Lisbon, Portugal's Ironsword were founded in 1995 by erstwhile Moonspell member J.A., who renamed himself Tann for the occasion, and proceeded to perform all instruments and vocals on early demos, before seeking outside help from bassist Axemaster and drummer Ricardo Hammer when he decided to perform live and record an eponymous debut album in 2002. This independent release revealed that Ironsword's music had nothing in common with his former band's goth-infused style, but rather an epic brand of traditional battle metal inspired primarily by American cult icons Manilla Road and the writings of pulp author Robert E. Howard (perhaps best known as the creator of Conan the Barbarian, which explains a lot). The same was true of subsequent albums Return of the Warrior (2004), which introduced a new rhythm section powered by bassist Rick Thor and drummer Beto, and Overlords of Chaos (2008), released by Shadow Kingdom Records and featuring yet another new drummer named Maalm. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia