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The Neverending Fire

    
       
       
       
     
             
Steelballs are a heavy metal band from Argentina formed in 2013 releasing their self titled debut E.P. in 2016. The bands debut full length album 'Thunder Strikes Again' was released in 2018, with sophomore album 'The Neverending Fire' a 2022 release.    
             
Featuring a sound akin to European heavyweights such as Grave Digger, Helloween, and Running Wild, the sophomore album from Steelballs is a barnstorming thirty five minutes of energy and oomph - the band bringing the storm with the opening salvo 'Stormbringer'. With the foot firmly planted on the monitor, 'Stormbringer' is a traditional metal gallop with a chant style sing a long chorus. What a very British sounding start from a band over seven thousand miles away from these shores! Just goes to show how far the UK's influence has travelled over the last forty years - I reckon to every single country in the world. Meanwhile, Steelballs hit the accelerator for 'King Of The Wind', demonstrating their prowess at the all out balls out fast and furious style of metal. Heads will be banging hard to this one for sure, 'King Of The Wind' an unrelenting and unabashed traditional metaller. Hitting the brakes hard, 'Strangers In The Sky' opens with a mellow guitar intro and soulful vocals, before adopting the mighty mid tempo foot stomping style of heavy metal. And the anthemic nature of 'Strangers In The Sky' really comes to the fore over the chorus break - surely a crowd participation moment in a live arena.    
             
And then whoosh, blistering pace lights up the album courtesy of 'Scream Of Freedom' - a scorching blaze of fiery riffs delivered at high velocity to bang heads their hardest since the album began. The electrifying upturn in pace took me a little by surprise, but that's okay, the faster and more furious the better as far as I'm concerned! The band indulging me yet again with the speedster 'Sword And Sorcery' - maintaining the electric whiz bang wallop of 'Scream Of Freedom'. Albeit 'Sword And Sorcery' is an instrumental, yet it's still gonna have the mosh pits in an absolute fucking frenzy! A more atmospherically epic and tension laden feel descends upon the album in the shape of 'Birth Of A Legend' - the one minute intro that leads directly into 'The Conqueror'. Which is an anthemic monster, the kind of monster that bands such as Sabaton and Manowar are famous for. Steelballs delivering their own majestic epic    
             
And as the album draws to a close, the band give a huge nod to the iconic NWOBHM sound with 'Searching For Action' displaying a very strong early eighties feel. More mid tempo than anything else heard previously, 'Searching For Action' is extremely infectious, and will have heads involuntarily nodding, such is its pull. Ah the good old days - I can almost smell 'em! Bringing a very good album to a close, the band return the blistering pace of earlier, for the ferocious 'Keepers Of Eternal Flame'. Stirring in power metal traits with their own heavy metal roots, Steelballs crossover to mainland Europe and deliver a superb Helloween inspired romp. The combination of all out pace with the screaming guitars and higher pitched vocals sees the band bring down the curtain on their new album very much rooted in the power metal genre. What a corker of an ending.    
             
Overall, a fast paced and infectious ride of traditional heavy metal to keep heads banging for a very long time to come.    
             
             
Review by Iron Mathew Collins    
             
             
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