Sign Of The Jackal Heavy Metal Survivors CD Review

Lucky me, here I am with a slab of Traditional Metal from an Italian Female-fronted Heavy Metal band called Sign of The Jackal. The band’s latest effort is their third release, it’s entitled “Heavy Metal Survivors”. After several inspirational listens on my part, I feel the title of the album has been justly earned with blood, sweat and a shit ton of METAL! I’m quite taken with the band considering I’d never heard of them until a weeks ago. It’s one of those rare times when I get something in for review and it’s like meeting up with a long-lost friend that’s been missing for years.

From what I’m reading on the internet the band is a part of the NWOTHM movement (New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal) apparently this is a term that’s been around since the mid 2000’s or so. I think I’ve been hiding under rocks, because I’ve never heard of the term until now. I’m a bit long in the tooth, so I’m going to call it what it really is - it’s Classic Heavy Metal like we got off on when we were young headbangers – it’s packed with soaring vocals, speed, precision and power!
 
Naturally, there are a lot of influences running rampant through this album, most notably - Hellion, Warlock and Blacklace! There aren’t too many female fronted bands left that play music like this, so this is a treat for me. I’ve pre-ordered the album, and I’ve scoped out their other releases and I’ll be picking those up too, they’re rad as hell too! Heavy Metal Survivors is classic in every sense. After a brief intro the album jumps right into it with “Breaking the Spell”, and you know exactly what you’re about to get – a fist full of Metal, the band puts on a clinic, specifically in the guitar area – classic lead breaks/riffs and did I mention high-pitched vocals akin to Ann Boleyn and Maryanne Scandiffio. Next up we run head on into “Buio Omega” which is another earth-shaking piece of Metal magic! “Pedal to the Metal” sees the band slow down a slight bit, with a mid-tempo number like something off an early Accept album. This track is one that I’ve went back and revisited quite a few times; it scratches my itch! “Nightmare City”, “Watch Out” and “You Better Run for Tomorrow” are a few more of the standout tunes on the album that you don’t want to miss out on.

Heavy Metal Survivors is the kind of album that I yearn to listen to every day, it’s classic in every manner. If you want to listen to real Metal, this is an album packed with it – hooky riffs, blistering leads and killer vocals and there’s not a dud to be found. If I had anything negative to say, the album could’ve used a little bit more polishing in the production department, but otherwise it’s perfect. I’m really looking forward to getting the record in! If you fancy yourself a fan of bands like Hellion, Warlock, Blacklace and Chastain then this is for you! Grab one today from Dying Victims Productions, they’re currently offering it on vinyl and CD, it’s a top release in 2024!

~Black Angel