If the first album was a survivalist’s field guide, Boone’s second record—starting with the titular “Ash and Iron”—is the survivalist’s soul. The technical blueprints have been laid; now, Boone “Dusty” Maddox is singing about the internal forge that keeps a man standing when the rivers run black and the sky turns to a permanent slate gray.
The Metal and the Will
The rhythm of this track is heavier, more deliberate—less like the whir of a lathe and more like the steady strike of a hammer on an anvil. Boone’s voice has deepened, carrying a weight that suggests he’s seen more than just the bottom of a charcoal sieve. “Iron in my hand, and a fire in my chest” isn’t just a lyric; it’s a mission statement. In Sector 8, where everything is “gone to rust,” the only thing that doesn’t oxidize is a man’s will.
Defiance in the Embers
This song is a powerhouse of individual defiance. While most people are just trying to hide from the wind, Boone is out there trying to “carve his name in the smokey air.” It touches on the lonesomeness of the Maddox life—”I’ll forge my soul where I stand alone”—but it reframes that isolation as a source of strength.
The fire is the witness, and the iron is the creed. By the time the final, gravelly refrain of “I’ll remember my name” fades out, you realize this isn’t just music; it’s an anchor. It’s Boone telling the wasteland that he isn’t a ghost yet.
ASH AND IRON
by: Boone “Dusty” Maddox
The world’s gone to rust, and the sky’s gone gray,
But I walk through the ash at the break of day.
Iron in my hand, and a fire in my chest,
I carry what’s left through the endless test.
The rivers run black, and the fields lie bare,
But a man’s still a man with a heart to spare.
I build from the ruins, I rise from the fall,
The ash is my bed, but I hear the call.
Ash and iron, through the fire and rust,
I stand where I’m planted, ‘cause stand I must.
One breath, one fight, one dawn to see,
The world may burn, but it won’t burn me.
The wind carries voices of them that’s gone,
Their echoes linger in the break of dawn.
I forge my way with a will that’s strong,
In a world that’s broke, I still belong.
The embers fade, but I stoke ‘em high,
Each spark’s a defiance ‘gainst a darkened sky.
I’ll carry the weight till my bones turn to dust,
In ash and iron, it’s myself I trust.
Ash and iron, let the embers flare,
I’ll carve my name in the smokey air.
One spark, one will, one life to claim,
I’ll rise from the ash and remember my name.
Some break, some bend, some turn to stone,
But I’ll forge my soul where I stand alone.
The fire’s my witness, the iron’s my creed,
I’ll rise from the ash for as long as I bleed.
Ash and iron, let the embers flare,
I’ll carve my name in the smokey air.
One spark, one will, one life to claim,
I’ll rise from the ash and remember my name.
Ash and iron… I’ll remember my name.