ARMORED SAINT Guitarist Talks About Band's 'Reunion'

Diana DeVille of KNAC.COM recently conducted an interview with ODIN/ARMORED SAINT guitarist Jeff Duncan. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

KNAC.COM: How did you feel about the [ARMORED SAINT] reunion and the reaction from the fans?

Jeff: Oh, well, ARMORED SAINT's kind of funny in that, I didn't really consider it so much of a reunion just because of how ARMORED SAINT goes, because in 2000 we did "Revelation" and all that, and that kind of came from left field when that happened. Then a while back we had done a one-off show in Arizona with the SCORPIONS and that was kind of like okay, and then we hadn't done anything for a long time. We did the one show, that was it, and then we didn't do anything for a long time until this European thing came up. As far as the fans' reaction to it, it was really positive and very encouraging. It was "We love ARMORED SAINT; we love you guys" kind of vibe, and it was just really flattering really. In a sense I understand it because, back when I was in ODIN, I was an ARMORED SAINT fan. I used to always go see ARMORED SAINT because I loved that band. There was just something about it that would strike a chord with me and I wanted to throw my fist up in the air, you know? So, I understand from a fan's perspective to a certain extent ARMORED SAINT even having been a member of it for some time now, I can relate to it from that perspective, you know, whereas the other guys in the band perhaps can't relate to it from that point of view. I've been in front of ARMORED SAINT with my fist in the air going "Yeah! Stricken By Fate!" [laughs]

KNAC.COM: When you stepped in to fill Dave Prichard's shoes, what was that feeling like?

Jeff: It's kind of strange because what actually happened was, I came into the band initially when Phil was not in the band, and I actually played in the band with Dave for a while, and then I departed ARMORED SAINT because I had some personal issues I needed to sort out. In the interim David passed away, and they asked me back in the band, and I said "Yeah, of course." My head was a lot clearer at that point, and I thought I had left ARMORED SAINT. It was what I had to do at the time, but it was still like, "Wow, I can't believe I walked away from that band — Hello!" And then they were like, "Hey man, come back in the band."

KNAC.COM: A second chance there.

Jeff: Yeah, and I never departed them after that.

KNAC.COM: You were stricken by fate! You were meant to be in ARMORED SAINT.

Jeff: As far as stepping into Dave's shoes or something like that, I don't think ARMORED SAINT expected me to do that; I think they just liked me. On a personal note, Dave was a buddy of mine and we hung out a lot. I certainly liked him as a guitar player and a songwriter. One thing I attempted to do and still do now, is to try to be true to certain elements of his solos that are very memorable and, not necessarily note for note his leads, but definitely things that should be left untouched. You know, certain melodic lines or certain things, playing my guitar with that band as a member of ARMORED SAINT and not doing my thing, playing as a member of ARMORED SAINT, which is…I don't think it's anything anyone can understand unless they are actually playing in that band. There is a certain approach to your instrument that you take with that band.

It was a little strange at first, because I was like "Wow, this is weird being in ARMORED SAINT without Dave," because Dave was such a prominent figure in that band, and he was very…at rehearsals and things he was very much on top of things, and his presence was known. So, he wasn't there, and there was me where he used to be, and it took some adjusting at first. I think I was a little nervous at first because I was thinking, "Are these guys going to be okay with me being right here? I know they asked me in the band, but I hope they're okay with it, because I feel kind of weird." But I think that was all in my head. The guys certainly wanted me in the band and welcomed me with open arms, and we've had a great relationship since then.

The first thing that we did was.. then I ended going in the studio with them and doing "Symbol of Salvation", which a lot of the songs, a lot of the music was written by Dave. He had showed me a lot of those songs, so I knew exactly how to play them right. I was the one person in the world who knew how to play those songs how Dave wrote them, because he personally showed them to me. I was talking earlier to you about the song "Another Day". I challenge anyone to pick up a guitar and try and figure that one out. I was taught that song directly by him, and it's still pretty difficult to play. [laughs]

Read the entire interview at KNAC.COM.