Iron Thrones is a band that truly embodies their name in several aspects. Not to be too corny, but the band hails from our own iron-rich state of Minnesota, and (despite their relatively short time playing together) you can easily consider them to be one of several crown jewels that the currently burgeoning and heavily varied Minneapolis metal scene has to offer. This is an epic progressive death metal quartet (though, on the lookout for another guitarist) that could easily find resonance with fans of Opeth, Death, Between the Buried and Me, Converge or even maybe post-rock like Mogwai. That’s not to say that Iron Thrones really follows in any of these bands footsteps though, as they have begun to perfect their own unique focused sound. Even on this debut, Visions of Light, the band achieve a rare and organic balance of naturalistic melodies and brutal shred. The album is the embodiment of yin-and-yang, a dense atmospheric album to one man and a nuanced progressive headbanger to another. Right now, it’s doing wonders for my ears.
Clearly the band knows how to treat its fans, as well. As such, these guys have posted their entire new album, Visions of Light, online for download. The cool thing is that they’ve gone the Radiohead way of things and made it available for free, “donation” through Amazon, Itunes, etc., or as a hard copy purchase. I’ve never heard how this model has worked out for a local underground metal band (as opposed to juggernauts like RH and Rez), and there’s no word when their $500 quadruple gatefold limited pressing with an optional commentary becomes available, but I really don’t see how it could hurt. There’ll still be many opportunities to support them and purchase hard copies when you’re seeing Iron Thrones in the live setting. They’ve got these area shows lined up, including a performance in Burnsville tomorrow:
Feb 6 @ The Garage w/ Rawhyde in Burnsville, Minnesota
Feb 11 @ The Rafters @ UMD w/ Empires in Duluth, Minnesota
Feb 27 @ Electric Earth in Madison, Wisconsin
Feb 28 @ The Uptown Bar w/ Zebulon Pike in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Apr 3 @ Station 4 w/ The Body Beneath, in St. Paul, Minnesota
May 15 @ TBA w/ The Body Beneath & Rhynoceraptor in Minneapolis, Minnesota
May 16 @ TBA w/ The Body Beneath & Rhynoceraptor in St. Cloud, Minnesota
DIG DEEPER: Download Visions of Light! – Official Site – Myspace
Ashtmatic Kitty has been on a role lately. The record label, run by indie-glorified Sufjan Stevens, has been busy with releases in early ’09 and late ’08, and has managed to curate tons of attention with the release of two rising artists. The Welcome Wagon and DM Stith are those two acts, gaining attention at rapidly increasing rates. And for good reason, whether it’s the almost quirky nature of their music, the comfortability that each offer, or the familiarity that oozes from each track. 
Besides hearing a song or two on a mix from a friend in the past, I’m really not familiar with much from 
I really don’t want to sell this album short because, this album is one more nail in the coffin as a testament to 
You have all been hearing me talk about Evidence non-stop for what seems like the last 6 months. Everything that I have been discussing however has been about his emcee game, not his producing skills. I have to tell you that Evidence is one hell of a producer. I also have to let you know that I absolutely love beat tapes, so this one hits really close to home. I haven’t really listened to the Red or Yellow Tape Instrumentals for awhile, so I didn’t really know what to expect.
Noise music is such a very different type of beast to review. The absolute lack of structure and conventional “song” characteristics can make it impossible for some listeners to digest while other listeners may thoroughly enjoy the instrumental experimentations and interesting nuances that are laced throughout most releases of this nature. Do I attempt to review the music of a noise CD as “good” or “bad” in the context of accepted opinions, or should I simply try to describe the nature of the sounds that I heard and let my reader make up their own mind about the value of those sounds? When talking about one of the genre’s legends, Japan’s 
Whether it’s to fulfill their ego and take over the world, or maybe that they actually do have that much musical creativity. Who knows why musicians jump from group to group trying to juggle three projects at once while disappointing fans who have been waiting for that new album release from one of the three bands. Anyway, it has happened again, this time with some of the lesser known parts of indie rock’s most popular.
(3 1/2 of 4)
MIND INVERSION 