Warrior - The Wars Of Gods And Men (2004)

Formed in 1982, Los Angeles, California, USA band Warrior occupied a space somewhere between the barbarian machismo of Manowar and the grandiose pomp rock of Queen. The line-up originally comprised Perry McCarty (vocals), Tommy Asakawa (guitar), Joe Floyd (guitar), Rick Bennett (bass, keyboards) and Liam Jason (drums). The band spent time playing the local clubs and refining their style before recording a three-track demo that led to sold-out local shows and record contracts with MCA Records in the USA and 10 Records in Europe. They subsequently endured considerable technical problems during the recording of Fighting For The Earth and lost both Bennett and Jason following the sessions, with Bruce Turgon (bass, ex-Black Sheep) and Jimmy Volpe (drums) replacing them. It was a reasonable debut, built on a dense, rhythmic guitar barrage and thunderous drums overlaid by McCarty’s near-operatic vocals. Lyrics included some entertaining if daft sub-Nietzschean fantasy scenarios. Similarities to Judas Priest were obvious, although Warrior tended to avoid dual lead guitar work, and the band’s stage image, although leather-clad, was in a futuristic armour style befitting their name. However, a bemused public showed little interest and the rock press, convinced they were being sold an industry-hyped act, treated them with disdain. In 1986 the band split leaving the members to join other acts (McCarty joined Steve Stevens’ Atomic Playboys, while Turgon found himself a job with Shadow King).