Tribute to the Gods

'Tribute To The Gods' offers a chance to experience the music that has fueled the band along all these years. Featuring covers of classics by KISS, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Blue Oyster Cult, Judas Priest, Alice Cooper & Black Sabbath. Century Media. Digipak. 2002.

It seems crazy to cover definitive metal songs such as "Highway to Hell," "God of Thunder," and "Screaming for Vengeance" unless you are trying to redefine heavy metal, which surely isn't Iced Earth's intention. For their many young fans, however, Tribute to the Gods is a crash beginner course in headbanging history. In the early 1980s, these same Judas Priest, Kiss, and AC/DC songs first spun Iced Earth's Jon Schaffer into a vortex of metal mania. Now, his version of Iron Maiden's classic "Hallowed Be Thy Name" will surprise those who think Papa Roach only borrows riffs as a last resort. Strong on dueling midtempo guitars, the band tackles Blue Öyster Cult's "Burnin' for You" with finesse. There's a lack of energy, however, on some of the simpler songs. Inadvertently, Tribute proves Iced Earth belong with imitative second-wave bands like Accept and Helloween. --Ian Christe