On paper,
the Damned Things seem like an odd supergroup. Featuring
Anthrax guitarists Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano,
Fall Out Boy’s Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley, and
Every Time I Die frontman Keith Buckley, it’s hard to imagine what a band whose membership’s music encompasses thrash, metalcore, and pop-punk might sound like. Surprisingly, the reality of
the Damned Things is a lot less of a chin scratcher than you’d think. On
Ironiclast, the band takes the best bits from each of their bands to create an interesting hybrid. Combining Ian and Caggiano's seasoned riff mastery with Trohman and Hurley’s driving pop sensibilities, the album tempers the raw power of hard rock and thrash with infectious hooks, which are anchored by Buckley’s vocals, who has abandoned his usual style for a cleaner, more soaring vocal attack. The final product is a sound that is able to be uncomplicated without being dumb, and fun without feeling ironic. The record genuinely sounds like a bunch of friends just getting together to have a good time and make some music without worrying about what people might think about it, which is pretty much the point of rock music. It’s this quality that makes
the Damned Things an endearing band. This music isn’t worried about current market trends or how high up the charts it can climb;
Ironiclast is just the sound of a bunch of dudes making rock for rock’s sake. While this might not necessarily appeal to fans of these guys' day jobs, it definitely makes it a good album for those who prefer their music to be light on self-consciousness and heavy on good times. ~ Gregory Heaney