Currently on the road in Scandinavia, Danko Jones (the band) held their first annual Julmust tasting session. Julmust is the Swedish non-alcoholic alternative to beer, traditionally available around Christmas.

Danko Jones has posted the following update.

"Watch this video! Iron Magazine play live for the first time here. This happened last Saturday (December 2nd) at The Tavastia in Helsinki. Iron Magazine is our side-band with members of Circle. This song, 'Queen Of Hell', is off our 4 song EP released earlier this year on Ektro Records."

Iron Magazine is a cross-continental team-up between Danko Jones and John Calabrese from Danko Jones and Jussi Lehtisalo and Tomi Leppänen from Circle. Danko spoke to BraveWords scribe Carl Begai about the collaboration back in January.

Danko: “Hopefully it won’t confuse people. It’s me, JC, and two of the guys from the psychedelic-prog band Circle (Jussi Lehtisalo and Tomi Leppänen); sometimes they’re metal, sometimes they’re completely experimental and indie rock. I’ve been in touch with Jussi, who runs the label Ektro Records in Finland, for the past two years and he asked me if I wanted to take a stab at some of the songs he had. I did the vocals, JC put bass on top of it, the other two guys are involved and we call it a band. The first single was released at the end of January. It’s called ‘Queen Of Hell’. It’s not traditional metal; it’s metal through these two bands that aren’t metal. Jussi calls it happy metal and I like it (laughs). I did my best Ozzy and my best Bon Scott on the EP. There is definitely one song with me going for that Ozzy feel. I can sing in that kind of style depending on what it is. I can’t do Halford but I can do my best Brian Johnson over a metal riff (laughs).”

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With such a pedigree, the resultant sound of Queen Of Hell makes total sense: lazer-buzzing, intergalactic hard rockin' at that nexus of 1980 where greasy 'n' galloping heavy metal, Sunset-strippin' hard rock, and space-cased AOR all crossed DNA for one brief moment. But, of course, with anything involving the tentacles of Circle and especially Lehtisalo (references can be made to the private-press, lonerist AOR of Aktor he helmed with Dawnbringer mainman Chris Black), there's a completely demented and totally tweaked streak to Iron Magazine, but Danko Jones' feel-good / feel-bad anthemics can be strongly felt on Queen Of Hell, as well.

A hazier, crazier version of Spinal Tap had they more strongly imbibed Rainbow's Straight Between The Eyes? Maybe. The prototype for Circle's transformation into Falcon (ex-Circle), but alternate-universe years after the fact? Also maybe. Iron Magazine ask many questions, but leave the answers wholly to the mysterious majesty of The Riff... as it should be. Denim demons astride leather dragons of lust - hail their Queen Of Hell! And hail her first via Ektro's Soundcloud audio player with the EP's opening title track. Cover art and tracklisting follow.

"Queen Of Hell"
"556"
"Foes To Fire"
"Rise Of The Deth"