IRONSWORD - PORTUGAL

Ironsword - 2002 - The Miskatonic Foundation
Return Of The Warrior - 2004 - The Miskatonic Founation
Overlords Of Chaos - 2008 - Shadow Kingdom
None But The Brave – 2015 – Shadow Kingdom
Servants Of Steel – 2020 – Alma Mater

Ironsword image
  
 
Members
Vocals
Decayed, Alastor>>TANN [JOAO FONSECA]>>Decayed, Alastor

Guitar
Decayed, Moonspell, Cunnilingus, Filii Nigrantium Infernalium, Decayed, Alastor>>TANN [JOAO FONSECA]>>Cunnilingus, Filii Nigrantium Infernalium, Decayed, Alastor

Bass
Decayed>>Victor “Axemaster” - Morbid Lust, Axe Murderers, Filii Nigrantium Infernalium>>Rick Thor [Ricardo Campos]>>Filii Nigrantium Infernalium, Perpetratör, Hellspike, Rage And Fire, Els Focs Negres – Merciless Death, Fallen Angel, Mons Lvnae>>Jorge Martins>>Mons Lvnae

Drum
Ricardo “Hammer” – Device, Grog, Filii Nigrantium Infernalium, Mamek>>Beto [Aarrno Maalm]>>Filii Nigrantium Infernalium, Martelo Negro, Atentado, Festering, Namek – Mons Lvnae, Archaic Tomb, Viles Vitae, Archaic Tomb, Decayed>>João Monteiro>>Archaic Tomb, Viles Vitae, Archaic Tomb, Decayed




History & Biography
Ironsword is both a video game and a Portuguese band playing metal. The band evolved from being the project of former Moonspell man Taan and issued a demo in 1995. Another demo followed in 1998. The group delved into the fantasy realms as concepts on its albums and showed influences by Conan The Barbarian writer Robert E. Howard. Ironsword was on stage at Milan, Italy’s Play It Loud festival in February of 2007. The group’s third album appeared courtesy of American label Shadow Kingdom. Bassist Aires of Moonspell stayed for only a part of 2015. In the Coils Of Set was a 2019 EP, which was released through Moonspell's Alma Mater Records. The EP's songs were written together with the ones from the full-length that followed it. Servants Of Steels was mixed and mastered by Harris Johns.

Bassist Jorge Martins left in 2020. Drummer João Monteiro left in 2020 and died of liver cancer in 2023. Underground was a late 2023 EP through Alma Mater Records. Phil Ross (ex-Manilla Road) was on bass here. Neudi (Economist, ex-Manilla Road, etc.) was on drums.

The lyrics are occasionally inspired by Robert E. Howard who was the author of the Conan literature.


Reviews

IRONSWORD - OVERLORDS OF CHAOS - SHADOW KINGDOM  
Ironsword is often called a doom metal band by fans and media. Who knows why? The Portuguese band is a traditional heavy metal band with many references to Goddess Of Desire, Manowar, Iron Maiden and Manilla Road. Mark W. Shelton of Manilla Road is a guest singer on three of the album’s songs, An Ending In Fire, Overlords Of Chaos and Call of Cthulhu. It is a band dedicated to epic, pounding metal that sings of goblins, Stygia, Styx, hordes and warriors and a singer, Tann, whose vocals are the throatiest one has ever heard. The lyrics and concepts are influenced by Robert Ervin Howard, the writer behind Conan The barbarian. Incidentally, he was also the author of The Shadow Kingdom and an influence on the whole label thingie here. Tann sounds proud and arrogant. The music does get upbeat and galloping - see, no doom here - and is often thick in bass guitar. There are numerous early Iron Maiden riffs on nearly every song, but the references come to one only after multiple listens. Once you hear them though they are unmistakeable and audible all over the album. The packaging is cool with great artwork, but the band has made one of the more classic mistakes and stretched its album to nearly an hour’s length, which is too long. It all gets a little long in the tooth and the songs begin to blur into one another.
One quick look at the band’s biography on Metallian is bound to disappoint. As true and traditional as the overlord is the members have dabbled in everything from death metal to porn and pussy and goth and hence have little credibility in their latest arena. Consider that. - Anna Tergel


Interviews







Ironsword