OK, I'm willing to admit it… the whole genre known simply as "power violence" was absolutely foreign to me prior to getting this here IRON LUNG CD in the mail. After getting schooled in short order, the bottom line seems to be this: It's not quite as fast or short as grindcore, and the blast beats are occasionally interrupted by slow, sludgy breakdowns. It's kind of like NAPALM DEATH and EYEHATEGOD both trying to play on the same 10-square foot stage at the same time.

Sounds simple enough, right? Well, not exactly. First off, this Reno outfit consists of only two guys. What's amazing, though, is how full of a sound this pair is able to create. Guitarist Jon Kortland uses the entire fret board to make listeners forget what a bass guitar even is. Behind the kit, Jensen Ward shows superhuman stamina as he unleashes hate-filled screaming and percussive pummeling simultaneously. This, along with a surprisingly high-quality production, make this 20 minutes (and 20 tracks) of noise that will most definitely make an impression.

Now for those wondering where the odd-sounding album title comes from, it represents the dark, twisted medical-experiment-gone-wrong theme within the lyrics. So let's add this all up: It's two guys, it's heavier than a semi hauling bricks and it could very well pass as a concept album! These guys thought of everything! Now go haul ass to the band's MySpace page to get their entire discography, along with a list of upcoming EPs and splits… cuz folks, there's far more bloodletting brutality where this came from!

- Cardona

OFFICIAL SITE: myspace.com/lifeironlungdeath

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