Early this month, independent metal outfit Ignitor unveiled its latest album, Horns and Hammers to the masses. Released Oct. 3 through Metal on Metal internationally and through Revolt Vinyl Records, the 48-minute record is a loving tribute to the metal sounds that laid the groundwork for so much of today’s heavy music that is sure to appeal to a wide range of audiences, if only for its musical content. Of course, that material is just part of what makes the album worth hearing. The lyrical themes that accompany the record’s engaging and entertaining musical arrangements are their own point of interest worth examining. The record’s production puts the finishing touch to the whole, bringing everything together and making the whole that much more appealing to the metal masses. When the production is considered alongside the noted collective content, the whole therein makes Horns and Hammers a welcome addition to this year’s field of new hard rock and metal albums and even independent albums.
Horns and Hammers, the latest album from the neo-heavy metal outfit Ignitor (and the band’s third album behind 2020’s The Golden Age of Black Magick and 2017’s Haunted by Rock & Roll) is a strong new offering from the band that will appeal to plenty of metal legions the world over. That is due in part to the album’s featured musical arrangements. From the album’s opener/title track to its finale, ‘Terminous,’ the record’s musical content carries the torch proudly that was lit so many decades ago by the likes of Judas Priest, Saxon, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Metallica and so many other now famous hard rocking acts. Speaking of Megadeth and Metallica, the album’s opener/title track boasts an arrangement that is easily comparable to works from both of those bands. That I evident through the sharp thrash leaning exhibited throughout its nearly four-and-a-half-minute run time. Even the vocals of front man Jason McMaster hint at vintage Dave Mustaine, to a point. One could also argue a stylistic similarity in McMaster’s delivery style to Exodus vocalist Steve Souza, who has had multiple stints fronting the band, including his latest. ‘Imperial Bloodlines,’ the album’s second track, offers listeners more of a sound that throws back to the power metal sounds of Judas Priest and Saxon (as do the majority of the album’s remaining tracks). As a matter of fact, the band even takes on a Saxon classic late in its nearly 50-minute run time in ‘Machine Gun.’
For all of the influence that Judas Priest and Saxon display throughout the album, the band also exhibits some influence of classic Black Sabbath in the early entry, ‘Dark Horse.’ The clear doom metal sound and style exhibited in the opening bars is clearly a throwback to Sabbath’s early material. That doom metal sound gives way – not too quickly – to the more familiar vintage heavy metal sounds that make up the majority of this record’s body. The band also turns the attention to a more doom metal approach in the album’s closer, ‘Terminous.’ That song spends more time focused on that metal leaning than ‘Dark Horse’ while also ensuring the song boasts its own identity. When it is considered alongside ‘Dark Horse’ and the other neo-classic heavy metal fare that fills this record, musically speaking, the whole forms a solid foundation for Horns and Hammers that is certain to appeal to plenty of audiences.
The music alone is just part of what audiences will appreciate about this latest offering from Ignitor. The lyrical themes that accompany the album make for their own appeal, too. That is because of the range of topics tackled throughout the album. Case in the point is the seeming theme presented in ‘Cyber Crush.’ The crush in this case would seem to be the negative impact of social media, a very common theme nowadays (thankfully) across the musical universe. The seeming theme is addressed as McMaster sings in the song’s lead verse, “I had a dream/A fever dream/About the parts of a new machine/There were voices/Faceless voices/Who would argue all of my choices/Forget to mention/Future tension/Discovery of my new religion/Some said smash it/Some said crash it/But in the end I would have to choose it.” Those faceless voices could easily be the people sitting behind the computer screen, yelling at each other as they type, arguing about anything and everything through social media; those keyboard warriors trying to tell everyone what they should think. He continues in the song, noting, “Pressure/Attention/beyond comprehension/Forever unseen/Who or what controls this machine/Self-awareness of the highest level/We make our Gods/We make our devils.” Yes, there is a bit of religious commentary in that last statement but it is part of that seemingly bigger statement of how we even create our own evils, such as in social media. The pressure for attention beyond comprehension is really what has happened as a result of social media. Everyone has to have their five seconds of fame. Just look at Tik Tok, for instance. Everyone has to have their little videos, crying for attention. It is sad and pathetic. To that end, this seeming commentary about the quite familiar topic that is social media’s “cyber crush” (that crush from the weight of it all) is sure to resonate with plenty of listeners. Again, this is just this critic’s interpretation. One can only hope it is close to being the right interpretation.
Another example of the importance of the album’s lyrical themes comes in the seemingly sociopolitical entry, ‘Imperial Bloodlines.’ In the case of this song, the band seems to address the matter of the warfare that happens globally, all as a result of people’s devotion to their political leaders. This is inferred as McMaster sings, “Vigilantes prowling the streets/Plotting devastation/The kill list is shrinking/And some day they will rest/Saving the name of the patriarch/Burn down the swine that they seek/Doom riders vaporize enemies/To sacrifice keeping the peace/Wreaking hellish havoc/Like flesh-hungry canines/To keep order and preservation/Of imperial bloodlines.” This is something that happens the world over; people killing in the name of their leaders, causing so much havoc along the way and they do it all under the guise of keeping the peace. Governments and their people from the west and east are all guilty of this and it has been a plague among humans since humans first appeared on this planet. The seeming commentary continues as McMaster sings, “Political nightmares/Causing fray within the counsel/The emperor’s warlords congregate in daily session/Meeting the minds of madmen/Unearthing of violent rage/Lif of this dynasty could cut short/History turning the page/Wreaking hellish havoc/There is no sanity/To keep order and preservation/Imperial bloodlines.” The song continues (lyrically) in similar fashion in its third verse. The apparent message, as a result, seems relatively clear. The whole comes across as a damning indictment of the world’s leaders and how they lead the masses to kill all for them, all in the name of peace. Again, here is a familiar topic (especially in the realm of hard rock and metal) that is approached in a unique fashion. That familiarity and unique delivery is sure to make the song’s apparent theme resonate just as much with audiences.
On what seems to be a lighter note is the album’s opener/title track. In the case of this song, listeners get what comes across as a sort of battle cry a la Amon Amarth just sans all of the Viking references. This as McMaster sings, “As simple men/We raise our steins to the sky so high/Complacency to blind us/We are hypnotized and pray the night to survive/The answer/The evil never finds us/In our homes/In our tribes/In our sacred land/The final eve of civilian life/Is this our last tranquil time/At dawn we ride/Dying to fight/To rise again/We ration war screams/Crafting weapons into the night/Retaliation/Revenge in our blood/Soldiers’ spears inclined/We travel suns and we travel moons/To avenge the scars and wounds/Bloodline lost/We cannot forget/The guilty soon forever entombed.” This is clearly a group of warriors preparing for battle. There is even mention in the song’s chorus of “arrows and banners” in “The last war on Earth we will fight.” This is one of those equally familiar fist-pumping anthems that is so commonplace among vintage metal and the neo-classic heavy metal bands that this and so many bands emulate. It is sure to engage and entertain audiences just as much as the other seeming themes examined here and the rest of the album’s themes. All things considered, the overall lyrical content featured throughout Horns and Hammers proves just as important to the album’s presentation as the record’s musical arrangements. The collective content taken into consideration it makes for plenty of reasons for so many metal masses to take in this record.
As much as the collective musical and lyrical content does in this album to make it worth hearing, it is just part of what makes Horns and Hammers as strong as it is. The overall production plays its own crucial part to the whole of the album. As noted, the arrangements that make up so much of the album are heavy compositions that throw back to the vintage heavy metal that laid the foundation for so much of today’s harder acts. That means every arrangement deserved every bit of attention. Luckily for the band (and listeners) that is exactly what each arrangement received. The instrumentation in each arrangement is expertly balanced with the vocals in each composition. No one musician’s work overshadows that of his band mates at any point. The result is 11 songs whose impact is felt as much as it is heard. The positive aesthetic that the production ensures puts the finishing touch to the presentation. Together with the overall content, that whole makes Horns and Hammers a work that will widely appeal among metal fans of many tastes.
Horns and Hammers, the latest full-length studio offering from Ignitor, is a strong new offering from the neo-classic heavy metal act. It is a record that will appeal to a wide range of metal fans. That is due in part to its featured musical arrangements, all of which show clear influence from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. There is even one song that is more American in its leaning, showing influence from the likes of thrash legends Megadeth and Metallica. The lyrical themes that accompany the album’s musical arrangements are of their own note, what with their familiarity and accessibility. The record’s production puts the finishing touch to its whole, ensuring the record’s listening experience is just as strong as its overall content. Each item examined here plays its own important role in the bigger picture of Horns and Hammers. All things considered they make the album a work that a wide range of metal masses will find appealing.
Horns and Hammers is available now. More information on the album is available along with all of Ignitor’s latest news at:
Website: https://ignitorband.com
Facebook: https://facebook.com/IGNITOR.METAL
Twitter/X: https://x.com/Ignitor_Offcl
