Don't Trust the White

Political and cultural implications of the album title aside, this disc perhaps best showcases what Iced Earth would sound like had they retained Matt Barlow and taken the OverKill path of slowing things down to a more groove-oriented approach. For these eleven tracks we get a sort of IE-meets-modern-Sepultura style. As bad as this may sound (mainly due to Sepultura sucking so badly post-1991), it actually works pretty well since the emphasis is firmly on the IE style. Fans of this sort of metal could certainly do a lot worse than Wolfen.

You’ll probably notice the minute he starts singing that vocalist Andreas von Lipinski at times sounds remarkably like Barlow with some hints of Justice-era Hetfield thrown in for good measure. If you are in fact a Barlow fan then this should please you, but if you didn’t like Barlow-era IE then von Lipinski will very likely not be to your liking either. Both singers possess a voice that is a mix of melody and just enough forceful yelling, and both have a somewhat limited but highly utilized range. You know how Barlow seems to shout a little more on the verses and then throw a little more melody into his voice for a chorus? Well, von Lipinski certainly likes to do the same on here. He’s not the best singer I’ve had the pleasure of hearing, but I really like his style, all aggression and emotion without so much as a hint of over-the-top melodramatics that can sabotage lesser talents. I suppose he won’t win any awards for originality, but you’ve gotta do what you’re best at, right?

Likewise, guitarists Frank Noras and Björn Grüne are evidently well-schooled in the razor-sharp chugging style of playing that goes along with this territory. Never fast enough to really be considered speed metal, their work is nonetheless very solid for a dark power/thrash groove album, sounding (again) like a slightly slowed-down IE, complete with even the somewhat repetitive amounts of palm-muted riffing. Solos aren’t anything exceptional but still are well done. As I mentioned above, Wolfen are smart about their arrangements, mixing speed with slower groove. In other words, don’t expect every song to be a double-bass thrash metal orgy. Some songs, like closer “The Last Judgment”, seem to almost lurch along. All is well and good, however, because I’d much rather have some variety than a sixty minute clickfest where every song sounds the exact same.

No problems whatsoever with the production as each instrument is easily audible save maybe for the bass, which could have had a slightly more prominent role, but that’s a small concern. I have yet to hear any of Wolfen’s other works, so I can’t say whether they’ve evolved at all in a stylistic sense. Actually I’m surprised at how little-known Wolfen seems to be, especially seeing as how IE is so popular now. Who knows, maybe they were victims of bad record deals. Whatever the cause, if you even think you might enjoy a slower version of Iced Earth I’d advise you to check out this album, as it is a surprisingly solid mix of power, thrash, and groove metal styles. Nothing too complicated or original, but lots of fun nonetheless.