Iodine Sky - 'Tides' Album Review

I would say that this week, I have in my sweaty paws the Iodine Sky album, however it's a digital copy so I can probably best sum it up as, “this week I have on my large and cluttered hard drive the Iodine Sky album” and on first listen, the first few tracks didn't grab my attention.

They were solid enough opening tracks, but the real meat of the album starts with “Tides” and then goes full-on for much of the rest of the tracks.

In terms of riffs, the album has them by the F**k ton. I'm not one for swearing in reviews, but this really had something. The use of guitars throughout the album was incredible, from some really off-time riffs that were really delicate but made the vocals stand-out more, to the solos, the guitars stood out, and showed off that there was a bunch of talent on show.

Drums throughout were solid, and really give off a great, hard rock vibe, that really speaks to me, and will no doubt be noticed by the new fans this album will generate.

Vocally, there's much to enjoy, clean vocals throughout, that remind you of Brandon Boyd, but then become completely original, with some excellent high pitch notes, and harmonies throughout. It's an accomplishment to add something to an already well established, revered vocalist and it's done very well here.

Finally, the production in general is excellent, and really elevates the album until the final track. The bonus track I received to review felt completely seperate to all the other tracks, the acoustic guitar sound grated on me and felt like a completely seperate recording session, and almost demo like, until you hear the reverb and extra harmonies.

As I said, the first couple of tracks failed to grab me, and the final bonus track was a disappointment, but every track in between was a masterpiece in what good, heavy rock can be.