Warlord - Thy Kingdom Come

My introduction to Warlord was via the song “Mrs. Victoria” which I heard on Finger’s Metal Shop on WBAB in 1985 or so. It was one of the most bizarre metal songs I had ever heard; some twisted mix of dark power metal, odd sound effects and free-form instrumentation. I was hooked immediately and picked up Thy Kingdom Come shortly thereafter. I didn’t know it was a compilation at the time, but probably wouldn’t have cared even if I had. Just from staring at the photos of the band’s members on the album’s back cover—who identified themselves solely by names like “Destroyer” and “Thunder Child”—I knew I had tapped a gold mine before I even spun the record.

Warlord got its start in 1980. That’s when drummer Mark Zonder (Thunder Child) moved to Los Angeles. At that point, he was coming off a gig with a hard rock band called Russian Roulette. Through a girl they both knew, Zonder met guitarist William J. Tsamis (Destroyer) and eventually invited him to move to L.A. to start a new group. Tsamis was ambitious and a big fan of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, and it was he who chose the name Warlord. The group was far removed from the glam acts popular on the west coast at the time and in many ways the precursor to today’s medieval, Middle Earth-themed groups such as Hammerfall and Blind Guardian.

It would be inaccurate to say that Warlord ever had a “breakthrough” in their career (they would forever remain a cult band), but the closest they came was having their song “Lucifer's Hammer" included on the now classic Metal Massacre II compilation. But despite some critical praise and underground fervor, the band suffered from a lack of label support and an inability to find the right vocalist. In five years, the band would go through three singers (known as Damien King I, III and III) but record only one album of original material, Deliver Us. They never really fit in in Los Angeles, and even a late signing with Metal Blade (at the time a small, relatively unknown label) couldn’t save the band. By the mid-1980s, Warlord was no more.

Thy Kingdom Come was one of two Warlord compilations released by Metal Blade after the band parted ways (the other being the far more accessible Best of Warlord). It contained nine of the band’s songs and a drum solo by Zonder (“Hands and Feet (Thunder Child’s Farewell)".

How to describe the music? Imagine an act with the raw metallic stylings of Savatage circa Sirens and the lyrical sensibilities of a group like Cirith Ungol. Then sprinkle in some proto-black metal sounds not unlike what Mercyful Fate was doing at the time. Songs like “Mrs. Victoria” and “Aliens” by all counts should have been ridiculous and laughable. But Warlord created such compelling and evil music that you couldn’t help but take them seriously. The truth, too, is that the band’s players were fantastic. It is an absolute pleasure to listen to Zonder at this point in his career. I remember asking my drum teacher at the time, “Doesn’t this guy overplay?” His answer was something like, “Yeah, but he’s damn good.” The same could be said about Tsamis, who was equally adept at both rhythm and lead guitar, a true talent. And the vocalists—the source of continuous frustration for Tsamis—are actually excellent! Even keyboards were incorporated effectively by the band.

What made Warlord interesting, too, was how totally unpredictable they were. You just never knew where any one of these songs was going to go. “Mrs. Victoria” featured bizarre cackling laughter and an ending that suddenly erupted into totally chaotically playing as if the band’s member had just dosed. “Aliens” had what might still be the strangest bridge in metal history, a polka-like dirge with a breaking bottle serving as a metronome. The overly romantic guitar stylings of “Lost and Lonely Days” would probably fit in a pop song, but somehow work within the Warlord context as well. And while it is somewhat hard to describe, Warlord’s music had unbelievable atmosphere. To this day, these songs have weight, and a great melodic sense that makes them natural headbangers. Tracks like “Deliver Us From Evil” and “Black Mass” sound every bit as dark and good now as they did in 1985.

After Warlord’s unfortunate parting, Zonder would go on to play with Fates Warning and become a legend behind the drums. Tsasmis quit the scene entirely, at one point going off to a university to study philosophy and religion. But he found over the years that fans kept contacting him and telling him how much they loved Warlord and wished the band were still around. Tsamis’ comeback to the metal world would be with Lordian Guard, which released two albums, in 1996 and 1997. But then, a total of fifteen years after they left the scene, Warlord would reform with Swede Joacim Cans from Hammerfall behind the mike. In 2002, Warlord released the well-received Rising Out of the Ashes. It was one final shout-out to the fans, and then they walked into the night once again.

So many metal fans today complain about a lack of originality in the scene and the overly produced nature of the music. Those fans need to check out Warlord. It’s rare you can look back into the annals of metal and find a gem that no one seemingly knew about. This is certainly one, and forever will be, second reunion or not.