Warlord

Warlord is a heavy/power metal band from Los Angeles, California, USA, that was formed in 1980. Not to be confused with [a=Warlord (10)] from the United Kingdom.

The brainchild of guitarist/songwriter William J (Bill) Tsamis and drummer Mark S Zonder, Warlord made the trip from their native San Jose, California to Los Angeles and proceeded in crafting their unique style, which pioneered what is called today “Epic Power Metal." The new band caught the attention of Brian Slagel, whose label, Metal Blade Records, had recently issued Metal Massacre, a compilation featuring up-and-coming local metal acts such as Malice, Steeler, Ratt, Slayer and Metallica.

An aficionado of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and admirer of the Euro-metal aesthetic, influences of which are evident in Warlord's sound, Slagel was impressed by Warlord's semi-progressive style inspired by such diverse acts as Rainbow, Scorpions and Jethro Tull. Slagel decided to offer the band a spot on his next compilation and Warlord would make their vinyl debut with "Lucifer's Hammer" on 1982's Metal Massacre II. Earning rave reviews, Warlord made a repeat appearance with "Mrs Victoria" on Metal Massacre III and were signed to Metal Blade for their 1983 Deliver Us album which got the band featured in important publications such as Kerrang, Sounds, Burrn, and Music Connection. Furthermore, Warlord was receiving continual FM radio play in major US markets.

Adding further intrigue to the growing Warlord mystique was the band members' use of pseudonyms such as 'Destroyer' / 'The Raven' (Tsamis), 'Thunderchild' (Zonder), 'Damien King' (vocalist Jack Rucker), and 'Sentinel' (keyboardist Diane Kornarens) as well as Warlord's refusal to become just another LA club act, opting to present themselves on a grander scale instead. To that end, the band rented The Raymond Theater to stage what would turn out to be the only Warlord live performance in the USA until now (August 2013). It was filmed and recorded for the group's first full-length release, "And The Cannons Of Destruction Have Begun...," issued in October 1984 and accompanied by a VHS home video release of the same name (now in DVD). The album featured 2 brand new tracks, "Soliloquy" and "MCMLXXXIV", as well as both cuts from the "Lost And Lonely Days" / "Aliens" 12" single released earlier that same year. Tsamis, Zonder, and Kornarens were joined by bassist Dave Watry ('Archangel') and new vocalist Rick Cunningham ('Damien King II'). A third vocalist worked shortly afterwards with the band (even if just in studio-recording and never on a stage): Rick Anderson, also known at the time as "Damien King III".

The prevalence of “hair metal," "rap music," and the inability to retain a live lineup that could be up to Tsamis' and Zonder's high standards led to the cessation of band operations in 1986. The band's label, Metal Blade, would issue "Thy Kingdom Come", a quasi Best-Of, in December of that year. An extended version, including the whole Deliver Us album, followed in 1989, titled "Best of Warlord." Unbeknownst to Tsamis and Zonder, however, the music of Warlord had already taken off in Europe, and the band amassed a cult-like following. This was largely due to rave magazine reviews, continuous radio play, and the circulation of many demos via "tape trading," as well as positive word-of-mouth promotion among metal fans. With the onset of the internet, the music of Warlord spread worldwide and thus helped secure Warlord a place in the history of heavy metal as one of the greatest metal bands of all time for both artistic integrity as well as their unique melodic style.

Post 1986, found Tsamis recording first an acoustic demo under the name “Lordian Winds” as part of a sprawling project based on John Milton's "Paradise Lost" (released in 2012 by NoRemorse records) and then launching an apocalyptic-themed female-fronted band called Lordian Guard. In the meantime, Zonder joined Prog Metal pioneers Fates Warning and went on to release numerous albums with them as well as other bands since (due to his universally recognized talent) his skills were -and still are- in high demand.

It was during one of Fates Warning's tours that Zonder realized that Warlord's following had grown considerably with fans approaching him to sign Warlord albums and demanding new music from the band. Zonder contacted Tsamis and, as soon as schedules permitted, Warlord was once again converted to active status. Vocalist duties were assigned to Hammerfall vocalist (and big Warlord fan) Joacim Cans. Thus, in 2002, a new album, "Rising Out Of The Ashes," was recorded and released worldwide to rave reviews. And this was followed by the first ever Warlord live performance at the Wacken Open Air festival.

A string of mishaps and very serious family health issues plagued Warlord after these performances and Warlord was once again, put on a hiatus which lasted for almost 9 years. With these issues resolved and considerable pressure by fans and promoters alike, Warlord returned to active status formally in March 2012, with the surprise release of the first new Warlord song in 10 years. “Night Of The Fury” was first released on Warlord's fan club (and in general) on Facebook where it was also revealed that not only was Warlord back in the studio working on a new album, but that vocalist duties would be handled by one of the original 80s Warlord vocalists, Rick Anderson (whose stint in Italian band Martiria had just ended). Philip Bynoe (current Steve Vai) joined the band on bass and the collaboration resulted in a new 55 minute album, "The Holy Empire," which quickly sold out, leading to ongoing re-pressings. "The Holy Empire" was also released on all major digital platforms as well as a collector's edition limited-release cassette which sold out in under one day. A vinyl 2 LP version (with a live bonus track) of "The Holy Empire" will be released in October 2013 by Alone Records.

In the meantime, mounting pressure by promoters and fans bore fruit and Warlord announced that it would headline the April 2013 German "Keep It True XVI" Festival. This announcement was followed by two more headlining dates in Greece - Thessaloniki and Athens which sold out, thus demanding a second show in Athens which was sold out as well.

Singers over the years:

1) [a=Jack Rucker] (Damien King):
1981-1982 demos
1982 Metal Massacre II
1983 Deliver Us
1984 Lost And Lonely Days / Aliens

2) [a=Rick Cunningham] (Damien King II): 1984 And The Cannons Of Destruction Have Begun...

3) [a=Rick Anderson] (Damien King III): 1985 demos, 2013 The Holy Empire

4) Joacim Cans: 2013 Rising Out Of The Ashes

5) Nicholas Leptos: The Hunt For Damien

6) [a=Giles Lavery]:
2013 Live In Athens 2013
2024 From The Ashes To The Archives (The Hot Pursuit Continues)
2025 The Lost Archangel