‘Emperors And Fools’ is the sound of Ashes Of Ares finally living up to its potential. It is not a masterpiece, but it is the first release of theirs that makes me somewhat confident they may have one in them. My teenage obsession with Iced Earth was at least as much due to Matthew Barlow’s incredible range and expressive delivery as it was to Jon Schaffer’s songwriting. The first two releases of Barlow’s band with fellow Iced Earth alumnus Freddie Vidales and former Nevermore drummer Van Williams left me cold, however. ‘Emperors And Fools’ plays to the band’s strengths much more.

Stylistically, ‘Emperors And Fools’ is not even all that different from its predecessors. The AOR leanings of ‘Well Of Souls’ are thankfully toned down a bit, but this is still largely midtempo heavy metal with a flair for the dramatic. As expected, most of the drama comes from Barlow’s heavily layered vocal performance, but that would not be possible without Vidales providing Barlow the space to do so in his compositions. It just seems the duo managed to wring out more rhythmic variation, as well as more different atmospheres this time around. Sure, mostly different shades of melancholic, but it works.

While my sentiment is still that an actual fast song or two would do any Ashes Of Ares release good, they are hardly missed on ‘Emperors And Fools’. Almost everything on the album is midtempo, but since the rhythms are not quite as predictable as they used to be on Ashes Of Ares albums, it manages to hold the listeners’ attention for nearly its full hour of playing time. The subdued aggression of ‘Where God Fears To Go’ feels completely different than the galloping heroics of ‘Be My Blade’ or the pounding triplet-based warcry of opening track ‘I Am The Night’.

Vidales’ songwriting chops lend themselves especially well to epic tracks. None is more epic than eleven and a half minute closer ‘Monster’s Lament’, easily the best Ashes Of Ares song to date. It contains a few truly dark and twisted riffs, including what is probably the most aggressive moment on the album. Barlow and guest singer Tim Owens – who share a certain bit of history – sound incredible and the song is not a second longer than it should be. Another great song that despite its shorter length is of epic proportions is ‘The Iron Throne’. From its beefy, monumental opening riff to Barlow sounding like a general commanding his troops, it simply convinces.

Although ‘Emperors And Fools’ is not perfect – out of the ballads, I could have done without the overlong ‘Gone’ and the heavier ‘Throne Of Iniquity’ fails to get off the ground – it is such an immense leap forward compared to what Ashes Of Ares has done so far that I cannot do anything but praise it. You will need a love or at least a tolerance for a dramatic approach to enjoy the album, but when you do, ‘Emperors And Fools’ is worth a few spins. A few, because repeated listens definitely made me appreciate the album more. Let’s hope this is the start of something great.

Recommended tracks: ‘Monster’s Lament’, ‘The Iron Throne’, ‘Be My Blade’