Plagues Of Babylonby Iced Earth

Upon hearing Plagues of Babylon for the first time, it becomes clear that Jon Schaffer is a mere shadow of his former self. This whole "Something Wicked" concept has pretty much killed the band. It was a decent idea for the trilogy at the end of Something Wicked This Way Comes, but even then it made hardly any sense lyrically. Nevertheless, those initial three songs were great. Of course, they were followed up with the two full-length Something Wicked albums almost a decade later, both of which are considered to be the absolute worst albums in the Iced Earth canon by fans and critics alike. Regardless, "Something Wicked" continues for the first half of this album.

Plagues of Babylon begins with the "epic" title track, a doomy, eight-minute, elephant-in-a-coma type of a song. The intro basically sounds like a slower version of the one in "Dystopia", and the mid-paced section around the five-minute mark sinks as low as to copy a riff from the song "Iced Earth". "Democide" attempts to be thrashy, but the main riff is beyond generic, and the chorus sounds the same as the next few songs. "The End?" is decent, saved by the speedier break and Stu Block's abrupt screaming, but it's really the most enjoyable track here because you finally think that "Something Wicked" has come to a close.

The rest of the album has nothing to do with the "Something Wicked" concept, but the songs fare no better. "If I Could See You" is just plain dumb, right up there with "Consequences". "Cthulhu" sounds basically like a Horror Show outtake. "Peacemaker" sounds totally out of place, copping a faux Western vibe. "Spirit of the Times" is actually a Sons of Liberty song, but there is absolutely no reason for Schaffer to rerecord a song from his solo project considering that Iced Earth is practically a solo project in itself. "Highwayman" is as bizarre a cover as any, with split lead vocals from Schaffer, Russell Allen of Symphony X, and Michael Poulsen of Volbeat. As a B-side, it might've been passable, but as the closing song? Oh wait, let's not forget the unbelievably stupid "Outro", which is nothing more than random pirate noises and cursing.

Ultimately, Plagues of Babylon ends up being another disappointment in a long string of disappointments. Jon Schaffer needs to get over himself and realize that no concept is good enough to spend almost three albums worth of material on. More importantly, maybe he should step down from his tyrannical role in the band and let the other members have just a little bit of creative input. Not that they would recapture the band's former glory, but as long as it's better than this, who cares? No wonder musicians walk in and out of this band like a revolving door; they probably can't stand Schaffer or his music. Fanboys may dig it, but for all intents and purposes, Iced Earth is on their death bed.