Philadelphia - WARLORD
The christian metal band Philadelphia was a contemporary of Messiah Prophet, early Saint, and early Bride back in the mid-80's, and similar in styling to those pioneers. Their flash in the pan history consisted of two indie releases, Tell the Truth in 1985 and Search and Destroy in 1986 before fading into the obscurity of time.
The band, originally from Louisiana, had all moved away (they must be named after the church in Asia Minor, not the City of Brotherly Love), and a reunion of the members led to them jamming together. Some demos from their unfinished 3rd album Warlord got dusted off, and soon the band found themselves with their first new CD in 30 years (with the exception of a couple new tunes made as bonus tracks for the reissuing of albums 1 and 2 some years ago).
Expectations for this release were mixed. Philadelphia had some great songs in the day, "Search and Destroy" for one, but lacked the consistency to be truly great. On the other hand, speaking as a longtime christian metal head, it's always a treat to hear any band come out of the mists of time to deliver new music for a ready ear.
Well, the years must have been exceptionally good to these guys. Warlord comes across as a cohesive slab of hard rock/classic metal that far exceeds the band's previous efforts. The CD really benefits from current production values and avoids sounding dated; remaining seamless between the new and old material. Guitar work really shines, and the somewhat raspy vocals add a layer to this brooding work. Pure attitude is accentuated by the sassy "I'm Not Listening," the sinister "Son of the Morning," character portrait from Proverbs "Lady Fortune," the slow and doomy "Way of the Skull," and Christ's return in the title track.
Highly recommended for classic metal lovers. Hereto only available in hard copy from Amazon as a print on demand option, Warlord will soon be available on Roxx Records. 4 out of 5 stars (indie) - Chris Gatto