Italian band Sign Of The Jackal was formed in 2007 and released a first demo-MCD in 2008, which was called Haunted House Tapes. Heavy Artillery Records re-released this stuff on vinyl somewhat later on, and it’s this label that also released the first official EP, The Beyond, in 2011. More officially recorded and released stuff isn’t available (up till now -> see the review on this full length below), but the band was especially active as live-act, performing on different festivals all over Europe, including Heavy Metal Night, Revenge Of True Metal (twice), Heavy Metal Espectros and Keep It True. The band also took part in Bombers And Barbarians, with Ross The Boss headlining. And in case it might matter: Fenriz labelled this quintet a couple of months ago as ‘band of the week’.
Recently the five-piece (Laura Coller, Max, Röby Knife, Bob Condini and Heavy Mate) recorded their first full length, which lasts for forty six minutes. It’s a refreshing result that caresses my ear drums, for this sounds so ‘primal’ as if it were written and registered thirty years ago. Musically I must think about the eighties, and to draw some comparisons, I would like to refer to bands like Warlock, Mercyful Fate, Accept, Venom, Meghan (Sign Of The Jackal did a cover of them, by the way, which was put on their 2011-EP), Iron Maiden, W.A.S.P., or Enforcer. Indeed, it’s thrashing Rock’n’Roll, hard-rockin’ Heavy Metal from the Old Skool. It’s a fierce and sometimes punky Speed / Thrash / Heavy Rock tribute with a clear no-nonsense attitude. Simple and traditional, but isn’t that the origin of all Evilness? What about titles like Heavy Metal Possession, Heavy Metal Demons or Fight For Rock? When it comes to the vocals, well, Laura does not sound, at all, like those classically skilled Opera singers that are part of emotive Goth or Symph bands. Her voice is raw and sharp-edged, somewhere balancing in between Leather Leone, Dorothea Pesch or Ann Boleyn.
What a refreshment it is!