You WIN!  Two posts in one day!

Man…  haven’t done an “Under The Radar” post in a couple of years.  First few posts were done to highlight albums and bands that you may have missed back in the day, but for this go ’round I’m going to hit on an underrated fivesome from California that went through some serious trials and tribulations (and definitely heartache) to release what is possibly their best album ever:  Armored Saint and Symbol Of Salvation.

Armored Saint…  a band of childhood friends that formed in the early 80s found themselves at a difficult period at the tail end of that decade.  Their first three albums (March Of The Saint, Delirious Nomad, and Raising Fear) were excellent slabs of heavy metal, taking the strengths of bands like Judas Priest and the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) movement and putting their own spin on things.  All players were solid, the music was heavy yet melodic, and the band featured a fantastic singer in John Bush.  Unfortunately, due to the timing of hair metal and record company indifference the band never quite broke out of cult band status and did not receive the respect they deserved outside of a few metal magazines and the praise from faithful fans. But the worst was yet to come.

Shortly after the band’s 1987 album Raising Fear and unhappy with Chrysalis Records, the band holed up over the next few years to work up demos to present to record labels.  Unfortunately, lead guitarist David Prichard was diagnosed with leukemia and passed away shortly before the band started recording the material for what would be their Metal Blade release Symbol Of Salvation.  After Prichard’s passing, the band recruited new blood in guitarist Jeff Duncan, brought back original guitarist Phil Sandoval (who had left the band shortly after second album Delirious Nomad), and went in to finish the new album, dedicated to the spirit and memory of their fallen friend.

And what a record this turned out to be.  From intro song “Reign Of Fire” through the final cut “Spineless”, Armored Saint played to their strengths and released an released an album full of memorable, heavy yet melodic songs with some outstanding vocal work from John Bush and great interplay between the tag team of Sandoval\Duncan,  backed by the great Joey Vera on bass and Gonzo Sandoval on drums.  And with Dave Jerden’s production, the songs and sound of the band were really top notch and were one step above the already great material on their previous releases.  Finally, the band had the songs and a great sounding album that would hopefully lead to greater success and respect in the music community (more on that later).

No lie…  this album would be a fantastic edition for those of you that dig heavy rock and miss old school heavy metal from the 80s.  “Reign Of Fire” and “Last Train Home” were two of the more melodic cuts on the disc that did not sacrifice the heaviness one iota but featured some excellent Bush vocal work with some singability to the chorus.  Shoot, throw “Warzone” in there and “Burning Question” while you’re at it; both cuts showing off the killer range of Bush as he offers up plenty of melodic singing in the verses but belts out the hero vocal come chorus time (one of the reason he ranks high in my list of favorite singers- look up those posts!).  And how about the band’s ability to swing a little in the underrated “Truth Always Hurts”?  Just proof that you don’t need to hit everyone over the head with non-stop straight forward metal.

Did I say “non-stop straight forward” metal?  How about that hammering riff on title cut “Symbol Of Salvation”?  Or the in your face of last track “Spineless”?  Two solid riffsters for sure.  But maybe a taste of experimentation is what you need, so how about digging on the bluesy, almost jazzy flamenco swing that intros the great “Tainted Past”, one of those great, great cuts the band seems to toss out with ease that features those heavy elements but adds new twists.  Solid stuff.

Unfortunately, Symbol Of Salvation did not set the world on fire.  It did garner the band some new fans but within a couple of years John Bush was asked to join Anthrax, a band with much bigger recognition and one that could offer up a bit more longer term stability after many years of struggling.  Bush went on to release some great albums with Anthrax but during downtime did Saint’s 2000 album Revelation, eventually leaving the NYC thrashers in the late 00s.  Fortunately for us, Bush has reunited with Vera, Duncan, and the Sandoval brothers and has released a couple of excellent albums, one live album, and done the occasional tour.  And for that, this lifelong fan couldn’t be any happier to see them back together.  The Saint lives on!