Demon - Nambucca, London (UK) - 17 November 2019
Demon were always a cut above most of the bands during the NWOBHM boom in the early eighties with their Progressive Rock influences and esoteric lyrics. This was the first Demon show I had seen since their appearance at the Firefest festival 2007 and I was looking forward to re-acquainting myself with the Midlands rockers.
The set list was based around the first three classic albums 'Night Of The Demon', 'The Unexpected Guest' and 'The Plague'. Singer and founder member Dave Hill has now taken a more theatrical look of robes and face make-up resembling the beast himself Aleister Crowley. Visually this adds much to the show's songs as they took on a whole new musical atmosphere.
Opening up with 'Night Of The Demon', the crowd was instantly singing along to all the words and welcoming the band like homecoming heroes. It was good to see a varied audience in age, from mid-twenties to late fifties, proving that great music will stand the test of time always.
'Total Possession' led into 'The Spell' and the wonderful 'Sign Of The Madman' which had singer Dave Hill really getting into character. Guitarists Dave Cotterill and Paul Hume really showed their musical chops during 'Life On The Wire', a deep cut from the Demon catalogue.
'The Plague' sounds as haunting now as when it was first released and Dave Hill has lost none of his individual vocal style. With this being a somewhat short set we didn't get 'Blackheath' or 'Nowhere To Run' sadly, though the one-two punch of 'Don't Break The Circle' and 'One Helluva Night', complete with mosh pit, brought the evening to a crashing end.
I can honestly say Demon are as good as when I first saw them in the 1980s at the Royal Standard and their music looks to be finding a whole new generation of fans.
Ray Paul
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