- Country: Germany
- Genre: Power Metal / Progressive Metal
- For fans of: Symphony X, Gamma Ray, Stratovarius, Galneryus, Angra
ETERNITY’S END – The Fire Within | Metal Territory
There are albums that remind you from the very first minutes why you love Metal. “The Fire Within” by the Germans Eternity’s End is one of them. It was released in 2016 and marries Power Metal with Progressive and technical playing, without ever forgetting the basics: songs need to have melody and stay in your head.
And there’s an interesting story here. The band is made up of musicians who have passed through some very well-known names in Technical Death Metal. On guitars is Christian Münzner, on drums Hannes Grossmann, while bass is handled by Linus Klausenitzer. If names like Necrophagist, Obscura, Spawn of Possession and Equipoise mean something to you, you immediately understand that the technical background here is no joke.
Except that Eternity’s End decided to use it to play Power Metal.
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Technical playing with songs that stick
“The Fire Within” is not an album where the musicians simply try to show how fast they can play. There are of course many technical spots, but among them we find riffs that have power and choruses that stick.
Grossmann on drums is truly impressive. Blast beats appear quite often, but instead of just hearing relentless speed, there are fills and changes that give the songs motion. Below, Klausenitzer with his fretless bass adds weight, even if he isn’t always heard as clearly as I’d like.
And then come the guitars.
Münzner plays with the ease of a man who truly has no limits on the fretboard. Sweeps, fast runs and neoclassical passages are almost everywhere, but the good thing is that they don’t swallow the songs. The solos have melody and are not just a speed contest.
“The Fire Within”, “Demonblade” and “Chains of the Earth” come in early with powerful guitars, while even in the calmest moments there is always some small lead or riff that catches your attention.
Here Power Metal has the final say
Despite all that technical side, Eternity’s End never forget that they play Power Metal.
“The Hourglass” is a prime example. It has a strong melody, a nice change before the chorus and plenty of room for Jimmy Pitts‘ keyboards. The keys sometimes come close to classic Power Metal and sometimes take on a more atmospheric role.
The same happens on “White Lies”, which is one of the most direct tracks on the album. Here you don’t need to try to figure out the technical details. You just hear a very good Power Metal song.
“Eagle Divine” continues down the same path, with a more epic character and a chorus made to be sung along with the band.
And yes, there is plenty of that classic Power Metal optimism in the lyrics. Dreams, strength, battle, time and the familiar attempt to rise and keep going. It’s a bit cheesy, but that’s exactly what you expect from the genre and here it works.
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Ian Parry fits perfectly
On vocals is Ian Parry, who does exactly what the album needs.
He doesn’t try to compete with the musicians on speed. He has a clear, strong voice and moves comfortably from the verses to the big choruses.
On “Eagle Divine”, the title track “The Fire Within”, “Moonstruck” and “The Hourglass”, it’s his voice that gives the songs their real Power Metal identity.
And that matters, because without a good singer such a technical album could easily become just a display of musical ability.
When the guitars catch fire
“The Fall of the House of Usher” is one of the most interesting tracks on the album. It’s long in duration and leaves more room for the changes, the keys and the guitars.
Here the Progressive side of Eternity’s End shows best, without losing the Power Metal base.
“The Dark Tower”, which goes past eight minutes, also moves in a more epic and atmospheric mood. It isn’t in a hurry to finish and lets the musicians develop their ideas.
And that, in the end, is what makes “The Fire Within” work so well. It may have musicians who could fill an entire album with technical tricks, but here they prefer to serve the songs.
There are references and small nods to the history of Power Metal, from Helloween to DragonForce, while the keys and choral passages give several tracks a bigger, more epic feel.
The result is an album that can please both someone who wants technical playing and someone who is simply looking for good Power Metal. And maybe that’s Eternity’s End’s biggest success: you don’t need to be a musician to enjoy what the musicians do here.
“The Fire Within” is full of guitars, fast drums, big choruses and enough melody to hold you. It’s not just Technical Death Metal musicians who decided to play Power Metal for a change. It’s a band that shows it truly loves that sound and knows how to make it its own.
Tracklist
- The Fire Within – 05:30
- Demonblade – 04:55
- The Hourglass – 05:59
- Eagle Divine – 04:43
- White Lies – 05:05
- Twilight Warrior – 04:47
- Chains Of The Earth – 05:18
- The Dark Tower – 08:07
- Moonstruck – 03:50
- The Fall Of The House Of Usher – 07:45
