Time Signature Heart of fire...

Genre: Traditional heavy metal

Hailing from Peru, the heavy metal four-piece act, Blizzard Hunter recently unleashed their debut full-length upon the world in the form of the aptly titled "Heavy Metal to the Vein".

Stylistically, the album falls under the rubric of traditional heavy metal which seems particularly inspired by Iron Maiden, early Queensrÿche and Helloween. The tracks on the album are decidedly retro, as the listener is treated to old school heavy metal riffage and soaring vocals, which remind me of "Warning"-era Geoff Tate. That said, there are some speed metal and power metal elements scattered across the album's ten tracks.

While the production leaves a bit to be desired the musicianship is top notch. The guitar work in particular is impressive, and all all guitar solos on the album are extremely well executed. The problem with the production is that the guitars, bass, and vocals have a slightly retro fuzzy sound, but the drums sound polished and mechanistic, and are way too loud in the mix. I suspect that the drums are programmed as no drummer is listed in the line-up (I could be wrong of course), and that is probable why the drums sound mechanical and soulless. Apart from these issues, the album is very enjoyable, and, as mentioned, the guitar work is fucking awesome.

Fans of old school metal, in particular Iron Maiden and early Queensrÿche, should find this album an enjoyable listen.