| Musical Style: Heavy Metal | Produced By: |
| Record Label: Armor | Country Of Origin: USA |
| Year Released: 2025 | Artist Website: Saint |
| Tracks: 14 | Rating: No Quote |
| Running Time: 60:39 |
Salem, Oregon based Saint has long been synonymous with traditional heavy metal, making it a popular choice for those who enjoy anything from Judas Priest to Accept to Armageddon and all things in between. Groups initial ‘Josh Kramer era’ - in ode to its inaugural lead vocalist - began with independent 1984 EP Warriors Of The Son but also includes Pure Metal Records full length follow up releases Time’s End and Too Late For Living from 1986 and 1988, respectively. Subsequent to extended hiatus, the ‘Josh Kramer comeback era’ started in 2004 and yielded five additional classic releases: In The Battle (2004), The Mark (2006), Crime Scene Earth (2008), Hell Blade (2010) and Desperate Night (2012). With Kramer’s departure, however, it ushered in the ‘post Josh Kramer era’ to entail Brian Phyll Miller, fronting Broad Is The Gate (2014), and Dave Nelson, lending his abilities to The Calf (2019), Heaven Fell (2022) and Immortalizer (2024).
When Nelson left Saint, it opened the door for fourth lead vocalist Eli Prinsen, whom gained initial renown from fronting three albums with The Sacrificed - The DaVinci Hoax (2007), 2012 (2010) and III (2012) - and one with Sacred Warrior, Waiting In Darkness from 2013. Prinsen joined Saint in time for its appearance at Immortal Festival 2025 Part One, which prompted the group to record its festival rehearsal session and independently release it as a limited edition 13 song (actually 14 but more on this later) ‘bootleg’ CD under the title Immortalized At The BMI.
Prinsen, a classically trained vocalist with a classic tenor and soaring style not unlike Geoff Tate (Queensrÿche), performs admirably with a deliver that has more in common with that of Kramer (even if loosely so) as opposed to the power metal influenced Phyll Miller or gravelly and gruff delivery of Nelson. In terms of specifics, he settles into a smooth and even middle register groove complementary to the Saint traditional metal form but proves capable of extending into high-end territory and matching Kramer’s screaming falsettos verbatim. His versatility reveals a penchant for occasionally reaching down in somber, if not low-key fashion. Needless to say, the future looks exceedingly bright for Saint with Prinsen at the vocal helm!
Best manner in which to describe the Immortalized At The BMI track listing would be a Saint greatest hits package recorded live in the studio- in other words great song after great song! It adds up to close to a perfect set list you could expect in that I cannot find fault with any of the songs Saint chose to perform live. Equally notable is manner in which Saint did a good job balancing material between each of its three eras: the ‘Josh Kramer era’ includes six songs, while four attributes to the ‘Josh Kramer comeback era’ and four others to the ‘post Josh Kramer era’. Lone complaint, and not to be unfair or unreasonable, is lack of material from notable releases Warriors Of The Son, In The Battle and Crime Scene Earth. That said, when also factoring an extensive Saint back catalog dating to the mid eighties, it is understandable the group had some difficult cuts to make when finalizing the Immortal Festival set list!
Production values might not be up to standard of a studio release but otherwise succeed in capturing the groups signature high energy live sound, which is what a ‘live in the studio’ experience is about. The point being not a great deal of polish is required of a rehearsal recording to begin with. Overall, I am somewhat reminded of the Intense Live Series put out by Intense Records in the early nineties to feature notable artists such as Deliverance, Die Happy and others. Lone difference with Immortalized At The BMI is we do not get any of the studio banter cluttering up the Intense Live Series releases.
As is typical of albums independently released by Saint, Immortalized At The BMI is not without its share of typographical and/or proofreading errors. In terms of errata, the song breakdown on back of the digi-pak packaging lists “Primed And Ready” and “Immortalizer” as the third and fourth tracks but are transposed when the CD is played back. Likewise, sixth song “Phantom-Steel” breaks down between “Phantom Of The Galaxy” and “Steel Killer”, making Immortalized At The BMI actually a 14-song release as opposed to 13.
I do not think it makes sense to provide one of my standard track-by-track breakdowns of what amounts a compilation album of songs recorded live in the studio. However, I would like to go into detail how certain tracks differ from their studio counterparts. Opening Hell Blade cuts in short keyboard instrumental “(The Ascent)” and “The Blade” ends up combined into one song of Immortalized At The BMI. “Vengeance” is extended an extra minute with a closing stretch of open- air guitar soloing (courtesy of Matt Smith), while “In The Night” also lengthened another minute by ending to an ominous churning of rhythm guitar. Finally, “Primed And Ready” opens to a drum and bass solo followed by gruff chanting of ‘hey, hey, hey’.
Repeat listen to Immortalized At The BMI reveals the older Saint material to flawlessly gel with that newer- front to back the album logically flows from one song to another without missing a step. Saint is still Saint no matter the era individual songs are written and recorded. Again, I cannot say enough good things about the thought and detail that went into the track listing. Overall, credit Saint for making Immortalized At The BMI available to its fans. Obviously a limited edition package, once it’s gone it’s gone, so be sure to reserve a copy before it sells out. Best-case scenario would be for Immortalized At The BMI to be picked up for reissue with better cover art and packaging along with detailed liner notes from founding member and bassist Richard Lynch.
Review by Andrew Rockwell
Track Listing: “Reap The Flesh” (4:22), “The Blade” (4:26), “Immortalizer” (4:21), “Primed And Ready” (4:24), “Hell Blade” (4:50), “Phantom Of The Galaxy” (2:36), “Steel Killer” (5:58), “Through The Sky” (4:24), “We All Stand” (3:45), “Ride To Kill” (3:36), “Eyes Of Fire” (5:08), “Vengeance” (4:26), “In The Night” (4:21), “Too Late For Living” (3:59)
Musicians
Eli Prinsen - Lead Vocals
Matt Smith - Guitars
Richard Lynch - Bass
Jared Knowland - Drums
