Demon's 'Invincible' - Album Review

I recently wrote a review of the latest album from Praying Mantis, entitled Defiance (which can be read here), a band who released their first album in 1981 and always felt like an honorary member of the NWOBHM rather than a true participant. Praying Mantis' much more melodic sound set them apart from the genre's mainstays but, nevertheless, they are considered a vital part of the NOWBHM - with Time Tells No Lies a bit of a classic from that time. I mention Praying Mantis here as Demon, the band I am covering today, are somewhat similar. Night of the Demon, Demon's debut album, was also released in 1981 and the six-piece also had a much more melodic and polished sound than many of their peers. Demon were probably closer to true NWOBHM than Praying Mantis ever were but I often see the bands as pretty similar overall - with a keyboard-heavy approach and choruses which flirted heavily with AOR. Unlike Praying Mantis, though, I am not all that familiar with Demon. I heard Night of the Demon quite a while ago, and have revisited it a few times over the years, but it is only over the past few months that I have started to listen to more of the band's output. Their first three albums: Night of the Demon, 1982's The Unexpected Guest, and 1983's The Plague; are generally considered to be vital NOWBHM releases - but Demon have been pretty busy over the years and have now released 14 studio albums, with the most recent of such, Invincible, being the subject of this review. In recent months I have listened to the band's first three albums quite a bit. All three have recently been reissued, either remixed or remastered, but the rest of the band's catalogue is yet to receive such a treatment. It seems unlikely that they will, either, which is shame as many of the band's albums are quite hard to get hold of physically. I have heard 1985's British Standard Approved once, which continued on the somewhat progressive approach introduced on The Plague, but my knowledge of the band after this fourth album is essentially non-existent. As such, then, I have approached Invincible with an open mind. Demon's sound gradually shifted over the course of their first four albums, so it stands to reason that more shifting took place between 1985 and 2024, and frontman Dave Hill is the only original member left in the band at this point. The band's current line-up has been in place for a while, though. Guitarists Dave Cotterill and Paul Hume, keyboardist Karl Waye, and drummer Neil Ogden all appeared on the band's last two albums; with Waye and Ogden having also contributed to other releases prior to such; whilst bassist Paul Johnson returned to the band in 2022 having previously played on 2012's Unbroken. It has been a while since Demon last released an album, too, with Invincible their first in eight years following Cemetery Junction in 2016. Invincible is essentially a collaboration between Hill and Ogden, with the two writing essentially all of the material here - with the rest of the band bringing their songs to life. Compared to early Demon, this album feels heavier overall. There are still plenty of keyboards, vocal harmonies, and melodic hooks here - but the songwriting is crunchier with the dual guitar attack of Cotterill and Hume really driving everything. Hill's voice sounds a little strange at times here, but overall he still sounds pretty strong despite being gruffer than he used to be.

The album's intro is the only track not put together by Hill and Ogden, with Waye kicking things off with a busy keyboard piece. It largely focuses on Hammond organ swells with some synth additions, and the organic piece has a classical vibe which is different from the more symphonic and atmospheric approach which might be expected. It is an old-school way to kick the album off, with the Hammond's last roar segueing nicely into the opening vocal harmonies of In My Blood - which kicks off proper with an up-tempo drum groove and a hooky guitar melody. The song is not especially keyboard-driven, but the lengthy organ intro still works well - with Waye's most prominent contribution to In My Blood being some piano melodies during the pre-chorus. They keyboards generally add depth, then, with the riffing of Cotterill and Hume leading the charge. The opening guitar melody is hooky, but the guitar playing throughout is pretty varied overall. The verses have a chunky power chord riff whilst the chorus features a bouncier guitar pattern - which suits Ogden's ride-led playing and the tight vocal harmonies from the whole band. Hill sounds good, even if he does sound, understandably, older than he did in the 1980s. His voice has something of a shadow to it, but he is still full of character throughout. The band's harmonies tend to add the higher notes to any track - but the richness of Hill's voice still shines through, with the chorus here being hooky thanks to the combination of him and the harmonies. A strong, melodic guitar solo pulls everything together - and the album gets off to a fine start. Lead single Face the Master ups the heaviness overall, with the track opening with a buzzing, metallic riff backed by some atmospheric synths - before the rest of the band crash in with some screaming guitar leads and Ogden's crashing drums. Despite the heavier overall sound, the classic Demon approach is still very apparent. The chorus hooks and overall approach are not all that different from The Spell from The Unexpected Guest, whilst the verses really barrel along thanks to the opening buzzing guitar riff being repurposed and some subtle piano additions from Waye. Some of the riffing here recalls Dio's work at times, but the big vocal harmonies and Hill's rich voice certainly ground the song in Demon's canon - with a dynamic arrangement leading to a more spacious verse and a powerful chorus. The guitar soloing here is busier, too, which fits in with the song's heaviness overall. Ghost from the Past is similarly heavy, but the pace is slowed down to allow for a groovy opening riff to set the tone. The first two proper songs were much more up-tempo, but this track feels weightier thanks to its slower pace - with Johnson's bass standing out during the verses, which feature more of a stop-start guitar approach. Despite this slower pace, though, the chorus still takes the band's usual path - with melodic vocal harmonies countering Hill's gravelly delivery. The slower pace and crunchier guitars gives the chorus a slightly creepy vibe overall, though, which contrasts nicely with the hookier approach taken elsewhere. The song provides some early variety, then, and the creepy heaviness is welcome.

Beyond the Darkside returns to something more akin to Face the Master, albeit with an even bigger sound overall thanks to some opening wordless vocal hooks and some of the busiest lead guitar playing heard on the album up to this point. The opening instrumental hooks are filled with fluid lead guitar moments, but it is perhaps the approach to the guitar during the verses which brings the best out of Cotterill and Hume - with the two often teaming up for some dual leads to compliment and counter Hill's fast-paced vocal hooks. The riffing is perhaps less crunchy here, with the bass and the keyboards generally providing the backing, but the guitar leads are packed full of melody which allows the song to really pop. There are some great old-school Demon sounds here, then, as the song is not as metallic as some of the others on the album. It has the retro smoothness of the band's early work thanks to the plentiful guitar leads - and Waye's keyboards are generally much more prominent here, adding a melodic halo to everything. Hill's vocal hooks during the chorus are strong, too, and the song is one of my favourites here thanks to its overall pace and melodic approach. Hole in the Sky opens in a slower manner, with clean guitar melodies and some busy keyboard lines, which set an atmospheric tone, before a lumbering riff kicks in - which is another guitar moment which would not have sounded out of place on a Dio album. Some of the songs here have a majestic nature similar to Dio's more epic approach, but the sound is ultimately grounded in the classic NWOBHM canon mixed with the pomp rock tones of Magnum. This song is a good mix of those sounds - with Waye's keyboards cutting through the mix quite a bit here to add some grandeur to the pulsing choruses, whilst the verses are more slow-burning thanks to darker guitar melodies and Ogden's doomy drumming. Songs like this emphasise that Demon are actually a heavier band than many ever gave them credit for. I think that given how metal Night of the Demon's album cover looked many were confused to find a more melodic sound within - but Hole in the Sky is an atmospheric, doomy piece that feels both heavy and melodic. Break the Spell opens in a somewhat jauntier manner, with Hill's voice backed by Waye's bouncy keyboards early on - before the rest of the band crash in. Despite it getting heavier from this point on, the song still feels quite upbeat. Waye's jaunty keyboards are retained, and are audible above the guitar riffing, whilst a bit more of a cinematic approach is taken during the chorus by slowing the pace a little and adding in some of the band's trademark vocal harmonies. The odd guitar lead cuts through the mix to boost the chorus' overall impact whilst the keyboards move to a more atmospheric role. After the doomy previous song this track goes for a much more typical Demon approach - with hooky guitar melodies and vocals throughout to produce something weighty.

Rise Up immediately goes for a more hard-driving sound, with a retro-sounding main guitar riff which harks back to the 1970s somewhat. It feels as if the song is going to be a full-on hard rocker but, as is often the case here, the song is more varied than it first seems. The retro rock sound is re-used for a pulsing pre-chorus and a hard rocking chorus, but the verses are a bit more spacious overall. Hill's voice and a more atmospheric backing dominate despite Ogden keeping everything moving with a infectious drum groove, but the 1970s hard rock sounds do keep reappearing - with plenty of big Hammond organ backing the hooky chorus and the plentiful guitar riffing makes use of a more old-school tone with less crunch and more classic overdrive than is typical of the rest of the album. This more throwback sound does work well, though, and it keeps up the album's overall upbeat feel whilst reining in some of the grandness found elsewhere. The album's title track follows and it is one that reintroduces the grandness again in a big way. It is a mid-paced, creeping track based around an Eastern-tinged main riff which certainly has shades of Ritchie Blackmore's approach at times. There are shades of the Stranger In Us All era of Rainbow present throughout this track, with plenty of atmospheric keyboards from Waye to make the song sound much bigger overall - whilst the guitars of Cotterill and Hume link together for plenty of crunch and the occasional swirling lead. This song does not go for a pomp-esque sound, really, instead this is just a full-on metallic piece with plenty of grandeur and atmosphere. Hill's rich voice really suits songs like this and the chorus is a winner thanks to his gritty delivery and the subtle harmonies from the rest of the band. The guitar solo is not very Blackmore-esque following the Rainbow touches found elsewhere, but it still suits the song nicely. Cradle to the Grave is somewhat similar overall, but it feels like a combination of the two previous songs - with plenty of Hammond organ throughout and a weightier guitar approach that lacks the Eastern tones of the previous track. The crunch of the early parts of the album returns in a big way, whilst guitar leads and subtle synth flourishes keep the spirit of the previous song alive. The chorus here is also quite similar to that of the previous title track. It is not as AOR-esque as some of the others on the album, with more of a traditional, grander hard rock approach instead taken to make the most out of Hill's rich delivery. The simple chorus is another winner, then, whilst the guitar solo section might be one of the album's most interesting - as it slows things down and goes for a more progressive approach, including a few neo-classical melodies.

Breaking the Silence then returns to the sound of the early part of the album in a big way, picking up the pace again after a few mid-paced tracks and going for the throat with another Dio-esque approach. The chorus does slow things down somewhat, to allow an epic and atmospheric approach to dominate, but the rest of the song is much faster - with a snappy riff and some urgent drumming from Ogden. After a few denser songs, this harder rocking and more metallic sound is welcome. This album is pretty varied overall and I like how the band shifts things up as it moves along. Each transition feels natural, though, and each ingredient of the band's core sound is present in each cut here. The driving riffing of this track feels more powerful due to the slower burn of the last couple of songs, and this is something which has happened elsewhere on the album - and it stops it from feeling too one-paced throughout, as there is a constant, yet subtle, shift in tone to allow the band's progressive side to flourish a little. This album is not a progressive as some of the band's other work, but there are shades of that here despite the grander and more metallic approach of the current line-up. A more progressive sound does influence the album's final cut, Forever Seventeen, though. It is the closest thing on the album to a ballad, as much of this album up to this point has been pretty heavy, but Forever Seventeen feels more atmospheric overall - with a dense, keyboard-led sound and an emotional performance from Hill. The progressive feeling comes as a result of the arrangement. Demon were never a full-blown prog band, but The Plague and British Standard Approved certainly had their Pink Floyd-esque moments - and some of those sounds have been repurposed on Forever Seventeen. The song just feels to be made up of more parts than many of those here, with the mix being quite busy thanks to clean guitar melodies and lots of different keyboard tones. It is still pretty hooky overall, though, with another strong chorus which Hill pours everything into - and the song has the feel of a true closer. I always like it when a closing song really feels like such - and not just another song on the album. I am not sure if this album is a concept album or not, but Forever Seventeen feels like a song that the album has been building towards - so the more atmospheric and progressive approach works well to create a final moment of grandeur as the album comes to a slow-burning, yet larger-than-life, end. In some ways it is hard to compare this album to the Demon albums from the early 1980s as they are all quite different - but Invincible has been getting quite a lot of plays recently and I can see that continuing. There are shades of those classic releases from the 1980s but the Demon of today is quite a bit heavier than the Demon of then - and this is a much riffier album than anything which I have heard from the band before. The AOR melodies and the love of a big keyboard sound remain, as does the occasional progressive flourish, but in general this album is heavier and more metallic than what I know from the band - albeit with a side of Magnum for good measure - and that is certainly no bad thing given Hill's aging voice and the guitar talents if Cotterill and Hume.

The album was released on 17th May 2024 via Frontiers Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Face the Master.