RSS Feed


DAMIEN THORNE
The Sign Of The Jackal (1985)

From Chicago, Illinois comes Damien Thorne, a five-piece metal outfit formed in 1982. The band have had numerous personnel changes but the present lineup reads Justin Fate (vocals), Ken Starr and George ‘Mule’ Shelton (lead guitars), Sanders Pate (bass) and Brian Horak (drums).

Damien Thorne’s latest demo, The Sign Of The Jackal, indicates the band have a lot of potential. Helped by a good production, the songs are both powerful and classy as well as being very heavy.

‘The Sign Of The Jackal’ has a lot of similarities to Savatage in structure, but it’s the Iron Maiden influences that shine through on the other three numbers. ‘Escape Or Die’ and ‘Siren’s Call’ have more pace than the title track and are my favourite songs, especially the latter with its blistering guitar solo. On ‘Phantoms Of Fire’ I detect touches of early Rush in amongst the almost blatant Maiden riffs, but good stuff all the same. Damien Thorne are certainly a band worth checking out.

Bernard Doe

Review taken from Metal Forces, Issue 9 (1984)

<< Back to Demo Reviews
Share