Release date: June 27th 2025

Warlord is a mythical name in the pantheon of heavy metal. One of the founding bands of what came to be known as US Power Metal, they forged a melodic, sword-and-sorcery-driven sound that still echoes through caverns of steel. Rather than a full-length of new material, The Lost Archangel works better as a compilation: only three songs are newly written, while the rest are re-recordings or live renditions of older material.

This record walks a path somewhere between the devotional and the narrative, as if each track were a chapter in a sacred crusade. Along the way, there are revelations, detours, polished reworks, and moments where the weight of the past threatens to sink the bow. But one thing this album never does is surrender. Is it worth it? Let’s dive into the battlefield.

Review

Golgotha (The Place of the Skull) kicks off with martial keyboards, channeling a dungeon synth and neo-prog vibe. A mid-tempo march sets the tone with military precision. The arrangement is simple but effective, led by tasteful keyboard work. Giles’s vocals come through strong and balanced—neither buried nor overpowering. The guitar solo is technically modest but blends nicely with the clean, inspired bass lines. The structure is calm yet commanding, like a ship moving forward with steady conviction—not in a storm, but still cutting through deep waters. The song ends with a poetic spoken word passage, very much in the vein of Manowar’s The Triumph of Steel.

Rainbow opens with clean, arpeggiated guitars—folk vibes and melancholic singing at full tilt. Synthesized winds add to the atmosphere but fall short of authenticity; a real instrument would’ve done better here. As the song builds, it veers into power ballad territory, with deep bass notes and long, sustained chords punctuated by brief melodic solos. Giles’s voice isn’t spectacular, but he handles mid and high accents well, with a solid use of vibrato. The final riffs are heavy and Sabbath-like, nicely aligning with an epic doom sound that nods to classic Cirith Ungol.

Lost Archangel begins with a biblical narrator warning us of angels and demons. Drone-like synths, Andean-style winds, and a helicopter set the stage for a long, ambitious track. A slow twin-guitar intro and bolder synths pave the way for a song that demands patience. Unfortunately, it gets lost in its own architecture. The pacing is sluggish, the build takes too long, and the vocals feel strained. It wants to be epic but doesn’t go to war; it’s grandiose but uninspired—long, yet oddly tiring, offering little variation.

Stygian Passage brings everything Lost Archangel was missing. It sticks to mid-tempos but with a tighter structure—no cookie-cutter 4/4 here. Mark Zonder brings tasteful jazz-infused fills and rhythmic variation. The guitar leads sketch elegant lines with bright, pleasant notes, and twin harmonies blend perfectly with the central bass. The track avoids overused narrative tropes and instead just tells the story straight, with purposeful bridges and compelling choruses. One of the album’s high points.

The next section features re-recordings of older tracks. They don’t stray far from the originals but benefit from cleaner, more refined production.

Enemy Mind opens with dissonant clean guitars and a rock-solid old-school riff, locked into a hypnotic, repetitive groove. Its monolithic structure fits the track’s title like a gauntlet. The mid-tempo pace is steady throughout. The guitar solo shines, bluesy in phrasing and rich in emotion, with fast legato and sweeping sections. The heavy final attack wraps things up with thunder.

70,000 Sorrows gets straight to business. The bass takes center stage, anchoring the sharp upper notes. The drums are tight and ceremonial, with some creative cymbal work. The percussion here is more unleashed and less constrained—an excellent choice for a compilation. The middle sections venture into jazzy figures, giving the track a welcome boost in sophistication. The repetitive chorus makes this the album’s most anthemic track.

Night of the Fury channels a pagan metal feel, built on slow gallops and medium tempos, with lots of power chord pounding. There’s a lyrical nod to Grave Digger and Blind Guardian’s early ballads, pairing repetitive riffs with choral-style synths. The rhythm section is rigid but fits the song’s design. It doesn’t reinvent itself—until the final moments, when ghostly wails add a dramatic twist.

The final stretch includes live recordings of classic Warlord tracks:

• Father (Live in Athens 2013): clean execution with strong bass and vocal presence.
• Glory (Live in Athens 2013): solid mix, some crowd chants audible, and excellent vocal delivery.
• Soliloquy (Live in Athens 2013): the synth stands out in a natural, organic way.
• Lucifer’s Hammer (Live 2024): expertly performed, though the “live” feel is diluted—sounds more like a studio track.
• Black Mass (Live 2024): similar issue—technically sound but lacks that live fire.
• Child of the Damned (Live 2024): a classic executed with dignity and force, true to its legacy.

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TRACKLIST
01. Golgotha (The Place of the Skull)
02. The Rainbow
03. Lost Archangel
04. Stygian Passage
05. Enemy Mind (2025)
06. 70,000 Sorrows (2013/2025)
07. Night of the Fury (2013/2025)
08. Father (Live in Athens 2013)
09. Glory (Live in Athens 2013)
10. Soliloquy (Live in Athens 2013)
11. Lucifer’s Hammer (Live 2024)
12. Black Mass (Live 2024)
13. Child of the Damned (Live 2024)

Total playing time: 76:36 min.

Conclusion

The Lost Archangel is no masterpiece, but neither is it forgettable. It’s the kind of album that hits more in the chest than in the ears. While some tracks suffer from overblown ambition or meandering forms, the highs—like Stygian Passage and Enemy Mind—make the journey worth taking. Warlord continues to sail their mythic seas: not every wave is glorious, but their conviction is unwavering.

TheNwothm Score: 6.5/10 – Solid but uneven.

Links

Bandcamp:https://warlordheavymetal.bandcamp.com/music

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/OfficialWarlord

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Warlord_Band

Label:High Roller Records