Album Review – Blizzard of Souls by Minus Inferno (M.S.H. Music Group)

Minus Inferno have released their second album, entitled Blizzard of Souls. It was released on July the 17th via M.S.H Music Group (Morning Star Heathens Music Group).

Minus Inferno are a 5 piece from Gloucester in the UK. James Mitchell (Fozzy) is the vocalist with James Ennis and Charlie Peterson on guitars. Casey Hastings is the bassist and finally, Craig Meadows is on the drums.

Blizzard of Souls has 8 tracks on it and is around 38 minutes long in total. The first track is album title, Blizzard of Souls, which starts aptly with the sound of a Blizzard before a maniacal laugh drop kicks you into the riff. We instantly get introduced to the prominent sound on the album with some excellent guitar lines.

If you are a fan of high toned, soaring guitar leads and solos then you are in for a treat here. The album is littered with moments that make you want to dust off that air guitar and get involved. Every track has a section, at least, of powerful soloing. Some personal favourites though come on No Death for the Dying and the huge solos at the end of Soldiers of Annihilation.

There are also plenty of faster, thrash riffing sections as well to keep that head banging. Tracks like Minus Inferno lean heavily on the band’s cited inspirations like Judas Priest, Maiden and Accept with it’s fast and thrashy beat. The faster vocals with the crashing drums and thump of the bass remind me of Kill ’em All by Metallica which is a pretty sweet comparison to get. The loud bass and cymbal crashes on Rock and Burn are a nice touch as is the drawn out distorted guitar that blends into a cleaner, melodic guitar section.

There are a couple stand out tracks within a sea of very good ones. First is No Death for the Dying which as a great guitar intro, a slower bass heavy riff and a catchy chorus. I love how loud the bass is on this one, plus it has the best solo on the album for me. Another is Mankind’s Agony which has a solid intro but falls into this fantastic foot tapping, head nodding rhythm. I love the beat in this track. The shouted backing vocals over the chorus add depth and there is, of course, some great guitar work including a nice melodic outro.

I do have a couple issues though and mostly they are connected to the vocals. James/Fozzy has a good voice but in regards to production there are a couple tracks, or parts of tracks, where they sound way too loud. The music is lost a bit in these moments so vocals could do with being turned down just a small amount.

One such track is album opener Blizzard of Souls. On the same track there are parts where the vocals seem to be battling the music rather then working with it. It gives the track a weird sense of timing which could be purposely done but I don’t particularly like it. Not a criticism on the skills of the vocalist, he has a good voice. Just occasionally the timing seems off and the production/mix seems a little inconsistent. Thankfully, those moments are rare.

Minus Inferno play a bit of a mix of genres with a lot of old school thrash, big sounding rock and a bucketload of power metal gracing your eardrums. The two lead guitarists, James Ennis and Charlie, really do blaze away with dual leads, speed riffing and soaring melodies. Casey and Craig create a rock solid rhythm throughout, setting the foundation for the guitarists to do their thing. Fozzy, on vocals, has a strong voice as well. He has a decent range and mixes it up a bit with some good yells and shouts thrown in too.

Overall, Blizzard of Souls is a solid, fun album which will have you playing air guitar and banging your head along with the band. There is some exceptional talent on show. Especially on guitar duties. They sound like a band with a big future ahead of them.

Check out Blizzard of Souls for yourself on all the normal streaming sites like Apple Music and Spotify. You can also check out a snippet of one of the tracks, Out of Ammo, on YouTube. You can learn more about Minus Inferno, and M.S.H. Music Group, over at the label website. Check out Minus Inferno on Facebook and Twitter as well to keep up to date with them, new music and tours. Be sure to like and follow them while you are there.

You can also pick up music from Minus Inferno, including Blizzard of Souls from the links below.

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