Hordes of the Brave
Iron Mask
(Lion Music)

The band has got Iron in the title and its the bloke from Magic Kingdom's
solo band...so you would expect a wee bit of power metal right? Well you
would not be far off; this lot have a great attraction to Rainbow & Rising
Force with occasional forays into Whitesnake-isms. Goetz Mohre seems vary
between Graham Bonnett and Coverdale without much originality in his voice.
Meanwhile the guitars have a Malmsteen (at his least anal) about them. With
songs about Alexander the Great (the title track) and 'Holy War'  you know
what you are getting. Unlike some of the rest of the vast morass that fill
this genre; this lot are interesting enough to pull themselves above the
parapet. While not qualifiying for the premier league with guys like
Masterplan; they still produce some great tunes and are well worth a listen.
It is good to see Lion Music bringing such album albums to neo-classical
metal fans.

****
Marty Dodge
www.getreadytorock.comIron Mask should be considered a solo CD by Dushan Petrossi with accompaniment from his band. Petrossi is the leader of the band and writes every part of every track. He has made CDs under 2 different band names, Iron Mask and Magic Kingdom. The 2nd CD by each band was a noticeable improvement over the first. Both bands are pretty much the same, neo-classical shred-fests with good, but not overwhelming, melodies... Petrossi knows his style and isn’t about to change for anyone. If you like neo-classical metal along the line of Malmsteen, Symphony X, Richard Andersson, etc, you will like this CD and if you don’t, you won’t like this CD. It’s really as simple as that. This is a very good CD and matches up well to anything Petrossi has done to this point. The 2nd Magic Kingdom CD, ‘Metallic tragedy’ may be a little better to some as it’s a touch more melodic, but overall the quality of the 2 CDs is similar. ‘Hordes of the brave’ is a little heavier and darker. Most of the tracks on this CD are much alike; speedy, heavy and fairly melodic. The main singer on the CD is Goetz Mohre who is a powerhouse of a singer with a very strong voice that stays in the lower ranges – there are no screechy vocals here. Ex At Vance singer Oliver Hartmann sings on 3 tracks very effectively; his vocals are not easily distinguishable from Mohre’s during a casual listen, however. On keyboards is the aforementioned neo-classical powerhouse Richard Anderrson who is the leader of such bands as Space Odyssey, Majestic and Time Requiem. His speedy keyboards are all over this CD. Although many of these tracks are similar, a few should be mentioned. “Alexander the great – Hordes of the Brave (part 1)” is the only track that slows the CD down, other than the one ballad. This is a heavy track, but is slower and more plodding than most of the CD. The one balled is “My eternal flame” and it is excellent, especially the guitar melodies near the end. The one throwaway track is “Iced wind of the north” which is a solid track but seems unnecessary here. The CD ends with a very strong track, the excellent “Troops of Avalon”. Dushan Petrossi has already become a force in his genre. This CD is better than the first release by Iron Mask and is on par with the excellent 2nd release by Magic Kingdom, although the 2 CDs sound a little different. 'Hordes of the brave' features excellent songwriting and a very strong band. The only complaint is it could have been just a little bit more melodic. Petrossi shows no signs of letting up and the fact that “Alexander the great – Hordes of the brave (part 1)” is on this CD, but part 2 isn’t, suggests that a follow-up is coming sometime in the future. That will be something for which to look forward. DAVID http://www.metalcdratings.com   Iron Mask: Hordes of the Brave Iron Mask is a very melodic and energetic neoclassical power metal band led by guitarist Dushan Petrossi (also of Magic Kingdom). Hordes of the Brave is their second disc, but since I've never heard their debut release, I have no idea how they've evolved and progressed. That said, judging by its own merits, the album impresses with its huge production work that sucks the listener in and with its vast array of guests who grace this album. Oliver Hartmann (ex-At Vance, Empty Tremor) not only recorded the vocals of this album, but also sang on three numbers: "The Invisible Empire", "Crystal Tears" and "Iced Wind of the North". Fans of older At Vance are going to love these songs, not the mention the other tracks sung by the new vocalist. The other tunes are successfully delivered by Goetz Mohre whose singing is highly evocative of Graham Bonnet and Jorn Lande. After listening to the album the first few times, I likened him to Oliver Hartmann a bit, but felt the three songs with Hartmann were more to my liking. However, closer listening revealed that Mohre's vocals were exactly what gave Iron Mask's sophomore output its replay value. This guy is amazing; he does the typical Euro power metal style high pitched singing on the opening song "Holy War", belts out killer screams on the likes of "High in the Sky" or simply creates excellent vocal harmonies on "Freedom's Blood" or the album's masterwork "Alexander the Great", who the album is a tribute to. Easily the kind of song that makes me love this overdone genre, "Alexander the Great" employs a dark musical tapestry that makes me think of Kamelot's The Black Halo (which is so far the best power metal disc of the year), a mystical atmosphere, and mid-paced, crunchy guitar riffs. Although extremely competent on his guitar, Dushan Petrossi plays his sweep picked notes with admirable restraint and sticky melodies that combine energy, fantasy and virtuosity all in one. The song praises Alexander the Great's warrior nature and the respect he showed for the lands he invaded and their people's rights and races. A bit epic and theatrical (hence the Kamelot comparison), the song also offers nice 70's retro rock elements as Mohre's powerful singing could easily be mistaken for Bonnet in his heyday. On keyboards we have Richard Andersson (Time Requiem, Majestic) and he not only creates lush symphonic textures, but also duets with Petrossi's guitar, reminding me of Yngwie Malmsteen's Odyssey opus featuring Jens Johansson on keys. The catchy "Demon's Child" and classical-tinged "Troops of Avalon" showcase Andersson's talents and prove his undeniable contribution to this album. The rhythm section is carried right over from Petrossi's Magic Kingdom: Vassili Moltchanov on bass and Russian drummer Anton Arkhipov wrap each song up. Arkhipov's drumming is far from the incessant double-bass drum; he follows some incredible rhythm patterns on the Oliver Hartmann-sung "The Invisible Empire" or majestically pounds his set on "Time" whose 'happy' guitar interlude is quite possibly the most jaw-dropping section of this record. It combines both Petrossi's classical influences (Verdi, Paganini, Mozart) and his guitar heroes' (Malmsteen, Romeo, Schenker) signature sound mixed with a style all his own. Iron Mask doesn't necessarily break new ground, but they certainly know how to stand out in a crowd with numerous Helloween, Iron Maiden and Rainbow clones. What's more is, they're far from a one-man band thing, where all the guitarist does is play long, meaningless instrumental sections. On the contrary, they add a totally mindblowing singer to the realms of melodic metal: Goetz Mohre - check him out. Track Listing Holy War Freedom's Blood - The Patriot The Invisible Empire High in the Sky Demon's Child Alexander the Great - Hordes of the Brave Part 1 Crystal Tears Iced Wind of the North Time My Eternal Flame Troops of Avalon Added: May 13th 2005 Reviewer: Murat Batmaz Score: www.seaoftranquility.org

• Enemy Brother Overture
• Revenge Is My Name
• March Of Victory
• The Witch Burner
• Alien Pharao
• Dimension X
• Morgana's Castle
• You Are My Blood
• The Wolf & The Beast
• Secret Tunnel Of The King
• Hold The Light
• Warchild Requiem

  Dushan Petrossi's Iron Mask - Revenge Is My Name
2002 Lion Music

Iron Mask is the side project of Magic Kingdom lead guitarist Dushan Petrossi. With a sound firmly planted in the neo-classical genre the obvious comparisons are going to be thrown towards the mighty Yngwie. But to those that have more than a passing interest in this genre can generally get round the influence that Malmsteen seems to have on everyone in the genre and just get on with enjoying the music that is on offer.

Its with this outlook that we move onto Iron Mask. Revenge Is My Name is a concept album based around the story of 'The Man In The Iron Mask', first of all this is detour from the normal neo-classical lyrical subject of vikings etc. To be perfectly honest I didn't pay too much attention to the lyrics or the vocals except for one track - Hold The Light. Maybe the reason this track stood out is down to the fact that it features a different vocalist in Max Leclerq, whilst the rest of the album is handled by the relatively average sounding Phil Letawe. Letawe falls into the trap of the normal neo-classical vocal histrionics and generally came across sounding a little uninspired. Whereas Leclerq had a much more positive delivery, albeit on the most commercial sounding track on the album.

The bass and drum performances are very solid, brimming with energy and precision on the instrumental Morgana's Castle. But the star of the show is the man with his name on the album cover - Dushan Petrossi.

The guitar work is of the very highest caliber, it bristles with harmonic excitement, speedy riffs, harmonised runs, and the gamut of solo flights to make even the most hardened air guitarist feeling exhausted. Yes there's a lot of guitar on this album but there's also a lot of melody. Petrossi shows considerable skill when it comes to incorporating classical pieces into rock textures. Silky arpeggio work outs are deftly followed up by pedal point movements before roaring to a crescendo of super tight speed picking - this kid can play!

Standout cuts include the concerto-esque opener Enemy Brother Overture. March Of Victory has a very classy opening with grand piano over which Dushan laces subtle acoustic work before blasting into a prime riff. This is pure neo-classical glory and Letawe's vocals do work well here, sounding like a slightly gruffer Joey Tempest. The chorus is superb on this one, the riffing underneath again working its wonders. Morgana's Castle is an impressive instrumental workout, one that Ynwgie and Johansson would be proud off - great stuff. You Are My Blood sees the huge european vibe continue in this ballad, this could easily have come from Malmsteen's 'Eclipse', the quality is that good. The Wolf & The Beast clocking in at over 8 minutes could be viewed as the "epic" of the album, luckily the song structure backs up this view with its great rampant riffing and strong orchestration. Petrossi's guitar work is again superb throughout getting a lot of solo time here. Hold The Light is by comparison quite a contrast to the rest of the album in terms of style, coming across as more prime late 80's commercial metal, the track is stunning, great riff, great verses and chorus and all backed up by Petrossi's superb fretboard flurries. As stated earlier in the review the vocals of Max Leclerq of Dushan's other band Magic Kingdom go a long way to making this track standing out, also the production seems to be stronger than elsewhere on the album with better mix and a superb blend between guitar and orchestral movements. The album is worth the price of purchase for this track alone! An acoustic instrumental - Warchild Requiem - is a nice way to see out the album, again it shows Petrossi's expertise on the guitar.

Revenge Is My Name is for the bulk a very enjoyable slice of neo-classical metal, the production does let it down a litle in places, but then Dushan is probably not working with the kind of budget Malmsteen has. Even so the quality of the album shines through for the most part and the main blip of the vocals eventually fades behind the superb guitar work and other band performances. Fans of Malmsteen will get a lot from this, as will fans of quality guitar work.

Hot Spots : March Of Victory, The Wolf & The Beast, Hold The Light, Warchild Requiem.
Rating : 84 % www.virtuosityone.com

IRON MASK 'REVENGE IS MY NAME'

Let me say this, Belgium's Dushan Petrossi is definitely one of the most innovative and interesting young players out there today.  Not only can he play fast as hell, but he adds a unique element to every song that few can properly pull off.  I'm sure he'll be compared mostly to Malmsteen simply because of the style of music and song-writing.  However, he cannot be considered a clone of the great one's work as he has a style all his own. (even though he looks like a young Malmsteen!)

Petrossi is joined on the album by vocalist Phil Letawe, who handles the material extremely well.  His voice is customized for Metal.  The rest of the cast is equally as effective, bassist Vassili Moltchanov was a member of the Russian band "Master" in the late 80's.    Together they have composed a masterpiece of Melodic Power Metal for the ages.

The most appealing about this album is the variety.  Every song isn't just an excercise in speed.  Songs like "Alien Pharao" are approached more slowly with progressive intensity and atmosphere.  The song builds and then retreats and then slowly builds again to the climax.  Very impressive piece of work where Petrossi really shows his own personality.  The band shows a more commercial side with the AOR sounding "Hold The Light".  It's simply a damn good rock song with exceptional guitar playing.

For those of you more interesting in pure speed, "Revenge Is My Name" and "Witch Burner" are sure to please.  "The Wolf And The Beast" is an epic song that transports you to another place and still manages to shred with an incredible intensity.

Definitely and force to contend with, Iron Mask has all the elements to move into the ranks of Metal legends.   Personally, I feel they have more going for them than bands like Hammerfall and Heavenly, who have gotten good press over the past few years.  So pick this one up, put it in and crank it!

www.rockhardplace.com

IRON MASK 'REVENGE IS MY NAME'
(LION MUSIC/BERTUS)

IRON MASK is a Belgian project formed around guitarist Dushan Petrossi (MAGIC KINGDOM), who is clearly influenced by YNGWIE MALMSTEEN on his debut CD ‘Revenge is my name’. It’s a pity there are 5 instrumental songs on the CD, because the 7 songs with vocals are very impressive melodic heavy rockers like a cross between AT VANCE, MALMSTEEN, AXEL RUDI PELL, RAINBOW and KELLY SIMONZ’s BLIND FAITH. The lead vocals by singer Phil Letawe are very good, and needless to say, Dushan is delivering some great guitarwork. This all combined results in a very good debut CD release of IRON MASK. Recommended songs to listen to when purchasing this CD are “Revenge is my name” (faster uptempo melodic heavy rock like MALMSTEEN, RAINBOW, AT VANCE), “March of victory” (midtempo melodic heavy rock monster), “The wolf and the beast” (12 minutes counting epic) and “Hold the light” (best song, classy 80s fun uptempo melodic rocker a la JADED HEART). Fans of MALMSTEEN’s latest opus ‘Attack’ will enjoy this CD as well I think, so better check out this classic melodic hardrock/heavy rock piece from Belgium!

(Points: 8.5 out of 10)Strutter Zine

Iron Mask - Revenge is My Name
December 2002 | Released: 2002, Lion Music | Rating: 4.5/5 | Reviewer: JP

Who likes Yngwie J. Malmsteen? I do! In fact he is probably my favorite guitarist of all time. Why do I bring this up? Because Dushan Petrossi’s Iron Mask is an Yngwie clone extraordinaire and I love it!!

I am not one who seeks originality in everything. Some critics feel if they have heard it before any copy of the same is automatically inferior. What an odd and narrow-minded way to approach reviewing something! Some people like Belgium’s Petrossi are content to work towards perfecting an artform and Iron Mask have done just that. I love Malmsteen and everything he has ever done and so I appreciate and encourage Malmsteen clones. I would love to hear a dozen bands like Iron Mask over some talentless mallcore hack, that can’t play, any-day!

Everything about this band is virtually identical to Rising Force. It has been said if you are going to imitate something, imitate the best! At first I was hesitant to describe this as a clone, as the term has many negative connotations for people, but upon inspection it can be called nothing but an imitation and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

How similar is it? Singer, Letawe sounds like Mark Boals. The rhythm section is there and just do the job building a basic song to showcase an utterly amazing solo. The package and layout is very similar to a Rising Force/Malmsteen CD. The song titles and topics are all very familiar territory such as “March of Victory”, “The Witch Burner” and “Alien Pharao” He even thanks his “spiritual brother” Malmsteen in the liner notes along with the usual cast of characters, J.S. Bach, Vivaldi, Paganini and so on. I hate to say it but Dushan Petrossi even LOOKS like Yngwie. I mean dead-ringer! I had to look closely, everything is spot-on, the hair, the clothes, the cream colour fender strat and the pouting type looks, and in fact, I would not be surprised if it was Yngwie pulling a joke. He has a wicked sense of humour I have read. It is absolutely uncanny.

The album is fantastic. It starts with an operatic instrumental intro called “Enemy Brother Overture” which bleeds into the utterly ripping title track, “Revenge is My Name”. Is has an incredible solo too! So does “Morgana’s Castle” and come to think of it all the songs do! Yngwie fans rejoice! Epic choirs, blazing guitars, pounding drums, amazing performances, crystal clear production and a singer with range and power can all be found on this album. This very late entry has almost certainly found a way into my Top 20 for 2002. The funny thing is I have not heard Rising Force’s ATTACK yet!

www.metal-rules.com

If Yngwie Malmsteen had a twin his name would be Dushan Petrossi!! Iron Mask infuses a much needed boost into the world of neo-classical power metal. Not since YJM’s Marching Out has there been such a spectacular release of over the top guitar mayhem combined with a bombastic rhythm section. All compositions found on the release are heavily influenced from the world of classical music. Composers like Paganini, Mozart, and Vivaldi all come to mind when listening to Revenge Is My Name. Petrossi creates a unique statement with his classical styling combined with epic type lyrics and blazing guitar work.

The opening track “Enemy Brother Overture” is a Handel Overture arranged by Petrossi and given a neo-classical vibe. Another standout track is the very unique “The Wolf and The Beast” with it’s cool introductory soliloquy that combines sampled thunderclaps and horse gallops over a cool narration – all setting the tone for this epic number. Petrossi shines brightest on the instrumental tracks, “Morganas Castle”, “Warchild Requiem” and “Secret Tunnel of the King” where his considerable guitar talents come to full fruition. A nice job is also done on the powerful “Hold The Light” with its raging melodic structure and huge vocal chorus.

This entire CD kicks some new life into the world of neo-classical metal. If you like power metal hooks combined with a shred attitude – you will love “Revenge Is My Name”.

Guitar Mania

www.guitarmania.ca

Iron Mask is Petrossi Dushan Power Metal band. This very talented guitar player is influence by Yngwie Malmsteen. Do I really have to say that this guitar player rocks? Yeah! He rocks! During the 12 tracks I guess is fingers were running on his guitar cause there's a lot of technical stuff in those riffs. The album is also well procuced, it's sounds very good!!You got the positive side but here's the negative side....Even if there a lot of talent , there's something very important missing... The good melodies that will make you raise your fist in the air! No big chorus, not a lot of catchy vocal line. The songs are great but the little something that will make you want to listen to that particular album isn't there exept for the song 'Hold the Light'! Max Leclerq is singing as hell on this song and it rocks! Should put more catchy groove like that next time!
www.thedarkesthours.com Patrick