Photo by John Malley
Satanik Royalty Records today unleashes a new two-track digital single from Seattle, Washington-based dirge trio, OLD IRON.
The songs — “Ahnighito” and “Fractal Storm” — were originally recorded for OLD IRON’s 2014-released Cordyceps full-length with Brandon Ramsey on drums. Reimagined with current drummer Trent McIntyre, these recordings stand as the best documentation of these songs in both performance and fidelity.
Thematically, they serve as bookends to the concept loosely running throughout Cordyceps: that human consciousness was affected by ancient exposure to extraterrestrial fungi by way of meteorites. Ten-thousand years ago the Cape York meteorite broke into three pieces as it hit Greenland. Named after one of these pieces, “Ahnighito” chronicles its descent to earth and the harvesting of its iron. Maybe there was more than just rock and metal in that meteorite!
The exposure inevitably leads to fungal growth inside the host finishing with a psychedelic crescendo. Sit back and relax as the layers of your mind peel away into the “Fractal Storm.”
“Ahnighito” and “Fractal Storm” were recorded by Nicholas Wilbur, mixed by the inimitable Matt Bayles, and mastered by Brad Boatright.
Buy/stream both tracks now at the Satanik Royalty Records Bandcamp page at THIS LOCATION.
Find more from OLD IRON at the Satanik Royalty webshop HERE.
The tritone — also known as “the Devil’s interval” — is a pairing of notes that are three whole steps apart. It’s simply an interval between two frequencies, but for whatever reason, the human brain translates that pairing as sounding evil. Western composers avoided the note combination for centuries. The church frowned upon its use. It’s strange that two notes could elicit such negative reactions. But this is part of the magic of music—that certain combinations of frequencies trigger specific human emotions.
OLD IRON certainly doesn’t shy away from the tritone or any other malicious note combination, and their explorations of the emotional implications of dissonance run parallel to their navigation of altered states and archaic sciences.
Jerad Shealey (The Helm, Heiress) and Jesse Roberts (Sandrider, Kid Congo Powers, The Ruby Doe) started writing music with original drummer Brandon Ramsey during 2011 with the goal of getting loud, heavy, and weird. Later that year their first self-released full-length Cordyceps (2012) was recorded in Roberts’ basement. Current drummer, Trent McIntyre joined the ranks soon thereafter. With McIntyre in the equation their second record came into focus. With Matt Bayles (Mastodon, Botch) at the engineering helm, Lupus Metallorum (2016) was recorded at The Red Room in Seattle and released on Good To Die Records in 2016. The critically lauded offering captured the full weight of a band whose megalithic sound had previously best been experienced live and in the flesh. In 2022, the band teamed up with French doom/hardcore practitioners Verdun for the release of a four-track split via Satanik Royalty Records.
OLD IRON:
Jesse Roberts – vocals, guitar, samples
Jerad Shealey – bass, vocals, samples
Trent McIntyre- drums
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