From deepest, darkest um…. Swindon comes Iron Hearse! Bugger me. Who’d have thought the city that gave us Billie Piper, Gilbert O’Sullivan and Jahmene Douglas could also offer us some wonderfully heavy, doom laden METULZZZZ as this trio can. How they are not one of the 7 Wonders of Swindon I’ll never know…..
This is a brilliant album. I’m going to say that right up front. It’s fun, it’s groovy and it’s fun. Did I say that already? It’s like when your Nan bakes you a cake and you think it’s going to be one of those boring fruit cake but instead it turns out to be a humungous chocolate cake. With extra chocolate.
Some of the standout moments for me…. ‘Wolf Clergy’ has an amazing chorus riff and great cowbell action (yeah I said it…). ‘A Slow & Heavy Ride’ features a riff post-solo that stomps all over your face yet leaves you happy that it did so!! ‘Hydra's Children’ features (again) a riff that Iommi could only dream of. In fact, there are 3 riffs in the ONE song that could easily have formed the basis for separate songs.
‘Black Sermon’ is the album’s standout track with its sludgey grooves and riffs. At one point singer Grant claims "I've already dug your grave" and then cracks open a riff that sounds like it’s come from 6 feet under the earth that hurtles the song to its conclusion. Final track ‘The Ultimate Atomic Man’ contains a bass breakdown riff that has a note that sounds out of place but then the guitars enter and suddenly this riff becomes a queasy delight! Like eating some Battenberg on a roundabout! And what's this? Little bit a faster riffing to finish it all off. Brilliant.
This is a joyous album. With a wall of guitars fuzzing away, a bass rumbling underneath and laid back drums pinning it all together. This is music to bang your head to with a big fat smile of your face. I read a comment somewhere in the wide world on the interwebz complaining about the sound of this record. That it was muddy and amateurish. Rubbish. Mega crunch guitars tones (a lá ‘The Black Album’ by Metallica) would sound wrong here. There is an organic feel to this album, that these 3 guys got into a room and played and seated this record out and somebody happened to press record. It’s totally in keeping with the vibe of the music. Although my only minor complaint is that the sound of the drums need beefing up a bit. The album is available on the band’s Bandcamp page for the stupidly great price of £2.50. Do yourself a favour and get in the Hearse. I’ve called shotgun by the way…..
