Iron Monkey were one of the OGs from the UK underground Sludge Metal scene back in the mid-late nineties and had a run that included the reissue of their self-titled debut album (1997), and their follow-up Our Problem (1998) – on the mighty Earache Records.

The band would initially break up in 1999 following the release of the split record – We’ve Learned Nothing – with Church of Misery, and a performance at the legendary Dutch Dynamo Festival. 

The Nottingham based band returned in 2017 with guitarist Jim Rushby taking over vocal duties following the death of original vocalist Johnny Morrow in 2002, and released their comeback album, 9-13 on Relapse Records, and sticking with the label for their latest assault on the senses, Spleen and Goad. 

The album delivers more of what you would expect from Iron Monkey, with “Misanthropizer” getting the party started with a typically sludgy down-tuned groove. The gruff vocal style of Rushby will undoubtedly make or break your listening experience, and the music comes across raw, and with a real Punk ethos. 

Fans of Eyehategod, Crowbar and the like will find that the muddy riffs of Iron Monkey hit the spot, and while some of the riffing on “Concrete Shock” take on the nineties Stoner vibe of a Kyuss or Fu Manchu. You can also hear the influence of Motorhead or The Sex Pistols within the marching rhythm. 

The rumbling deep isolated bass of Steve Watson opens both “CSP” and “Off Switch,” with both songs soon dropping into a typically boggy mire with the distorted fuzz of the guitars. 

Rusby proclaims, “It’s good to be back!” on “Rat Flag”, which provides moments of old-school extreme Hardcore, as well as a White Zombie-esq riff, while the likes of “Lead Transfusion”, “Exlexed” and “The Gurges” continue to pummel the listener into submission. To bring you down from the relentless delivery of Spleen and Goad, Iron Monkey play the release out with somewhat of a palate cleanser, and a drone of feedback on “O D Rose.”

Buy the album here:
https://www.relapse.com/pages/iron-monkey-spleen-and-goad

7 / 10
ABSTRAKT_SOUL