Way back in 1991, American heavy metal act Armored Saint released Symbol of Salvation, their fourth album overall and to this day one of their most popular releases among their fans. It was also to be their last album written with original guitarist Dave Prichard, who died of leukemia in 1990 shortly before it was recorded, and also would be the start of an extended hiatus for the band that would last until 1999. Fast forward to 2018, and the band are doing a short tour playing Symbol of Salvation in its entirety for the first time ever. Along with Act of Defiance, Armored Saint would make the first stop of this tour at The Chance Theater in Poughkeepsie, New York, and Sea of Tranquility Publisher Pete Pardo was on hand for the metal heroics.

After a couple opening acts, direct support and Metal Blade labelmates Act of Defiance took the stage. Somewhat of an extreme metal supergroup, the band consists of ex-Megadeth members Chris Broderick (guitar, vocals) and Shawn Drover (drums), along with vocalist Henry Derek (ex-Scar the Martyr/Thrown Into Exile) and bassist Matt Bachand (Shadows Fall). With two albums under their belt, Act of Defiance are starting to make a name for themselves, and despite some early sound problems that negated their sonic attack to a wall of mud, the mix steadily improved throughout their set, which consisted of songs from their two releases, mixing thrash, modern metal, and of course a touch of technical death metal. Broderick tossed out an assortment of crunchy riffs and blazing solos, with all three frontmen contributing a variety of clean and growling vocals. A solid set that was well received by the fans, and it's good to see Broderick & Drover continuing on with their metal alliance.

At right about 10PM the Saint took to the stage to a rousing applause as they tore into the title track from their debut album, "March of the Saint". This was followed by classics "Long Before I Die" and the killer "Chemical Euphoria", which of course led into singer John Bush (who still has great pipes after all these years) leading everyone into the start of Symbol of Salvation. One by one, the band took us back in time through this excellent album...in fact, you almost forgot just how GOOD an album Symbol of Salvation really is. "Reign of Fire", "Dropping Like Flies", "Last Train Home", "Another Day", "Tribal Dance", "Warzone"...all strong songs and all performed perfectly here. The twin guitar attack of Phil Sandoval & Jeff Duncan were totally in sync, the always busy bassist Joey Vera in constant motion around the stage, and the larger than life Gonzo Sandoval driving it all from behind the drum kit- just a professional band doing what they do best. Instead of leaving the stage and coming back for an encore, they opted instead to just stay and launch into "Win Hands Down" from their latest album and close with the staple "Can U Deliver", which sent everyone home happy.

A classic night of metal, delivered by a classic band. Celebrate Symbol of Salvation folks, it's still a great one.

Pete Pardo