Death Dealer Reign Of Steel Review
Death Dealer
Reign Of Steel
Massacre Records
2026
2025 was a great year for Heavy Metal, you just had to look for it. At least that’s how it felt to me. Maybe it’s the old man in me yelling at all these young bucks to stop screaming, tune their guitars properly, and get off my lawn. But it really comes down to who you are and what you’re chasing. As for me, I’ll forever be on the hunt for 100% pure, unadulterated Heavy Metal - no gimmicks, no pretense, just pure steel paired with vocals powerful enough to light up the night sky.
Enter Death Dealer.
And let me be clear, they do not fuck around.
Picking up exactly where they left off in 2020, Death Dealer return with their new long player, “Reign Of Steel”, and the title couldn’t be more appropriate. For a Metalhead like me, this is exactly what the doctor ordered.
Fronted by the unstoppable Sean Peck, who also shares vocal duties in the supergroup The Three Tremors, alongside the legendary Ross The Boss, who needs no introduction, Death Dealer wastes zero time setting the tone. This album is a full-scale blitzkrieg: explosive riffs, blistering leads, and absolutely unhinged vocal acrobatics. For an aging metalhead, it feels like coming home. Sure, none of this is reinventing the wheel, but bands like Death Dealer don’t need to, they raise the bar and reset it with every release. These guys are hell-bent on outdoing themselves, and “Reign Of Steel” proves it.
The press materials tagged this as Power Metal, which feels like a stretch from where I’m standing, though that’s always in the eye of the beholder. Yes, the vocals soar into blazing falsettos, and yes, there’s a dragon mentioned in a song, but that alone doesn’t make it Power Metal. This is Heavy Metal, pure and simple. Tracks like “Compelled,” “Blast The Highway,” “Raging Wild And Free,” and “Bloodbath” don’t just suggest Metal, they scream it. The latter even flirts with a Thrash-leaning vibe in the verses. This album feels less like fantasy escapism and more like something born from a deep love of Judas Priest, motorcycles, and hot rods, though I fully admit I might be projecting my own obsessions onto it.
The slower moments deserve special mention as well. The arrangements and songwriting remain top tier throughout, proving this band knows exactly when to push the throttle and when to let things breathe.
Given how overexposed I am to music these days, it takes a lot to truly impress me, but once again, Death Dealer delivers. These guys clearly know their way around the studio, and they damn sure know how to write a killer song. If you’re looking for a legit Metal album to kick your year off right, look no further. “Reign Of Steel” is the real deal, and the only thing that could rival it might be a brand-new Judas Priest release.