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This album came to me as a surprise as I thought they were one more decent but mediocre heavy metal act from Germany. After all, it's been 12 years since the release of their debut, Cast in Iron, which was not a bad effort but is nothing compared to Crimson Messiah.

Despite the fact that they hail from Germany, they have little or none to do with the typical Accept-like sound or the Euro Power Metal disco-pop speedsters. Instead, what we get here is pure—at times hellish—traditional heavy metal that takes its influences mainly from the other side of the Atlantic, a little bit hair metal feel, Iron Maiden (Bruce era) and, of course, the Metal Gods Judas Priest. Think a mix of US Metal/US Power with NWOBHM elements and superb composing skills. Forget about nowadays' retro bands that don't really know how to compose memorable tunes, Iron Fate does that and more.

The material here is mainly melodic and majestic in the way the mighty Crimson Glory are. The riffs are sharp and heavy and remain mid-tempo for the most part. There are exceptions, like the thunderous intro "Crimson Messiah," "Hellish Queen" and "Guardians of steel," but even they are surrounded by epic 100% heavy fuckin' metal melodies that will stick in your mind. The guitar solos are on the spot, filled with emotion and technical skill.

Denis "Iron Ivan" Brosowski is a singer who can actually sing. Expect epic, big vocal melodies, either in medium or high frequencies. He sounds pretty much like the bastard son of Dio, Midnight and Halford.

Have we heard all of that before? The answer is ''yes,'' but who cares. It's '80s heavy metal, that's how it is supposed to sound. That's what the band wanted to achieve here and even the song titles are direct references to the best decade for Metal and music in general (the '80s!) Get it.