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putrenista
Metalhead

Joined: Sat Aug 02, 2014 12:17 am
Posts: 694
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 4:36 am 
 

So, I'm sure many have already heard, but Alfred Morris from the band Iron Man passed away earlier this month. I don't think anyone's made a thread about it yet, so I thought I would in tribute, and for people to pay their respects. He was pretty young still, only 60 years old. I think it was related to his diabetes. Just a shame. One of the premiere riff-meisters in the Maryland doom metal scene. If you haven't heard heard those first three Iron Man albums, do yourself a favor and rectify that. Classic stuff.

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It's funny, I kind of avoided them for a while just because of the band name; when I was younger I just thought it was too generic, and ripping off Black Sabbath or something, but a friend of mine let me borrow one of their albums, and damn dude, that shit was legit. Generation Void from 1999. Heavy as a muthafucka! Really like the vocalist they had during this period too, Dan Michalak.

But Morris' tone and riffs, and his stage presence/flair when playing guitar, all sort of went into him being referred to as the black Tony Iommi. But honestly, musically I'm thinking they were closer to the 80s version of Pentagram (Death Row) really, especially with the guitars tuned down to B. His original band Force was pretty incredible too. There's not as much recorded there with them, but their early demos and one studio album, that was recorded years later, have been assembled into a compilation recently.

R.I.P. Al Morris III (1957-2018)

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EDIT: this is my 666th post! (haha) "It's all for you, Damien!"

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DoomMetalAlchemist
Veteran

Joined: Mon Dec 27, 2010 6:10 am
Posts: 2860
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 4:45 am 
 

Thanks for making this thread. I almost did on the day he died, but I figured it wouldn't get many responses, so I made a couple posts in the FFA thread instead.

But anyway, the last song Al Recorded: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwY99MQ2O4E

An article from the Washington Post about him: Click

RIP.

Got that Force comp last year, really good stuff. And it's hard to piece together, but that 1991 Force album I'm pretty sure was made up solely of 80s demos, nothing re-recorded. Hell I don't even know if the 1991 release was authorized, as Doom Records was notorious for bootlegging (Pentagram and Bedemon in particular).

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aloof
avant-gardener

Joined: Sun Dec 14, 2008 1:18 pm
Posts: 3174
Location: never neverland, palm trees by the sea
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 10:54 am 
 

let's not start a debate on Marshall Levy in a thread intended to pay respects to a good man :)

r.i.p. Al Morris :( thanks for the music.
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Twisted_Psychology
Metal freak

Joined: Sat May 16, 2009 8:22 pm
Posts: 6260
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 11:23 am 
 

This loss is a real tragedy for the Maryland doom scene, Generation Void and The Passage in particular are awesome albums.
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Abominatrix
Harbinger of Metal

Joined: Fri Oct 24, 2003 12:15 pm
Posts: 9311
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 2:36 pm 
 

Iron man was definitely a good band. Great riffs and tone. I can't remember off-hand how many vocalists they had (though it'd be easy enough to check here of course) but it seems like they went through a few and they weren't all of equal quality. nevertheless, I saw them live two or three times and really enjoyed the experience, though I can't say I know a lot about the studio albums.
I remember maybe the last time they played in Toronto, a few of my friends commented that Al did not look too well. Certainly didn't stop him from delivering the heaviness, though.
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kluseba
Making Metal Archives Reviews Great Again!

Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 2:36 am
Posts: 897
PostPosted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 3:23 pm 
 

Iron Man was a great and extremely underrated or unknown band. Alfred Morris III was a great guitarist, may he rest in peace. I attended a show of the band by chance a few years back. I had never heard of Iron Man before and expected a boring Black Sabbath rip-off but the band did an excellent job. I will definitely listen to their music again and try to get my hands on some of their music.
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putrenista
Metalhead

Joined: Sat Aug 02, 2014 12:17 am
Posts: 694
PostPosted: Mon Feb 12, 2018 4:26 am 
 

So there's a benefit show for the Morris family coming up here soon. It'll be in Frederick, MD. on Saturday, February 17th. I'm not involved with this by the way, but I was thinking about attending the show, and thought I'd share it here for anyone who might be interested.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1277913502323853/

Set Times:
Children of the Grave – 6:00 – 7:00
War Mask– 7:15 – 7:45
Mind’s Eye – 8:00 – 8:45
Wrath of Typhon – 9:00 – 9:45
Wino w/ Brian Costantino – 10:00 – 10:45
Members of Iron Man w/ Bill Miskowitz– 11:00 – 11:30

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doomicus
Metalhead

Joined: Wed May 14, 2008 5:58 am
Posts: 1261
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Feb 12, 2018 10:12 am 
 

Iron Man have always carried a very special place in shaping my tastes in music within the metal realm. I love how true to the roots of doom metal they have always stuck, but in a way that allowed them to have a separate identity of their own. Morris' tone and way of constructing riffs is immediately identifiable. The fact that the band managed to survive through constant line up changes and hardships is also a testament to Al's spirit and how devoted to his passion he was.
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gasmask_colostomy
Metalhead

Joined: Thu May 27, 2010 5:38 am
Posts: 1640
Location: China
PostPosted: Tue Feb 20, 2018 12:07 pm 
 

Damn yeah, this is a real shame. There are some great songs on most of the Iron Man releases that I've heard and it seems like Al was a sweet guy as well.

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Temple Of Blood
Old Man Yells at Cloud

Joined: Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:16 am
Posts: 3118
Location: United States
PostPosted: Tue Feb 20, 2018 1:02 pm 
 

What are his 3 best songs for the uninitiated?
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gasmask_colostomy
Metalhead

Joined: Thu May 27, 2010 5:38 am
Posts: 1640
Location: China
PostPosted: Tue Feb 20, 2018 2:36 pm 
 

Temple Of Blood wrote:
What are his 3 best songs for the uninitiated?


I'm not sure if there are any outright classics, but I would listen to the album 'The Passage' for a good taste, while 'Time of Indecision', 'Generation Void', and 'Blind-Sighted Forward Spiral' (album version) are a great place to start.

I don't know much about his earlier bands, but those are all great Iron Man songs.

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