Search - Iced Earth :: Alive in Athens

Showcases the best metal of the 90's

Seth Copeland | Arizona, USA | 10/01/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've heard it said that, just as Iron Maiden's "Live After Death" was the definitive live metal album of the 80's, Iced Earth's "Alive In Athens" was the definitive live metal album of the 90's. As a Maiden fan, it pains me to disagree - "Alive In Athens" is definitely on a higher level than the Maiden classic. In fact, it's probably one of the best live albums ever made, period. The band is captured in its prime (coming off the recording of the near-flawless "Something Wicked This Way Comes"), and they play their hearts out. Matt Barlow, always one of my favorite vocalists, sounds INCREDIBLE here. The sheer energy that the band brings to their performance is captured perfectly.



Also captured perfectly is the energy of the fans - the cheering, the clapping/singing along with the band, and especially the chants of "ICED EARTH! ICED EARTH!" make it seem like you're there. At times, I felt like chanting and cheering along with them.



The tracklist is perfect - obviously, it contains a lot of material from their latest album ("Something Wicked"), but there's a lot of older stuff too for fans to enjoy. Most of "Dark Saga" and half of "Burnt Offerings" makes it on here too, as well as the best songs from their first two albums. And, like I said earlier, the band brings an incredible amount of energy into this, resulting in these versions of the songs mostly being better than the originals.



To wrap it up, I have a few questions for metal fans everywhere. Do you have this in your collection? If not, then why aren't you clicking "Add to Shopping Cart" already? There's something here for everyone, and I guarantee that if you're into Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Megadeth, Testament, etc, then you will LOVE Iced Earth. In fact, if you've never heard Iced Earth, then i'd recommend this album first - this was my own first Iced Earth album, and I loved it to death. It's a perfect showcase of this incredible band and the incredible music that they've put out. So buy it. Right now."

The best live album ever!

Parker Buessow | Sequim, Washington USA | 05/29/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I honestly thought that nothing could ever beat Iron Maiden's "Rock In Rio" live record, but "Alive In Athens" by Iced Earth soon changed my mind. Jon Schaffer and the guys preform every song perfectly and to the best of their ability. The greeks are the craziest Iced Earth fans out there, they sing to every song and chant to every guitar rythem. The two albums the band mainly concentrate on during the first two discs are "Something Wicked This Way Comes" and the "Dark Saga", but they also cover the "Night of The Stormrider" album as well. The best song they preform in my opinion is the sixteen minute long epic "Dante's Inferno", its so cool to finally hear what a live version of that song sounds like. Matt Barlow sings more strongly in the song live than on the album, which is a big plus in my book. Other songs live that I liked were: "Travel In Stygian", "The Hunter", "Slave To The Dark", "A Question of Heaven", "Angel's Holocaust", "Night of The Stormrider", "The Path I Choose", "Melancholy", "I Died For You", "Watching Over Me", "Violate", "Iced Earth", "The Something Wicked.." Trilogy, "When The Night Falls", "Cast In Stone", "Blessed Are You", and "Violate". Overall "Alive In Athens" is a great preformance by a top notch Metal band. Jon Scaffer continues to show his passion for Metal, and Iced Earth will continue reing in the Metal world."

Killer album

Juan García | Toluca, Mexico | 02/09/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A high quality album, unique in its type. Everything is killer: flawless guitars on all song (some parts start a little bit weird like Burning Times lead guitar part), awesome drumming - Brennt Smedley, an excellent job (Pure Evil... tsss pure technique). In overall:



Disc 1: fast, furious and evil. Best tracks: Pure Evil, Dante's Inferno, Travel in Stygian, Slave to the Dark.



Disc 2: more classic but still killer. Best tracks: Dark Saga, Last December, Stormrider, Prophecy, Birth of the Wicked, Iced Earth.



Disc 3: not so popular songs, but still great. Best tracks: Desert Rain, Brainwashed, Disciples of the Lie, When the Night Falls, Violate.



A MUST HAVE... FOR SURE."