Iron Jaw hail from Fort Worth, Texas and play metal in the classic tradition of elder gods Judas Priest, Motörhead and Saxon, to name but a few.
The earth-shattering vocals of Todd Pack gives a classy veneer to all the tracks, while guitarists Rick Perry and Jeff Brown concentrate on ruthlessly efficient riffs and surgically precise solos. The rhythmic thunder is provided by bassist Clay McCarty and drummer Randy Cook.
Rick Perry is a long time fixture on the Dallas/Fort Worth metal scene, having been a founding member of thrash titans Gammacide and Warbeast. Randy Cook’s name will also be familiar to fans of Texas thrash, having pounded the skins for the pioneering Rotting Corpse. However, Iron Jaw draws their influence from the earlier metal tones of the late 70’s and early 80’s – the bands, songs, and albums that inspired them to take up musical instruments in the first place.
“Chain of Command” delivers a sound both familiar and fresh, with an emphasis on songs that are tightly crafted. Iron Jaw’s debut release was recorded at the beginning of 2020 at ATX Audio in Arlington, Texas with Josh Woodward at the helm. True to the heritage of the Lone Star State, Iron Jaw ignores trends and forges their brand of classic heavy metal with the fire of Texas independence!
Steel Mill’s Metal Grinder found out about the band’s style, influences, current record and upcoming activity from guitarist Perry!
First off, can you tell us about the history of Iron Jaw, how did the band start and who are the members?
Iron Jaw formed in 2017, although I had been playing with Randy Cook (drums) and Clay Mccarty (bass) for a couple years before that in a different band. When that band broke up, Clay, Randy and myself continued writing and playing together. Clay suggested his friend Jeff Brown join in on second guitar, which was great because I have always been a huge fan of Priest-style twin guitars, dueling solos, and harmonies. The missing piece of the puzzle was found when Todd Pack joined us as vocalist, he really helped bring our songs to life. The members of Iron jaw all have deep roots in the Dallas metal scene, and we have known each other for decades, although we’ve only been together as a unit for a few years.
Your style and song writing owns a lot to classic metal bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Saxon. Is that something that’s totally in your blood and when you write a song or a guitar riff, classic heavy metal naturally comes out, you don’t need to process it?
One thing about the old school metal bands like Priest and Saxon is that their riffs were often quite simple. And it is hard to come up with new riffs that are like that because the simple ones have already been written! But that’s what we try to come up with…simple, direct riffs that are still catchy, heavy, and hopefully somewhat original! The songs are a result of our influences, and our combined talents as musicians. Jeff or I come up with a riff and we play through it with Randy, arranging it along the way. We decide on the tempo and then we build up the song from there. We don’t force the songs to come out in a certain style, it’s just the way it comes out when we are playing together.
Although those classic bands remain very popular there are not that many new groups forging that sound as opposed to more modern or extreme metal genres. Do you think there is a chance new bands will come along to take the throne from those groups once they eventually retire?
No one will ever take the throne away from the Elder Gods of Metal, but it is true that they will all eventually have to retire. People will continue to enjoy the recordings of classic metal bands for generations to come. However, if fans of this style of metal hunger for NEW music which honour the old school scriptures, then they can turn to bands like Iron Jaw!
Iron Jaw’s debut album “Chain Of Command” was released last fall. How did the recording progress, any challenges in putting the thing together under COVID-19 restrictions?
It was recorded before the pandemic, so that really didn’t affect it at all. We recorded it at a friend’s home studio, and we did it pretty quickly. Randy did all the drums in one day, then it took another few days to do the basic rhythm tracks. We took our time mixing it to extract the most metallic power possible.
What are your favourite songs if you had to pick a cut from the record?
My favorites at the moment are “Crypt of Rodan” and “No Speed Limit”, but I think all the tracks are good.
You also shot few music videos for “Ride Free Or Die” and “Devil’s Rain”. What kind of experience was that?
A very cool experience! We have some die-hard supporters who are always at every gig, wearing their Iron Jaw shirts and raising hell for metal. “Devil’s Rain” was our first video and we thought it would be cool to give these maniacs a little cameo appearance. So, we enlisted them to be the “road crew” you see setting up the gear at the beginning of the video. The video ended up getting a very good reaction, especially because it came out when the pandemic was first hitting and people couldn’t go to gigs… so we had a somewhat “captive” audience, if you will.
“Ride Free or Die” was directed, shot, and edited by our vocalist Todd Pack. It was his first attempt at shooting a video and he did an excellent job. Videos are very important now since so many people are exposed to music on Youtube or Facebook. But videos are also expensive, so I was glad Todd took it upon himself to figure out how we could do it ourselves. We like to be self sufficient.
What “gear” are the Iron Jaw players currently using?
Jeff and I both play vintage Jackson Randy Rhoads guitars through Marshall JVM heads. Clay plays an ESP Phoenix bass through Ampeg amps. Randy plays Yamaha drums.
Obviously, the whole world is struggling with lack of live concerts due to coronavirus. Have you used the downtime to rehearse your live shows for future touring?
Last summer we did a live stream performance, which was cool, but definitely not as gratifying as playing before a real audience. However, we have been doing gigs the past few months. Texas allowed bars to open with reduced capacity last fall, and they opened up completely a month ago. As long as the venues are following the state regulations, and everything is safe, we feel good about playing gigs and they have been very successful, because many people are starving for live music.
Are you planning to feature the whole of “Chain Of Command” in your live set?
Usually our set is about 45 to 55 minutes and we can play most of the CD, plus we have our second CD just about written and we’ve been playing a few of the new songs as well.
You are being distributed also in Europe by Underground Power Records. Any other possibilities for exposure or even live gigs at some point over there?
Yes we are thrilled to partner with Underground Power Records not only because they are distributing Iron Jaw throughout Europe, but they are also getting us in the magazines, webzines, and radio shows over there, for example we just did a big feature with Stefan Glas for Rock Hard Magazine in Germany. That’s the kind of thing we need to get the word out about Iron Jaw. Of course getting exposure on the Steel Mill is great also! As for live performances in Europe, that has not been discussed yet but that would be a dream come true to play for metal fans overseas… if the possibility arises, we would surely try to make it happen.
When situation resumes to normal, what opportunities there are to play live in Texas? How would you describe the club scene over there nowadays?
It is slowly coming back to life. There are several nice clubs and small theaters in the Dallas / Fort Worth area that have live music, and many of them will book metal bands from time to time. Some parts of Texas are still shut down, but I am sure they will be opening back up again soon. We recently did a show with Helstar here in Dallas, they said there was nowhere in Houston for them to play at. When we play live, the crowd is usually a couple hundred or more. Not the biggest crowds, but metal isn’t for everybody – and I prefer it that way!
What do you think Iron Jaw can offer to fans that other classic heavy metal bands cannot?
What we can offer is new, fresh music in the spirit of the classic bands that they love. We strive for direct, energetic songs that follow the sacred metal laws. No messing around, just straight to the point. Of course there are still veteran bands who do the same thing, but some of them are in the twilight of their existence. In my mind, there will always be people who crave these hallowed sounds, and we hope they will check out Iron Jaw!
Any final words for the readers of Steel Mill?
What an honour to be featured on K.K.’s website! Priest will always be the gods of metal, and the members of Iron Jaw are all big fans. K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton have been massive influences on me as a player and songwriter, so hopefully everyone reading the Steel Mill will find something of interest in our band! Please check us out for some old school metal with a little Texas flavor! You can get our CD “Chain of Command” and other merch on https://ironjaw.bandcamp.com or contact us at https://facebook.com/ironjawheavymetal.
Thanks Ville for the chance to speak to your readers and keep the furnace hot!
Interview: Ville Krannila
Photos: Iron Jaw & Stuart Taylor
Check out Steel Mill’s Fan Profile on Rick Perry from link.
Line-up:
Todd Pack – Vocals
Rick Perry – Guitars
Jeff Brown – Guitars
Clay Mccarty – Bass
Randy Cook – Drums
Iron Jaw links:
www.facebook.com/ironjawheavymetal
https://bandcamp.com/ironjaw
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2SZTTjdiEUgk4mbdEq2Gzn
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyq7Y72y03j-pbzsTZWiIGQ
