Ironbar, a new band from the Missouri area, just released their debut EP, Demonstration of Intent, via cassette on both Born to Hang and Rage Deposit Records. The group plays noisy, aggressive hardcore without the polished pleasantries of many of their peers. Their sound feels like a continuation of the spartan, acerbic style of hardcore’s yesteryear, but that is not at all to say they’re a “throwback” band.
Ironbar fit just fine in Hardcore's current musical climate. The EP’s third track, “Unseen Warfare,” is a blistering minute and fifteen seconds of hardcore punk angst. The guitar work isn’t overly fast, but it still delivers a crunchiness that’s complemented by powerful drumming. All the while, the vocals, delivered with an angry crescendo that shifts between shouting and screaming, anchor the entire song. The music thumps as it drives toward the breakdown, and the breakdown itself never feels over-the-top or hokey.
It’s a totally appropriate way to close the song. The riffage slows down, and the final burst of laughter from the vocals somehow makes the whole thing even more confrontational. Also, how can a listener not love the line, “No home, no shelter. We’re prisoners of war. Nuking our minds and we’re begging for more”? It drives home the honest cynicism at the heart of the song’s lyrics.
“Untreatable Parasites” is another standout from Ironbar’s EP. The song opens with a pounding drumbeat that kicks the guitars and bass into gear, then quickly launches into a near-blastbeat verse followed by a frenetic guitar lead. That all leads into the song’s final pounding breakdown. Worth noting is the drum work throughout, which is really well laid out and gives the song a depth beyond pure anger.
Lyrically, I love the content here: “Monetize existence. Buy out all resistance. Profit off their sickness. Silence every witness.” It’s stripped-down, bare-bones hardcore punk lyricism without pretense or hesitation.
What Ironbar present here is angry hardcore punk done really well. While it may be simple enough for me to type, it’s not nearly as simple to pull off. But they do.
Demonstration of Intent is a strong debut by any metric, and it offers reassurance that hardcore punk is alive, well, dialed into the world, and ready to keep pushing.
Get It
- Born to Hang (cassette (clear))
- Rage Deposit Records (cassette (yellow))
Tagged: ironbar
