View source for Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2009}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[Bal-Sagoth]]
| cover      = StarfireBurningUpontheIce-VeiledThroneofUltimaThule.JPG
| alt        =
| released   = November 25, 1996
| recorded   = August 1996 at Academy Studios, [[Yorkshire]], England
| venue      =
| studio     =
| genre      = [[Symphonic black metal]]
| length     = {{Duration|m=52|s=37}}
| label      = Cacophonous
| producer   = Mags, Bal-Sagoth
| prev_title = [[A Black Moon Broods Over Lemuria]]
| prev_year  = 1995
| next_title = [[Battle Magic]]
| next_year  = 1998
}}
'''''Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule''''' is [[Bal-Sagoth]]'s second full-length album, released in November 1996 through Cacophonous Records. As with the first album, the band only had around two weeks to record this album. They had major problems with recording the album: the temperature in the recording studio was so consistently high that the recording equipment broke down several times; and the record company, Cacophonous Records, refused to pay for new tape reels to record on, so the band had to actually record over the first album.<ref name="Bal-Sagoth: The Annotated Discography">{{cite web|url=http://byronbalsagoth.wordpress.com/band-news/|title=Bal-Sagoth: The Annotated Discography|date=17 July 2009 }}</ref>
The cover artwork for the album is a painting by the famed artist [[Joe Petagno]], based on a concept by Bal-Sagoth vocalist/lyricist [[Byron Roberts]].
This album marks the debut of vocalist/lyricist [[Byron Roberts]]' character "Caylen-Tor", the protagonist of the song "To Dethrone the Witch-Queen of Mytos K'unn (The Legend of the Battle of Blackhelm Vale)". Roberts would later go on to write a series of novels featuring this character ("The Chronicles of Caylen-Tor"), published by the American [[Sword and sorcery]] publishing house [[DMR Books]].<ref name="The Chronicles of Caylen-Tor">{{cite book|last=Roberts|first=Byron|title=The Chronicles of Caylen-Tor|publisher=DMR Books|year=2019|isbn=9780990990062}}</ref>
In the song titled "And Lo, When the Imperium Marches Against Gul-Kothoth, then Dark Sorceries Shall Enshroud the Citadel of the Obsidian Crown", a strong synthesizer melody begins at 4:17.  This melody is a variation upon the melody heard in the 1982 film ''[[Conan the Barbarian (1982 film)|Conan the Barbarian]]'' during the scene inside [[Thulsa Doom]]'s stronghold, composed by [[Basil Poledouris]].{{Opinion|date=October 2023}}
Again from the score of ''Conan the Barbarian'', at 00:37 in the track "Recovery", the theme seems to be faithfully adapted by Bal-Sagoth in the track "In the Raven-Haunted Forests of Darkenhold, Where Shadows Reign and the Hues of Sunlight Never Dance" at 2:02.
The band explains their inspiration came mainly from John Williams and Basil Poledouris' scores amongst others.{{citation needed|date=April 2013}}
On 13 May 2016 the album was re-released by Cacophonous Records as a special edition CD featuring remastered audio, expanded lyric booklet, new sleeve notes and exclusive new artwork.
In 2021, it was elected by ''[[Metal Hammer]]'' as the 16th best symphonic metal album of all time.<ref name="MHbestsymph">{{cite web |last1=Davies |first1=Hywel |last2=Dome |first2=Malcolm |last3=Goodman |first3=Eleanor |last4=Chantler |first4=Chris |last5=Gordon |first5=Connie |last6=Grady |first6=Spencer |last7=Rees |first7=Adam |last8=Selzer |first8=Jonathan |title=The 25 best symphonic metal albums |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-25-best-symphonic-metal-albums |website=[[Metal Hammer]] |publisher=[[Future plc]] |access-date=2 January 2022 |date=17 November 2021}}</ref>
== Track listing ==
All songs written and composed by [[Byron Roberts]] and [[Jonny Maudling|Jonny]] and Chris Maudling.
{{tracklist
| total_length    = 52:37
| title1          = Black Dragons Soar Above the Mountain of Shadows (Prologue)
| length1         = 3:05
| title2          = To Dethrone the Witch-Queen of Mytos K'unn (The Legend of the Battle of Blackhelm Vale)
| length2         = 6:45
| title3          = As the Vortex Illumines the Crystalline Walls of Kor-Avul-Thaa
| length3         = 6:35
| title4          = Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule
| length4         = 7:23
| title5          = Journey to the Isle of Mists (Over the Moonless Depths of Night-Dark Seas)
| length5         = 1:11
| title6          = The Splendour of a Thousand Swords Gleaming Beneath the Blazon of the Hyperborean Empire
| length6         = 6:03
| title7          = And Lo, When the Imperium Marches Against Gul-Kothoth, Then Dark Sorceries Shall Enshroud the Citadel of the Obsidian Crown (Episode: VIII)
| length7         = 6:28
| title8          = Summoning the Guardians of the Astral Gate
| length8         = 6:09
| title9          = In the Raven-Haunted Forests of Darkenhold, Where Shadows Reign and the Hues of Sunlight Never Dance
| length9         = 6:29
| title10         = At the Altar of the Dreaming Gods (Epilogue)
| length10        = 2:29
}}
== Personnel ==
* [[Byron Roberts]] – vocals, cover concept, logo
* Chris Maudling – guitar, bass
* [[Jonny Maudling]] – keyboards, drums
===Additional personnel===
* [[Joe Petagno]] - cover art
* Mags - producer, engineering
== References ==
<references/>
{{Bal-Sagoth}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Bal-Sagoth albums]]
[[Category:1996 albums]]
[[Category:Albums with cover art by Joe Petagno]]
[[Category:Cacophonous Records albums]]