Days of Purgatory

Days of Purgatory is a heavy metal album by Iced Earth. It is a collection of remixes and remakes from previous albums, with the exception of their then-recent record The Dark Saga. Most of the songs from the Enter the Realm EP, Iced Earth, and Night of the Stormrider were re-sung by Matt Barlow, and on some of the songs the drums and bass were redone. The 2-CD version also has rough mixes of several songs from Burnt Offerings with the opening to the title track re-recorded. The album cover features artwork of the Chaos Comics character Purgatori.

Days of Purgatory
Remix album by
ReleasedJune 6, 1997
RecordedMorrisound Studios
Genre
Length
  • Disc one: 1:20:27
  • Disc two: 2:02:47
LabelCentury Media
ProducerJim Morris
Iced Earth chronology
The Dark Saga
(1996)
Days of Purgatory
(1997)
Something Wicked This Way Comes
(1998)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

The reason for the album was to improve the original songs, create nostalgia for older fans and introduce newer fans to Iced Earth's older work. The 2-CD limited edition was originally produced for European audiences but has since been released in the United States. Days of Purgatory was the last new release from the band featuring longtime guitarist Randall Shawver, and the first to feature bassist James MacDonough and drummer Brent Smedley.

The song "Written on the Walls" from the band's self titled album was given completely new lyrics and renamed "Cast in Stone". The only songs left unrecorded from the band's first albums were "Mystical End", "The Path I Choose", and "Curse the Sky", though the latter two were both performed live with Barlow on vocals. "Winter Nights" was recorded during early sessions for Night of the Stormrider while Gene Adam was still on vocals, but this was the track which prompted Schaffer to ask Adam to get singing lessons, as it was felt he could not handle the high notes. Therefore, the song was not used on the album due to its acrimonious history, though it would have fit in with the storyline of the album. Live performances of this song from that era (such as Wuppertal '91) show him struggling to sing it, probably contributing to his dismissal. Schaffer eventually dug the song out of the vaults to use on this album with Barlow providing vocals, but, as mentioned in the album's booklet, used a 1986 Purgatory demo for the backing track instead.

Track listing

One CD edition

No.TitleLyricsMusicOriginal albumLength
1."Enter the Realm"(instrumental)Jon SchafferEnter the Realm0:54
2."Colors"Schaffer
Iced Earth4:50
3."Angels Holocaust"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider4:53
4."Stormrider"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Night of the Stormrider4:47
5."Winter Nights"SchafferSchaffer(previously unreleased)3:55
6."Nightmares"SchafferSchafferEnter the Realm3:42
7."Pure Evil"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Night of the Stormrider6:33
8."Solitude"(instrumental)
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth1:44
9."When the Night Falls"SchafferSchafferIced Earth9:01
10."Desert Rain"Schaffer
Night of the Stormrider6:56
11."The Funeral"(instrumental)
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth6:15
12."Cast in Stone" (rewritten version of "Written on the Walls")Matt Barlow
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
  • Abell
Iced Earth5:59
13."Reaching the End"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider1:11
14."Travel in Stygian"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider9:32
15."Iced Earth"SchafferSchafferIced Earth5:22

Disc one

No.TitleLyricsMusicOriginal albumLength
1."Enter the Realm" SchafferEnter the Realm0:54
2."Colors"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth4:50
3."Angels Holocaust"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider4:53
4."Stormrider"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Night of the Stormrider4:47
5."Winter Nights"SchafferSchaffer(previously unreleased)3:55
6."Nightmares"SchafferSchafferEnter the Realm3:42
7."Before the Vision"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Abell
Night of the Stormrider1:35
8."Pure Evil"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Night of the Stormrider6:33
9."Solitude"(instrumental)
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth1:44
10."The Funeral"(instrumental)
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth6:15
11."When the Night Falls"SchafferSchafferIced Earth9:01

Disc two

No.TitleLyricsMusicOriginal albumLength
1."Burnt Offerings"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Burnt Offerings7:22
2."Cast in Stone" (rewritten version of "Written on the Walls")Barlow
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
  • Abell
Iced Earth5:59
3."Desert Rain"Schaffer
  • Schaffer
  • Abell
Night of the Stormrider6:56
4."Brainwashed"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Burnt Offerings5:22
5."Life and Death"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
Iced Earth6:07
6."Creator Failure"Schaffer
  • Shawver
  • Schaffer
  • Abell
Burnt Offerings6:02
7."Reaching the End"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider1:11
8."Travel in Stygian"SchafferSchafferNight of the Stormrider9:32
9."Dante's Inferno"SchafferSchafferBurnt Offerings16:26
10."Iced Earth"SchafferSchafferIced Earth5:22

Personnel

  • Jon Schaffer – rhythm guitar, vocals
  • Randall Shawver – lead guitar
  • Matt Barlow – lead vocals
  • Brent Smedley – drums on tracks 1,2,5,6,9,21
  • James MacDonough – bass on 1,2,5,6,9,21
  • Dave Abell – bass on 3,4,7,8,10-20
  • Mike McGill – drums on 10,11,13,16
  • Richey Secchiari – drums on 3,4,7,8,14,18,19
  • Rodney Beasley – drums on 12,15,17,20
Additional personnel
  • Howard Helm – keyboards
  • Kent Smith – keyboards

References

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