Metal Underground.com

Hailing from Southern Cal, Eyes of Fire seek to become a mainstay in the American heavy metal scene with their second full length release, “Prisons.” Since their debut, Eyes of Fire has added a new guitarist and a new drummer to the fold, joining mainstays Dan Kaufman (vocals, guitar) and Matt Fisher (vocals, bass). What Eyes of Fire lack in energy, they attempt to make up for with grinding guitars and industrial beats—the results are less than stunning, though Eyes of Fire does manage to create a sound that is atypical for the metal genre these days, perhaps finding a niche within the metal community.

Eyes of Fire’s newest release, “Prisons,” is a fairly mechanical effort. The band sticks to formulaic slow guitar riffs combined with chanting vocals, which sometime reach a yell but never threaten the hardcore or death genres. Eyes of Fire sounds like Ministry mixed with Sparta, with such slow pacing and an industrialized, unenergetic tone. Unfortunately, “Prisons” lacks those much needed change of pace moments that make the listener want to hold up the horns and headbang. It seems that on most tracks, Eyes of Fire puts together a solid base for a metal song, but then fall just short, leaving out those inspired moments that pull the listener in. Think of Type O Negative’s “Black Number 1” without the “loving you is like loving the dead” breakdown, and you get the idea. In fact, there aren’t really any standout tracks on “Prisons.” That being said, the constant, driving metal is technically good and features some interesting sounds. The track “Dead to the World,” for instance, features the same grinding metal found throughout the album, but with some interesting guitars surrounding the otherwise flat chorus. “It All Dies Today,” the featured track, if you will, also is a worthwhile.

Fans of Ministry might want to check out Eyes of Fire, but most metal fans should make sure they know what they’re in for before picking up a copy of Eyes of Fire’s newest release.