With a name like Demons Down, you’d be assuming that there’s a House Of Lords connection, and you’d be right.
Written by: gdmonline
ARTIST: Demons Down
ALBUM: I Stand
LABEL: Frontiers
SERIAL: FRCD 1302
YEAR: 2023
CD INFO: Discogs Info List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA, Italy, Chile
LINEUP: James Robledo – vocals * Jimi Bell, Francesco Savino – guitars * Chuck Wright – bass * Ken Mary – drums
Additional Musicians: Alessandro Del Vecchio – keyboards, guitars, backing vocals
TRACK LISTING: 01 I Stand * 02 Disappear * 03 Down In A Hole * 04 On My Way To You * 05 Where Will Our Tears Fall? * 06 Book Of Love * 07 Stranded In The Middle Of Nowhere * 08 Follow Me * 09 To The Edge Of The World * 10 Search Over The Horizon * 11 Only The Brave
RATING: 70/100
WEBLINKS: FB Page
Background
With a name like Demons Down, you’d be assuming that there’s a House Of Lords connection, and you’d be right. I’m not actually sure what the current status is with HOL, but this sure looks like a filler option for 2023. Maybe it’s a permanent gig, I’m not really sure.
The Demons Down line up is one part Chilean (Robledo) three parts American and two parts Italian, if you add in Alessandro Del Vecchio who is also handling the production – that is. I get the impression that Demons Down is a showcase for vocalist Robledo, in much the same way Frontiers managed Ronnie Romero across different bands.
James has already released a solo album for Frontiers (2021, Wanted Man) plus he sung on recent projects like Nasson (2022, Scars) and the forthcoming Magnus Karlsson and Freefall album ‘Hunt The Flame’ (April 14, 2023). Robledo is a mixture of vocal influences but very much in the metal mould. I hear traces of Jeff Scott Soto and Jorn Lande within.
The Songs
The lineup is very professional, no history lesson is required if you’re a regular to this site. The music is very regal and keeps true to the overall HOL legacy. It’s epic sounding, grandiose even. I reckon it’s sounds closer to the first three HOL albums (1988-1992) than much of the band’s discography from 2006 onwards. ‘I Stand’ leads off with a very pompous entrance. It is very much trademark HOL, probably the closest to legacy HOL than all the other tracks assembled here.
Ken Mary takes the lead on the fast and fluid ‘Disappear’ with an impressive drumming display. Bell joins in with a fast picking exercise for a guitar solo. Demons Down drop it a notch on the speedometer with ‘Down In A Hole’. It comes across as a slow grinder. Intense and melodic. ‘On My Way To You’ is the first power ballad we encounter. From my perspective it was OK but not great. ‘Where Will Our Tears Fall?’ sees the band rock out big time, this one is more straight ahead rather than the templated HOL sound.
‘Book Of Love’ is also an upper tempo track, riffing hard with a noodling solo from Mr Bell. ‘There’s no let up as ‘Stranded In The Middle Of Nowhere’ gives my headphones a workout. The songtitle sounds as if it was lifted from a Dio album but musically this goes s somewhere else. Keyboards take over the intro on ‘Follow Me’, it tends to ebb and flow, guitar parts punch in and out throughout. ‘To The Edge Of The World’ is at the lighter edge of the scale, some nice shimmering guitar melodies are contained within.
‘Search Over The Horizon’ is the second power ballad. For me it’s not adding anything unique I haven’t heard from melodic metal bands over four decades of listening. It has its moments despite what I said. Demons Down finish up with ‘Only The Brave’, sounding more commercial and AOR like as a result. The song has strong melodies and therefore appeal.
In Summary
Demons Down deliver a reasonable album, but it’s not without it’s flaws. On the plus side, James Robledo proves himself to be a future vocal star. I’d like to see him do more commercial stuff without the power and aggression. Ken Mary keeps the double bass drum time bomb ticking away nicely. He’s still got it.
On the downside, the quality of the songs didn’t really hold my attention span. I know this because after just completing listening to it, I can’t even recall one single chorus. That must surely be an indictment. As for Jimi Bell’s soloing all I’ll say is this: ‘sometimes less is more’.
Video
I Stand
Disappear
