ICED EARTH

                              

Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band that combines influences from thrash metal, power metal, progressive metal, opera, speed metal, and new wave. The central figure of Iced Earth is rhythm guitarist and songwriter Jon Schaffer. Schaffer originally founded the band under the name Purgatory (11), but he was forced to change the name due to another group already using the name. He would rename the band Iced Earth as a tribute to a longtime friend who had died in a motorcycle accident.

The group set out and recorded their first demo titled Enter the Realm, which sparked enough interest that they were signed by Century Media Records. In 1991 they recorded and released their first album titled Iced Earth. Since then, the band has gone through numerous lineup changes, with Jon Schaffer remaining the only permanent member. None of the original members remain besides Schaffer, who is now handling nearly all of the songwriting duties and is leading the band. Barlow, the longest tenured (and probably most popular) Iced Earth vocalist, originally joined in 1994 but was inspired to become a law enforcement officer in 2003 due to the 9/11 attacks. After an absence of 4 years he returned in late 2007 and left again in 2011. He was replaced by Stu Block. Dystopia, Block's first album with the group, was released that October; the album received a positive response, while some critics called it one of Iced Earth's best albums.  The group has since recorded two more albums with Block: Plagues of Babylon (2014) and Incorruptible (2017).

Before arriving at their current lineup, Iced Earth has had numerous line-up changes, with founder Jon Schaffer as the only founding member remaining. As of 2013, there have been over twenty musicians in and out of Iced Earth since its formation in 1984 (see: List of Iced Earth band members for more details). Currently, the band is composed of rhythm guitarist Jon Schaffer, lead singer Stu Block, bassist Luke Appleton, drummer Brent Smedley, and lead guitarist Jake Dreyer.

Studio Albums:

1990 - Iced Earth 

1991 - Night Of The Stormrider

1995 - Burnt Offerings 

1996 - The Dark Saga 

1998 - Something Wicked This Way Comes 

2001 - Horror Show (Century Media, CM 9977598)

2004 - The Glorious Burden 

2007 - Framing Armageddon [Something Wicked Part 1] 

2008 - The Crucible Of Man [Something Wicked Part 2]

2011 - Dystopia 

2014 - Plagues Of Babylon