Iridium -- A UK Metalcore Band On The Rise

Written by: Annie Schlottman Iridium is a UK metalcore band that is quickly turning heads in the music world, recently releasing a new EP called “HELL IS A HALFWAY HOUSE” that fans of the genre are raving about.  The band has reached 100,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, and there have been over 500,000 streams of the new EP, which has only been out since January 23rd.  With the numbers rising, this looks like a band that’s about to take off.

Band members of Iridium include:  Danny Lewis (vocals); Aaron Dadral (guitar); Jack Knights (guitar/vocals); Dan Wright (bass); and Matt Beresford (drums).  The band is based in London. Matt actually lives a little further north, but the members are all together so frequently either in London or on tour, so they just say the band is “from London”.

Iridium began in 2017 with Jack, Aaron, and Dan coming together and forming the band after their previous projects came to an end. All three had the collective idea that they wanted to go down a heavier route than the projects they were in before.  Thus, Iridium was born.

The band’s first EP, “Sub Zero”, was released in 2019.  After a few quiet years and lineup changes, Matt and Danny joined at the same time, in 2022.  The band’s second EP, “Mortals”, came out in 2024 and was the first with the current lineup. Iridium followed that up with a UK tour and shows in and around London.

A fun fact is that Iridium is actually the first metal band Matt and Danny have been members of.  They previously came from jazz and pop punk backgrounds.

There are a few different stories about the band’s name, “Iridium”.  Aaron and Dan chose the name together, yet still to this day disagree on how it was chosen.  The band said jokingly that perhaps it will always remain a mystery.  It’s referenced in popular culture a fair amount from the video games Borderlands and Stardew Valley; and it’s also the title of one of Dan’s favorite songs, a 2010 track by Swedish metal band Dark Tranquility. It’s short and easy to remember. Ironically, Iridium is also one of the heaviest metals in the universe, but the band told me they try not to labor that point!

The songwriting process for Iridium is constantly evolving.  For the “Mortals” EP, Jack and Aaron wrote the music prior to Matt and Danny joining, typically writing and recording whole songs as instrumentals before Jack added lyrics and vocals.

Danny and Matt then came in and finished off the lyrics and drum parts for the EP.  Being together in the studio for the EP really solidified the band, and since then the writing process has been much more fluent.

For the most recent EP, “HELL IS JUST A HALFWAY HOUSE”, it was a much more collaborative process. Someone would have an idea for a riff, or even an entire song, which would then get passed around to Jack, Aaron, and Matt who added further riffs, ideas, and a sprinkle of style from each band member until they had something they were all really happy with.

The band admitted to being guilty of stealing each other’s riffs quite a bit.  In the case of “IS IT TOO LATE?”, the breakdown was originally part of an entirely different song.  The band focused a lot more on the electronic and atmospheric elements for the new EP, often finding the layering really set the tone for a song and inspired further riffs and ideas as they got added.

Vocals are typically crafted once the instrumentals are done, with Danny and Jack working together on lyrics, patterns, and melodies.  They typically create demos individually, and then get together for the final tweaks to make sure they’re totally happy with it.

Iridium worked with Oz Craggs of Hidden Track Studios (recording and production) and Lance Prenc (mixing and mastering) on the new “HELL  IS JUST A HALFWAY HOUSE” EP. They had previously worked with Oz on the “Mortals” EP and decided to go back to work with him again.  Ewan Bennett, who also works with Oz, did a lot of drum editing on both EPs. The band called Ewan an “absolute wizard” at making drums sound extremely tight. 

The band told me candidly that they always end up really cramming in trying to get everything done in the studio on time, but Oz really pushes them to be as prepared as they can and get stuff properly nailed down. They have learned a lot through the process of making these EPs, and each time they always try to focus on improving and solidifying their sound.  The band is very proud of the newest EP, and they feel like they’re really developing a unique sound style with each release.

The band shared with me that they think musically they all get inspired by finding new things and ways to push their sound beyond what they’ve done before.  They always want to try to keep things fresh. The band members listen to other genres outside of metal, and they’re often finding ways to incorporate those vibes into their sound.

Lyrically, song topics are mostly stories from personal experiences, and the experiences of those close to the band.  Sometimes it's the melody that gets written first with a few words just filling in the blanks, and often a whole song comes together very quickly from that base. Some of the songs are incredibly personal to the band, and it’s a true pleasure to be able to express their stories through Iridium’s songs that they create together.

As a huge fan of the metalcore genre, to me, Iridium's music is perfect.  The clean and hard vocals, masterful guitar riffs, thunderous drums – everything about it goes hard.  It’s the kind of music that you just want to get lost in and listen to for hours. Their songs are written from the heart and resonate emotionally with their listeners. 

In the band’s own words on their Spotify profile, “their songs naturally reflect the human experience of beauty within chaos.  There is only a simple message to their music: self-acceptance.”

I asked the band what two videos they would want me to highlight for this story, and they chose “GOD EATER” and “IS IT TOO LATE”.  They gave me some background on both videos.

“GOD EATER” is loosely based on the story of Lorian and Lothric from the Dark Souls game, using their story as a metaphor for the sacrifice of one’s self in the pursuit of achievement. This one is a visualizer/lyric video, and the band thinks it turned out super sick. They worked with Hayden Fraser at Chaotic Visual, who did a great job of translating the darkness of the track into visuals. 

"IS IT TOO LATE” details the push-pull dynamics of toxic relationships and co-dependency, attesting to the difficulty in going through a relationship you know isn’t good for you, but one you feel like you can’t escape. Danny plays the angry, envious partner who pushes Jack away, the emotional lover who would do anything to win their partner’s love back. The band told me this is by far their poppiest song and video, and because of this, they wanted to try to give the video a more typical “boy band” feel. The video was filmed and edited by Matty Daley at Clearway Media, and shot at Vessel Studios in Liverpool.

Iridium is excited to be a part of a stacked lineup at Collision Fest April 11th at Bedford Esquires in Bedford, UK. There will be more UK shows that will be announced, and the band will be heading back into the studio to work on new music. They are looking forward to what’s to come in 2026! You can find Iridium on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, the band's website, and Linktree.