Guitar Nine Records

From the Aug-Sept 2001 issue of Guitar Nine Records' on-line magazine

Offering challenging yet accessible music which is approximately equal parts hard rock and progressive, Ironia has released their debut CD, A Granite Scale. Guitarist/producer Nick Delonas propels the group, which walks the musical tightrope, keeping the driving music on edge at all times, without losing the audience in the process. Delonas rarely, if ever, plays a stock or expected guitar solo -- all his six-string excursions are creatively crushing or frenetically fuzzed out. In fact, the bulk of his guitar work can be commended for straying into alternative streams of sonic texture (check out "Rhino Racing" for an instrumental example of this). This kind of attention to vision -- where music is purposefully designed to set itself apart from the usual radio fodder -- is refreshing and should be encouraged and supported wherever possible. If a hard rock, progressive mix is up your alley, check out A Granite Scale.

Founding guitarist Nick Delonas (who studied composition at the Berklee College of Music) had difficulty initially finding musicians who wanted to push the hard rock envelope without breaking it. Maverick drummer Jim Rilko was his first recruit, and talented singer Paul Zartler was the next to join. It took two more years, but finally studio bassist Art Hengst and keyboardist/producer Chris Midkiff signed on as well. The veteran players immediately infused the group with additional creativity. Since recording their debut, two songs from the CD broke the top five on the Rock and Alternative charts at SoundClick.com. Audio files of their music have been downloaded from their web site over 20,000 times over the past year.

Ironia plans to work hard to distribute their debut CD and spread the news about the band's direction and musical goals.