Soul Vigilant Tribute : United States Power Metal (Part 3)

• Liege Lord

One of the most underrated and overlooked bands of the scene, Liege Lord were formed as Deceiver in 1982 in Stamford, Connecticut. After recording a demo and an EP they released their raw and intense first album, Freedom's Rise in 1985 that left us cult classics like Rage of Angels and For the King with massive guitar riffs and one of the most intense vocal performances of the scene by Tony Truglio but for all the good things the album  had to offer, it remained largely underground, mainly because of its poor porduction and is only revered and appreciated by metalheads who are truly devoted to classic heavy metal.They then proceeded to release two more magnificent albums : Burn my Touch in 1987 and Master Control in 1988, the latter managing to get some significant recognition among metal fans in general. They split up in 1990 and reunited again last year with most of the original lineup still intact but they haven't released any studio material yet.

Standout Records : All of them

• Attacker

Another greatly overlooked band of the scene, Attacker were formed as Warloc (missing the k) in 1983 and changed their name one year later. After recording a demo in the same year they proceeded to release their debut, Battle at Helm's Deep in 1985, which is considered by some to be the first pure power metal record to come out of the U.S along with Helstar's Burning Star. The debut was really raw sounding and it was very speedy and aggresive for its time save for the more epic mid tempo parts like the self-titled song's verses. They came back even more powerful 4 years later with their second effort (which is also their best IMO) called The Second Coming. It had an even more intense vocal performance than the debut as John Leone (R.I.P 1994) took original vocalist Bob Mitchell's place in 1986. The second album also had a more melodic approach than its aggresive predecessor.They disbanded one year later (1989) and reunited again in 2001 with drummer Mike Sabatini and guitarist Pat Marinelli being the only original members left. They have released three albums ever since and one of them (Giants of Canaan) was released this February and truly reminds me of the band in its days of glory in the 80s.

Standout records : Battle at Helm's Deep, The Second Coming, Giants of Canaan

• Heir Apparent

Heir Apparent are perhaps even more overlooked than the two previous bands. Formed in 1983 they released 2 demos in 1984 and then they released their debut, Graceful Inheritance in early 1986. Even though it didn't get all the recognition it deserves I have to say the album is simply astonishing.With melodic guitar riffs and solos and a great vocal performance by Paul Davidson the album is one of the most enjoyable this scene can offer with unsung hymns like Keeper of the Reign, Masters of invasion and Tear Down the Walls (personal favorite).The band recorded two demos after leaving  Black Dragon Records. They released their second album, One Small Voice in 1989 which followed a more progressive direction than its predecessor. The band has been active ever since but due to inconsistencies in the lineup and the lack of a record company they have been only able to release some demos the latest of them being released in 2003. The band performs live very often though and they are definitely worth seeing.

Standout Records : Graceful Inheritance

• Virgin Steele

Time for a well-known band of the movement once again.Virgin Steele were formed in 1981 and released their self-titled debut one year later.It was really good, though the trademark sound of the band had not been established yet and the album sounded a lot more like what hard rock and glam metal bands were doing at the time. They then started walking down the path of greatness and establishing their own style with their next three albums, Guardians of the Flame, Noble Savage and Age of Consent, released in 1983, '85 and '88 respectively.The epitome of their carreer had not been released yet though. After releasing the mediocre album Life Among Ruins in 1993 they went on to release their greatest albums, The Marriage Between Heaven and Hell Part I & II ('94 and '95 respectively), Invictus (1998) and The house of Atreus act I and II ('99 and 2000). These albums mainly with the help of David DeFeis' trademark vocal and keyboard performance (and songwriting of course) managed to touch the hearts of metalheads around the world with songs that could really tell well-crafted stories and speak to one's soul. These albums are probably more related to classical music than anything progressive metal bands like Dream Theater have released. Virgin Steele are still active and are still able to deliver spectacular albums like The Book of Burning, even though their latest effort left me unsatisfied.

Standout Records : The Marriage Between Heaven and Hell I&II, Invictus, The House of Atreus I&II

• Slauter Xstroyes

Back to the underground scene with one of the most progressive bands of the movement, Chicago's Slauter Xstroyes.Being formed in 1979 under the name Naj and recording a demo under that name, they soon changed it to Slaughter and Destroyers and finally slightly modified it to the one we know today.Although they were one of the earliest bands in the movement they were not able to release a record until 1985 when they released their great debut called Winter Kill.Slauter's complex melodies, an over the top vocal performance and frequent time signature changes made them one of the bands that helped create the genre we now call progressive metal.Something that added to the beauty of their sound were their really cheesy and irrelevant lyrics (listen to Mother, Motherfucker). In my opinion they were as vital to the genre's creation as bands like Fates Warning and Queensryche, although they did not sound like these bands at all as Slauter's sound was rawer and a great deal more aggressive than the other two. They split up in 1989 and reunited again with slight changes in the lineup to give us another fine record that goes by the name Free the Beast.Although they did not release any further material they continued touring and remained active until 2012.

Standout Records : Both records that are mentioned (Winter Kill, Free the Beast)

• Well, folks that was the end of this tribute.I hope you liked it! More tributes coming soon!