |||||
| 11. | "Iron Will" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:15 | |||||
| 12. | "Tragedy and Triumph" | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 8:23 | |||||
| 13. | "Anthem" (String Mix) | Block, Schaffer | Schaffer | 4:54 | |||||
Iced Earth |
Other personnel
|
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | UK Rock Charts | 18[10] |
| German Charts | 23[10] | |
| Finnish Charts | 34[11] | |
| Austrian Charts | 51[10] | |
| Swiss Charts | 53[10] | |
| Billboard 200 | 67[9] | |
| Dutch Charts | 85[10] | |
| Belgian Charts | 96[10] |
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