Iron Man
South Of The Earth (2lp)
Rising out of the same Maryland/DC mean streets as fellow US doom pioneers Pentagram and The Obsessed, IRON MAN was formed in 1988 as a Black Sabbath tribute band by guitarist Alfred Morris III, whose musical career began in 1977 with mysterious proto-doom cult FORCE. Al's legendary, heavy, unearthly guitar tone was already much in evidence on FORCE's ultra-rare 1981 debut EP, and it has only deepened, hardened, improved and refined in the ensuing 32 years. Signed to the legendary underground doom label Hellhound Records, IRON MAN released its stellar 'Black Night' debut in 1993, followed by 'The Passage' in 1994, before line-up and label instability forced the band into a late 90s wilderness period. They re-emerged in 1999 with 'Generation Void', before another extended hiatus. This time it took a full ten years before Al reassembled the indestructible IRON MAN with yet another new line-up for the aptly-named return-to-form 'I Have Returned' on Shadow Kingdom. 'South Of The Earth' is, without question, Iron Man's strongest, heaviest release to date. The time has come for a wider audience to finally appreciate the grinding majesty of this true underground phenomena.