Austin, TX – Texas metal titans IGNITOR have dropped the official video for “Horns and Hammers,” the title track from their latest album.
“’Horns and Hammers’ is classic IGNITOR, a battle ready power thrash metal anthem, that sets the stage for the rest of the album,” says drummer Pat Doyle. Fresh off his recent induction into the Metal Hall of Fame along with his bandmates in Dangerous Toys, Jason McMaster notes “A great time was had in the making of this track. The thrash influence is prominent, but to make it anthemic, felt natural. Very much a sort of angry Iron Maiden sound, makes it a favourite of mine. We have worked with Steve Miller and his productions before, so this made it easy to know what to expect. He killed it, and we are proud of this feature video. Steve has created a fantastical backdrop using Claudio’s art as well as some snippets created by our own founder, Stuart Laurence. This team effort, with a lot of it taken on by Steve, made for over the top and very metal visions that this track offers lyrically, to come to life on screen.”
A relentless, storm-the-gates metal onslaught, Horns and Hammers channels the same dramatic power and fury that propelled previous albums Haunted by Rock ‘N’ Roll and The Golden Age of Black Magick into the revered company of legends like Judas Priest, Mercyful Fate, Raven, Dio, Accept, and other iconic guardians of the metal legacy.
From the speed-metal battle cry of the title track and the Maiden-inspired “Imperial Bloodlines” to the cowbell-powered “Shattered Crosses” and the 70s-flavoured heavy metal of “Ferocious the Martyrs” (featuring guest keyboardist Gabriel Guardian of Immortal Guardian), the 11-track Horns and Hammers delivers a powerful fusion of classic heavy metal infused with NWOBHM, thrash, power metal, and the atmospheric depth of prog-metal and fantasy.
“We raised the bar high with our last two albums so we couldn’t settle for anything less than a full-on metal assault,” said founding guitarist Stuart “Batlord” Laurence. “We’ve always honored our influences, but we’re also very insistent that our music – first and foremost – sounds like IGNITOR. With Horns and Hammers, we’ve covered the spectrum of metal and taken Ignitor to a whole new level.”
Led by the soaring vocals of Jason McMaster (Watchtower, Dangerous Toys, Broken Teeth), IGNITOR’s power is further sharpened by guitarist Robert Williams, bassist Billy “Chainsaw” Dansfiell, and drummer Pat Doyle. Whether thundering forward with the force of clashing titans on tracks like “Dark Horse” and “Chaos Maximus Eternal,” or weaving gothic tales of doom and deceit on “Suicide Anthem” and “Taken Up With Serpents,” IGNITOR delivers a relentless, bone-shaking impact.
“Robert brought a ton of songs and riff ideas to the table and Billy had some great ideas that blossomed into full-blown songs,” Laurence said. “Once we started jamming with Pat’s pummeling backbeat, we knew we had something special.”
“As the arrangements started coming together, I found myself completely immersed and inspired to come up with the lyrical themes and characters to carry the songs to completion,” McMaster added. “I’m really proud of the band’s individual and collective contributions, and I think we all agree that Horns and Hammers is a triumph by any measure.”
The album’s striking cover art—depicting a medieval warrior and his mighty steed overlooking a hellish battlefield—was created by renowned fantasy and sci-fi artist Claudio Bergamin. Known for his work with Judas Priest (Firepower), Burning Witches (The Witch of the North), Cassius King (Field Trip), and Klassik ’78 (Phantoms), Bergamin once again delivers a visually captivating masterpiece.
Produced and mastered by Stuart “Batlord” Laurence at Emphatic Audio in Austin, TX, Horns and Hammers was mastered for vinyl by Cris Burns. “Hell Shall Be Your Home” was recorded live in Austin TX at Kick Butt Coffee in 2019, and engineered by Ernie Basaldua with mixing by Stuart “Batlord” Laurence.
Produced by Steve Miller, the video features original album cover artwork by Claudio Bergamin. North American pre-orders for the CD version of Horns and Hammers, which includes a cover of Saxon’s “Machine Gun,” are available now at: revoltvinylrecords.com/pre-orders.
The European CD and digital versions are available at: metalonmetalrecords.bandcamp.com/album/ignitor-horns-and-hammers
Find all IGNITOR music and merch at www.ignitorband.com
Track Listing:
1. Horns And Hammers
2. Imperial Bloodlines
3. Dark Horse
4. Cyber Crush
5. Shattered Crosses [Video]
6. Taking Up With Serpents
7. Ferocious The Martyrs
8. Suicide Anthem
9. Chaos Maximus Eternal
10. Machine Gun (Saxon cover)* [Video]
11. Terminous
*Note: “Hell Shall Be Your Home” appears on The Metal On Metal Records version.
All songs written, recorded and performed by Ignitor, except *“Machine Gun,” originally written, recorded and performed by Saxon, Carrere Music Ltd 1980.
Cover art by Claudio Bergamin.
Website: ignitorband.com
Facebook: facebook.com/IGNITOR.METAL
Instagram: instagram.com/officialignitor/
The Nwothm 
Leave a comment