Demona-Speaking With The Devil

Infernö Records
2013

Chilean speed metal from Quebec, Canada? Yep, that's the case with the female-fronted Demona. Formed in 2007, with the sophomore "Speaking With The Devil" serving as the follow-up album to 2012's "Metal Through the Time", the band's early days were spent in Valparaíso until front-woman/lead singer extraordinar
Tanza (who started the band which, at least in it's humble beginnings, was a one-woman show after her previous band, Poisoned, disbanded) moved to Quebec in June of 2011. At that point Tanza recruited fellow-minded musicians in order to play live shows and (hopefully) give Demona a complete line-up. After the obligatory line-up changes (including adding Hugo "Witchhammer" Uribe from the Colombian band Witchtrap to the line-up mere weeks before the recording of their 2012, full-length debut album!) the band now features not only Tanza on lead vocals and guitars, but ex-Riotor member Gabriel Dufour (lead guitarist who is also apparently Tanza's ex-husband), bass player Jeff (ex-No Pity) and drummer Antoine Pellerin. Now, normally I don't include band photos with reviews when we are talking about line-up information and all, but in this case I just couldn't help myself. I'm sure most people will understand why!

All of which brings us to Demona's latest offering/album number two, "Speaking With The Devil". With "Speaking With The Devil" we get 11 songs with a total run-time of 41 minutes. Of course we should cross off both the "Intro" and "Outro" so really it's 9-tracks. Since they range in length from 2:42 ("Malvenidos") to 5:53 ("The Sorceror's Escapade") it's all good and besides, Demona does a lot to pack in as much punch as possible into each track so you'll get your metal's worth with this "Bad Boy"*! Interestingly enough the band's one track, "Dirty Speed Metal", offers a fairly good description of what's in store for the listener when it comes right down to the meat and potatoes of this four-piece. The music is somewhat rough around the edges, but those ragged ridges only help to heighten the awareness that what your listening to is every bit raw/real underground speed metal. Tanza's (thrash metal) voice can be a bit "intense" at times, but it still falls well within the range of "easily-accessible and somewhat-understandable vocal delivery" so it's never really an issue. Meanwhile her metal brothers give her plenty of room to do her own thing while still exercising their own skills. For a band that is still finding it's footing as a full-fledged outfit "Speaking With The Devil" is a good "starting point". One would like to think that with a few more albums under their belt and with a stable line-up in place a band like Demona could really go places. Let's hope so. For now though "Speaking With The Devil" comes recommended to those of you who female-fronted thrash acts as well as those of you like their speed metal a bit more ugly and mean.

* "Bad Boy", which is a real range the f**k track on this album, is finger-bleeding speed metal from hell and one of those numbers where you wonder how it is a band can play that fast and insane without causing a fire from all of the likely friction caused!