Another Ice War album from the very prolific Jo Steel, who seems to want to show some Scandinavian musicians what's up by being in a bunch of bands and apparently never sleeping—how else could he release so much music. ;) Ice War is very DIY and rather unpolished heavy metal, part of its charm but also not necessarily the cup of tea of those who prefer their metal more "professional" sounding, for lack of a better word. Well, Feel the Steel is Ice War's most accomplished album to date. Immediately noticeable is a great improvement in Jo's vocals, which were a stumbling block for some on previous albums. He sounds much more in control and with better range, while still keeping that kind of amateurish style that's very reminiscent of obscure NWOBHM bands of the late '70s and early '80s. I found a lot of the vocal lines just stuck in my head right away and there are quite a few singalong-inducing lines in there.

Musically, this is a little all over the place, in a good way. You can hear some Maidenesque gallops, some hard rockish and even rock-style melodies that take you back a few decades (assuming you're as old as me—ah!) Some '80s-style more commercial melodies can be found here as well, very catchy stuff (almost annoyingly so :)). But there's an undeniable epic heavy metal feel throughout most of the album, and that will immediately remind you of a number of more modern epic heavy metal bands that have been gracing our ears in the past 15-20 years. There is a lot going on on Feel the Steel and I keep hearing something I missed before whenever I listen to it. If you like any of the aforementioned styles and don't mind a more DIY, rough delivery in your metal, then check this out, as all the winks to various great styles are bound to make you crack a smile more often than not. A fun album.