Cirith Ungol Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Frost and Fire, Cirith Ungol's debut album, was a decent enough attempt at sword-and-sorcery fantasy metal, and in some ways can be seen as a precursor to the bleaker, more influential work of Celtic Frost. Tim Baker is not the most melodic of vocalists, favoring a theatrical sing-speak for pretty much the entire record, but the band's music is often strong enough to support him. That isn't true for the entire album, as some of the compositions tend to meander, but if Baker's style isn't a problem for you, Frost and Fire will be a sporadically enjoyable record that may very well be worth your time. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Ever exiled to the fringes of the '80s heavy metal scene, Los Angeles' Cirith Ungol limped to the end of their troubled career with 1991's rather fittingly named Paradise Lost -- their fourth and final long-player in a decade's work. Unfortunately, very few music fans even cared by then, which was an especially tragic state of affairs since Paradise Lost was a far stronger outing than 1986's One Foot in Hell (1986), and matched improved sound quality and musicianship to the classic/doom adventure metal songwriting of uneven early efforts, Frost & Fire (1981) and King of the Dead (1984). Coincidentally, half of the band's lineup had turned over during their five-year absence (the band had actually split up for a time), and so long serving members Jerry Fogle and Michael Flint had been replaced with guitarist Jim Barraza and bassist Bob Warrenburg, respectively. But original drummer Robert Garven was back, along with vocalist Tim Baker, whose unmistakable gravely whine was always Cirith Ungol's most recognizable asset -- love it or hate it. In the case of Paradise Lost, there was slightly more to love than hate, including career topping metal anthems like "Join the Legion," "The Troll," and the foreboding riffing omnibus of "Chaos Rising" that handily overpowered weaker moments like the tediously dreary grind of "Before the Lash" and the overlong "Fallen Idols." Surprises -- both good and bad -- also reared their heads now and then, including a competent cover of Arthur Brown's perennial standard, "Fire" (the good), a misplaced stab at West Coast-flavored commercial hard rock named "Go It Alone" (the bad), and the Warrenburg-sung "Heaven Help Us," which simply sounded too strange without Baker's distinctive cries. The album's memorable closing title track appeared to provide further evidence of Cirith Ungol's healthy rebirth, but the band would in fact never record again, and it was later revealed that the sessions for Paradise Lost were in fact fraught with turmoil, spurred by unwelcome record company dabbling. In the end, the LP's title had proved as sadly prophetic as one could fear, and Cirith Ungol's career was indeed over at last. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Never the greatest of heavy metal bands to begin with (although no one could ever accuse them of sounding like anyone else), Los Angeles' Cirith Ungol were really starting to overstay their welcome come album number three, 1986's One Foot in Hell. Where previous efforts like 1981's Frost and Fire and 1984's King of the Dead had contained the odd American proto-metal classic and enough songwriting inventiveness to counter the band's utterly un-commercial talents, One Foot in Hell sounded very tired and uninspired. Limp-wristed semi-thrashers like "Blood & Iron" and "100 MPH" were interspersed with plodding no-hopers like "The Fire" and "Doomed Planet" -- all of them as poorly recorded as ever, yet laden with lyrics that were arguably too simplistic and dumb even by heavy metal standards. Any rare bright spots were isolated to portions of the title track and the second half of "War Eternal," but the once combustible and wonderfully idiosyncratic songwriting team of guitarist Jerry Fogle and vocalist Tim Baker only really clicked as before on lone album standout "Chaos Descends." Baker, in particularly, his strangled rasp still, for good and ill, Cirith Ungol's most distinctive feature, seemed to have been pushed to the background on this occasion; his contributions rendered ghostlike, almost unintelligible and even inscrutable in the case of "Nadsokor." Worse of all, it wouldn't get any better for Cirith Ungol in the aftermath of One Foot in Hell's release, as the group's already cult-level standing continued to slip on their way to a ignoble and almost unheralded demise five years later. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
King of the Dead, Cirith Ungol's second album, is actually something of a step backwards from Frost and Fire; the production sounds a little muddier, the song structures less focused, and the hooks less apparent. "Hooks," of course, refers mainly to the guitar riffs, because vocalist Tim Baker still hardly ever steps out of his shrill sing-speak delivery, which listeners generally find either deliciously evil or overdone and irritatingly silly. Cirith Ungol is actually a pretty ambitious band, but they're also somewhat amateurish and cartoonishly over-the-top. Those aren't necessarily reasons to dismiss their music, since bands like Venom and Celtic Frost -- who were generally critically reviled during their existence -- actually planted the seeds of the death metal revolution; however, Cirith Ungol doesn't have Venom's extremity or Celtic Frost's restless experimentation going for them, and they don't have the songwriting chops to make up for those deficiencies. It's apparent on King of the Dead that Cirith Ungol had a great deal of potential, but they don't bring it together here. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
