Customer Reviews

Alive in Athens

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Alive In Athens (1999). Iced Earth's first official live album. (This 3-disc import edition has now finally been made available for the first time in the USA in 2003.)

To be quite honest: I'm not a fan of most live albums. Don't get me wrong, I firmly believe that every band should be able to prove their ability to play in a live setting, and going to see a band perform in person in the midst of a screaming crowd of fans will always generate more excitement than simply listening to a studio album. It's just that when bands try to translate the live experience onto disc, the results are usually hit-or-miss. Sometimes you end up finding out that the bands are only listenable merely because they cover up their mistakes with studio magic and trickery. Other times the show just comes out sounding very milquetoast and bland with no passion in their performances, meaning the band adds nothing new to the live experience. This is often demonstrated with live tracks that are tacked onto the ends of remastered albums that many bands release nowadays. Bootlegs, though unpolished and more akin to what a real live performance sounds like, follow the same rules of "hit-or-miss".

However, there ARE some exceptions that convinced me to alter my opinion. Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Rush, Pink Floyd, Metallica, AC/DC, Halford, and Dream Theater have all released a spectacular live album at one point or another that knows how to capture the band perfectly. Here is another to add to the list that somehow manages to top them all: Iced Earth's Alive In Athens 3-disc set.

Now you may be thinking, what's so special about AIA? Let's clarify by looking at a checklist of all things essential for an excellent live recording... Concert taken at the prime of IE's career on tour of their best album: check! All bandmembers are playing well without the need of any real studio tampering: check! 30 plus songs performed total resulting in over 2 hours of solid music: check! A roaring, energetic crowd of 5000 of the most devout IE fans giving the band energy to feed off of in their performance: check! Near perfect song selection: check! A little bit of dialogue between songs from singer Matt Barlow inspiring the crowd to cheer on and sing along with him: check! Perfect clarity between the volume levels of the band, singer, and crowd: check! The only thing that's missing is a cover song or two, but since the band has plenty of good material to choose from coming out of their first 5 excellent albums, that really isn't an issue.

So as you can see, AIA has a lot going for it. With the success of the band's fifth album Something Wicked This Way Comes(1998), guitarist and bandleader Jon Schaffer thought this to be the perfect time to officially release one of their concerts. His timing was impeccable. It was recorded at an amphitheater in Athens, Greece where good heavy metal music is still praised by many (not shunned off as a passing trend back in the early 90s like in the US). You can tell that the crowd absolutely loves IE because it says a lot about a band when near the end of disc two, the fans shout repeatedly, "We want more!!" The band themselves all play in top-notch form. I had always thought Jon Schaffer to be the fastest and best playing rhythm guitarist as shown on the studio albums, but on AIA he more than demonstrates being able to flawlessly pull off his ability in front of fans. All of the passion, strength, and power of Barlow's singing voice carries over perfectly to a live setting as well. I'm glad they released this while he was still a part of the band (nothing against Tim Owens, he's great on the new album, but let's face it: Barlow is the DEFINITIVE and BEST vocalist for IE.)

By all means, MAKE SURE YOU BUY THE 3-DISC VERSION! It's a bit more expensive, but ultimately worth EVERY penny and it isn't missing a lot of essential material like the 2-disc edition does. It's probably the best $26 that I've spent on a single music item to date. The concert opens well with `Burning Times' and doesn't let up at all until the closer `Violate'. In between, you've got most of the songs from both SWTWC and Dark Saga(1996), half of Burnt Offerings(1995) and Night Of The Stormrider(1992), and a few favorites off of the debut album. Some standout performances are `The Hunter', `Question Of Heaven', the 16-minute opus `Dante's Inferno', the first three Stormrider tracks, `Iced Earth', `Last December', `Watching Over Me', and exclusive to the 3-disc set the Something Wicked Trilogy performed in its entirety. But overall there isn't a single badly played track in the bunch. My only complaint is that they left off the title track from Burnt Offerings, which is one of the all-time best IE songs! It would have made a spectacular live version, but this is merely a small gripe in an otherwise flawless setlist.

So if you want a perfect example of how to make a _real_ live album, look no further than this release. To summarize all that I've said: the band plays well, the crowd roars, good tracklist, over 30 songs total, taken during the band's best period, and get the 3-disc edition. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Recommendations:
-Any of the studio albums this collection represents, plus Horror Show(2001) and The Glorious Burden(2004), which both came out after AIA.
-AC/DC Live, Live Insurrection, Rush In Rio, Live After Death, and Unleashed In The East (ALL examples of other good live releases)

This 3-disc live show has outstanding production and an amazing crowd! I felt like I was there, wanting to chant "Iced Earth-Iced Earth!!!" I didn't discover this remarkable band until this year...and oh, my Lord! Have I been missing out?!! I'm going to split my review into three parts, each containing highlights and praise for each disc.

Disc 1--The bomb falls...BOOM!!! "Pure Evil" is a monster, and the fan participation is moving. "Melancholy(Holy Martyr)" has the entire crowd singing along and is an exceptional moment; this is when the crowd truly takes part in the concert. "Dante's Inferno" is impeccable...and evil! "The Hunter" gave me chills with the crowd chanting. That's what I'm talking about! "A Question of Heaven" is another marvel, and altogether haunting.

Disc 2--The opening track, "Dark Saga," steam-rolls over the crowd...and they love every minute of it. "Last December," easily one of my favorites from "Burnt Offerings," is a cathartic blast of pure Heavy Metal. "Angel's Holocaust" is a fiery explosion, while "Prophecy" hails back to the glory days of Iron Maiden...and Heavy Metal passion ensues. "The Coming Curse" is a bona-fide War Machine; a juggernaut fueled with furious musicianship and screaming vocals.

Disc 3--"Cast in Stone" shows Iced Earth in full flight once again, glowing brilliantly with passion and precision. "Desert Rain" is another slice of perfection! Outstanding! "Brainwashed" is possibly even more potent in this brutal incarnation, echoing supreme excellence. "When the Night Falls" is just plain fun! And "Violate" is a blistering finale, a closing exercise in magnificence!

When the concert does finally end it felt like I had actually been there; now exiting with a partial sadness until they return again, but absolutely buzzing and filled with contentment. I've been to Athens, Greece...at least, in spirit. I plan on returning again and again. Encore! Encore!

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.

This is, with out a doubt the best IE cd that I own. Every song is awesome, the best being Dante's Inferno, A Question of Heaven, Watching over me, The Hunter, Last December and When the Night Falls. The music and the crowd will send chills down your spine on songs like The Hunter and Watching over me.

If you like any of IE's other stuff, you will love this one.

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.

Iced Earth is probably the best live band ever. I could honestly say i would rather have Alive in Athens than the same cds with the studio versions on them instead. each song is performed better than it's original realese. Best songs: watching over me and Pure evil. If you are into power metal none surpass Iced earth.

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.

All I can say one of the best live CDS out there....this is now my favorite slightly passing Death's Live in LA cd. All I can say is how come there aren't huge open air concerts here in the states like there are in Europe and everywhere else? (Ozzfest aside)

This is one of the best produced live albums I've ever heard...clear, crisp, and powerful sound quality delivers a fusion of the band in top form with a very hyped crowd that sings along. Schaffer and the boys rip through a huge portion of their catalog which makes this 3-disc version a must have...and is perhaps the best way to be introduced to the band if you're new to them. This album is an absolute necessity for any IE fan...long live Iced Earth!!!

Saying that any album is the best live metal album ever is a bold statement. I had always given this title to Iron Maiden's "Live after Death", until the day I first purchased Alive in Athens, only days after it was released.

Iced Earth, one of the world's most talented, and yet underrated metal bands, under the control of guitarist/songwrited John Shaffer, make this album one that has yet to leave my cd player since the first day I listened to it. With material dating from every Iced Earth disc from their self titled album to "Something Wicked This Way Comes", they put on a show fit only for the gods.

I must say that this album is performed flawlessly, and not only meets the standard set by their studio albums, but also far exceeds any performance this band has recorded previously. Matthew Barlow's vocals on this album are the peak of any metal vocal performance to date. There has never been an vocalist who can bring the energy required to deliver heavy tracks such as "Dante's Inferno", and yet still bring forth the deepest emotions in songs such as "Melancholy (Holy Martyr)" and "A Question of Heaven".

If the outstanding performance and recording on this album isn't enough, they bring to the table one of the most amazing set lists ever. They truly play all of the best tracks this band has to offer. Classics like "Angel's Holocaust" and "Travel in Stygian" are played better than ever.

If there's ever been a metal band worth listening to it's Iced Earth, and if there's any disc by Iced Earth worth owning, its Alive in Athens. Think about it, you get all their best songs, performed and recorded better than on any of their studio albums through "Something Wicked..." Truly, the best live metal album, ever. Period.