Search - Cirith Ungol :: Frost & Fire

Classic Ungol!

Cecil B. DeMille | Detroit, MI USA | 03/16/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Not That I feel That I can improve on the review by the most excellent Mr. Garvin, but Cirith Ungol is a bit of an acquired taste for some... you either love or hate them at first listen. Excellent album, excellent ground-breaking metal band. Try it, you'll like it! If you dont like it, I challenge you to give it your full attention for 10 listens. Excellent stuff."

Early 80's underground metal

Bloodbath_and_Beyond | usa | 02/18/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Cirith Ungol never made it big, but they have a pretty good dedicated cult following and lot of support from underground metal fans who believe them to be what the genre really is all about. For first timers, you oughta check out their second album King Of The Dead, however this debut effort, released in 1980, after the band had been around since the early 70's, is a fine place to begin as well. However it's been noted that the band laid down their most 'commercial' material for the record, only to be rejected by a local DJ who told them it was 'too heavy'. With that in mind, the album is a great mix of hard rock/heavy metal. Though it's not the heaviest album the band recorded, its the most tuneful. Thats not to say its poppy, but it does have some great grooves and genuine 70's style party rock riffs. While the band were one of the early innvators for power metal along with other underground favs like Manilla Road and the more recognized Rainbow and Rush, they musically, on this record anyway, have a bit in common with early (Fly By Night) Rush. The lyrics deal with the common fantasy themed stuff which back then was sort of rare. Today the power metal genre is probably the most popular among real metal fans. The title track is great and features an awesome breakdown section, bass player Michael Flint really shines on this track. Edge Of A Knife is the most apparent of the bands 70's sound still leftover, with probably one of the best lyrics ever written "I got my rock n roll haircut, I got my rock n roll jeans" although some may find that sort of dated and cheesy. This band really deals in compositions rather than songs, lots of time changes and multi layer elements. A Little Fire and the keyboard laced What Does It Take all have great savage riffs, and the Pink Floyd-ish guitar instrumental Maybe Thats Why is quite a beautiful song.



There isn't too much that could be said about the album track by track, these guys are in a class of their own and it's hard to describe them as anything more than raw and direct hard rock/metal. Their albums were usually independently recorded and released, so this debut especially contains that raw low budget sound. Some might find the bottom end missing, as this album is a little on the trebly side which means the bass is in the mix but its not pounding like say... Master Of Puppets. Also of note is Tim Baker's vocals, they are an aqcuired taste indeed but they fit the music, he is the essential trademark of CU's sound. THe bonus track on the remaster is the bands namesake song, a live take that more clearly indicates their future sound (a more dark and powerful Sabbath inspired sound) which as drummer Rob Garvin states, is the true representation of CU's sound. But if you've never heard this band before, this is an interesting place to start but the more stripped down production might render it a 2nd or 3rd behind their more technically accomplished efforts like King Of The Dead or Paradise Lost. All in all, this is a great album to add to your more obscure metal collection. And as each fan apparently has their fav CU album, this one has to be my own personal fav."