(Photo courtesy of The Damned Things Facebook Page)
Keith Buckley – lead vocals | Rob Caggiano – lead & rhythm guitars | Andy Hurley – drums
Scott Ian – rhythm guitar | Joe Trohman – lead & rhythm guitars
*Note: Josh Newton took over bass guitar duties as of 2010.
Sounds like a pretty decent line up right? It also surprised me the diversity of the group too. I don't think you'd ever see another time members of Fall Out Boy, Anthrax, and Everytime I Die coming together in such harmony. The guys were all very excited nonetheless to take part in this project. As you can see from the interview pieces Scott Ian gave, they all wanted to jump in and see what they could create.
"We're trying not to over-think it. Nobody's arm is being twisted to be here. We're just doing it as we go along, and this is the natural progression. We're able to do things exactly how we want to do them by keeping it simple and comfortable for everyone." -Ian
So they got together in a studio, hashed out a track listing, laid down some songs and the outcome was their debut record "Ironiclast". Ten solid tunes that you can easily play from start to finish and can also provide you with that upbeat attitude to finish off your day (at work or at home).
"I just wanted to let you know how proud we are of this song and this whole record. It really feels special to us and I think we've written something that DESERVES to be heard. From top to bottom, every song rocks. Sick riffs, killer grooves, ripping leads, HUGE hooks aka ROCK." -Ian
Their debut (and ONLY thus far) release "Ironiclast" was released on December 14th, 2010 via Mercury Records. Check out the artwork and track listing below:
1. Handbook for the Recently Deceased
2. Bad Blood
3. Friday Night (Going Down in Flames)
4. We've Got a Situation Here
5. Black Heart
6. A Great Reckoning
7. Little Darling
8. Ironiclast
9. Graverobber
10. The Blues Havin' Blues
Additional help (such as production, mixing, editing, etc.) on the "Ironiclast" is listed below:
Rob Caggiano – engineer, producer | Ben Terry – mixing assistant | Jon Martinez – assistant engineer | Dave McNair – mastering | Claudius Mittendorfer – drum engineering | Nick Raskulinecz – mixing | Dante Renzi – drum technician | Bryan Russell – editing, engineer | Joe Trohman – producer | Teruhisa Uchiyama – assistant engineer
So the group isn't really political so why the altered $1 bill as the cover for the album? Well, being that Anthrax and Everytime I Die (and to a lesser extent Fall Out Boy) are politically charged bands on different levels, it wasn't surprising that their mutual influences would reflect on the artwork and lyrical content. Guitarist Joe Trohman explains in detail below:
"This art is meant to represent a example of an 'ironiclast.' The $1 bill is one of the most iconoclastic images we, as a band, could think of. Every time we kept musing on other widely recognized bits of imagery, we always came back to this bank note for some reason. It felt relevant, regardless of the meaning one decides to attach. It can that represent everything from the American dream and total independence, to capitalism and a loss in sight of what's really important in this world. It could be representative of not just the current American economy, but also of the world economy and its piss-poor state of being. This could also conjure up the old 'money-is-the-root-of-all-evil' adage. Maybe you just hate George Washington and you feel like this is really sticking it to him...FINALLY! Or maybe you love George Washington and have been dying to give him a cool makeover. This is all left up to you. Many meanings can be attached to this imagery. It's all in how you choose to interpret it." -Joe Trohman
Veering away from the background history of the album and switching to the songs themselves, I have to say that my top rated song would be "Friday Night (Going Down in Flames)". Why? It's my weekend anthem every damn Friday (all puns intended). Clock out of work, crank the song and get pumped for whatever the weekend has to offer.
Even though I recommend the album as a whole to listen to, there are a few songs that (I feel) stick out and caught my ear right away. Songs such as "Handbook For The Recently Deceased" and "Bad Blood" get the album off to a great start and then follow with their singles "Friday Night (Going Down in Flames)" and "We've Got A Situation Here" keep the vibe going. The album closes off with some great tunes such as "The Great Reckoning", "Little Darling", and the self titled "Ironiclast" which makes it hard for one to just simply stop after a couple songs.
So in closing, you've heard about them, seen the videos, checked out the music, and now it's your turn to go and grab a copy of the album. Have fun on your next Friday night!
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