Hot New Band: Ghost Iris

To the uninitiated, the tech-metal scene may often seem rather ponderous and impenetrable, with virtuoso skill and compositional complexity colliding to make the whole thing seem like a closed shop for anyone except musos and inveterate nerds. Help is at hand, however, in the form of Denmark’s Ghost Iris; a band that certainly tick all the usual djent-friendly boxes while never forgetting the value of a massive tune.

“We walk on a tightrope between two buildings,” says vocalist Jesper. “One building is representing the heavy and dark side of the band, the other is a tower of melodies. Our sound is groovy, heavy and melodic. It’s very cohesive and easily digestible, without being too straightforward, but the lyrics are mostly of a fantastic nature. I write about a fantastical life that I can only dream about, one that doesn’t quite resemble this sometimes dull and grey reality.”

Remorselessly heavy but boasting numerous skyscraper-levelling choruses, Ghost Iris’s debut album, Anecdotes Of Science And Soul, revels in the contrast between its jarring riffs and polyrhythms and the deep and poignant introspection of Jesper’s articulate lyrics. The result is an album that aims higher than the pseudo-intellectual vagueness that has become de rigueur in tech-metal circles and, as Jesper explains, it all comes from a very personal, heartfelt place.

“The album title is a play on words,” he explains. “The science is my brain – the logical and scientific thinking of a modern human being. Even though I am an agnostic, my soul is the inquisitive side of me, the very core of my being, searching for an answer that doesn’t seem to exist. My mentioning of agnosticism doesn’t mean that there is a religious overtone to the thematic aspect of the album, though. It is merely about me being lost in this extraordinary world.”

With their first album beginning to forge connections with the wider world, Jesper and his comrades are now dedicating their collective energy to hitting the road and seeing whether the tech-metal hordes are willing to tear themselves away from their laptops and indulge in some good, old-fashioned fun.

“We’re not serious metal dudes who do not smile when we’re on stage,” Jesper laughs. “I would actually go so far as to say that we are happier than ever in that given moment. People should expect to see a collective of guys giving it their all, shining with enjoyment and displaying pure, unadulterated happiness!”

ANECDOTES OF SCIENCE AND SOUL IS OUT NOW VIA PRIME COLLECTIVE/o:p

Dom Lawson began his inauspicious career as a music journalist in 1999. He wrote for Kerrang! for seven years, before moving to Metal Hammer and Prog Magazine in 2007. His primary interests are heavy metal, progressive rock, coffee, snooker and despair. He is politically homeless and has an excellent beard.