{"id":6381,"date":"2021-04-11T17:53:24","date_gmt":"2021-04-11T17:53:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kkdowning.net\/steelmill\/?post_type=interviews&p=6381"},"modified":"2024-09-06T09:45:02","modified_gmt":"2024-09-06T09:45:02","slug":"fire-from-texas-iron-jaw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/kkdowning.net\/steelmill\/fire-from-texas-iron-jaw\/","title":{"rendered":"Fire from Texas: Iron Jaw."},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Stuart Taylor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Iron Jaw hail from Fort Worth, Texas and play metal in the classic tradition of elder gods Judas Priest, Mot\u00f6rhead and Saxon, to name but a few.<\/h2>\n

The earth-shattering vocals of Todd Pack<\/strong> gives a classy veneer to all the tracks, while guitarists Rick Perry<\/strong> and Jeff Brown<\/strong> concentrate on ruthlessly efficient riffs and surgically precise solos. The rhythmic thunder is provided by bassist Clay McCarty<\/strong> and drummer Randy Cook<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Rick Perry is a long time fixture on the Dallas\/Fort Worth metal scene, having been a founding member of thrash titans Gammacide<\/strong> and Warbeast.<\/strong> Randy Cook\u2019s 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\u2019s and early 80\u2019s \u2013 the bands, songs, and albums that inspired them to take up musical instruments in the first place.<\/p>\n

\u201cChain of Command\u201d<\/strong> delivers a sound both familiar and fresh, with an emphasis on songs that are tightly crafted. Iron Jaw\u2019s debut release was recorded at the beginning of 2020 at ATX Audio in Arlington, Texas with Josh Woodward<\/strong> 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!<\/p>\n

Steel Mill’s Metal Grinder found out about the band’s style, influences, current record and upcoming activity from guitarist Perry!<\/p>\n

First off, can you tell us about the history of Iron Jaw, how did the band start and who are the members?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u2019ve only been together as a unit for a few years.<\/p>\n

Your style and song writing owns a lot to classic metal bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Saxon. Is that something that\u2019s totally in your blood and when you write a song or a guitar riff, classic heavy metal naturally comes out, you don\u2019t need to process it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u2019s what we try to come up with\u2026simple, 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\u2019t force the songs to come out in a certain style, it\u2019s just the way it comes out when we are playing together.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Stuart Taylor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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!<\/p>\n

Iron Jaw\u2019s debut album \u201cChain Of Command\u201d was released last fall. How did the recording progress, any challenges in putting the thing together under COVID-19 restrictions?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was recorded before the pandemic, so that really didn\u2019t affect it at all. We recorded it at a friend\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

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What are your favourite songs if you had to pick a cut from the record?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My favorites at the moment are \u201cCrypt of Rodan\u201d<\/strong> and \u201cNo Speed Limit\u201d, but I think all the tracks are good.<\/p>\n

You also shot few music videos for \u201cRide Free Or Die\u201d and \u201cDevil\u2019s Rain\u201d. What kind of experience was that?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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. \u201cDevil\u2019s Rain\u201d 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 \u201croad crew\u201d 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\u2019t go to gigs\u2026 so we had a somewhat \u201ccaptive\u201d audience, if you will.<\/p>\n

\u201cRide Free or Die\u201d 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.<\/p>\n