WARLORD is a band that has given a lot of musical pleasure to a lot of Old School Epic Heavy Metal throughout the years. Formed in 1980 in Los Angeles they became responsible for some absolute classics throughout the years. Especially “And The Canons Of Destruction Have Begun…...” (1984) is one of those albums that every Heavy Metal enthusiast should have in his collection. After only six years and that one album the band decided to split up, only to reinvent themselves in 2002. After that they gave us a few more very respectable albums. They are “Rising Out Of The Ashes”(2002), “Live In Athens” (2013), “The Hunt For Damien” (2015), and “Free Spirit Roar” (2024). Plus a few compilation albums, and I need to say that “The Lost Archangel” is another one.

Until 2021, the singer and founder of the band William J. Tsamis passed away at the very young age of 60. He has been replaced by Giles Lavery (who also sings for JACK STARR and ALCATRAZZ). He is very much present on the most recent songs. They actually are the ones the album starts with, and the titles “Golgotha (Place Of The Skull)”, “The Rainbow”, “Lost Archangel” and “Stygian Passage”. All four can be found now in physical form on WARLORD's 2024 single release "The Lost Archangel". Musically it is a continuation of WARLORD of old, but lyrically and vocally it is quite different. The lyrics on these songs is very religious, making me consider WARLORD to be a White Metal band. That in itself is not a problem, but I do have an issue with how high his voice is in the mix. Especially as I feel that his vocal performance is rather lacking in those songs. I expected more.

After these four songs that is not an issue any more, because the mix is done properly, making the vocals a part of the music. The 2025 song “Enemy Mind” plus the two 2025 re-recordings (“70,000 Sorrows” and “Night Of The Fury”) sound just really good and strong. But, as there are also three songs of the 2013 album “Live In Athens” on this compilation, you get to hear how good original singer William J. Tsamis really was. So, succeeding him was always going to be a challenge. Like I mentioned, musically this whole “The Lost Archangel” album gives you a good insight in what WARLORD stands for at this moment of time. And I like what I hear, only with a few pointers that could do with some attention.