Iron Griffin is a one man band from Finnish drummer Oskari Räsänen (of the band “Mausoleum Gate”) who recently signed a contract with Gates of Hell Records (a Cruz Del Sur Music imprint). Razanez stated: “IRON GRIFFIN is a new project which started about a year ago as a one-man band mostly to improve myself at playing different instruments and writing music. Session vocals are done by my friend and spectacular singer Toni Pentikäinen. “The future of this project is living right now. I will continue working with new material and try to search for players to form a ‘real band,’ maybe. But this EP is a good start for me and the journey continues in one way or another.” Okari handled almost every single aspect of this album, the lyrics, all instruments, recording, mixing and even the artwork was done by Okari himself. The few outside contributions were from session lead vocals by Toni Pentikäinen (Madwill), intro by F.F. Nieminen, and mastered by Wiched Iscanius. The album released on August 23, 2017.
Räsänen recorded all the instruments, did the mixing and also was responsible for the cover of the EP. Vocals were recorded by Toni Pentikäinen. The first work from Iron Griffin, a self-titled EP, was released on digital format on August 23, 2017, but is now also available on LP and Cassette. As far as the direction of the EP goes, if you’re a fan of Hard Rock and Metal in the style of Armored Saint, Rainbow, Iron Maiden, and Judas Priest you’ll find a lot to like with Iron Griffin! Songs like the mid-tempo track “Metal Conquest” and the slightly faster “Message from Beyond” both feature some killer guitar playing that’s heavily inspired by early Iron Maiden (think the first two albums)! Closing track “Journey to the Castle of the King” is hands down the best track on the EP, from it’s sinister opening guitar and bass chords to the soaring vocals and highly impressive drumming this track has a lot going of positive aspects and it’s definitely the one that’ll have you throwing your horns in the air!
Iron Griffin may not be original, but honestly they don’t need to be. This release is for the fans who enjoy the occasional throwback or for those who just want to reminisce about a simpler time in Metal’s history!
